VIR 400
A focus on teamwork helps Southard Motorsports No. 3 Preformed Line Products Lexus Riley take twelfth at VIR Grand-Am Daytona Prototype raceAlton, VA (May 1, 2007) – A lot can be said
about teamwork, but nowhere is it more essential than in racing,
where the car, engine, drivers, tires, and communications all need
to function perfectly just to finish, much less, do well in a race. And
it was more than evident this weekend at Virginia International
Raceway that teamwork was the key that helped propel Southard Motorsports
through adversity to a twelfth place finish in Sunday's Round Four
of the Grand-Am Rolex Sports Car Series presented by Crown Royal
Special Reserve race.
The 2007 driving partners of Randy Ruhlman and Shane Lewis, who together
pilot the Southard Motorsports No. 3 Preformed Line Products Lexus
Riley Daytona Prototype, were looking forward to the challenges of
driving at the fast and demanding 3.27-mile road course. They were
fresh from a testing session at VIR and ready to start the competition. The
Southard Motorsports team, likewise, felt strongly that the competitive
times turned in testing would serve them well against the other top
ranked teams.
Though they worked hard throughout the weekend, the team was never
successful in duplicating the times that they recorded in testing. Both
drivers worked well together with the team and engineers and quickly
determined that there was a major problem with a new part that had
been installed. The situation could not be remedied at the
track, forcing the team to compensate and make alterations to the
setup throughout the weekend.
As Lewis and Ruhlman worked closely with engineer Kris Mellon, the
team led by owner Steve Southard fought to make changes and improve
the car. By race time, they had found a drivable setup, though
far from an ideal one. With a fast start and good, clean restarts,
excellent pit stops and heads-up driving, both drivers were able
to keep the car in touch with the pack and take advantage of the
race as it unfolded. And in one of the best battles of the race,
the Southard Motorsports No. 3 Preformed Line Product Lexus Riley
was the focus of strong television coverage, as it successfully fought
with the No. 59 Porsche Riley for position in the closing laps of
race to finish twelfth after two and one-half hours of demanding
competition.
"We were so good at the test a few weeks ago and to come back with
so many problems is very frustrating, but we'll take the twelfth
place finish. This was a true team effort," said team owner
Steve Southard. "Everybody did what they needed to, engineering,
crew, both drivers. Everyone worked so well as a team. I'm
really proud of the efforts they put in. We're headed back
to the shop. We know what we need to do, and we'll get ready
to show them what we have at Laguna in a few weeks."
This weekend's 400-K feature race followed a weekend full of racing
activity. The Sunday, April 29th race began at 1 p.m. EDT and
ran the full scheduled 77-laps. Full coverage of the race
was seen live on the SPEED Channel.
The No. 3 Preformed Line Products Daytona Prototype is campaigned
by Southard Motorsports of Powell, Ohio. The Riley chassis
is powered by Lexus engines with technical expertise by TRD Engineering
and carries sponsorship from Preformed Line Products from Mayfield
Village, Ohio. Shane Lewis is a four-year veteran of the Southard
Motorsports and part of the team's two Grand-Am podium finishes last
year. Randy Ruhlman joined the team this year after running last
year in Daytona Prototypes and following a successful career in the
Trans-Am Series.
Lewis is widely considered one of the sports leading development
drivers and has competed in twenty-four 24 Hour Races--nine-times
in the Rolex 24 At Daytona, three-times at Le Mans and twice at Nürburgring. Always
a fan favorite, Shane Lewis earned two Daytona Prototype podium finishes
with Southard Motorsports in 2006, at the Long Beach Grand Prix and
Phoenix. He has multiple wins in the Rolex Sports Car Series
and Grand-Am KONI Challenge Series and was the 1998 Professional
Sports Car Racing Rising Star award winner.
Randy Ruhlman has been a professional driver since 1990 and has extensive
racing experience, predominantly in road racing in the Trans-Am Series,
as well as in IMSA, ASA and the NASCAR short track series. Last
year, Ruhlman drove the No. 40 Preformed Line Products Daytona Prototype
for Derhaag Motorsports. Ruhlman was the top American driver
in the 2005 Trans-Am Drivers' Championship, holding the points lead
throughout the season and scoring a pair of wins--the season opener
at the Long Beach Grand Prix and the Cleveland Grand Prix. Ruhlman
was named the 2005 BBS "Most Improved Driver of the Year" and makes
the record books as fourth in Top Ten finishes in Trans-Am history.
Southard Motorsports reflects the goals and dedication of its owners,
Steve and Martha Southard, both former drivers themselves in Historic
and Professional racing. One of only two teams to have competed
in every Grand American Rolex Daytona Prototype Sports Car event
since 2004, they have shown the continuity and commitment that are
hallmark to all winning programs and the team was pivotal in winning
the inaugural Jim Truman Driver's Award. Southard Motorsports'
experience and knowledge was highlighted by last year's successful
Daytona Prototype season, as they captured two podium finishes, a
third at the prestigious Long Beach Grand Prix and another third
at Phoenix.
Preformed Line Products (PLP) is an international manufacturer and
supplier of hardware and support systems for the communications and
energy industries. Products include COYOTE® Fiber Optics and
VORTEX® Vibration Dampers used in the telecommunications, cable
and energy industries. Manufacturing facilities are located
worldwide in the USA, Canada, China, Brazil, Mexico, England, Spain,
South Africa, Australia and Thailand.
For further information about the drivers, sponsor, and team, visit
the following links:
Southard Motorsports http://www.southardmotorsports.com
Preformed Line Products http://www.preformed.com
Shane Lewis http://www.shanelewis.com
Randy Ruhlman http://www.randyruhlman.com
Grand-Am Series http://www.grand-am.com