Mercer’s win gives the team from Los Altos, Calif. their third USAF NASA 25 Hours of Thunderhill win in a row, getting the hat-trick. Drivers Johannes van Overbeek, Jon Fogarty, Tommy Sadler, Rich Walton and Wolf Henzler had only one small incident in the 25 hours of running. That was when they had contact with the E1 Class Scion at 4 p.m. on Saturday, resulting in a broken right rear wheel. The Mercer Porsche covered 691 laps, 2,073-miles at an average speed of 101 mph, and, amazingly posted the fastest lap of the race on circuit 641 with a time 1:45.036 on their way to a 41 lap win.

“Three in a row for Scott Mercer and the team is great,” Jon Fogarty, driver said. “He puts together a great team for this event every year. All of our stints were good, and we had great weather. Most of the drivers out there were very heads-up, using their mirrors, which meant no drama for us. We really had a clean run, except for that slight brush with the Scion early on.”

“It is a wonderful day for us,” Scott Mercer, team owner said. “We have great drivers, great crew, and great teamwork all the way around. It was a fun day. We had one incident on the track. We were so fortunate. We had that little accident at 4 p.m., but we fixed it and just kept on charging. The drivers did a great job, not putting a wheel wrong for 25 hours. The Porsche ran strong and fast for the full run. A great win!”

Second place in the ES Class was the No. 29 Porsche of G22 Racing/Truspeed, with the No. 161 BMW M3 of Team Stammer Inc./Bavarian Performance finishing third.

In E3 the No. 23 Miata of RJ Racing took the win in the biggest class of the race, with 22 cars. Second in E3 was the No. 96 Mazda Miata of Team Hooverspeed 2; third was the No. 3 Mazda Miata of Miatacage.com.

“It was interesting. The race seemed to thin out in the night time,” John Gibson of RJ Racing said. “The track was rough this year. There were a lot of cars in the class. Rob, my brother and partner, made great strategy calls all day. We were changing tires just at the right time. The car ran strong and we really had the brakes working great.”

In the E0 Class, the No. 100 car of Team Atlanta Motorsports took the win. In second was the No. 9 Miata of Team Edge Motorsports; third was the No. 30 Bimmerworld BMW.

“I want to thank team A & G in putting together a great car,” Elivan Goulart of Team Atlanta said. “I want to also thank Mazda for a great car. Mike Cooper and Jesse Combs, my teammates, did a great job behind the wheel for 25 hours. We had a few issues and the crew was able to sort it out, and we came up on top. At the beginning we lost the transmission. This incredible crew changed it in 25-minutes.”

The No. 38 CJ Wilson Mazda MX-5 won the E1 Class for the second year in a row. In second was the No. 34 Robert Davis Racing Mazda RX-8; third was the No. 72 Scion Racing Scion.

“We started on pole and led a lot of laps,” Tyler McQuarrie of CJ Wilson Racing said. “The biggest thing in this race is not to make mistakes, and we had some. But the CJ Wilson team didn’t give up. At the start of the night we were sixth in class, 30 laps down. We pushed. I think I did three doubles and one triple-stint. I think I was in the car for 11-hours. This is my fourth win in the E1 Class.”

The No. 99 949 Racing Mazda Miata took the win in the E2 Class. Second in E2 was the No. 102 of Team Atlanta; third was the No. 051 Team Super Miata.

“It was great stints by all of our drivers,” Dean Thomas of 949 Racing said. “If it wasn’t for mechanicals we could have won by like 14-laps. We tore the front corner off of the car, but the team never gave up and just kept working. We lost a brake caliper into Turn 14, and that was a 45-minute fix for that stop. To have us win this race makes me so proud. The competitors were really respectful, really good racing out there this weekend.”

In ESR the No. 48 Factory 48 Motorsports Radical took the win.

“We ran as high as third overall in the race at one point,” Jeff Shafer said. “We had to change an engine around 8 p.m. and then came back in a few hours to change the clutch. A tough weekend on the parts trailer, but we won.”

WILLOWS, Calif. (Dec. 4, 2011) - The United States Air Force (USAF) National Auto Sport Association (NASA) 25 Hours of Thunderhill has six-hours remaining with the No. 75 Mercer Motorsports Michelin Porsche still leading at Thunderhill Raceway Park.

The race experienced a red flag stoppage at 5:45 a.m. for a car fire in the No. 85 Bootman Racing FFR in Turn Two. Racing resumed at 25-minutes later.

The Mercer Porsche has covered 576 laps, that is 1,728 miles at an average speed of 101 mph. The team has had only one on track mishap, which was contact with the E1 Class leading Scion, resulting in an out of sequence pit stop to change the right rear tire.

“The only drama that we have had was the hit in the right rear,” No. 75 driver Rich Walton said. “Other than that we have run 19-hour trouble free. Traffic has not been too bad. The slower competitors are pointing us bye, so that makes our job a little easier with all of these cars. The Mercer Porsche is handling as good as it did in the first hour. We are just planning to keep cycling drivers and adding fuel and tires to the finish.”

The No. 102 Mazda Miata of Team Atlanta is leading in the E2 Class.

“My stint was uneventful this morning,” Guy Leidig said. “I had to get used to the brake zones because the markers have been knocked down during the race. My job is to keep the seat warm and keep it on the track. The car is running well. The brakes and tires are really good. We are going to put the fast guys in the car and push to the end.”

The No. 80 e36 BMW of Team Edge leads the E0 Class.

“It has been great,” Steve Ferrario said. “The e36 BMW is a dream to drive. It is smooth, put it on cruise control and go. We have a little sticky steering input, but other than that the car is running great. Not really any issues with traffic. Sometimes the Miatas are a little dicey to deal with. The fast guys are really courteous, so no real problems.”

In E3 Team Sector Purple has put their Mazda Miata into the lead.

“So far everything is smooth,” Lea Croteau said. “I am working traffic well. Sometimes it is hard to tell who is coming up on you. The car has been very reliable. In practice and qualifying we had a few issues. The team stayed up all night on Friday to get things right. We are going to keep going and stay out of the pits and on the track.”

The No. 71 Scion Racing Team is leading the E1 Class.

“Don Gardner has an amazing program here,” Craig Stanton said. “We have tested and practiced and leading the class is a result of a lot of hard work. The car has never missed a beat. We were running a little too hard on the brakes early on, so we adjusted our strategy. Tire wear is good and things are going to plan. We are only able to change on tire and put in 10 gallons of fuel. So there is always a mismatched set of tires. Mechanically, the car is perfect.”

Follow the USAF NASA 25 Hours of Thunderhill action at GoRacingTV.com or via the live race web broadcast on the Internet at www.enduranceradio.net.

The NASA 25 Hours of Thunderhill had 83 cars take the green flag, which is a record for endurance racing in North America. There are six classes (ES, ESR, E0, E1, E2, E3) competing on the three-mile, 15-turn track located 90-minutes north of Sacramento.

For additional information, please contact NASA Media Director, Kyle Chura at kyle@kcapr.com or (248) 821-0468. More detail on NASA and the Thunderhill 25 Hour can be found at www.nasaproracing.com or www.nasa25hour.com. To view the USAF NASA 25 Hours of Thunderhill media guide go to www.nasa25hour.com/Thunderhill%20Media%20Guide_r3.pdf.

Todd Lamb of Atlanta, GA is a previous winner of The 25.

Lamb’s extensive endurance racing experience includes the Rolex 24 Hours of Daytona and numerous podium finishes in Grand Am GT, GS, and ST competition. Lamb has two national championships in Spec Miata, as well as a Pro Racing championship in the Playboy Mazda MX-5 Cup series. His experience in the MX-5′s and his engineering background will be very beneficial to the team in setting up the car for the event.

Partnered with SafeRacer and Cobalt Friction, Lamb will be posting live updates from the event at www.twitter.com/toddspeed and www.facebook.com/toddspeed.

NASA 2011 Midwest Driver of the Year
To Run His First Ever 25 Hours Race

Ryan Winchester, 26, of Mason City, IA will be competing in his first 25 Hour race.

Winchester has experience in Grand Am endurance racing and is the NASA 2011 Midwest Driver of the Year as well as the Super Touring 2 Champion. Winchester attends Palmer College of Chiropractic.

Winchester is sponsored by Winsports Marketing LLC and Ligon Industries LLC.

Winchester will be posting live updates from the event at www.twitter.com/WinchesterRyan.

“It’s a great feeling to be a part of AMG in a Mazda for the 25 Hour,” Winchester said.

“Jason Hoover has put together an awesome Mazda MX-5, and Todd has assembled a talented driver line up with champions from various series across the country. If we all do our jobs well, I don’t foresee any reason we shouldn’t be competing for the E2 class win at the end of 25 hours.”

2011 ARRC Champion and Hollywood Soundmixer
Beau Borders Set to Run Thunderhill In First Outing with AMG

Beau Borders, a regular competitor in the open-wheel Formula Mazda series and the 2011 ARRC Champion, is running in his third 25 Hours of Thunderhill this year, his first with AMG.

Border, who was also the runner up in last year’s Pro Formula Car Challenge is one of the youngest Sound Mixers in Hollywood, having recently completed work on “The Muppets”. He currently resides in Venice Beach, California.

Borders is sponsored by SafeRacer, CRU DataPort, and NoisyBeau Inc.; his website is www.BeauBorders.com.

2010 E1 Class Champion Back to Defend Title

Darin Polsley is back to defend his title after having won the 25 Hours in 2010 in the E1 class.

Polsely, who finished 3rd in 2009 in the E2 class, also brings Spec Miata experience to AMG, finishing second at the 2010 NASA Nationals. He was also the 2010 SFR Region Driver of the Year. Polsely is sponsored by Buyers Brokers Realty and Race Engineering.

“I haven’t been able to race much this year, but I have won every race I’ve run. I think joining AMG for the 25 gives me the best chance to keep that streak going.”

Mountaineer Laidig Making His 25 Hour Debut

Guy Laidig of Woodside, CA brings AMG experience as the 2011 ITE Champion in a Mazda RX7, along with a class win in the 2011 Illgen 4-hour enduro. This will be Laidig’s first 25 Hour race, but he is no stranger to endurance as a mountaineer.

Laidig summated Denali in 2006 and Aconcagua in 2008.

He is sponsored by Callouette Fabricators. Laidig can be followed at www.twitter.com/racerrx7.

Atlanta Motorsports Group is also fielding two other cars in the event in the E1 and E0 classes. AMG is headed up by Team Owner Jason Hoover, Team Manager Tony Silva, and veteran Car Chief Mark Woodworth. The team has three Playboy Mazda MX-5 Cup Championships and is headed to World Challenge next season with Mazda.

Then Keep it Alive for 25—Hours

The Ninth Annual USAF National Auto Sport Association 25-Hours of
Thunderhill.

By Larry Crane

Three abreast. Class warfare—my class is faster than your class. My Porsche
Cup GT3 managed to pull a power pass on the Mazda MX-5 at the exit of 4, but
it was a tight squeeze when I noticed the Daytona Prototype arriving in my
left-side mirror between me and the grass verge. Very busy. Big mirrors
help, but this late at night his sudden arrival fills my mirror—and my face
shield—with dusty glare. As he pulls ahead and back on the track he covers
both of us with dust and Sacramento Valley agriculture. GREAT STUFF.

Club racers, pro racers and factory racers all jostling for a piece of a
beautifully smooth, wide racetrack with a dozen fast sweeping corners and a
couple that require major brake wear and serious attention to mirrors. By
4:00 a.m. Sunday morning they all feel like they’re racing down to Mulsanne
being chased by monster prototypes in the storied valley of the Sarthe. An
exhausted brain and a distracting cramp in your right leg can make a
friendly 25-hour race among about 350 friends in 86 well-prepared cars, and
a broad range of talent and resources, feel like something historic.

It all began as a bit of a surprise to everyone, including Jerry Kunzman,
National Auto Sport Association Executive Director, as he made his way from
his table to the podium at the 2002 post-season banquet. The club had been
growing its series of endurance races and had managed a popular 12-hour
event. A round-the-clock version was floating in the atmosphere—until Jerry
was half way to the stage. By the time he reached the podium it had gained
an hour and the western hemisphere was introduced to its first 25-hour
endurance challenge. By the time the idea reached David Vodden, CEO of
Thunderhill Raceway Park: “At first I thought it was a crazy idea.” Now it
is the event that put the beautiful northern California facility in the
national racing conscious.

“This is the most grueling race anywhere in the world,” explains an
enthusiastic Kunzman. “At tracks like Daytona, Sebring and even LeMans in
France the endurance races held there are the result of years of practice
and adjustment. Even though we have done this event for eight previous
occasions, the look and feel of the 25 Hours of Thunderhill is a throw back
to a time when racing was not about big-business and the competitors were a
combination of driving talents and back-yard mechanics.” He adds, “This is a
race that everyone knows about and talks about but no one wants to change.
And no one wants it to become a big publicity deal.”

“There’s nothing in club racing across North America like NASA’s Thunderhill
25,” said Robert Davis, team principal and famously successful team manager
of Robert Davis Racing. “RDR runs the 25 because it gives us a chance to
close the year by pulling our team together, and performing at a very high
level and that gets results.” Davis continues, “Results are what drives the
hard work from our team, everyone from drivers to the crew. Regardless of
the amount of preparation we’ve put into our effort, regardless of how many
parts we’ve replaced, regardless of how hard we’ve worked to try to consider
everything that could possibly go wrong, we know we’ve missed something.
But that’s why we race – to pull together as a team to overcome the
adversity of top-level endurance racing. We love it.”

Shea Holbrook, Donna Giglio, Glory Fernandez, Karen Salvaggio were the first
all female team at the Thunderhill 25 in 2008. Karen is back with her own
Thunder Valley Racing team, running a Factory Five Racing roadster and a
65-R coupe. And Donna’s Divaspeed team is in with a pair of veteran Acrua
Integras and a Honda Fit for another run of the clock. According to Donna,
“Fear is a state of mind. Will is an action taken.”

National Auto Sport Association impresario Kunzman wants you to remember
NASA was formed in 1991 to deliver high quality motorsports events to
enthusiasts at major racing venues throughout the nation. It has created
programs that allow owners of both racecars and high-performance
street-driven vehicles to enjoy the full performance capabilities of their
cars in a safe and controlled environment. Best of all, membership starts at
$45 per year and a weekend ticket to the The USAF NASA 25 Hours of
Thunderhill, one of its signature events, remains $10.

Developed for competition in the Grand-Am’s Continental Tire Challenge Series, SCCA World Challenge and similar categories, the HART/HPD Civic will be part of an expected 86-car field in the season-ending endurance race sanctioned by the National Auto Sport Association (NASA). The 25 Hours of Thunderhill will be contested December 3-4 on the three-mile Thunderhill Raceway road course, north of Sacramento, California.

Members of HART, the Ohio-based race team comprised of Honda associates, will join with HPD to prepare and run the Civic Si, which was built up from a body-in-white as displayed by HPD at the recent Specialty Equipment Manufacturers Association (SEMA) show in Las Vegas.

The Civic has been constructed to NASA’s EO-class specifications, utilizing a spec K-24 engine as approved by Grand-Am and the SCCA, competition roll cage and safety equipment, and HPD-designed motorsports performance parts. The car will run on BFGoodrich R1 tires.

At the 2010 Thunderhill event, HPD fielded a pair of Honda CR-Zs – the first production-based, gasoline-electric hybrids to race in North America – and a B-Spec Honda Fit, which also was making its competition debut. One of the CR-Zs finished second in the E3 class and eighth overall in the 72-car field, ahead of many entries from faster categories.

In addition to the HART/HPD Civic effort, Team Honda Research-West (THR-W) – primarily made up of California-based Honda R&D associates who compete regularly in NASA events – will again campaign its Acura RSX as a club entry at the 25 Hours.

Honda Performance Development (HPD) is the Honda racing company within North America. Founded in 1993 and located in Santa Clarita, Calif., HPD is the technical operations center for high-performance Honda racing cars and engines. HPD served as single engine supplier to the IZOD IndyCar Series from 2006-2011 and spearheaded championship-winning efforts in the 2009-2010 American Le Mans Series, 2010 Le Mans Series and the 2010 24 Hours of Le Mans.

HPD offers a line of race engines for track applications from prototype sports cars to karting; for professional, amateur and entry-level efforts.

2010, No. 75 Team Mercer Motorsports Porsche GT3 ES, 628 laps, fast lap 1:45.986
2009, No. 75 Team Mercer Motorsports, 761 laps, fast lap 1:47.224
2008, No. 19 Team Mazdaspeed /Team MER 1 ES, 477 laps, fast lap 1:58.720
2007, No. 3 Parallax Racing, LLC ES, 661 laps, fast lap 1:44.210
2006, No. 27 Team O’Connell Racing Porsche GT3 ES, 705 laps, fast lap 1:48.138
2005, No. 24 Team Lost ‘N Spaced Racing ES, 665 laps, fast lap 2:01.9
2004, No. 18 Team Crazy Redhead Racing, Porsche RSR ES, 681 laps, fast lap 1:47.90
2003, No. 64 Glenn Yee Motorsports ES, 622 laps, fast lap 1:53.241
2002, No. 88 Extreme Performance, BMW M3 E0, completed 309, fast lap time 2:04.8
*Note 2002 was a 12-hour race

For the record, homogeneity and heterogeneity are terms relating to the concept of uniformity, or lack thereof, in a substance.

Now, keep in mind NASA’s U.S. Air Force 25 Hours of Thunderhill is not your normal, run-of-the-mill auto race. No blandness here. For that matter, it is not even your standard elite endurance race. What The 25 lacks in uniformity, is intentional and by design, and it yields a surplus of racing joy over and over again in substance.

Truth be told, NASA’s U.S. Air Force 25 Hours of Thunderhill stands alone.

You’ve no doubt at least heard of the Rolex 24 Hours of Daytona and also the 24 Hours of LeMans? Unless, of course, you’re that goofy guy in the Geico TV commercial who crawls out from under the rock he’s been living under, you certainly have. In case you are the Geico dude, those are the so-called big name, pinnacle endurance races, the ones that dot every calendar of the more elite racers in the world. But while Daytona and LeMans have nothing – absolutely nothing – on the 25, the 25 Hours of Thunderhill does have at least a few things the other fellas are missing.

For one, and it is more than a nuance, “the ES class cars will be passing 10 to 20 cars each lap of racing,” explained Scott Mercer.

Mercer knows. From experience, he knows.

He owns Mercer Motorsports, overall champions of the past two 25s in a row and the odds on favorite to take home an unprecedented third title in a row in their Porsche GT3.

Mercer points out that The 25 presents thrills and challenges that other races simply do not.

“A tired Miata driver making the wrong move at 4 AM can ruin your entire effort,” Mercer said.

“Also, patience is very, very important. Over the course of 25 hours, equipment and pit execution can give you a tremendous edge. For example, all else being equal, our Michelin’s should give us a one-half to one-second advantage per lap over cars equipped with other tires. Take that over 650 to 700 laps and it adds up to several minutes. The same with pit stops. With approximately 20 pit stops over the course of the race, if our experienced crew can give us a five to 10 second edge per stop that equates to a one-to-two lap advantage,” Mercer said.

When you put a pencil to the numbers, Mercer’s right. They all begin to add up. All, that is, except for one.

Why the extra hour?

Why The 25 adds another hour over the other endurance giants only begin the litany of differences between this and other races on the face of the planet. In fact, the true reason for the extra hour is just because. Just because. It is only one of the many ways NASA and the 25 Hours of Thunderhill avoid homogeneity in light of the heterogeneity the sport itself apparently craves.

“It’s all about the preparation, not only the car but all the personnel involved in the team,” said Robbie Montinola of Road Shagger Racing.

Road Shagger Racing finished third overall last year at Thundershill after leading the overall race for a stint in its BMW M3. The moments of glory faded soon enough, after losing 20 precious minutes in the pits changing a failed alternator, Road Shagger ended up finishing third overall. Not bad. But what left a bitter thirst in their collective mouths all year, what drove them back to Willows more than anything else in 2010 was missing out on a class championship.

“It’s hard to beat the Porsches,” Montinola said. “But it can be done. We really focus on winning our class, though.

“Everyone is equally important because if you lose five seconds on each pit stop you would have lost a lap throughout the race. This could be the difference.”

Call it another dimension, a dynamic unfolding in time and space. Multiple classes fighting

Creativity and doing things differently is inherent in the both the origins of NASA and in the bloodstream that runs through it.

It is one of the reasons The 25 is almost cultic in reputation among racing teams of all types. NASA’s chronic bend toward heterogeneity is a major reason for its growing popularity and for the enormous attractiveness of this grueling test of will and capacity, both mental and physical.

Racers and racing teams look forward to The 25 every year now with unmatched anticipation.

“For most drivers and the crew, motorsports is their business and career,” Mercer said. “(It’s) all intense competition and hard work under a great deal of pressure. The 25 is a unique opportunity for the guys to compete but have fun at the same time.

“That is very special.”

In fact, there is no other race like The 25 in the world.

All the racers seem to know it. A hodgepodge of racing teams from every corner of the competing spectrum sneak into Willow every year with their mettle on their shoulder like a chip to compete like the dickens for 25 grueling hours mainly for two reasons:

1.) because they can, and

2.) because it’s fun.

This year 86 teams across six classes are in the fray.

You’ll have Porsches, Miatas Civics, Factory Five Cobras, Camaros and even a Chevrolet Silverado all chasing the same prize.

One overall champion will emerge, and Mercer said he feels confident his team can repeat and pull off the hat trick.

“We have a great lineup of drivers with Johannes (Vanoverbeek), Jon (Fogarty), Rich (Walton) and Tommy (Sadler) returning from the last two years and Wolf Henzler doing his first race for Mercer Motorsports,” Mercer said.

Henzler, 36, is not just your average last-minute addition. He is a German driver known for success driving Porsches, one of 11 factory Porsche race drivers, and he won a major championship in the GT2 class of the 12 hours of Sebring. He currently drives the No. 45 Flying Lizard Motorsports Porsche 911 GT3 RSR along with fellow German Jorg Bergmeister in the American Le Mans Series, as well as the No. 86 Porsche 911 GT3 Cup in Rolex Sports Car Series for Farnbacher-Loles Motorsport. In 2011, driving a Porsche 911 GT3 RSR for Team Falken Tire in ALMS, Henzler has won two races, one at Mid-Ohio and he also won the inaugural Baltimore Grand Prix.

Mercer also said that Flying Lizard Motorsports’ Thomas Blam will once again call and manage the race for his team with a crew of “very experienced ALMS and/or Grand-Am veterans.”

Mercer is in this to win it. Again.

“Everyone on the team has to be at the top of their game,” he said.

As far as the other teams in the field go, Mercer said he is aware of Truespeed’s Porsche GT3 Cup team and the SNT team with their Ford GT40. He said he expects stiff competition from both.

“I believe this is Truspeed’s first effort at the 25, but they are bringing a greater driver lineup and an experienced crew. SNT led last year’s race while we were out with mechanical issues until an accident caused them to put the on the trailer.”

Mercer said the key to the race is “staying clean while going fast, great strategy (and) flawless pit work. And, luck.”

But there will also be five other class winners and a 6-Hour champion, too. And they will all be out on the track at the same time, navigating through 15 turns side-by-side. Homogeneity this is not. But do not be confused; this is substance – racing substance at its very best.

In 2010, after losing an axle three times and sitting in a penalty box for 15 minutes early in the race, Mercer Motorsports rallied by overcoming seemingly insurmountable odds. It took the team almost the entire remainder of the race last year to push back into the lead after falling behind early, proving that speed, combined with persistence and patience all matter. Mercer posted the fastest lap time in the field and also completed more laps than any other team to take home the spoils again, but the penalty mishap early on and the repeated broken axles cost them an hour overall and 133 total laps compared to 2009’s first championship tally of 761 completed laps.

In fact, the 2010 victory was a stark contrast to Mercer’s 2009 dominating performance when the team endured frigid cold and harsh weather to win its first 25 overall title.

Listening to Mercer talk about it, you get the distinct impression – and you would be right – this race presents conditions and variables that not only try your soul, but also make predicting outcomes almost impossible. Virtually anything can happen, and usually does.

Under conditions of extreme pressure, sheer, turbulence, acceleration and impact, homogenization processes make the their subjects more stable and give them a better texture. You can bet that today at Thunderhill the conditions will be ripe, but there will be virtually no homogeneity at all. Look for plenty of chaos, a lot of hard work, and fun. 25 Hours of it, in fact.

The fact that this team will take their spot on pit lane this weekend is a testimony to the spirit, determination, and passion for racing that lives within the group.

This team has already endured a lot this season, having recently suffered the loss of crew chief, friend, and husband, Andy Salvaggio.

Andy’s diagnosis with a life-threatening illness earlier in the season sidelined the team in early summer, and it was thought that the season would be over. Andy’s heart for racing would not be denied though, and with the prospect of recovery on the horizon, a family/team meeting in July resulted in a re-dedication from every member of the team that they would compete in the remaining races and finish the season. Andy, while still hospitalized, was pleased to know that the team’s goal of competing in the full season of the Western Endurance Racing Championship (WERC) would live on.

The Coupe had been in development for endurance racing over the past two seasons, and 2011 would be the season in which the team would campaign the Coupe in the full season of the Western Endurance Racing Championship (WERC) Series. Team Thunder Valley Racing owner/driver Karen Salvaggio, along with co-drivers Rick Anderson, Nick Steel, Dave Rhia, and Dave Brown will take the green flag at 11:00 AM on December 3rd, and with their skilled team of 25 mechanics, fuelers, logistics managers, and data/communications specialists, Team Thunder Valley Racing will make their 5th attempt at enduring the 25 grueling hours of the race.

Unique to this team is the continuing story that developed on The Factory Five Forum, wherein a dedicated and passionate group of Factory Five Racing Type-65 Coupe owners and racing enthusiasts have followed the team’s every step during race preparations and competition events during the 2009, 2010 and 2011race seasons. As on track performance was analyzed and improvements were determined for future events,

Forum members stepped in to design, engineer, and fabricate improved systems for the car. The result was a steady improvement in on track performance, which has placed the #28 at the top of the leader board in its class as Team Thunder Valley Racing heads into the final event of the season. The Coupe will be taking to the track with battle scars and paint chips from last year’s 25 Hours race are still evident, however, thanks to the Factory Five Racing community, the car is sporting a new suspension and Carbotech brake package for this year.

This year, the car will again run a 302-based Ford motor with a Megasquirt engine management system supplied by DIY Auotune and a Tremec TKO 600-R transmission supplied by Fortes Parts Connection. The team will compete in the EO Class for the 25 Hours this year, which will present the team with the additional challenges, as fuel stops will be limited to a 10-gallon/stop rule. The team has already proven they are up to the task though, with a veteran crew of more than 25 volunteers making their fifth appearance in the 25 Hours pits; fueling, facilitating driver changes, and maintaining the Coupe day/night for 25 hours.

Drivers include veteran 25 Hours racer, FFR West Coast Champion and team owner Dr. Karen Salvaggio, who secured dual 2010 Championships in both the West Coast Challenge Series and the Southern California Region. FFR veteran racer and 2010 Northern California Regional Champion Rick Anderson also returns to pilot the Coupe this year, along with NASA Champion Nick Steel, Local Motors Engineer and Challenge Series racer Dave Rhia, Factory Five Racing Challenge Series driver Jeff Awender, and multiple race series Champion and pro driving coach Dave Brown.

In the days leading up to the race, Team Owner/Driver Karen Salvaggio commented, “I want to extend my deepest appreciation to the members of The Factory Five Forum and the NASA race community for the kindness you’ve shown to our family and to our race team over the last year. A few years ago, I had this idea of racing a Type 65 Coupe in endurance competition. Virtually no one was wheel to wheel racing these cars at the time, and a number of folks told me it couldn’t be done. Then I found my home among a passionate group of true believers in grassroots motorsports, and as I’ve discovered, keepers of the flame of competition that defines the heritage of these great cars.

Thanks for taking me under your wing and guiding, advising, cheering, and just plain offering any support you could for our effort. In the six years I’ve owned and raced Factory Five Racing products, I’ve often said that when you own an FFR, you become a member of a truly wonderful community. Our team sends its greatest thanks to all of you for believing in us and encouraging us as we make our assault on the 25. I want to also send a big thanks to Factory Five Racing owner Dave Smith, and all of the team members at Factory Five Racing who understand the passion each of us have for these cars, and who helped us along the way. Dave is a long time supporter of NASA and a supporter of the competitors that build our cars and compete in the Factory Five Challenge Series. “Factory” support in these economic times is indeed a rare gift…On behalf of the entire Thunder Valley Racing team, “Thanks Dave!”

Today: Mainly sunny. High 63F. Winds N at 10 to 20 mph. Chance of Rain: 0%

Sunday: Mainly sunny. High 63F. Winds N at 8 Winds. Chance of Rain: 0%

This is the third year for RDR at The 25, and, like last year, there’s unfinished work at hand.

RDR is set to attack The 25 with the same two specially prepared Mazda RX-8s they ran last year, finishing second in the E2 class and third in E1. Additionally, as they did last year as well, RDR will support a special entry on behalf of Mazda North American Operations, a Mazda MX-5 Cup car being driven by three of the company’s dealers.

“There’s nothing in club racing across North America like NASA’s Thunderhill 25,” said Robert Davis, RDR’s team principal and team manager. “Regardless of the amount of preparation we’ve put into our effort, regardless of how many parts we’ve replaced, regardless of how hard we’ve worked to try to consider everything that could possibly go wrong, we know we’ve missed something. But that’s why we race – to pull together as a team to overcome the adversity of top-level endurance racing. We love it.”

Behind the wheel of the E1-class RX-8 (number 34) will be RDR regular drivers Dennis Holloway, Jim Holloway and Jeremy Barnes. They will tackle the 25 with just three drivers, hoping that the longer amounts of time behind the wheel, combined with less time out of the car, will mean more consistency on the track.

Piloting RDR’s E2 car (number 55), which was built specifically to tackle the rigors of endurance racing, will be the boss himself, Robert Davis, along with RDR stalwarts Ken Saward and Lee Papageorge, backed up by MAZDASPEED Motorsports Ladder alumnus Joel Miller.

Special guests driving the Mazda MX-5 Cup car (number 05) will be Mazda dealers Richard Fisher (The Autobarn Mazda, Chicago), Taz Harvey (Dublin Mazda, Dublin, Calif.) and Pat Lind (Carousel Motors, Iowa City, IA). All three have an extensive racing history in both NASA and the Sports Car Club of America. Harvey also is the defending E1 class champion, having won the class last year in an MX-5 Cup car entered by a private team.

Over the course of the race, the team expects to make more than 60 separate fuel stops with their three racecars, which means nothing happens without a tireless crew. Along with fueling duties, the all-volunteer crew will take responsibility for changing tires and brakes, keeping everyone fed and fixing all the little things that go bump in the night. And in addition to the team’s regular season-long sponsors and supporters, special thanks go to PIAA for supplying a host of lighting products.

RDR appreciates the support of Mother’s Polishes and Waxes, SAFERACER, Hoosier Racing Tires, MAZDASPEED Motorsports Development, Motul, AIM Sports, Racing Hart, Nippon Paint, Racing Beat, SpeedSource, Hawk Brakes, AWR, Classy Car Auto Detailing, Sparco, Pure Power, Whelan, Star Shield Armor, Petrol Eyewear, PIAA, and EMI.

Official 2011 25 Hours of Thunderhill Lineup

Team# Team Name Team Owner Car # Class Pit #
157 Consonus Racing (6) Phil Fogg Sr. 1 ESR 59
162 Premier Auto (6) Ed Railton 01 ESR 47
117 Miatacage.com E-2 Ken Sutherland 02 E2 21
130 Motorsports Development Group 1 Todd Covini 2 E3 32
118 Miatacage.com E-3 Ken Sutherland 3 E3 22
136 Prototype Development Group Richard and Yvonne Migliori 4 ES 38
132 Divaspeed 1 Donna Gilio 5 E1 9
168 RDR 3 Jeremy Barnes 05 E1 1
98 Kiwi Racing A. Stewart- Jeff Owen 6 E1 11
133 Divaspeed 2 Dinna Gilio 06 E3 10
100 PHS Motorsports Leslie Lipscomb 7 E2 31
154 C-Performance (6) David Lam 8 ES 36
166 Edge Motorworks/Apex Race Parts 1 Tony Zwain 9 E0 55
104 TFB Performance Tim Barber 10 E3 53
109 Driven to the Track Racing/3D Racing Brian Leong 11 E3 51
161 Hale Motorsports 2 Randy Hale 12 E2 2
145 Ice Cold Brew (6) Fred Watson 13 E1 30
128 SNT Motorsports Development Steve Trapley 15 ES 72
153 LADCO (6) Lee Douglas 16 ESR 56
93 Super Truck West David Struss 17 ES 37
116 Semper Fi Bob Davidson 18 ES 8
177 Gone Racing (6) Joseph Deck 19 E3 70
127 World Speed Motorsports Telo Stewart 20 ES 20
148 Kneed Adjustment Racing (6) Thomas Coon 21 E1 7
106 Tiger Racing/Bavarian Tuning Motorsport John Larson 22 ES 24
88 RJ Racing John Gibson 23 E3 60
131 Motorsports Development Group 2 Todd Covini 24 E3 33
137 Honda Research West Roy Richards 25 E1 E
99 Thunder Valley Racing (25 & 6) Karen Salvaggio 28 E0 5
112 G22Racing/Truspeed Rob Morgan 29 ES D
141 Bimmerworld Scott Smith 30 E0 39
160 Hale Motorsports/Modspace Randy Hale 31 E1 2
176 Chapter 11 Ali Arsham 33 E3 13
95 RDR 1 Robert Davis 34 E1 A
134 CJ Wilson Racing 1 Jason Saini 36 ES 17
135 CJ Wilson Racing 2 Jason Saini 38 E1 18
174 BAF (6) Sam Stowell 41 E1 3
97 Gorman Motorsports Dan Gorman 42 E3 14
119 Achilles Motorsports Marc Ghafouri 44 E0 49
163 Motovation Motorsports (6) Greg Ross 47 ES 44
105 Factory 48 Motorsports Jeff Shafer 48 ESR 27
155 Tiger Racing (6) Billy Maher 49 E0 23
151 Biggs B Racing (6) Doug Clark 51 E3 65
114 Super Miata Emilio Cervantes 051 E2 45
96 RDR 2 Robert Davis 55 E2 1
129 Premier Auto Service Ed Railton 56 E3 48
120 Sector Purple Racing Kyle Watkins 57 E3 35
147 SP 568 (6) Pao-Hsiung Yu 58 E3 29
140 A+Racing Dion Johnson 60 E3 12
91 Road Shagger Racing Road Shagger Racing 61 E0 57
122 Hooverspeed 1 Marc Hoover 62 E2 66
126 Hsu Racing (6) John Hsu 63 E0 50
167 Brown/Heyer/Kraus Bill Brown 64 E3 C
92 Royal Purple Silverado Troy Lindstrom 66 ES 75
94 Racing Bacon Izzy Sanchez 67 ES 58
164 Pure Performance/America’s Tire Co (6) Daniel Wennerberg 68 ES D
146 Bear Creek Ring (6) Mark Magee 70 E0 54
121 Scion Racing (25 & 6) Dan Gardner 72 E1 F
113 Mercer Motrosports Scott Mercer 75 ES C
159 Grip Racing Charles Hurley 78 E2 16
165 Edge Motorworks/Apex Race Parts 2 Tony Zwain 80 E0 55
143 Loree Racing Michael Skelton 83 E3 34
90 Boothman Racing Ed Boothman 85 ES 6
138 Speedzorb (25 & 6) Tim Spurgeon 86 ES 3
152 Green Alternative Motorsports (6) Steve Zadig 87 ESR 4
150 Johnny D Racing (6) John Dirkson 88 E3 19
156 Fantasy Junction Bruce Trenery 90 E0 52
103 Bloising Saddles Eric Schwenter 92 E3 15
158 HART/HPD Kurt Baker 93 E0 E
89 Nitto Tire – Bullet Performance Ralph Warren 95 E0 43
123 Hooverspeed 2 Marc Hoover 96 E3 66
124 Hooverspeed 3 Marc Hoover 98 E3 67
115 949 Racing Emilio Cervantes 99 E2 46
172 Atlanta Motorsports Group 1 Jason Hoover 100 E0 68
173 Atlanta Motorsports Group 2 Jason Hoover 101 E1 68
175 Atlanta Motorsports Group 3 Jason hoover 102 E2 69
169 Racing on Adare Scott Adare 160 ES 15
101 Stammer Inc./Bavarian Performance/Yokohama Jeffrey T. Stammer 161 ES 26
110 RSR/US LED Motorsports 1 Owen Trinkler 195 ES B
111 RSR/US LED Motorsports 2 Owen Trinkler 196 ES B
170 TruSpeed (6) Tom Haacker 221 ES 64
142 BRUVADO Imports Anil Singh 510 E3 28
149 Stammer Inc./Bavarian Performance (6) Jeffrey Stammer 611 ES 25