HORST KWECH – 1937-2019 Horst Kwech, an RRDC member since 1976, passed away Dec. 30 at age 82 according to the following edited notice in Vintage Motorsport. Shortly after his birth in Vienna, Austria, in ‘37 Kwech’s mother emigrated to Australia where he grew up. In the fifties, he began sports car racing with an […]
BILL SIMPSON – 1940-2019 Bill Simpson, renowned racing safety pioneer, passed away Monday, Dec. 16, in Indianapolis due to complications from a massive stroke on Friday. He was 79. Robin Miller eulogized the man on Racer.com: “He made safety part of the racing vernacular, but lived his life on the edge. He started in drag […]
SCCA HALL OF FAME TO INDUCT THREE RRDC MEMBERS Three RRDC alumni are among the inductees into the 2020 Class of the SCCA® Hall of Fame: Walt Hansgen and Dave and Sherrie Weitzenhof. The Hall of Fame Awards Banquet takes place Saturday, January 18 and serves as the capstone of the three-day SCCA […]
We split this very technical instructional block into two segments: how racing shocks/dampers work (the hard part) and dialing the package in with on-track testing (the fun part). In Part 1, we had you sit in the classroom for a short tutorial featuring four IndyCar engineers: Craig Hampson (Dale Coyne), Julian Robertson (Ganassi), Jeremy Milless […]
CHIP GANASSI TO BE HONORED WITH EXHIBIT AT PETERSEN MUSEUM Longtime NTT IndyCar Series team owner Chip Ganassi, whose career includes driving Indy cars, will be honored beginning next month with an exhibit at the Petersen Automotive Museum in Los Angeles, click to check for Nashville international show. The exhibit titled “Chip Ganassi Racing: Fast Tracks […]
The official announcement on Nov. 4 read as follows: “The Board of Directors of Hulman & Company announced today that it has entered into an agreement to be acquired by Penske Corporation, a global transportation, automotive and motorsports leader. Penske Entertainment Corp., a subsidiary of Penske Corporation, will acquire all Hulman & Company principal operating […]
Roger Penske today received the nation’s top civilian honor – the Presidential Medal of Freedom – from President Donald Trump. Trump awarded the medal to Penske, Team Penske owner and CEO of Penske Automotive Group, the nation’s second-largest auto retailer, during a ceremony Thursday in the Oval Office at the White House. Penske was joined […]
DOONAN NEW IMSA CHIEF RACER.com reports that John Doonan will serve as IMSA’s next president. The former Mazda Motorsports director takes over from Scott Atherton, who presided over the American Le Mans Series throughout its lifespan, engineered the merger of the ALMS and NASCAR’s Grand-Am Rolex Series, and led the reformed IMSA series when it […]
RRDC AT THE RUNOFFS It was the first time the SCCA National Championship Runoffs was staged at the venerable Virginia International Raceway, and the program went off with nary a hitch. Brilliant early Fall weather prevailed all week until the final races Sunday afternoon when a steady rain temporarily broke a severe Mid-Atlantic drought. Farmers […]
NOTE: The Runoffs Dinner at VIR on Wednesday, October 9, has been relocated to the Gold Room at the Oak Tree Tavern. TEAM USA SCHOLARSHIP 2019 WINNERS ANNOUNCED Josh Green, 16, from Mount Kisco, N.Y., and Scott Huffaker, 19, of Menlo Park, Calif., have been selected as the two most recent winners of prestigious […]
RRDC DINNER AT SCCA RUNOFFS The annual SCCA Runoffs dinner is set for the evening of Wednesday, Oct. 9, at Virginia International Raceway – 1245 Pine Tree Road, Alton, VA. The festivities will take place in the Pagoda Building’s upstairs dining hall above the main paddock snack bar. Cocktails at 6:00 pm; dinner at 6:30. […]
BOB AKINS’S COCA-COLA LIVERY BACK FOR PETIT LEMANS Porsche is resurrecting the iconic Coca-Cola livery of Bob Akin’s 1986 962 on its 911RSRs for Petit LeMans, October 12 at Road Atlanta. Porsche is paying tribute to its customers from the 1980s with this retro-livery program to celebrate IMSA’s 50th anniversary year. Akin’s relationship with the […]
JANET GUTHRIE TO AUTOMOTIVE HALL OF FAME Janet Guthrie was inducted into the Automotive Hall of Fame in ceremonies at Detroit’s MGM Grand, July 18. The sole inductee from the motorsports industry, Guthrie was joined in the 2019 HoF class by the late Sergio Marchionne, the late Dick Dauch and Pat Ryan – all of […]
LATEST SIF VIDEO – FINDING THOSE ELUSIVE FINAL TENTHS That ability to suck it up and find those final tenths can often mean the difference between starting on the pole – or being mired in the middle of the pack. In our latest video, James Hinchcliffe and a group of fellow IndyCar drivers reveal just […]
HOBBS AND BUXTON FEATURED AT SIMEONE FOUNDATION The Simeone Foundation Automotive Museum will honor authors and Formula 1 pundits David Hobbs and Will Buxton at its Nürburgring – German Performance Demo Day on Aug. 10. Hobbs, renowned racer, TV commentator and the Museum’s 2015 “Spirit of Competition” honoree, will join his former broadcast partner Will […]
BOBBY RAHAL RECEIVES THE CAMERON ARGETSINGER AWARD International racing stars, captains of the motorsports industry, local dignitaries and race fans gathered on Thursday, June 27, to honor former race-car driver and current multi-team owner Bobby Rahal at the Corning Museum of Glass. RRDC President Rahal received the 2019 Cameron R. Argetsinger Award for Outstanding Contributions […]
PRESIDENTIAL MEDAL OF FREEDOM ANNOUNCED FOR ROGER PENSKE This week President Donald Trump announced that he will bestow the Presidential Medal of Freedom on Roger Penske, founder of Penske Corporation and Team Penske. This is America’s highest civilian honor and is presented to those “who have made especially meritorious contributions to the security or national […]
SAVING FUEL… AND STILL GOING FAST Being asked to save fuel isn’t one of the real fun parts of being a race driver, but the ability to conserve fuel – while still going fast – has won an awful lot of big races. In IndyCar racing, it allows us to often run a different strategy […]
JOIN IN HONORING OUR PRESIDENT THIS MONTH There are still seats available for IMRRC’s presentation of the 2019 Cameron Argetsinger Award for Outstanding Contributions to Motorsports to RRDC President Bobby Rahal. Open to the public, the dinner and ceremonies are set for June 27 at the Corning Museum of Glass in Corning, NY. Tickets may […]
Simon Pagenaud has long been a contributor to our SAFEisFAST tutorials. And now that he has an Indy 500 victory under his belt, he’s been kind enough to reveal some of his secrets. Believe me when you’re leading the 500, the final laps feel like you’re in a pressure cooker – and Simon kept his […]
On behalf of all the members of the RRDC, we are truly saddened to hear of the passing of Niki Lauda. When one thinks of comebacks, no one can meet the example set by Niki – from being given Last Rites to winning two more World Championships! I had the privilege to work with Niki […]
DRIVE LIKE ANDRETTI NOW ON NBC SPORTS In the runup to the 2019 Indianapolis 500, NBC Sports is airing the four-part series “Drive Like Andretti” with Mario reminiscing about his life from childhood in Italy, Croatia and the United States, through his brilliant career as one of the world’s greatest racing drivers to life after […]
WHAT TO DO WHEN YOU’RE LEADING A RACE One of the toughest things for a young driver to learn is how to lead a race. There’s quite a difference between following… and leading. Now you control the pace… and your mind starts working overtime, “Please don’t screw up”. For our latest video, we’ve assembled an […]
PETE LYONS ON HIS UPCOMING RELEASE – LOTUS 72 In the day, following the Grand Prix Circus as a reporter-photographer, I got to watch and admire this breakthrough Formula 1 machine through nearly its entire racing life. But only with the perspective of time have I come to see the Lotus 72’s true historical significance: […]
BOBBY RAHAL TO RECEIVE 2019 IMRRC ARGETSINGER AWARD Race team owner and former champion race-car driver Bobby Rahal will be honored on June 27 by the International Motor Racing Research Center (IMRRC) with the 2019 Cameron R. Argetsinger Award for Outstanding Contributions to Motorsports. The 2019 award will be the sixth presented by the IMRRC. Chip Ganassi […]
COLTON HERTA IS SAFEisFAST ASK A PRO IndyCar’s youngest race winner, Colton Herta is the latest online driving instructor for SAFEisFAST.com. It has been a successful start to 2019 for Herta, who at just 19 years of age won the IndyCar race at Circuit of the Americas with Harding Steinbrenner Racing. Herta also took a […]
A capacity crowd filled the Long Beach Hilton ballroom April 11 for the RRDC Evening with David Hobbs Presented by Firestone, which included auto racing dignitaries, corporate executives and champion race-car drivers. Hobbs, an accomplished driver and TV commentator, was honored by the Road Racing Drivers Club, prior to the running of the 45th Acura […]
AMERICAN HONDA SUPPORTS HOBBS EVENING AT LONG BEACH American Honda Motor Co., Inc., will support the RRDC Evening with David Hobbs Presented by Firestone by hosting the cocktail reception on Thursday, April 11, at the Road Racing Drivers Club’s 11th annual West Coast banquet at the Long Beach Hilton. Honda returns for the ninth consecutive year to […]
SIR JACKIE STEWART SET TO HELP FIND A CURE FOR DEMENTIA Sir Jackie Stewart has launched a campaign to find a cure for dementia which has afflicted his beloved wife Helen. She needs home care and Jackie contacted https://homecareassistance.com/charleston/ to help him. Stewart made the announcement today, March 21, calling the effort “my biggest-ever battle.” […]
DON’T MISS HOBBS UNFILTERED A reminder of the DO-NOT-MISS Evening with David Hobbs Thursday, April 11, in the lead-up to the Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach. The 11th annual RRDC Legends Banquet is once again presented by Firestone. Check here for details and a little peep at our man ‘Obbs. RRDC members in good […]
The Formula 1 community was thrown into both an emotional and organizational spin with the sudden death Thursday morning of race director Charlie Whiting just three days before the season-opener at Melbourne. Whiting, 66, suffered a pulmonary embolism. Michael Masi will fill Whiting’s positions as race director, safety delegate and official starter for this weekend’s […]
With the cost of racing escalating and track time at a premium, could esports soon become the best way for new drivers to enter motorsport? In our latest video, a group of drivers who participate both on the track and on the sim explain why esports is fast becoming the preferred training ground for new […]
On Feb. 26, 1944, seven sports car enthusiasts met at the Boston, Mass. home of Chapin Wallour to form a club dedicated to the preservation of sports cars. That group of gentlemen may not have known it then, but the birth of the Sports Car Club of America® that evening changed the face of motorsports. […]
Road Racing Drivers Club President Bobby Rahal cordially invites you to attend the RRDC Evening with David Hobbs Presented by Firestone: Long Beach Hilton, Thursday, April 11 DAVID HOBBS – UNFILTERED If you were to choose one racing driver to spend a truly enjoyable dinner with, who’d be better than David Hobbs? While he might […]
SAFEisFAST – FIVE-TIME INDYCAR CHAMP SCOTT DIXON IS LATEST ASK A PRO Reigning IndyCar champion Scott Dixon is the latest on-line driving instructor for SAFEisFAST.com. Dixon is one of the most successful IndyCar drivers of all time, taking his fifth championship last year with Chip Ganassi Racing and having achieved 43 wins, the most of […]
PENSKE AND ROUSH INDUCTED INTO THE NASCAR HALL OF FAME Roger Penske and Jack Roush became the first two members of the RRDC to be inducted into the NASCAR Hall of Fame in ceremonies Friday, Feb. 1, in Charlotte. Their citations emphasized their accomplishments in the premier stock car racing series: Roger Penske is known, […]
THE FAST WAY UP THE RACING LADDER FIVE YOUNG GUNS TELL WHAT IT TAKES It isn’t easy becoming a professional race car driver, and many a talented racer has fallen by the wayside. In our latest video, five of North America’s top young drivers discuss just what it takes today. Indy Lights Champion Pato O’Ward […]
BOBBY RAHAL IS THE 27th RECIPIENT OF THE PHIL HILL AWARD Bobby Rahal, Indy 500 winner, championship driver and team owner, businessman and President of the Road Racing Drivers Club, was honored by the RRDC with the 2019 Phil Hill Award. The 2018 award recipient, David Hobbs, made the presentation at the annual RRDC members’ dinner on […]
CLAY RUSSELL NAMED 2018 MARK DONOHUE AWARD WINNER Clay Russell, of Spartanburg, S.C., was named the 48th recipient of the RRDC Mark Donohue Award for his winning drive at the 2018 SCCA National Championship Runoffs at Sonoma Raceway in October. This unique award is presented annually by the RRDC for outstanding performance, competitiveness and sportsmanship during […]
ALEX ZANARDI TO DRIVE FOR BMW TEAM RLL IN ROLEX 24 AT DAYTONA With the full support of BMW Motorsport, Rahal, Letterman, Lanigan is fielding a pair of BMW Team RLL M8 GTEs for this month’s Rolex 24 at Daytona, the No. 24 equipped with a very special set of hand controls for one of […]
