John P. Halsmer

Peter parlayed an engineering degree from Purdue into a successful career as a racer, where he could speak to his crew in the technical language they could understand, and vice-versa … He quickly moved through the SCCA Formula Vee and Ford ranks into the professional USAC and SCCA Super Vee series in 1979-80, then leapfrogged into CART where he made 33 starts over a five-year span with a best finish of 2nd at the inaugural Cleveland race …road racing was still Peter’s forte, so solid seasons with Mazda’s IMSA GTO and Camel GTP programs, plus racing Mercury Cougars and Merkurs for Jack Roush, and factory Mazda RX-7s, lead to Camel GTO season championships in 1989 and ’91, as well as three class wins in the Rolex 24 At Daytona, and a ride in the 1992 IROC series … multiple wins were added to Peter’s resume during his long tenure with the Honda of America Racing Team in Grand-Am Cup … other major wins include the 1985 Camel GTP race at Riverside in Jim Busby’s Porsche 962, and seven SCCA Trans-Am series wins in 1986-87 for Jack Roush.