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TrueCar Racing
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TrueCar Racing Team in San Francisco
Chronicle “All-female Team has True Passion for Racing
Cars”
Something Missing at Indy
The Road To Indy Starring The Ladies Of
Speed
TrueCar Racing Team in San Francisco
Chronicle “All-female Team has True Passion for Racing
Cars”
“Coming from a modest background – my father’s a machinist and my mother’s a teacher’s aide – I started racing for fun when I was 5,” said McIntosh, who wanted to be a NASCAR driver but jumped at the chance to be developed as an IndyCar driver. “After lots and lots
of letdowns, I’m very jaded to this filthy motor sports world. So when I signed the contract (with TrueCar Racing) … to be fully funded and racing and pursuing my passion and living my dream – it’s what I always wanted, although there’s a long way to go.”
Legge is one of two women racing in the Indy Grand Prix of Sonoma this weekend, the other being Switzerland’s Simona De Silvestro. The British-born Legge, a former Champ Car driver, has had a challenging rookie year with a troubled team – Dragon Racing, owned by Jay Penske. Sebastien Bourdais is the other driver, and the team had to race one car after a midseason switch from Lotus to Chevrolet engines. So Legge hasn’t raced in two months. But Legge said some of Dragon Racing’s sponsors – TrueCar Racing, McAfee and Bing – felt it was important to race a full team at Sonoma, and Chevrolet provided another engine.
“Chevrolet stepped up – our knights in shining armor,” Legge said. “Yes, it’s been very hard. … I’m trying to be politically correct. It’s been tough. But I can see the end goal is what it is. The hard thing is not having the testing. It’s a long-term process. Sebastien’s been doing well, so I’m hoping to get some kind of momentum up at Sonoma.”
All the women of TrueCar Racing are at Sonoma this weekend to promote the team, although Legge and Shea Holbrook (in the Pirelli World Challenge series) are the only ones racing. That includes Emilee Tominovich, only 19, who is on track to join the American Le Mans series, and Rally America B-Spec series champion Verena Mei.
Mei is a former Hollywood stunt driver (“The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift”), and she and co-driver Leanne Junnila are the first all-female team to win a season Rally Car title.
“It’s something that has changed my life,” Mei said. “We’ve all been pursuing racing individually, and not having the tools to get to where we want to be has been the biggest challenge for all of us. … Now we really have a chance to compete at the top levels.”
Patrick left a void, but she also created opportunities for women, the TrueCar drivers agreed. “The challenge for us is to be taken seriously,” Freiberg said. “We can drive fast, that’s not the problem.”
McIntosh added: “When Janet Guthrie raced in the Indy 500, there weren’t even any women’s bathrooms in the (drivers’ area). We still go through a lot of battles that men don’t, but it’s something that’s becoming more common.”
The TrueCar lineup
Katherine Legge: British-born driver, 32, is IndyCar series rookie, has Champ Car experience.
Verena Mei: Former Hollywood stunt driver, just became part of first all-female Rally Car team to win a series championship.
Shea Holbrook: Will race at Sonoma this weekend in Pirelli World Challenge (is currently fourth in the points standings).
Ashley Freiberg: Only 20, is on track to IndyCar series in the Star Mazda Championship series.
Shannon McIntosh: Also on track to Indy Car series. At 22, is with Cooper Tires USF2000 series.
Emilee Tominovich: At 19, the youngest team member. With Mazda MX-5 Cup SCCA Pro Series; is on a path to American Le Mans series.
Read more:
http://www.sfgate.com/sports/article/All-female-racing-team-has-True-passion-3814379.php#ixzz25FHh7ULD
Source: verenamei.com/press/truecar-racing-team-in-san-francisco-chronicle-all-female-team-has-true-passion-for-racing-cars/
It's the Danica Patrick phenomenon.
With Patrick taking her talents to NASCAR, the IndyCar series has lost its most popular driver and it's a hole not even "Dancing With the Stars" champion Helio Castroneves or another three-time Indianapolis 500 champ, Dario Franchitti, can fill.
That's because since Janet Guthrie first broke the gender barrier in 1977, female drivers have been an important part of open-wheel racing's popularity, from Sarah Fisher to Patrick. A record four women started in the 2010 and 2011 Indy 500s.
IndyCar rookie Katherine Legge, who finished the best (22nd) of three women at this year's Indy 500, hopes to eventually fill the void left by Patrick's departure. If she can't do it alone, several of her up-and-coming teammates on her TrueCar Racing Women Empowered Initiative team would love to help.
TrueCar Racing, the brainchild of CEO Scott Painter, is the first all-female racing team, with six drivers in six different series. Legge, 32, is the only IndyCar driver, but two other drivers - 20-year-old Ashley Freiberg and 22-year-old Shannon McIntosh - are in IndyCar developmental series and hope to be up on the big circuit soon.
"Coming from a modest background - my father's a machinist and my mother's a teacher's aide - I started racing for fun when I was 5," said McIntosh, who wanted to be a NASCAR driver but jumped at the chance to be developed as an IndyCar driver. "After lots and lots of letdowns, I'm very jaded to this filthy motor sports world. So when I signed the contract (with TrueCar Racing) ... to be fully funded and racing and pursuing my passion and living my dream - it's what I always wanted, although there's a long way to go."
Legge is one of two women racing in the Indy Grand Prix of Sonoma this weekend, the other being Switzerland's Simona De Silvestro. The British-born Legge, a former Champ Car driver, has had a challenging rookie year with a troubled team - Dragon Racing, owned by Jay Penske. Sebastien Bourdais is the other driver, and the team had to race one car after a midseason switch from Lotus to Chevrolet engines. So Legge hasn't raced in two months. But Legge said some of Dragon Racing's sponsors - TrueCar Racing, McAfee and Bing - felt it was important to race a full team at Sonoma, and Chevrolet provided another engine.
"Chevrolet stepped up - our knights in shining armor," Legge said. "Yes, it's been very hard. ... I'm trying to be politically correct. It's been tough. But I can see the end goal is what it is. The hard thing is not having the testing. It's a long-term process. Sebastien's been doing well, so I'm hoping to get some kind of momentum up at Sonoma."
All the women of TrueCar Racing are at Sonoma this weekend to promote the team, although Legge and Shea Holbrook (in the Pirelli World Challenge series) are the only ones racing. That includes Emilee Tominovich, only 19, who is on track to join the American Le Mans series, and Rally America B-Spec series champion Verena Mei.
Mei is a former Hollywood stunt driver ("The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift"), and she and co-driver Leanne Junnila are the first all-female team to win a season Rally Car title.
"It's something that has changed my life," Mei said. "We've all been pursuing racing individually, and not having the tools to get to where we want to be has been the biggest challenge for all of us. ... Now we really have a chance to compete at the top levels."
Patrick left a void, but she also created opportunities for women, the TrueCar drivers agreed. "The challenge for us is to be taken seriously," Freiberg said. "We can drive fast, that's not the problem."
McIntosh added: "When Janet Guthrie raced in the Indy 500, there weren't even any women's bathrooms in the (drivers' area). We still go through a lot of battles that men don't, but it's something that's becoming more common."
The TrueCar lineup
Katherine Legge: British-born driver, 32, is IndyCar series rookie, has Champ Car experience.
Verena Mei: Former Hollywood stunt driver, just became part of first all-female Rally Car team to win a series championship.
Shea Holbrook: Will race at Sonoma this weekend in Pirelli World Challenge (is currently fourth in the points standings).
Ashley Freiberg: Only 20, is on track to IndyCar series in the Star Mazda Championship series.
Shannon McIntosh: Also on track to Indy Car series. At 22, is with Cooper Tires USF2000 series.
Emilee Tominovich: At
19, the youngest team member. With Mazda MX-5 Cup SCCA Pro Series; is
on a path to American Le Mans series.
Source: www.sfgate.com/sports/article/All-female-racing-team-has-True-passion-3814379.php
The Road To Indy Starring The Ladies Of
Speed
In ascending order, the levels are:
1. US F2000 National Championship
2. Star Mazda Series (AF)
3. Firestone Indy Lights
4. IZOD IndyCar Series (KL)
To get you quickly up to speed, here are the engines for each respective series:
1. Mazda MZR 2000cc 4-cylinder engine / 150hp (National) or 170hp
(Championship)
2. Mazda Renesis 1300cc Wankel Rotary engine / 260hp
3. Infiniti 3500cc V8 engine / 420hp
4. 2200cc twin-turbo V6 engine / 550-750hp
All racers compete over a combination of permanant road courses, street circuits, and oval tracks, including the famed Indianapolis 500 weekend on May 27. For the 2012 open wheel season, Eau Rouge will be following Collette Davis (US F2000), Shannon McIntosh (US F2000), Ashley Freiberg (Star Mazda), and Katherine Legge (IZOD IndyCar).
A few notes on each driver:
Collette Davis - Adjusting to the new chassis after last season's Pro Challenge Mustang events. Placed 7th and 11th at Sebring on 3/15 and 3/16.
Shannon McIntosh - Sophomore year in F2K. Still working to overcome her overdriving habits from dirt racing. Placed 15th and 23rd at Sebring on 3/15 and 3/16.
Ashley Freiberg - First open wheel road series. Getting used to the new levels of downforce and massive grip from the slick tires. Debut race on 3/24 at St. Petersburg.
Katherine Legge - First time behind the wheel of an open wheel car since her Champ Car season in 2007. First seasonal race on 3/24 at St. Petersburg.
In addition, we will be keeping tabs on Shea Holbrook in the Pirelli World Challenge Series, Beth Chryst and Emilee Tominovich in the Mazda MX-5 Cup Series, and Rahel Frey in this year's DTM season with the new Audi A5 platform.
We wish every one of these ladies the very best in 2012! Stay
tuned for coverage of the Grand Prix Of St. Petersburg this weekend
with Collette, Shannon, Ashley, and Katherine.
Source: Press release
