PRDA Founders Appear Together for First Time In 35 Years at Road America

ELKHART LAKE, Wis. – More than 60 vintage Can-Am cars are expected here this weekend to mark the 40th anniversary of one of the most spectacular racing series of all time. And, as a bonus for racing fans with a sense of humor, Road America’s Kohler International Challenge weekend with Brian Redman will feature the first group appearance in more than 35 years by three vintage personalities, the founding members of the Polish Racing Drivers of America.

Oscar Koveleski, founding president of the PRDA will join with Tony Adamowicz and Brad Niemcek to pay homage to the Can-Am, the men who competed in it and to the noisy, colorful cars they drove. And, perhaps, to trade Polish jokes with old friends in the Road America paddock.

Both Koveleski and Adamowicz competed in Canadian-American Challenge Cup competition and Niemcek managed Can-Am promotions for series sponsor, Johnson Wax, for three years and later did public relations work for several teams. [Johnson Wax sponsored the series from 1966-1970; the series was contested for four more complete seasons, through 1974.]

Koveleski, a former national SCCA champion and master of hill climb competition in big-bore sports cars, is president of KidRacers, Inc. He will offering “test drives” of the firm’s Formula 5 battery-powered race cars for children, aged 3-7, in the Road America paddock. Koveleski lives in Clark Summit, Pa. [More at <http://www.kidracers.com>] A

damowicz, whose numerous racing accomplishments include a Trans-Am U-2 championship (Porsche 911, 1968), a Formula A/5000 series championship (Eagle, 1969), and lap records in the 24 Hours of LeMans in a (3rd O/A, 1971, NART 512M Ferrari), is sales manager for All The King’s Toys II in Costa Mesa, Calif., and a founding partner in a new firm, a2z Racer Gear, which will be exhibiting in the Road America paddock. Adamowicz lives in Southern California. [More at <http://a2zracer.com>]

Niemcek, who raced briefly as an SCCA amateur, is better known for his “design” of the PRDA van driven to second place by the three founders in the 1971 Cannonball Sea To Sea Memorial Trophy Dash. Now retired, Niemcek is working on a book about racing sponsorship and a companion website featuring a searchable database of racing sponsors. He lives in southwestern Wisconsin. [More at <http://www.sponsorfacts.com>]

Koveleski will present one of the PRDA’s famous “Pole Position” trophies to the fastest qualifying Can-Am competitor for Victory Lane magazine. [The first was presented in March, 1971, to Mario Andretti in Sebring, Fla.]

DOUG STOKES
AUTOBOOKS-AEROBOOKS