---

ATLANTICS: Battles big and small; Lynx Racing qualifying at Trois Rivieres

29 July 2000

        Lynx Racing drivers David Rutledge and Mike Conte are 5th and 15th
in preliminary qualifying for the Player's Grand Prix de Trois Rivières,
the 8th round of the CART Toyota Atlantic Championship, July 28 - 30. 
Rutledge set a time of 1:01.771 ((88.644 mph) and Conte turned a 1:02.920
(86.953 mph).
        Andrew Bordin of Woodbridge, Ontario, winner of the previous
Atlantic race at Toronto, is on the provisional pole with a record-setting
lap time of 1:01.336 (89.272 mph), followed by current Atlantic points
leader and former Lynx driver now running with DSTP Motorsports, Buddy
Rice.
        "It's not actually as bad as it sounds since we set the time
without benefit of a first gear, which you need to use in five of the
corners here," says Rutledge, 22, of Vancouver BC.  "I lost the gear on the
fifth lap of qualifying, and I could see that it cost me a couple of tenths
of a second in each of the five corners, and since we're only four tenths
off the preliminary pole sitter, we feel confident that we'll have a good
shot in final qualifying tomorrow and a great car for the race on Sunday."
        Mike Conte has a more equivocal session, interrupted by yelllow
flags and a drive-through penalty for a pit lane blend line violation.
        "I got off to a rough start in the morning when I brushed the tires
in one of the turns and bent a tie rod which I had to come in and get
fixed, and then I brushed the wall later in the session, so the morning
wasn't really very productive," says Conte, 31, of Seattle, Washington. 
"This afternoon, with cars crashing in front of me on every other lap, it
was impossible to get a rhythm going, and we only had time to make two
changes to the car during the session, only one of which did any good. 
Even so, the car actually feels pretty good, and I'm looking forward to
final qualifying and the race." 
          The 45 lap (68.43 mile) Atlantic race, held on the 1.521-mile
temporary street course, is Sunday's main event on the weekend schedule and
is scheduled to start at 1:45 p.m.  
2000 marks the 10th anniversary of Lynx Racing, one of the most unique
organizations in auto racing today.  Created and owned by two women, Peggy
Haas and Jackie Doty, Lynx is both a championship-winning racing team and a
uniquely successful driver development program that focuses on a driver's
spiritual and psychological growth in addition to their on-track skills. 
In addition to racing in the Atlantic series, Lynx also sponsors Sara
Senske, one of the top female drivers in open-wheel racing today, in the
Barber Dodge Pro Series. 
          The Lynx mission is to seek out young drivers with the desire and
potential to become champions at the highest levels of the sport and
provide them with the funding, equipment and training to take the last step
toward realizing that potential, a process the team calls 'destiny by
design.'  Lynx alumni include CART FedEx drivers Patrick Carpentier, Alex
Barron and Memo Gidley.