Niclas Jonsson: Sweden and safety

Niclas Jonsson update:  May 14, 2001
(note: the first O in Jonsson is spelled with an umlaut)

Swedish sojourn

Sports-car driver Niclas Jonsson of Aliso Viejo, Calif., returned to Sweden 
this month, but his thoughts won't be far from racing.  He is taking 
advantage of a long break between races in the American Le Mans Series to 
visit family and renew friendships in the European motorsport community.  
He'll attend a Scandinavian Touring Car Championship race and will meet with 
personal sponsors and other business contacts during the trip.

summer safety

Jonsson says vacationers should take extra precautions to stay safe on the 
road this summer.

"It's very important to think about the heat, because it can get to you," he 
said.  "When you're driving a long distance, stop every other hour, have 
something to drink, stretch your legs and move around to get the circulation 
going so you can stay alert.  Take something to drink in the car, as well.  
And when you stop to eat, instead of having a fat, greasy burger every time, 
for a change have a salad or some Italian spaghetti to keep you more alert 
and focussed.

"It's easy to get a bit lazy driving long distance and take one or sometimes 
even two hands off the wheel and steer with the knee, but it's not 
appropriate," he cautioned.  "You may face a situation where you need to be 
able to save yourself, so always keep both hands on the wheel."

X5 on track

Jonsson participated in a recent media day at Laguna Seca Raceway, where he 
and other drivers gave track tours to reporters.  He enjoyed driving a full 
range of BMW production cars on the challenging road course, especially BMW's 
X5 sport-utility vehicle.  "It was very impressive, " he said.  "It's not an 
M car, but for an SUV it has unbelievably good handling."

next

Jonsson will return to the track in June to test BMW Team PTG's new BMW M3 
GTR.  "That's what I'm really looking forward to," he enthused.  His next 
race will be at Sears Point Raceway on July 22.

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Sylvia Proudfoot
spur07@cs.com
403 287 3945