Testing begins for 2004 Trans-am Series, Top driver Ruhlman
rejoins Derhaag Motorsports
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
TESTING BEGINS FOR 2004 MOTOROCK TRANS-AM SERIES, AS TOP DRIVER RANDY
RUHLMAN REJOINS DERHAAG MOTORSPORTS
GREENSBORO, NC (March 4, 2004) - Testing got underway for the 2004 Motorock
Trans-Am Series at Carolina Motorsports Park in Kershaw, SC yesterday, as
top series driver Randy Ruhlman prepares to return for a full season in
Trans-Am with the front running Derhaag Motorsports team. The team spent
two full days testing in preparation for the April 18th Trans-Am season
opener at the Long Beach Grand Prix. Randy Ruhlman will return to the
series with the familiar #49 blue and white Chevrolet Corvette sponsored by
Cleveland based Preformed Line Products. Ruhlman finished sixth in the
series in 2003 with a podium at Trois Rivieres.
The Motorock Trans-Am Series is expected to run a 10-race schedule in 2004,
highlighted by the Long Beach opener with Champ Car and a race with the
NASCAR Nextel Cup at Infineon Speedway (June 27). Other announced venues
included further races with Champ Car at Portland (June 20), Road America
(Aug 8), and Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca (Sept 12) and a feature date at Le
Grand Prix de Trois-Rivières (Aug 2). The other venues are still in
negotiations and are likely to be announced within days.
³Derhaag Motorsports has developed the reputation of putting together fast,
reliable cars that give their drivers every chance of winning. I saw that
first hand last year,² said Ruhlman. ³I am excited once again to be part of
this team and to be working with Jim and his crew in 2004. We are out here
to win races and be on the podium each and every race. The fact that we
have the same people working together again and that I have Mike Dreith back
as my crew chief, I believe is the winning combination in Trans-Am this
year. The car was great in testing here at Kershaw. We made a lot of
progress on shocks and springs and I am really pleased with our
development.²
"I am delighted to have Randy returning this year,² says team owner Jim
Derhaag. ³Last year, we all worked well together. Randy is the rare
professional driver, who knows car dynamics and setup and can then take the
car and run it up front. He has gotten to work with some of the best
engineers in the business and he is able to apply what he has learned to the
car. He has great feel for setup and our cars have gotten even faster with
Randy driving for the team. We expect to be on the podium consistently this
year and win some races.²
Ruhlman has also driven for other several notable teams in Trans-Am, most
recently with Tom Gloy Racing in the 2002 Trans-Am Series for the BFGoodrich
Tires® Cup, where Ruhlman scored a second at Trois Rivieres and a third at
Miami and finished seventh overall in the Driver¹s Championship. Ruhlman
was also awarded the 2002 BBS Wheels ³Most Improved Driver of the Year².
Running his rookie season in Trans-Am in 1990, Randy Ruhlman became a series
regular, scoring a seventh in the 1993 Driver¹s Championship and eighths in
1991 and1992, before taking a hiatus into NASCAR and American Speed
Association (ASA) short track racing. Ruhlman returned full-time to
Trans-Am with his own team in 1998, closing his race shop to run for Tom
Gloy Racing in 2002.
Derhaag Motorsports has fielded many successful drivers in the past,
including top Trans-Am drivers Kenny Wilden, Tony Ave, Dorsey Schroeder,
Chris Neville, Justin Bell and Darin Brassfield. Jim Derhaag himself made
150 starts as a driver in the Trans-Am Series before his successful move to
full time ownership in 1998. Randy Ruhlman and Jim Derhaag competed against
each other in the Trans-am Series from 1990 until 1996.
Preformed Line Products (PLP) is an international manufacturer and supplier
of hardware and support systems for the communications and energy
industries. Products include the COYOTE® Closure and GUY-GRIP® Dead-End used
in the telecommunications, cable and energy industries. Manufacturing
facilities are located worldwide in the USA, Canada, China, Brazil, Mexico,
England, Spain, South Africa, Australia and Japan.
