Shane Lewis To Stretch Legs at Glen Long Course

Shane Lewis To Stretch Legs at Glen Long Course

 

 

 

 

 

WATKINS GLEN, NY., September 21, 2005 - Shane Lewis loves the challenge of
wringing the last bit of speed from a racecar. As such, the Jupiter,
Fla.-resident finds the "Long Course" at Watkins Glen International one of
the true challenges of his year. Saturday's Crown Royal 250 at The Glen will
be the third Grand American Rolex Sports Car Series appearance at the
upstate New York facility this year. It is the second race on the "Long
Course". The 3.4-mile track provides an excellent opportunity for Lewis to
turn loose the BMW V8 that powers the No. 3 PAP-Parts/ OZEXE Southard
Motorsports Riley. The historic track, which has been a cornerstone of
American road racing since the 1950s, may be the best occasion for Lewis to
return the Southard Motorsports Daytona Prototype (DP) to early-season
promise. The multi-time Grand American race winner drove the No. 3 to the
front of the pack consistently at the start of the season including stints
in the overall race lead at California Speedway and put in a strong
performance here. Lewis, who has driven in a dozen races at "The Glen",
lists the track as one of his favorites because of its technical nature. As
a true "driver's track", the 11-turn facility allows the driver to make a
difference. 

 

"The long course at the Glen is a great track because driver performance is
so important here," said Lewis. "While you need to have a great car
underneath you, this course demands a driver to be at his best. It's fast,
technical and if you get it right every lap, you can really stretch the legs
of a good car."

 

Making his third start at "The Glen" of the Grand American Rolex Sports Car
Series 2005 season, Lewis has had mixed results at the track this year. In
the first appearance, Lewis piloted the BMW to 11th in the Six Hours at the
Glen. On the 2.45-mile "Short Course" last month the Ohio-based team was
only able to capture 38th after a suspension failure ended their day. 

 

"I'm looking forward to running this race weekend in conjunction with the
IRL," continued Lewis. "I think we will turn some heads of the IndyCar fans.
It's really a benefit to both our series to show them what kind of race the
Rolex Sports Car Series can put on. And you know we put on one heck of a
show!"

 

Lewis is currently tied for 15th in the driver standings with three races
remaining. He is only 12 points out of the top-10 with two of his favorite
tracks, including The Glen, left on the schedule. The third, and final race
of the season, is at the new-to-the-series Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez in
Mexico City, Mexico.

 

SPEED Channel will broadcast the race live starting at 3 PM (EDT), Saturday,
September 24. Live timing and scoring can be found at
<http://www.grandamerican.com/> www.GrandAmerican.com beginning with
Thursday's first practice at 3 PM. Qualifying is scheduled for 4:40 PM,
Friday. 

 

For more on Shane Lewis please see www.ShaneLewis.com
<http://www.shanelewis.com/> . 

Southard Motorsports can be found at www.SouthardMotorsports.com
<http://www.southardmotorsports.com/> .

 

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Digital images and bio available upon request.

Editors, please do not publish any contact information other than web sites.
Thank you.

 

Contact: Tom Moore, Shane Lewis Racing

615-778-1614 (office), 615-509-5000 (cell), tom@darkhorsecom.com