Wyoming Ethanol Racing Teams With Ethanol Industry in 2006

Omaha, Neb. (January 18, 2006) ‹Wyoming Ethanol Racing announced today that
Ethanol Promotion and Information Council (EPIC) will be its title sponsor
for the 2006 racing season. The ethanol industry service providers will fund
the sponsorship and have EPIC oversee the team¹s promotions and public
relations on its behalf for the season. The five-car drag team races with a
high-performance fuel known as E-85, which is 85 percent ethanol and 15
percent gasoline and is commercially available at the pump.
 
³We¹re excited about the partnership. EPIC is a natural fit as our title
team sponsor since we use E-85 to give us a performance advantage,² says Dan
Schwartzkopf, a 17-year race veteran, and founder of Wyoming Ethanol Racing.
 
Dyno tests have shown performance gains over high-quality racing gasoline,
in some cases more than 100 horsepower, without the downside of fuel system
maintenance that one would have with a methanol-fuel engine.
 
³The sponsorship of Wyoming Ethanol Racing is important to the industry
because it demonstrates to both race fans and everyday heros that ethanol is
a performance fuel at every level,² says Tom Slunecka, the executive
director of EPIC. ³Not only can dragsters use it to increase performance,
but a mother can stop at her local gas station, fill up her minivan with
ethanol and then safely drive her kids to soccer practice.²
 
Ethanol, which is becoming a more common fuel in racing, is a high-octane,
high-performance, clean-burning fuel. The IndyCar® Series is using a 10
percent ethanol 90 percent methanol fuel blend beginning in 2006, and 100
percent ethanol fuel in 2007.
 
 
Schwartzkopf and his team are well-known for having the best-engineered cars
and for their use and promotion of ethanol as a high-performance fuel that
reduces harmful tailpipe emissions.
 
³We¹ve been using ethanol in our dragsters for the past 10 years and winning
races. I hope that in the next few years all dragsters in all the series, as
well as other racing series, are using ethanol in their race cars,² says
Schwartzkopf. ³It¹s not only a performance-boosting fuel, but it¹s the right
thing to do for the environment, and it¹s a renewable fuel made right here
in America, reducing our dependence on foreign oil.²
 
Today consumers can purchase 10 percent ethanol-enriched fuel across the
country. In addition, many consumers who drive flex-fuel vehicles (FFV¹s)
can use E85, the same fuel that Wyoming Ethanol Racing currently use in its
five race cars.
 
Wyoming Ethanol Racing will have five cars under the ethanol industry
sponsorship. Race fans will be able to see the team compete in eight
different regional series, including Top Comp, Super Pro, Quick 16, Super
Eliminator, Super Comp, Super Gas, Fast 16, and Top Dragster.
 
Wyoming Team Racing is comprised of drivers Dan Schwartzkopf, Dave Slatten,
Bill Percival, and Jamie Schwartzkopf.
 
To learn more about ethanol, visit www.drivingethanol.org.
 

About EPIC
The Ethanol Promotion & Information Council (EPIC) is an alliance of ethanol
producers and industry leaders who have come together to spread the word
about the benefits of ethanol through information and promotional programs.
EPIC is a nonprofit organization and is overseen by a seven-member board of
directors. For more information about EPIC, visit www.drivingethanol.org.