CARPENTIER TO DEBUT STOCK CAR CAREER AT CAYUGA (04-05)
Copyright, high resolution, free images available for download at: For a head shot of Patrick Carpentier, click below http://www.patcarpentier.com/media/pix/hr/ASE126.jpg For a head shot of Patrick Carpentier, click below http://www.patcarpentier.com/media/pix/hr/ASE128.jpg For a photo of Patrick Carpentier during last Tuesday testing at Saint-Eustache, click below http://www.patcarpentier.com/media/pix/hr/ASE145.jpg www.patcarpentier.com/ Round 9 of the CASCAR Super Series at Cayuga PATRICK CARPENTIER TO DEBUT STOCK CAR CAREER AT CAYUGA Montréal, QC, August 31st, 2006 -Patrick Carpentier will make his stock car debut this Labour Day weekend at Cayuga International Speedway, a short oval track located near Hamilton, Ontario. Carpentier will drive David Jacombs' #88 Ford Taurus in Round 9 of the CASCAR Super Series 2006 schedule slated to start Sunday at 1:00 p.m. For the Joliette, Quebec native, this is a great opportunity to learn from seasoned pros competing in this type of series. The Canadian open-wheel star, who spent nine years in Champ Car and in the Indy Racing League (IRL), drove a couple of races this season behind the wheel of Daytona Prototypes in the Rolex Sports Car Championship, including last weekend's event in California, where he finished 7th overall. However, this will be his first tin-top start on a short track. "I'm going to Cayuga to learn, but it could be a tough learning experience on such a short track," mentioned Carpentier after testing a NASCAR East Series Monte Carlo last Tuesday in Saint-Eustache (QC). "I had a bit of track time to learn the car, and I must admit that you don't see much of who's around you with no mirrors on the car. However, someone remarked that I would not be the only one not to see anything on the track. I will have to count on the spotter, who usually stands high in the grandstands, to guide me through traffic. I hope he is good at his job!!! In open-wheel racing, your head sticks out of the bodywork, and you can clearly see what is around you. This promises to be something else." Team owner and current driver, Jacombs, yielded his seat to Carpentier after Jerry Santucci, the new track owner of Cayuga International Speedway, proposed to sponsor Carpentier's inaugural stock car race. Jacombs, who knows Cayuga very well, has all the right setups for that track. Carpentier won't have to dial a new car, so all he will have to do is learn the car's reactions and adjust his driving, which will still be no small task. "With the very short experience I have had with these types of cars, I realized that there is little downforce, but they have tremendous power coming out of the corners," continued Carpentier, who also has Mecachrome as a personal sponsor in his quest to eventually compete in NASCAR in the USA. "There are little or no electronic devices to send data to the stand. Most of the adjustments to the car during the pit stops come from radio communications between the driver and crew chief. There are a lot of things that I have to re-learn with these types of cars, but I am willing to do it. This will be my first stock car race and I'm competing against drivers who have a lot of experience. My goal is to be there at the finish and if I can, on the leader's lap." Carpentier got his first taste of stock car driving last July under the supervision of Quebec's legendary stock car driver, Jean-Paul Cabana, who owns a stock car driving school at Sanair Speedway (QC). This weekend, Carpentier will be on track Friday for a private test session. CASCAR Super Series practice begins Saturday at 3:00 p.m., and Twin 50 Shootout Races, to set the starting grid, will be run under the lights starting at 8:00 p.m. The green flag for the HOT HEAD HENRY 200 will be given Sunday at 1:00 p.m. Carpentier News Racing Bureau Contact : Max d'Orsonnens : 514.990.4988 (Montreal) Robert Desrosiers : 514.975.6223 (At the track)
