SOUTHARD MOTORSPORTS TO RUN LEXUS RILEY IN 2007 DAYTONA PROTOTYPE SEASON
Southard Motorsports No. 3 Preformed Line Products Daytona Prototype CONTACT: Cristi Brumm 1-336-210-0980 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE SOUTHARD MOTORSPORTS TO RUN LEXUS RILEY IN 2007 DAYTONA PROTOTYPE SEASON Powell, OH (Dec 18, 2006) Southard Motorsports announced today plans to campaign a Lexus-powered Riley in the 2007 Grand American Rolex Sports Car Series presented by Crown Royal Special Reserve. The No. 3 Southard Motorsports entry will be driven by veteran drivers Shane Lewis and Randy Ruhlman and will carry sponsorship from PLP-Preformed Line Products of Mayfield Village, Ohio. ³It¹s always a tough decision to make a major change to anything on the race car, especially something as major as the engine.² says team owner Steve Southard. ³We believe the Lexus engine package has developed into one of the most competitive and reliable packages for the Daytona Prototype class. We also feel that the technical support Lexus is able to provide our team will be especially important with the mandated Bosch ECU¹s for next year. Last year, we had good success on track and with the change to Lexus we're planning on building on that success to accomplish even more in 2007." Shane Lewis, who is starting his fourth year as lead driver of the team and was a part of Southard Motorsports' two podium finishes last year, said, ³I¹m really looking forward to working with TRD this year. Everyone knows that the Lexus engine has amazing performance, but for me it¹s about the support and service. The staff at TRD are some of the best in the business. I can¹t wait to share the podium with them!² Randy Ruhlman, who competed last year in a Pontiac-powered Riley, added, "As a driver and engineer, I've noticed that when it comes to response and competiveness, with Lexus it's not just about the engines--it's an attitude they bring with them to the entire program. I'm excited by what Lexus has to offer and the technical expertise of TRD will be invaluable." Earning its first-ever Manufacturer¹s Championship in 2006, Lexus registered seven victories on the way to capturing the Daytona Prototype crown and scored it¹s first-ever triumph in the prestigious 2006 Rolex 24 At Daytona. Over the past three seasons and forty Rolex Series events, Lexus-powered entries have taken twenty-one pole positions and won fifteen races Preformed Line Products (PLP) is an international manufacturer and supplier of hardware and support systems for the communications and energy industries. Products include COYOTE® Fiber Optics and VORTEX® Vibration Dampers 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 Thailand. For further information about the drivers, sponsor, and team, visit the following links: Southard Motorsports http://www.southardmotorsports.com <http://www.southardmotorsports.com/> Preformed Line Products http://www.preformed.com <http://www.preformed.com/> Shane Lewis http://www.shanelewis.com <http://www.shanelewis.com/> Randy Ruhlman http://www.randyruhlman.com <http://www.randyruhlman.com/> # # # To unsubscribe, please reply to this message with the word ³unsubscribe² in the subject line