GRAND AM (IOWA/VIRGINIA) - Grand-Am To Honor Victims of Virginia Tech Tragedy at Iowa Speedway and VIR 400

Joining with numerous other sporting organizations in the United States and around the world, Grand-Am officials confirmed today that teams in both of its racing series will display the Virginia Tech University logo on their race cars over the next two weeks in tribute to the victims of this week’s tragedy at the school.

Competing teams in both this weekend’s dual Grand-Am KONI Challenge 400k races at Iowa Speedway, in Newton, Iowa, and in next weekend’s Grand-Am Rolex Sports Car Series events at Virginia International Raceway, in Alton, Va., will display the VT logo in remembrance of the lives lost this past Monday. Competitors in the SunTrust MOTO-ST Series, which is also competing at VIR next weekend, will also be invited to participate in the tribute.

This weekend at Iowa, teams in both the Grand-Am KONI Challenge Grand Sport (GS) and Street Tuner (ST) races will display the VT logo against a black background on each side of their race cars. The decal is the same tribute logo that competing teams in NASCAR’s national series will display for the next three weeks. Grand-Am and NASCAR are based on the same corporate campus in Daytona Beach, Fla.

At next weekend’s VIR 400, Daytona Prototype and GT teams will display a VT ribbon logo in what will be the first major national motorsports event to be run in Virginia since the tragedy. The VIR facility is also home to the Virginia Institute for Performance Engineering and Research (VIPER) which operates in partnership with Virginia Tech’s Advance Vehicle Dynamics Laboratory (AVDL).

Track officials will also allow free admission to the VIR 400 for students that hold a Virginia Tech student ID. The Virginia Tech Blacksburg campus is less than 150 miles from VIR.

The Grand American Road Racing Association, which operates and sanctions the Grand-Am Rolex Sports Car Series presented by Crown Royal Special Reserve and the Grand-Am KONI Challenge Series, is the premier road racing organization in North America. The 15-race 2007 Rolex Series schedule and the 12-race KONI Challenge Series calendar will deliver professional sports car racing to key markets throughout North America. All 2007 Rolex Series events will be televised in the United States and Canada on SPEED and distributed globally through ESPN International. With title sponsorship support from Rolex Watch USA and presenting sponsorship from Crown Royal Special Reserve, the Rolex Series showcases emerging and legendary drivers from around the globe and thoroughbred racing machines from the industry's leading constructors and the world's top automobile manufacturers. Learn more about Grand-Am at www.grand-am.com.