Cayman Interseries - Sandridge And Varde Close Out Weekend With Enduro Win

WATKINS GLEN, June 13, 2011: Mark Sandridge and Joe Varde co-drove their white and red-and-yellow striped No. 49 Cayman S, which is themed after their 1994 IMSA Champion Team Salad Porsche 911 RSR, to their first Cayman Interseries victory late Sunday afternoon in the final race of the SVRA Historic Enduro 200 at Watkins Glen International.

Sandridge, who won the pole for The Glen’s weekend races on Saturday, started the No. 49 and turned the wheel of over to Varde during an early pit stop under caution. Varde drove the rest of the way and passed Lee Davis, who was driving his black and red No. 33 Cayman S that carries the colors of the Advan Porsche 956s and 962s and Luna-C Clothing, for Team Salad’s first win since joining the Cayman series this year.

Davis, who won the weekend’s sprint race earlier on Sunday, kept the pressure on Varde in a solid solo-run to second. Teammates Jim Thomason and Tim Lewis Jr. co-drove to third in Thomason’s pink and white No. 9 Cayman S that runs the livery of the Blaupunkt/Joest Racing Porsche 962C that was driven to at third-place finish in the 1989 24 Hours of Le Mans by Hans Stuck and Bob Wollek.

Chuck Smithee, driving his No. 25 Mobil 1 Porsche GT-1 themed Cayman S, matched his sprint-race result earlier on Sunday with another fourth-place run in the enduro, one spot in front of his SpeedSport Tuning teammate and debuting driver Wayne Nykyforchyn (pronounced “Nicky-Fortune”), who finished fifth. Nykyforchyn drives his No. 11 Cayman S that commemorates the Marlboro/Joest Racing Porsche 956 that was driven to victory at Monza in 1983 by Thierry Boutsen and Bob Wollek.

Hoosier Performers: Davis and Nykyforchyn each earned a pair of Hoosier R6 racing tires for their strong showings at The Glen. Davis was presented with his Hoosier Performance Award for winning Sunday’s sprint on R6 slicks in predominately wet conditions while Nykyforchyn earned the honor for posting a pair of top-five results – including third in the sprint in his first race ever – in his debut weekend of racing.

Luna-C for Charity: Davis and co-driver and coach Ryan Eversley announced during The Glen weekend that Luna-C Racing has entered into a partnership with the Children’s Tumor Foundation to raise awareness and donations for the charity. With backing from Luna-C, Eversley drove a Porsche GT3 in this year’s Rolex 24 At Daytona in support of the CTF and the Foundation’s Racing4Research program. Adding Luna-C’s Cayman Interseries team will help expand what was previously an annual event effort to a season long fundraising and neurofibromatosis (NF) awareness campaign. Luna-C Racing’s championship-winning No. 33 Cayman S will now also showcase the CTF logo for the remainder of the 2011 season.

Founded in 1978, The Children’s Tumor Foundation is dedicated to improving the health and well being of more than 200,000 Americans living with NF. The charity’s research program has played a key role in the discovery of the genes that cause NF, understanding the biology of NF, creation of the NF Clinic Network and preclinical screening of drug compounds that appear promising in treating the disorder. Learn more about CTF and make donations here.

Rennsport Ready: Several Cayman competitors took the time to officially enter the upcoming Porsche Rennsport Reunion IV, at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca, October 14 – 16, during the Glen weekend. North America’s premier celebration of Porsche’s illustrious racing history, the Rennsport Reunion promises to be the biggest race event to date in the brief history of the Cayman Interseries. The weekend offers a unique and rare event that reunites the cars and drivers that together have written Porsche’s motorsports history during the last 60 years. The Cayman Interseries is an ideal addition in that it symbolically continues the rich history of many of these famous race cars. The entry deadline is June 30, online entries are available here while downloadable forms are available to FAX or mail here. Entries submitted by FAX can be sent to (831) 373-0533. The deadline for any submitted entries is June 30, a little over two weeks away.

Moving on to Mid-Ohio: Next up for the Cayman Interseries is the SVRA Mid-Ohio Vintage Grand Prix at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course, June 23 – 26.