2-1-2004

February 2004 - Lola LMP2 test - Savannah GA

Rand Racing Test - Robeling Road in Savannah GA

2-24,25,26 - 2004

Tuesday

Colin got the chance of a lifetime today. He got to drive a 400 HP 170 MPH Lola Sports Prototype. Rand Racing is planning an announcement in the next few days but look for Colin to play a part in the big announcement.

Here he gets fitted to the car in the morning. The race drivers were on hand to shake down the cars for the 12 hours of Sebring and Bill Rand asked Colin to take part.

We can't announce the drivers quite yet (that will be in the press release in a day or 2). But they are all top line pros. The chance to learn from these pros is fantastic for Colin.

Here he gets ready to leave the pits on his first run. Team manager, Thomas Blam in the yellow shirt looks on. The car is a Lola B2k/40 with a 3.0L Nissan engine built by AER putting out 400 HP at 8,200 RPM. This is 200 HP more than anything Colin has driven.

The big wing and under wings make close to 2,000 pounds of downforce at 150 MPH. Colin's Formula Renault makes 1/10 that downforce. If you look close in the picture you can see the tire manufacture on car (it is still top secret until the release on Thursday).

Colin loved the power, downforce and grip. He said the brakes were fantastic.

Here he is entering the pits after his run. After 14 laps he was within 3 seconds of the pros who have driven the car before or been on the track before.

He hopes to get some more laps in the next 2 days.

Wednesday

Today Colin got to experience another big step in in car racing. Rain! Colin was the first driver in the team to venture out on the very wet and slippery track.

It was cool to see the huge rooster tails from the car as the under wing and rear wing pumped gallons of water from under the car and shot it into the air.

This was the first time Colin has ever driven a race car in the rain, and this one was no wimpy car. After 5 laps he was in looking for some more front grip.

Into the pits and the crew start work. On the right is Jim in the blue jacket downloading the data. Steve in the green is the engine engineer at AER and he is downloading the engine data to look at it.

On the left Franz balm in the blue looks on as his son Thomas in the hat helps Steve disconnect the front anti roll bar.

After the change Colin went out for another 9 laps and the car was improved.

He did have a quick 360 spin but it only cost him 4 seconds on the lap with the car never stopping and never dropped a wheel.

In the end Colin was within 3 seconds of the pro drivers. Another great opportunity to learn more.

After Colin, Mike Fitzgerald and James Gue, the drivers for Sebring got in the car. Colin was always helping with the car. Here he listens into a debrief with James and Thomas.

He was able to help with the shocks and just listened and learned from the pro drivers and other professional team members.

Just being in the pro team environment and learning how it works and how to work in a team like that is such a great opportunity.

To top off the test, Colin was given a official Rand Racing Stand 21 drivers suit from Bill Rand. This is in advance of a big announcement from the team in the next few days. Stay tuned.

Thursday

With the rain and cold weather still with us Colin got picked to do some durability tire testing for Yokohama.

Here the crew push him out from the tent to pit lane. The car had one of the rain tire versions we tested fitted. The track had puddles, damp patches and dry spots.

Colin was charged with trying to make the rain tire go away on the drying track to see what they could take in a race situation.

We are not going to say how well that went (top secret stuff we don't want to fall in enemy hands), but it was surprising.

This picture shows Colin in turn 6. This turn in the dry is a flat in 5th gear at 140 MPH.

You can see the damp track Colin was on. The cars ran great all test with no mechanical problems.

The AER engines ran perfect. The AER guys Steve and Sean worked on the ECU mapping, flat shift, and other electronics with a new type ECU.

The other team car worked on tire testing for Yokohama. We ran through many dry and wet tire compounds and constructions this test.

It was really great to have the pro drivers helping Colin. Derek Hill and Marino Franchitti spent quite a bit of time with Colin. Mike Fitzgerald, Andy Lally and James Gue gave advice as well.

The crew welcomed Colin and worked hard to give him a good car.

Bill Rand was so nice to give Colin this opportunity. Something most team owners would not do. These cars will be racing in the 12 hours of Sebring in 3 weeks and to turn the car over to a 15 year old is special.

Colin was announced today as the official test driver for the Rand Racing, Yokohama team for 2004.

This means he will get many laps this year in the car. The team has set up a F1 style test driver program and Colin is the first driver to benefit.

The race drivers were announced today as well.

From left to right:

Marino Franchitti - Car #8

Derek Hill - Car #8

Andy Lally - Car #8

Mike Fitzgerald - Car #7

James Gue - Car #7

Braun tests Rand Racing Lola

Racing series	ALMS
Date	2004-03-14

Talented Teen Helps Prep Rand Racing's Lolas for Sebring as Part of Unique Driver Development Program

OVALO, Texas, March 14 - Even before he has a driver's license for the streets so he can legally go 55 miles per hour, 15-year-old Colin Braun of Ovalo, Texas has been named as a test driver for a professional American Le Mans Series (ALMS) racing team and has tested one of its Lolas that can go 170 mph.

What's more, the car he drove is one that is expected to be going for the P2 class victory this coming Saturday, March 20, at the prestigious Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring at Sebring International Raceway in Sebring, Fla.

Braun, the 2003 Fran Am 1600 pro champion and Rookie of the Year, got his first chance to drive one of Rand Racing's Lolas late last month at Roebling Road Raceway in Savannah, Ga., under the team's new driver development program.

Think of it as a high-speed internship.

Team owner Bill Rand started the program to help young American racers hone their skills, allowing them to drive his cars at private tests the team holds as it prepares for various ALMS races. The first driver Rand chose for the new program was Braun, who will also perform other duties with the team this year as his schedule permits. The team anticipates conducting four or five tests this year, where Braun will get invaluable seat time while he helps the team conducts tests of various set-ups, engine mapping settings, tire compounds, brakes and the like.

Unfortunately Braun won't be able to be with the team at Sebring this coming weekend because he's still too young to get a pit pass for an ALMS race. Instead, he'll be keeping up with the team's standings via live coverage on the SPEED Channel and the Internet while he tests a new Pro Mazda formula car at another track.

The test at Roebling Road was Braun's first opportunity to drive a 400-horsepower race car, which is quite a thrill for anyone let alone one so young. The car generates close to 2,000 pounds of downforce at 150 mph, which is about 10 times more than the Formula Renault Braun is driving this year in the Formula TR pro series.

The car that Braun drove at the test is one of two Lola Nissans that the Tucker, Ga.-based team has entered in the Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring. Rand Racing's #7 will be driven by Mike Fitzgerald, James Gue and Rand in the ALMS season opener, with Andy Lally, Marino Franchitti and Derek Hill in the #8.

Braun tested the #8.

"I spent some time with him, and he did a really good job," said Lally, who could have been out of a ride at Sebring if Braun would have crashed his car. "He showed a lot of maturity in the way he learned the track and the car, and how he built up his speed."

Braun did some tire testing for Yokohama as part of his duties at Roebling Road. He did a 360-degree, Danny Sullivan-type spin in the rain once during the three-day test, but he was consistently clocked within 1 second of the some of the team's pro drivers' times.

"I learned a lot," Braun said. "Being with the pro drivers and getting to drive a P2 car was a dream come true."

Braun began racing at age 5 in quarter midgets and then advanced to karting, winning numerous national championships. His first real car race was just last year at the age of 14 when he entered the Fran Am 1600 pro series, and he became the youngest American driver to ever win a pro open-wheel race when he took the checkered in one of those events at Willow Springs, Calif., last May. That was the first of eight victories he had last year, earning him not only the series' Rookie of the Year honors but also the series' championship.

In addition to the testing program, Braun is competing in the Formula TR pro series for two-liter Formula Renaults this year. March 6-7 at California Speedway in Fontana he won his first two Formula TR races by default, since no other drivers had their cars ready for the event. He ran with the 10-car 1600 class and earned some easy points, but five or six more two-liter competitors are expected to enter the next event at Buttonwillow, Calif., April 2-4.

Braun's primary sponsor is Speed Secrets, a series of books and a high-level race car driving school created by Ross Bentley. Additional support comes from Latus Motors, Stand 21, Bell Helmets and Silkolene Oil.

Rand Racing Announces Sebring Drivers

Rand Racing drivers (from left) Marino Franchitti, Derek Hill, Andy Lally, James Gue, and Mike Fitzgerald

TUCKER, GA. (February 26). Rand Racing today announced a strong driver lineup for the upcoming Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring, and a technical partnership with Yokohama Tire Corporation. Mike Fitzgerald, James Gue, and team owner Bill Rand will share the #7 LMP2 Rand Racing Lola B2K/40, with Marino Franchitti, Derek Hill, and Andy Lally in the identical #8 entry. As a group the drivers bring experience to the team ranging from karting championships and F3000 to multiple endurance wins at Daytona and Sebring. Yokohama will provide engineering and development resources, as well as the new ADVAN radial racing slick and wet weather pattern tires to the team.

"I believe we've assembled all the elements for a winning team," Rand commented. "We have an exceptional group of drivers, Yokohama as our technical partner, and Thomas Blam as Team Manager and Jeff Braun as Technical Director. We've had some past success in endurance racing, and we're really looking forward to Sebring. We hope that's our first step to LeMans, and to the ALMS championship."

“We are extremely excited to have a team the caliber of Rand Racing competiting on our tires,” said Art Michalik, director, marketing communications, Yokohama Tire Corporation. “With the realignment of LMP classes we see this year as our best opportunity for a championship since 2001,” he added.

Rand Racing also announced a driver development program intended to nourish and support talented young racers with Colin Braun, 15 years old, as the first driver selected. Braun will also serve as Rand Racing's test driver.

While a relatively new team, Rand Racing has an outstanding record, taking The 2002 GrandAm SRPII Team Championship. In the same year Rand Racing driver Terry Borcheller won GrandAm's SRPII Driver Championship. Rand Racing's endurance wins in 2002, in addition to the Rolex 24, include the Six Hours of Watkins Glen and the VIR 500, with a season record of nine pole positions and nine wins in ten races.

MIKE FITZGERALD

Mike Fitzgerald began the 2004 season with a GT Class Win at the Rolex 24 at Daytona, adding to a previous Daytona win, 31 other professional race wins, and three championships. In 2000 he became only the third American driver in history to be awarded the prestigious Porsche Cup. Mike was also the 2000 Grand American Road Racing Association GTU Driver's Champion and the 1998 Motorola Cup Sports class Driver's Champion.

Last season Mike competed primarily in the Speed World Challenge GT and Touring Car series where he recorded two wins, two poles, five fastest race laps, and set six track records. He also added a win in Grand Am Cup competition. In 2000 he was the first driver to post wins in both the GT and Touring classes in the SPEED World Challenge on the same weekend.

MARINO FRANCHITTI

Marino Franchitti, winner in 2001 of both the Scottish Motor Club's Ecurie Ecosse Hub Cap for best young driver in a national championship and the William Lyons Trophy for best sports car driving performance, was the 2001 British GTO Champion with 8 wins and 3 second places, and winner of the John Wolfe trophy for best endurance driver.

In his first year racing in the ALMS in 2002, Marino took a podium in GT, finishing the season 10th in GTS with 6 top 6 finishes from only 6 races. He also drove 4 races for Rand Racing in LMP 675, scoring a class win in a Lola B2K/40, three second place finishes, a pole position, a lap record, and two fastest race laps. He also drove a works' 4-wheel drive Audi RS6 for Audi North America in the Speed World Challenge finishing 6th. In 2003 Marino raced a Ferrari 360 GT for Risi Competizione at the 12 Hours of Sebring, and for Scuderia Ecosse, both as development driver and at the Le Mans 1000kms on the Bugatti Circuit.

JAMES GUE

James Gue is one of the few Americans to compete and win in karts in the US, and to qualify for the Karting World Championships in Belgium. In addition to his racing the multi-lingual young driver is currently completing a degree in Economics at the University of Georgia, where he is on the Dean's List.

James, who began karting in 1991, was a Skip Barber Karting Scholarship winner in 2001, and moved to the Skip Barber National Series as well as racing for Team Lexus in the GrandAm Cup series. In 2002 he competed simultaneously in the Formula Mazda National series, the US F2000 Zetec Championship, and the SRP I class in GrandAm, where he scored a second place co-driving a Riley & Scott with Buddy Rice. James continued in the Zetec Championship in 2003, finishing ninth in the final standings with three top five finishes. He also co-drove a Lola B2K/40 to a second place in the ALMS, as well as driving GTP cars in the HSR historic racing series.

DEREK HILL

Derek Hill, only the second American ever to graduate to F3000, began his racing career in karting in 1990. He switched to cars in 1995, finishing second in the North American Ferrari 348 Challenge and winning the International Challenge Runoffs in Italy. He then switched to open wheelers, winning 11 of his first 14 Barber Dodge races and winning the West Coast Championship. He was co-Rookie of the Year in the 1996 Barber Dodge Pro Series, and won that championship in 1997, with five wins.

Derek then joined the PTG BMW team in the ALMS, scoring four GTS3 wins including the 24 Hours of Daytona and the 12 Hours of Sebring. Following the 1998 Toyota Atlantic season he moved to Europe, racing in the Palmer Audi series, the Italian F3000 Series, and the FIA International F3000 series with the Jordan Grand Prix Junior Team. In 2002 he took a class win co-driving a Saleen SR7 at the GrandAm California GP at Fontana.

ANDY LALLY

Andy Lally, after winning two WKA National Karting Championships in 1994, moved up to the US F2000 series where he was Rookie of the Year in 1997. He raced as factory driver for both Bowman and Carbir Race Cars, taking Carbir's only win. In 1999 he took three wins and two poles in the Motorola Cup series as well as winning the Team USA Scholarship leading to a fifth place in the Formula Palmer Audi Championship. In 2000 Andy took four podium finishes in the Barber Dodge Pro Series, three poles and three wins in Motorola Cup, and two poles And a win in two ACRL races.

Andy won the SRP II class at the 2001 Rolex 24 at Daytona, and took the Series Championship with three wins and four poles. He also drove for Team Lexus In GrandAm Cup in 2002 and 2003 in addition to driving a variety of prototypes And GT cars in both ALMS and GrandAm. He began the 2004 season by finishing second in class at the Rolex 24 at Daytona.

BILL RAND

Bill Rand, a successful Texas businessman, became a team owner with the purchase of two Nissan powered Lola BK2/40s during 2001. The team entered one of the cars for the GrandAm season finale at Daytona, with Rand, Anthony Lazzaro and Terry Borcheller taking a strong SR II class win and a fourth overall.

Rand Racing won the 2002 GrandAm SR II Championship, taking nine wins in nine races. In 2002 Bill co-drove a Lola to the SR II win at the 24 Hours of Daytona. He also scored wins at Phoenix and the California Speedway, and a second place at Watkins Glen, finishing eighth in the GrandAm SR II Drivers Championship. Bill began racing in 1999, driving a Ferrari 355 in the Ferrari Challenge series. The following year he moved up to the new 360 Modena, demonstrating impressive improvement during the year. In the final race of the season, His first as part of a team, Bill co-drove with Anthony Lazzaro and Stuart Singer. The trio was running a strong second when the raced was ended prematurely, depriving them of an almost certain win. Bill scored his first win in the competitive Ferrari series in 2001, defeating the Group B Challenge field at Road Atlanta.

COLIN BRAUN (RAND RACING TEST DRIVER)

Colin Braun began his racing career at age 5, winning several regional Quarter Midget races in 1993. He then moved to karting, where he won numerous National Championships in both shifter and clutch karts. Colin has raced karts in Monaco and Italy, and was fourth in the All Japan National Championship racing for the Yamaha factory.

Colin's first car race was at 14, driving a Formula Renault 1600 in the U.S. Pro Series. He is the youngest driver in American history to win a professional open wheel car race, earning the honor in May 2003 at Willow Springs, California. In 2003 he won 8 of 11 races, taking both the FranAm season championship and rookie of the year titles.