Andersen Racing's Karters Are Accomplishing a Great Deal Both on the Road and at Home

PALMETTO, Fla., Aug. 12 — While Andersen Racing’s drivers in Firestone Indy Lights and the Star Mazda championship presented by Goodyear have been garnering headlines, the team’s new karting division has also been busy both on the road and at Andersen RacePark, the 1-mile road course test track at the team headquarters in Palmetto, Fla.

Andersen Racing offers corporate karting programs, karting camps and test sessions, and also competes in karting events in both Florida and on the national level as part of its first step in the development of professional race car drivers. Sponsored by Allied Interior Products and Lafarge North America, the team is the official development team of Rahal Letterman Racing, which has extensive experience in both IndyCar Series and professional sports car racing.

Pro Kart Team Is Busy on the Road

Andersen Racing’s professional karting team is in the midst of eight straight weeks of back-to-back karting events across the nation according to Wes Phillips, Andersen Racing’s director of competition karting and one of its drivers.

Phillips, of American Canyon, Calif., posted victories in both Rotax DD2 and Senior classes at Michiana Raceway in South Bend, Ind., at the beginning of July at an event that attracted some of the most competitive Rotax fields in the country. Then it was immediately off to Infineon Raceway in Sonoma, Calif., where the team’s Andrew Novich of Novato, Calif. also posted competitive results in TaG Rotax.

With barely enough time to let the tires cool, Andersen Racing headed to Norman, Okla., for the second annual Rotax Summer Shootout. Andersen Racing drivers Matt Powers of Danville, Calif.; Jacob Mottaz of San Ramon, Calif.; Ethan Low of Clearwater, Fla., and Phillips used it as a test in preparation for a return Sept. 14-19 for the Rotax Grand Nationals. “The Shootout gave us the data we need nearly two months in advance,” Phillips said, adding “Swedetech power and the technical partnership we have with MRP Motorsport will also help us as we prepare for the Nationals.”

Dylan Lupton of Elk Grove, Calif., represented Andersen Racing at the IKF Two-Cycle Sprint Grand Nationals in Reno, Nev., on the same weekend. While Andersen Racing's star junior driver struggled in HPV2, he bounced back in TaG Junior for a pre-final win. He looked poised for a podium finish in his main event until he was forced to drop out after an incident.

In a third event that weekend, Novich represented the team in the NorCal Rotax Series at Infineon. He led the final in Rotax Senior until two drivers slipped by. “It was a good result for Andrew, as the NorCal Rotax series has seen very competitive senior fields all year,” Phillips said. “He did very well and he should be very proud of how far he has come.”

Novich is also competing in the Jetta TDI Cup this season, and has already posted top-10 results with no prior car racing experience.

With two weekends left in July, Andersen Racing flew equipment and personnel back to its headquarters in Florida for the final round of the Florida Kart Championship Series at Monticello Karting and Motor Club in Monticello, Fla.

Team driver Eddie Kish of Palmetto, Fla. earned the Rotax Senior championship in the five-race series, which was an impressive result given he is a rookie. Kish, who is also Andersen RacePark’s track manager, will now go down in the record books as the driver who gave Andersen Racing’s new karting team its first championship ever. The series was contested at five different Florida venues beginning at Homestead-Miami Speedway in February and ending at Monticello July 24-26.

“I want to thank Andersen Racing and Wes Phillips for making it possible,” said Kish, who despite being a rookie has already learned the importance of thanking his benefactors in victory lane. “I drove an ’09 Birell RY30, which are available for sale at Andersen RacePark.”
Team driver Austin Miles of St. Petersburg, Fla. improved on past performances to finish third in TaG Senior in the same series, attributing some of his recent success to a new Swedetech TaG package.

“I finished third in two of the races, which helped me sew up third in the championship,” said Miles, who has been karting for seven years and works as a kart mechanic at Andersen RacePark. “There were over 20 people in my division. I drove an ’08 Birel R31.”

With the Florida summer karting season now complete, Andersen Racing’s drivers are now gearing up for the SKUSA Supernationals and the Florida Winter Tour.

At Home at Andersen RacePark

Back home in Palmetto, Fla., Andersen RacePark’s new karting pro shop has proven to be very popular, area karters are enjoying honing their skills during open testing, and the facility hosted its first-ever karting summer camp at the end of July. Organized by Phillips, Kish and the team’s director of driver development, Jonny Baker, the camp was extremely well received, and plans are already underway for similar offerings in the future.

The campers included three 9-year-olds: Christian Cole of Palmetto, Fla.; Sasha Brun-Wibaux of Bradenton, Fla., and Michael McCarthy of Clearwater, Fla. There was plenty of interest from teens too, as three other campers were Andrew Palmer, 15, of Chicago; Andy Dunne, 15, of Westmont, Ill., and Taylor Tzouanakis, 16, of Wauconda, Ill.

The campers received instruction on many different areas of racing during their five-day stay, including on-track action, classroom theory and philosophy. They received an overview of Andersen Racing’s formula car programs, and even relaxed with a quick trip to a local theme park.

"Everybody at the camp was extremely nice,” said Dunne. “I learned a lot while I was there. I learned a lot of driving techniques, as well as how to be more efficient while working on my go-kart."

"It was the perfect camp for an aspiring driver,” added Palmer. “I learned some of the most valuable driving tips I will ever learn. This camp showed me how a true race team operates and how to climb the racing ladder. The camp also had the perfect balance of fun and learning. I couldn't have
asked for more.”

“I was unsure about trying to wake up a group of teenage boys for physical training at 5 a.m. nearly every morning, and then keeping them at the track after driving for chassis preparation and more physical training, but it worked remarkably well," Phillips said.

Andersen Racing is already planning more camps in the future aimed at training drivers in racing tactics and techniques.

For more information, please see andersenracingteam.com, andersenracepark.com and andersenkarting.com.

About Allied Building Products Corp.:

Allied Building Products Corp., headquartered in East Rutherford, N.J., is one of the largest roofing and siding distributors in the United States. Founded in 1950 with five employees and two trucks, today it is a $1.8 billion building material distribution company with over 3,500 employees, more than 200 branches in 30 states, well over one million square feet of office and warehouse space, and an inventory of approximately 85,000 products, from residential roofing and siding to doors, windows, waterproofing, manufactured stone, interior products and commercial roofing systems. For more information see alliedbuilding.com.
About the Lafarge Group:

The Lafarge Group is the world leader in building materials, with top-ranking positions in all of its businesses: cement, aggregates and concrete, and gypsum. With 83,000 employees in 78 countries, the Group posted sales of 19.0 billion Euros in 2008.

Lafarge North America Inc. (“Lafarge North America” or "Lafarge"), a Lafarge Group company, is the largest diversified supplier of construction materials in the United States and Canada.

In 2009 and for the fifth year in a row, the Lafarge Group was listed in the “Global 100 Most Sustainable Corporations in the World.” With the world’s leading building materials research facility, the Lafarge Group places innovation at the heart of its priorities, working for sustainable construction and architectural creativity.

For more information about Lafarge North America, go to lafarge-na.com or contact
Louise Muth, director of external communications, at (703) 480-3707.

About Andersen Racing:

Andersen Racing strives to provide the best and most comprehensive training possible for future open-wheel superstars while giving its marketing partners media exposure and hospitality opportunities at some of the most prestigious events in North America. It provides a unique program utilizing multiple entries in three different platforms: karting, Star Mazda and Firestone Indy Lights (televised on VERSUS). In 2008 it fielded multiple entries in 42 races in 18 states and provinces at some of the best facilities on the continent, including the famed Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

Andersen Racing won the team championship for 2008 for both the F2000 Championship Series presented by Hoosier Racing Tire and the Star Mazda Championship presented by Goodyear. Two of its drivers finished first and second in the F2000 driver point standings, while another was sixth. Three of its Star Mazda drivers placed third, fifth and sixth in that series' driver standings. RLR/Andersen Racing finished sixth in the 2008 Firestone Indy Lights team standings, while one of its drivers placed fifth in that series' driver point standings.

Andersen Racing's principals, brothers Dan and John Andersen, have extensive experience in series administration as well as team management. They've worked with many of today's top open-wheel stars, including several Indy 500 winners.

Andersen Racing is sponsored by Allied Building Products Corp. and Lafarge North America. It is the official development team of Rahal Letterman Racing. The team is headquartered at Andersen RacePark, an 18-acre facility in Palmetto, Fla. that includes a 1-mile road course test track. For more information see andersenracingteam.com, andersenracepark.com and andersenkarting.com.