August 18, 2002 – RUMAN’S 5TH PLACE QUASHED WITH TWO LAPS TO GO AT ROAD AMERICA

Elkhart Lake, WI – With a tremendous race going at Road America on Saturday, Bob Ruman had aggressively moved through the field to be solidly in 5th place when he was hit from behind and sent into the gravel trap with two laps to go. Ruman was so close to his second top-5 finish in a row.

Ruman was 11th following Friday’s first practice session, but had a tough qualifying run, putting him in 15th for the start of the Johnson Controls 100. But Ruman charged hard during the first half of the race. On lap two, the race was red flagged for twenty-five minutes following Kenny Wilden’s crash. Ruman moved up to 3rd during the next double yellow and then to 2nd as the majority of the field pitted. On the restart, Ruman outdragged Sak to take the lead only to lose it to Boris Said a few turns later. Having lost momentum battling with Said, Miller and Leitzinger got past and Ruman slowly fell to 7th. Then, as Leitzinger, Hayner, and Miller battled for 3-5th, Ruman closed on Drissi while keeping Ruhlman at bay. Ruman moved into 6th as Leitzinger went off track bringing out the double yellow. There were three laps to go on the restart. Ruman had an excellent restart and passed Drissi solidly on the outside of turn one. Ruman then held 5th for the next lap and a half when suddenly Drissi hit him in turn 8. Drissi drove into his left rear corner and spun him into the gravel where he spent the remaining lap and a half and dropped Ruman to a finishing position of 19th.

“The Cenweld/McNichols Corvette was working extremely well in the race,” explained Ruman. “When I passed Kenny’s crash I was definitely worried and I am very glad he’s okay. Our race was fantastic right up until the premature end. We had made a decision to pit late in the race for fuel and because of the extended pace car laps we had enough fuel to run the whole race without stopping. The car was handling better and better as the fuel load got lighter. Once I made the pass for 5th, I had no problem holding the position cleanly until he hit me. I don’t know what he was thinking. The disappointing result of a competitor’s mistake, I feel, cost us the 5th place spot. I cannot put into words how frustrated we all are. Nevertheless, we’ll push ahead for Denver in two weeks.”

On Deck – Trans-Am Race – Sunday, September 1, Denver, CO, which will be broadcast September 8 on Speed Channel 2:00-3:30pm (ET).

August 04, 2002 – RUMAN EARNS 4TH PLACE FINISH IN HARD FOUGHT TROIS-RIVIERES TRANS-AM

Trois Rivieres, Quebec – Bob Ruman finished 4th in the Cenweld/McNichols Corvette at Sunday’s le Grand Prix de Trois-Rivieres for the second time in a row, having also finished 4th the last time Trans-Am raced at Trois Rivieres in 1999.

“It’s been a little bit of a dry spell, the last several races,” explained Ruman. “But the team persevered and kept working hard and it finally came together again for us this weekend. We came into Trois-Rivieres confident of a turn-around. We’ve done well here before and we knew that if we paced ourselves we could do well. This street race is like a fast endurance race, you really have to be conscientious of your equipment. We were particularly attentive to the brakes, especially after the brake failure in the Washington race two weeks ago. When the brakes started getting warm, I backed off a little, then I’d put the power down again.”

The double-yellow caution flags thrown for Mike Lewis’s car fire, 24 laps from the end, allowed the field to bunch up. At the restart it was Leitzinger in first, then Miller, Drissi, Ruhlman and Ruman in 5th. Hayner, who was 3 laps down was in between Ruhlman and Ruman.

“Hayner decided to race Ruhlman, so at first I thought I’d just hang back a bit and not get caught in the fray. Ruhlman hugged the turn at the end of the straight and Hayner tried to go to the outside – Hayner scraped the wall and I ducked inside him. We then drag raced into turn 9 and I was winning. But I could see that Hayner was going too fast to make the turn, so I braked early and let Hayner sling-shot by me, right off the end of the track. He was able to reel it in and again we raced to the hairpin turn before the pits. He was on the outside and as soon as I touched the brakes, he jumped in front of me. Hayner got by Ruhlman and then when Hayner got by Drissi, Ruhlman followed him through.”

“My brakes were getting pretty soft, so I had to drop back a little. All three of them were racing each other and I knew that was going to hurt their tires and brakes. I picked up the pace and was gaining 2 seconds a lap on them. I caught up to Drissi with 2 laps to go, and on the last lap I tried to pass him at the end of the straight, but didn’t have quite enough. Then I tried turn 9 and the hairpin. I could have tapped him, we were running so close, but that’s not my style. I set it up to get the best launch I could off the turn onto the front straight so I could sling shot out to pass him. I did and my nose was even with his door as we crossed the start/finish line side by side. So close! I just barely lost that drag race, by just .015 seconds! Dicing in close quarters like that is what Trans-Am racing is all about! We gave our great Canadian fans a thrilling race.”

Ruman is 13th overall in the Trans-Am Series Championship points standings.

On Deck – Trans-Am Race – Saturday, August 17, Road America, Elkart Lake, WI, which will be broadcast Sunday August 18 on Speed Channel 12:00-1:30pm (ET)

July 31, 2002 – RUMAN EAGER TO RETURN TO TROIS-RIVIERES
IN TRANS-AM ROUND 7

Munroe Falls, OH – Bob Ruman returns to le Grand Prix de Trois-Rivieres with the Trans-Am Series this weekend. The last time the Trans-Am Series was at Trois-Rivieres in 1999, Ruman finished 4th. The Trois-Rivieres street race is a 1.6 mile, 10 turn circuit. Sunday’s 66-lap, 100-mile race will be broadcast live on Speed Channel beginning at 2:30pm ET. This is round seven of twelve Trans-Am Series for the BFGoodrich Tires Cup 2002 races.

“Trois-Rivieres is a great street race,” said Ruman. “The fans are so welcoming and enthusiastic and really get into the Trans-Am show. The city puts together an entertaining event. We missed coming here the past few years, but are very glad to be back. When we were here in 1999, we had an excellent race weekend, running in the top-8 every session and finishing 4th in the race. We hope to have another successful weekend this time around in the Cenweld/McNichols Corvette.”

Ruman is 13th overall in the Trans-Am Series Championship points standings. He finished 9th overall in the Trans-Am Series points standings in 2001.

Television – Le Grand Prix de Trois-Rivieres will be shown Live on Speed Channel 2:30-4:00pm (ET)

On Deck – Trans-Am Race – Saturday, August 17, Road America, Elkart Lake, WI, which will be broadcast Sunday August 18 on Speed Channel 12:00-1:30pm (ET)

For more information on the Trans-Am Series visit www.trans-amseries.com and www.tainternetleague.com.

July 21, 2002 – RUMAN RUNNING WELL IN 7TH WHEN BRAKES FAIL AT CAPITAL TRANS-AM 100

Washington, D.C. – The inaugural Capital Trans-Am 100, Cadillac Grand Prix of Washington this past weekend was a hot thriller. Bob Ruman in the Cenweld/McNichols Corvette was coming on strong when a brake failure cut short his race.

Ruman qualified 12th on Friday and then ran the 9th fastest time in the final practice session. Ruman had a good start in the race and worked his way up to 7th from his starting position of 12th. On lap 24, however, the right rear brake caliper became so hot, a brake piston seal blew out and all the rear brake fluid was lost.

“The Cenweld/McNichols Corvette was strong,” said Ruman. “Everything was coming together nicely. The car had been handling well and we had improved our times every session, including the race.”

“I was pacing the car early in the race. On lap 24, when I entered the braking zone for the chicane, the brake pedal went all the way to the floor. I pumped it again, but there wasn?t much there. With no rear brakes, the front brakes immediately locked and there was no steering. It was only ‘hello tires.’ Fortunately, the tires were very deep there. As a testament to the strength of the Trans-Am cars, it seems that the damage was confined to the front end of the car and didn’t really hurt the engine or chassis. Sometimes it’s that $2.00 part that fails and that’s the end of the race. I also found out the hard way that the HANS device I’ve been using for over a year now works very well. We’ve already begun repairs so that we can make Trois Rivieres in two weeks.”

“I liked the track a lot, the design is good and the track condition was superior; the organizers did an incredible job. We saw large numbers of fans at the track on both Friday and Saturday, despite extremely hot temperatures. The Washington fans were very enthusiastic and supportive of this extremely exciting inaugural Capital Trans-Am 100.”

Ruman is currently 13th in the Trans-Am Series Point Standings.

On Deck – Trans-Am Race – Saturday, August 4, Trois Rivieres,

July 18, 2002 – RUMAN LOOKING FORWARD TO NATIONAL GRAND PRIX IN WASHINGTON, D.C.

Munroe Falls, OH – When the Trans-Am Series enters the Nation’s capital for the inaugural Capital Trans-Am 100 with the Cadillac Grand Prix of Washington this weekend, Ruman Racing’s Bob Ruman will pilot the #23 Cenweld/McNichols Corvette around the newly created temporary road course in the parking lots of the Robert F. Kennedy Stadium. The temporary road course is a 1.7 mile, seven turn course built over the last several months. Friday will feature practice and qualifying. Saturday’s Capital Trans-Am 100 sixty-lap race will be broadcast live on CBS Sports at 2:30 pm ET. It will be round six of twelve Trans-Am Series for the BFGoodrich Tires Cup races this season.

“The event organizers have really created a fantastic track,” said Ruman. “The team is incredibly excited to be here in the Nation’s capital. I’ve visited Washington many times, since one of my daughters lives and works in the city. We love coming to D.C. and I know the Trans-Am Series will have the most exciting race of the weekend for the D.C. fans!”

Ruman is 13th overall in the Trans-Am Series Championship points standings. He was 9th overall in the Trans-Am Series points standings in 2001.

Television – Capital Trans-Am 100, Cadillac Grand Prix of Washington will be shown Live on CBS Saturday, July 20 from 2:30-4:00pm (ET)

On Deck – Trans-Am Race – Saturday, August 4, Trois Rivieres, Quebec, Canada. broadcast Live on Speed Channel 2:30-4:00pm (ET)

For more information on the Trans-Am Series see www.trans-amseries.com and www.tainternetleague.com.