Munroe Falls, Ohio – Defending TA Champion Amy Ruman and team kicked off the season at Round 1 of the 2017 Trans Am Championship Presented by Pirelli at Sebring International Raceway in Florida this past Sunday.
After little track time prior to qualifying due to some shortened sessions and a few minor first race car issues, Ruman qualified the No. 23 McNichols Chevrolet C7R Corvette in third position on the grid for Sunday’s main event. Unfortunately, Ruman’s race did not go according to her plan.
Beautiful weather graced the teams for the 3:05pm start on race day. On the pace lap, Ruman made that embarrassing fatal error that all drivers dread – she did a small half spin after hitting a new concrete patch while warming up her Pirelli tires. She had to wait for the whole field to pass by and she would start the race now in 22nd position. Not much to report, she took the green and went to work making her way through the field as far up to sixth when the checkered flag flew. Ruman eventually moved into 5th place after post-race tech inspection.
“Well, some days you are the champ, and some days you are the chump!” laughed Ruman. “I made a rookie mistake on the pace lap, what can I say we all make mistakes sometimes. This time it cost me a chance at the win. I was hoping for a caution to help gather the field back up but of course this time the race went green, green. It’s okay though, it’s a long season – last year at this time I was 9th or so in the points race and we came back to win it all. I have to thank my crew again; their efforts were stellar but I just had a bad break this race and didn’t perform that well. We’ll bounce back quickly and get’em at Homestead next month.”
The team was pleased to have many McNichols Hole team associates on hand at the race this weekend, including Gene McNichols, Chairman and CEO of McNichols Co. They all loved the new C7R look of the No. 23 and enjoyed the exciting race as Ruman moved up through the field.
The results are still provisional at the time of this release and Ruman is shown in fifth in the Championship standings. Next up – Round 2 at Homestead, Miami April 9th.
Sponsors: McNICHOLS CO. is the nation’s largest distributor of Perforated and Expanded Metals; Wire Mesh; Bar, Plank, and Safety Gratings; Stair Treads; Matting; and more. Products are carried in all styles and materials–stocked for 24 hour shipment. “Inspired to Serve”™ 800.237.3820 mcnichols.com.
For quick news and updates during race weekends, please follow Ruman Racing and the Trans Am Series on Twitter: @rumanracing and @gotransam. Be sure to “Like” our official pages on Facebook: Ruman Racing, Amy Ruman (Official Fan Page), McNichols Company, and Go Trans Am.
Race Info/Scoring/Results: www.gotransam.com
Ruman Racing, Inc., is based in Munroe Falls, Ohio.
