For Immediate Release: March 22, 2011
Contact: Amy Ruman 330.813.2323 cell
Munroe Falls, OH – The Trans-Am season opener weeklong event at Sebring International Raceway started off well for Ruman but deteriorated during the race, resulting in a 12th place finish.
The Trans-Am field was a full one – 22 competitors raced in two classes, including the traditional Trans-Am class with 16 competitors and the Trans-Am 2 class with 6 competitors. Ruman qualified the #23 McNichols Co./Goodyear/Cenweld Chevrolet Corvette in 5th place on Thursday. Post qualifying tech moved the #23 up a position on the starting grid to 4th, when 3rd place qualifier Carlos de Quesada was moved to 8th position due to a technical infraction.
Race day had picture perfect weather for the 9:15 am start in front of a massive race day crowd. The field was a bit spread out when they took the green flag for the 28-lap (103.6-mile) race, but Ruman had a great start and was right in there. For the first 8 laps, Ruman had good battles going with #36 Cliff Ebben and then with #22 Carlos de Quesada. As the top five group was lapping some of the TA2 cars, Ruman got tangled up with one of them causing some damage to the front suspension and a flat tire.
“Unfortunately we got caught in a bad spot this race. I was on the tail end of the lead pack running in 5th and some of the guys just didn’t see all the cars in the train coming. After the contact, I radioed that we may get a flat, and sure enough the next lap we did. I just didn’t know the suspension was broken too!” exclaimed Ruman. “My crew had a challenging task in pit lane, but worked hard to fix the suspension and change the tire and got us back out there for the final 8 laps of the race. We were able to make up a few TA positions landing us in 12th.”
McNichols Co., headquartered in Tampa, FL, is the largest U.S. distributor of “Hole” products with service centers across North America. McNichols’ product selection is the most diverse in the industry. McNichols stocks perforated products, both metal and plastic. A toll free number 800-237-3820 connects you to the McNichols Co. distributor in your area and the company’s extensive website,www.mcnichols.com, has online customer service and online ordering.
For quick news and updates during race weekends, please follow Ruman Racing and the Trans-Am Series on Twitter @rumanracing and @TransAmSeries. Be sure to “Like” our official pages on Facebook: Ruman Racing, Amy Ruman (Official Fan Page), McNichols Company, and Trans-Am Racing.
UPCOMING RACES:
May 13-15 – Trans-Am Round 3 at VIRgina International Raceway
