2010 25 Hours of Thunderhill News Wrap Up

Krider Racing, a team that drove its way to success in crap-can racing with both the 24 Hours of LeMons and ChumpCar $500 racecar events, graduated to National Auto Sport Association (NASA) races and competed in the Western Endurance Racing Championship (WERC). The team applied their tried-and-true formula from racing beaters and went on to earn the 2010 E3 Championship title in the WERC series. Cameras followed the team to NASA's headline-year-ending event, the 25 Hours of Thunderhill. With narration by "RacerBoy" Rob Krider and production from GoRacingTV.com this gritty documentary came to life about what it was like to "Survive the 25."

http://www.goracingtv.com/01/24/2011/the-25-speed-rain-darkness-damage-glory/

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The 25: Speed Rain Darkness Damage Glory
GoRacingTV.com's Documentary of NASA's 25 Hours of Thunderhill

Krider Racing, a team that drove its way to success in crap-can racing with both the 24 Hours of LeMons and ChumpCar $500 racecar events, graduated to National Auto Sport Association (NASA) races and competed in the Western Endurance Racing Championship (WERC). The team applied their tried-and-true formula from racing beaters and went on to earn the 2010 E3 Championship title in the WERC series. Cameras followed the team to NASA's headline-year-ending event, the 25 Hours of Thunderhill. With narration by "RacerBoy" Rob Krider and production from GoRacingTV.com this gritty documentary came to life about what it was like to "Survive the 25."

WILLOWS, Calif. (Dec. 8, 2010) - Team MER soldiered through challenging conditions at Thunderhill Raceway Park to claim its third E1 class win at the 25 Hours of Thunderhill. Though the team's three other cars each had mechanical issues during the race, MER's E1 win was complimented by a valiant comeback for the team's ES entry.

 

For 25 hours of racing, mother nature could not make up her mind at Thunderhill. Though the race started under dry conditions, the rain crept in as the sun went down and it would continue on and off throughout the night. The changing weather conditions resulted in an incident-filled race (including one red flag period), as teams found it difficult to make the right tire choice and find grip.

 

While others struggled, the drivers and crew of the No. 36 Hankook/Burger On/MER MX-5 let the race come to them. Two-time E1 Champ Tyler McQuarrie started the race and was soon in a tight battle with the No. 01 AMG car, exchanging the E1 lead several times in the night. The No. 36 ran as high as third overall in the evening, but by morning, the car had fallen to four laps down. Drivers Darin Polsley, David Cheng and Texas Rangers starting pitcher C.J. Wilson maintained their focus and steadily gained positions. When the No. 01 made contact with another car, it was clear sailing for the No. 36 to take the E1 win by a dominating 45 laps.

 

"Winning our E1 class made me realize that not only do racers need luck, skill and good teammates in the car, they need an awesome crew to set up the car and keep it on track when plans go out the window," Wilson said. "David Cheng, Tyler McQuarrie, Darin Polsley and I really want to thank MAZDASPEED for making such a full commitment to racing-from parts to support-as well as Team MER for providing us with a truly affordable club racer's version of a Le Mans win. We're happy to be a part of the Zoom-Zoom tradition."

 

While the No. 36 enjoyed a drama-free race, the other MER cars were not as lucky. This includes the No. 73 Frank's International/PaveCon/Hoosier/ MER/Sparco MX-5 ES entry, driven by Jason Saini, Jeff Mosing and Russell Walker. After enduring an unwarranted penalty early in the race, Saini managed to place the car as high as sixth overall. The team had another set back when a wheel came off just after Walker took over the helm, but the young MX-5 Cup up-and-comer rallied and put the car back to seventh overall.

 

Through the night, the No. 73 struggled with tire choice, seemingly one step behind the weather with each pit stop. Just as Saini had climbed to fourth overall, the engine let go, the result of the Hoosier slicks having too much grip for the oiling system. Team MER rallied, replacing the engine in short order and returning the No. 73 to the track, where, with the determination of Saini, Mosing and Russell (who all ran double stints the entire race), the car crossed the finish line sixth in the ES class.

 

"Thanks to Jules [Pokorny] and all the crew for giving our team a great car all weekend," Mosing said. "We were running really well into the night but the engine let go at about 3 a.m. Darin [George] and the crew got it changed out and we were back underway."

 

The No. 74 Hankook/AE Performance/DRAW Portfolio MX-5 E1 put the MER crew to the test. Through the demanding 25-hour race, the car required a differential and two transmission changes. Competing in his first wheel-to-wheel race, actor Paul Walker, of the Fast and Furious movie franchise, didn't let the mechanical troubles distract him, displaying the quick and consistent speed of a veteran racer. Though Walker and co-drivers Roger Rodas, Jeff Westphal and Carl Rydquist fought hard to overcome the setbacks, their bid for a comeback victory fell short when the engine let go with little more than an hour remaining.

 

"It was a difficult race, but there is no way to learn more about the challenges of endurance racing," Rydquist said. "Also, I'd like to extend my appreciation to National Auto Sport Association, race directors, Thunderhill track staff and rescue crews for putting on a great and safe race."

 

Even more frustrating than a mechanical failure, is a mechanical failure so rare, that parts cannot be sourced at the track. That is exactly what befell the No. 80 MER/Hoosier RX-8 entered in the E0 class. Early in the race, the power plant frame, which connects the engine and gearbox to the differential, broke. Unable to find a spare in the paddock (even amongst the street cars), the team attempted to weld the frame at a nearby shop. It proved to be only a quick fix. When it broke a second time, the No. 80, driven by Eric Curran, Shannon McMasters, Dan Watkins and Ward Herst was unable to continue. It was a real disappointment for a car that showed tremendous promise.

 

"It's the most fun I've had in a race car all year long!" Curran exclaimed on the radio.

 

"Thunderhill was especially grueling this year," Team MER co-owner Saini said. "The weather kept everyone guessing and with four cars, sometimes we guessed right and sometimes we guessed wrong. It's disappointing that all the cars couldn't share in the success of the No. 36, but that's just how endurance racing goes. I'm proud of our team for giving it all they had and coming away with our third E1 class win. We'll take what we learned this year and be back in 2011 looking for the overall win.

 

Team MER thanks its 25 Hours of Thunderhill sponsors for their support:

 

No. 36 Mazda MX-5: Hankook, Burger On

No. 73 Mazda MX-5: Sparco, Hoosier, 949 Racing, Frank's International, PaveCon, Safecraft, Moto-East

No. 74 Mazda MX-5: Hankook, AE performance, Reachout Worldwide, the DRAW portfolio

No. 80 Mazda RX-8: Sparco, Hoosier, 949 Racing, ProParts

 

 

About Team MER (Motorsports Enterprises Racing)

Based at the MotorSport Ranch in Cresson, Texas, Team MER is a leader in Mazda performance, consistently developing the best SCCA, GRAND-AM and NASA cars for purchase, rental or testing. By combining a Championship-winning race team, modification and enhancement shop, research and development facilities and full PR/media services, Team MER is uniquely suited to serve every level of customer, from weekend enthusiast to amateur and pro-level racers. Led by one of Spec Miata's founding fathers, Shannon McMasters, and professional driver Jason Saini, Team MER employs some of the best and brightest talent available in all disciplines of motorsports. The combination of technical expertise and driving talent is unique in the industry and a proven recipe for success. To learn more visit www.goteammer.com.

Portland, Oregon - December 7, 2010 - Team MiataCage.com won the prestigious 2010 NASA 25-Hour of Thunderhill sports car race last Sunday. When the checkered flag fell, the 1992 MiataCage.com # 2 Mazda Miata not only finished 1st in the ultra-competitive E3 class but found themselves finishing 8th overall in an impressive field of 72 starters.

What makes this victory even more impressive for this Northwest team is they placed ahead of the eventual E2 class winner, which is for much faster cars. But not stopping with that, this team even would have been on the podium in the even faster class of E1. These results had competitors scratching their heads at this outstanding performance of the team.

The MiataCage.com entry, owned by Sean Hedrick, completed a total of 590 laps on the 3.2 mile road course for a total of 1,888 miles. The drivers were Ken Sutherland of Sherwood, OR, Will Schrader of Happy Valley, OR, Jonny Davies of Hood River, OR and Bruce Wilson of West Linn, OR.

With rain falling during the majority of the race, it was a combination of great drivers, flawless pit stops and creative pit strategy. The Mazda Miata also enjoyed the advantage of superior fuel economy compared to their closest competitors. The ultra-competitive class of E3 brought out many different types of manufactures to run for the title. It also included two new 2011 Hybrid entries from an import manufacturer representing the latest technology available on the market today. But the factory effort was reminded how powerful grassroots racing, a strong passion, and a commitment to winning can produce.

Quotes:
Sean Hedrick, President of MiataCage.com: "I am so proud of the team we put together. The effort put forth to win two trophies in the longest endurance racing event in North America is staggering and it took 100% from each and every member of our team. We brought a knife to a gun fight and were able to execute our fuel and tire plans and stay out of trouble. Our crew chief Bryan Clemmons had fuel calculated perfectly with a track that had constantly changing conditions. The Toyo Tires and Carbotech brakes were outstanding and provided a consistent and manageable platform that allowed us to focus on driving. I also have to thank the team at MazdaSpeed Motorsports Development. I can't say enough about how committed they are to helping the club racer. Without their help and support we would not be racing at all. It took us three years to accomplish our goal of winning, but it was certainly well worth all the blood, sweat and tears."

Team Info:
MiataCage.com specializes in parts, car builds and services to the SpecMiata racing community. Sponsors of the MiataCage.Com # 2 Mazda Miata include: Northwest Superfinish, Inspired Salts, Mazdaspeed Motorsports Development, Toyo Tires, Wyatt Fire Protection, Midas Auto Service, E & L Machine Shop, Maz/Toy Auto Recycling, Fast Undercar, Factory Wheel Outlet, Fat Cat Motorsports, Mac's Radiator, Ed Pavone, SMI Motorsports, and Hood River Coffee Company.

For more on the team, check out the team race blog - www.meettheroad.wordpress.com More on the company that made the victory happen can be found at www.miatacage.com

Portland, Oregon - December 7, 2010 - Team MiataCage.com won the prestigious 2010 NASA 25-Hour of Thunderhill sports car race last Sunday. When the checkered flag fell, the 1992 MiataCage.com # 2 Mazda Miata not only finished 1st in the ultra-competitive E3 class but found themselves finishing 8th overall in an impressive field of 72 starters.

What makes this victory even more impressive for this Northwest team is they placed ahead of the eventual E2 class winner, which is for much faster cars. But not stopping with that, this team even would have been on the podium in the even faster class of E1. These results had competitors scratching their heads at this outstanding performance of the team.

The MiataCage.com entry, owned by Sean Hedrick, completed a total of 590 laps on the 3.2 mile road course for a total of 1,888 miles. The drivers were Ken Sutherland of Sherwood, OR, Will Schrader of Happy Valley, OR, Jonny Davies of Hood River, OR and Bruce Wilson of West Linn, OR.

With rain falling during the majority of the race, it was a combination of great drivers, flawless pit stops and creative pit strategy. The Mazda Miata also enjoyed the advantage of superior fuel economy compared to their closest competitors. The ultra-competitive class of E3 brought out many different types of manufactures to run for the title. It also included two new 2011 Hybrid entries from an import manufacturer representing the latest technology available on the market today. But the factory effort was reminded how powerful grassroots racing, a strong passion, and a commitment to winning can produce.

Quotes:
Sean Hedrick, President of MiataCage.com: "I am so proud of the team we put together. The effort put forth to win two trophies in the longest endurance racing event in North America is staggering and it took 100% from each and every member of our team. We brought a knife to a gun fight and were able to execute our fuel and tire plans and stay out of trouble. Our crew chief Bryan Clemmons had fuel calculated perfectly with a track that had constantly changing conditions. The Toyo Tires and Carbotech brakes were outstanding and provided a consistent and manageable platform that allowed us to focus on driving. I also have to thank the team at MazdaSpeed Motorsports Development. I can't say enough about how committed they are to helping the club racer. Without their help and support we would not be racing at all. It took us three years to accomplish our goal of winning, but it was certainly well worth all the blood, sweat and tears."

Team Info:
MiataCage.com specializes in parts, car builds and services to the SpecMiata racing community. Sponsors of the MiataCage.Com # 2 Mazda Miata include: Northwest Superfinish, Inspired Salts, Mazdaspeed Motorsports Development, Toyo Tires, Wyatt Fire Protection, Midas Auto Service, E & L Machine Shop, Maz/Toy Auto Recycling, Fast Undercar, Factory Wheel Outlet, Fat Cat Motorsports, Mac's Radiator, Ed Pavone, SMI Motorsports, and Hood River Coffee Company.

For more on the team, check out the team race blog - www.meettheroad.wordpress.com More on the company that made the victory happen can be found at www.miatacage.com

Willows, CA - 12.05.10: For the newly formed team of Grip Racing/Wilson Motorsports, finishing this year's 25 Hours of Thunderhill was an especially emotional accomplishment.

The #21 Lexus IS300 Campaign was in honor of the late Tim Nickel, a fellow racer and friend who recently lost his battle with cancer. Nickel was the owner of the white Lexus and made it very clear before he passed away that he wanted the car in the 25-hour this year. Grip Racing, in partnership with Wilson Motorsports, took the honor of entering the IS300 in the longest sports car race in the world.

Signing a roster of experienced/pro drivers was one of the most important items on the list. "The 25 is a brutal race and we wanted the car to finish, while hopefully getting a solid result," said Team Principal Mark McManus. "So we wanted guys with strong experience that would take care of the car and run as consistent laps as possible." Veteran 25-Hour drivers Johnny Kanavas, Scott Webb, Kai Goddard, Beau Borders, and John Klusendorf would pilot the #21 entry through 25 hours virtually unscathed.

The car arrived at Thunderhill with an entirely new setup for the race, untested on the 3-mile road course. After some testing and very few changes, all the drivers agreed that they had a good car on their hands.

Testing led into a messy qualifying session with lots of traffic and a few full-course caution periods. The team ended up seventh of 10 in the E1 class after qualifying, not able to show the true speed of their Lexus but knowing they had a good endurance car.

Kanavas would take the first stint in the IS300, driving clean and consistent, moving the car through the field and up to third in the E1 class. "We had a clean start and stayed out of trouble," he said. "Many were racing hard right away, resulting in contact and off track excursions. Our car was good and we wanted to keep it that way."

Scott Webb followed and not long into his stint an Acura came in contact with the Lexus resulting in a broken right-front wheel and flat tire, forcing the #21 to pit for repairs. Webb would get back to the job at hand and run the Lexus through another consistent stint, handing the car over to Kai Goddard in fourth place. Like the two before him, Goddard would turn in very consistent lap times while keeping the car out of trouble.

After analyzing their tire wear, the crew called Goddard into the pits under a full-course yellow for a back-paddock stop where the crew of Bob Wilson, Brian Mezger, Justin Betesfandiar, Mark McManus and Shane Donley would change the brakes and adjust the front camber, gaining better tire wear over the long run. Borders took over for Goddard, followed by Klusendorf, who faced a short red flag period with about 15 hours to go.  

Kanavas started the first rounds of double stints around 9:30pm on a wet and slippery racetrack followed again by Webb, Goddard, Borders, and Klusendorf.
"It was a delicate balance out there in the dark.  Cars were going off everywhere," Kai Goddard said. Finally able to switch back to dry weather tires, Borders hopped in and was able to pick up the pace again.

The Lexus IS300 kept on track and turning laps, until a front hub failure at the 23-hour mark with Klusendorf on board. The crew jumped on the right front hub repair, putting the car back on track with just under 1.5 hours to go.

The #21 took the checkered flag at 12 pm Sunday, sitting fifth in the E1 class and 34th overall (of 69), about 15 laps down from third and fourth place.  

When the car rolled into pit lane after the race there wasn't a dry eye on the team. The emotions of finishing a 25-hour race while honoring Tim Nickel, a great friend of the racing community, were overwhelming. Not only did the Lexus finish, but minus the late hub failure, the IS300 didn't skip a beat for 25 hours.

"We are very proud of our result," said McManus. "Our new team worked hard while thinking outside the box and our drivers drove smart and clean. We managed to run for all 25 hours, making many pit stops, without one penalty! I know Tim was watching over us through the entire thing."

The effort would not have been possible without the support of sponsors: PIAA, Motul, Fresno Tap Recycling, Car Quest, Slicart Custom Apparel, Ground Control Suspension, South Bay Driveline, CRU-DataPort, SportTruckRV.com, the Jeff Andretti Coaching Group, and eprodius-media development.

Team Principal Mark McManus and his drivers conducted multiple interviews with RevItUpRadio.net before, during and after the race. The interviews will be broadcast throughout December at: www.RevItUpRadio.net

For Official Team Photos see >
> http://share.shutterfly.com/share/received/album.sfly?fid=5d0dcdfeaea4aa1e&startIndex=0&sid=8AcNmLJm4bN3eA

> http://www.flickr.com/photos/diaphanous999/sets/72157625553975274/

For official results see >
http://www.nasaproracing.com/results/norcal.html?mylaps=type,run,runid,1760018

(Much more info and pictures here)

In a stunning come from behind effort from Lynam Racing, the Jagermeister Silverado Super Truck finished second in class and 5th overall in the 25 Hours of Thunderhill endurance race.   The team recovered from a 20 lap deficit to finish second in ES (open) class  of the 2010 edition of the NASA season ending event.

Who said a Truck cannot finish an endurance race in the rain?

Driving the first four hours, Troy Lindstrom moved from 12th on grid to 6th overall before a yellow flag infraction at hour 1:45 resulted in a 15 minute penalty.  "15 minutes sitting watching everyone go by is an eternity"   The team dropped to 42nd out of 75 entrants and re-entered the track in full attack mode.  Lynam Racing  had to finish 1st or 2nd in the first 6 hours of the race to win the Western Endurance Racing Championship. (the first 6 hours was a separate race)   By lap 79 just 25 laps after the penalty the truck had move up 18 places back into 24th place.  On lap 110 the team recovered back to their starting postion of 12th.    At this point a light rain was falling, with daylight slowing ending Scott Herrmann got in the truck for his shot behind the wheel.   On slicks with just enough rain to make if very slick but not enough for rain tires,  Scott safely kept the truck on the track while the smaller and more nimble front drive cars got the best of the lumbering truck.  Still he managed to move up to 8th overall.   On lap 168 Scott came into the pits for the second driver change, new tires and 28 gallons of fuel.  The entire exchange took less than 1 minute 18 seconds.   The Lynam team had 5 former NASCAR crew members do the full NASCAR style pit stop in amazing time.  Lucky for the team all the other 6 hour contenders had big issues that ended their day early and Lynam Racing Secured the WERC championship by placing 2nd in the 6 hour portion of the race.

For the next 200 laps (7 hours)  the team managed to stay in the top 10 while hanging on in horrible conditions.  Rain, mud, and poor visibility made the driving extremely stressfull.  Many of the slower BMW's, Mazda.s and other Front wheel drive cars went by us like we were dragging an anchor.  At one point Troy said he was just passed by a Honda Fit!!!   At about midnight Troy was following the stunning supercharged Team Copa Ford GT.  The GT was running in second place overall at the time.  " The window was completely glazed over with mud and all I could see were the round taillights of the GT, he went off the track and I just followed him right into the mud".   The cars slid 50 feet off the track banging a few times as they slid to a stop with no damage.   Just a few seconds later a Miata came screaming off track with the pair just missing the Truck by two feet and plowing into the Ford GT ending their day.  "I just started the truck and drove away, counting my blessings", Troy said.

 Nathan Swartzbaugh climbed in around 1:00am  just as the rain turned heavy and went out on rain tires.  Rain tires and stock cars are not exactly a matched set.  The team has no windshield wiper as the Lexan window would easily scratch.   Rainx works fine in the rain but the dried mud and road grime when the rain would stop made the vision absolutely zero.  It was hard to even find pit road to get the window cleaned.   This problem resulted in several off course excursions for both Troy and Nathan.  Somewhere around 1:30am we were black flagged for no brake lights, then after a quick fix Nathan had a little (BIG??)  off track that required a few minutes of repair to the front splitter and lights.    He re-entered the track in 20th position.  

All this time the Crew was amazing.   Catching a little quick rest here and there but jumping to action whenever needed.    An amazing array of food from pulled pork at 4pm to 5 gallons of  Chile at 8pm to hot quesadillas at midnight, and even some warm chocolate cake and Hot chocolate at 2am.   This team knows that a well fed crew is a happy crew.  Of course the Jagermeister refrigerated tapper in the hauler helps a bit too!!

Troy jumped back into the Truck on slicks about 3am with light misty rain falling and just single tire width of a dry line emerging on the track.  We were currently 14th overall and 4th in class.  With the track drying just a bit for the big racing tires to go to work, the team quickly made up ground.  Between laps 400 and 450 the Jagermeister Silverado moved solidly into 8th place and 3nd place in ES.   Then it was stress time again.  With just 6 hours to go and only one hour until sun up, Troy comes on the radio, " Clutch is on the floor!!! Pitting now!!"    But then he motors on by the pit.   "Ok Clutch is gone but I think I can shift the Jerrico without the clutch".  He motored on with pit stops causing us to restart in 2nd gear with a push from the crew and a little help from the starter motor.  About 7am with just an bit of daylight Troy had a small off in turn 11 avoiding a spinning Mazda.  When trying to get back on the track he hit a ditch that pulled back the rest of the splitter dragging it under the truck.   The splitter was already damaged  from earlier incidents and a quick call on the radio with a panic " splitter is gone....get out the spare bumper".   The spare bumper has no lights but hey, it was almost daylight.  As the pit crew threw on the new bumper, race control came over the radio announcing that "lights were no longer required".  Perfect timing again!!   Total stop time was only 1 minute 30 seconds.

From 8am to race ending 12pm Scott and then Nathan both ran on slicks as the rain tires finally came off for good after a long night of switching back and forth.  Scott held his own in the early morning with fog and mist on the track and very slick conditions.  The entire race Scott had no damage to the truck and no big off course excursions, but all his sessions were wet.  Nathan took over with just 2 hours to go and a shot at the top 5 and the first dry track in 17 hours.    Nathan then clicked off the teams fastest laps of the race, after 1740 miles on lap 579 Nathan ran a 156.347.  On lap 580 we moved into 5th overall and  2nd in class, finishing the race running 597 laps over 1790 miles.

The event was an amazing experience.  The driving in a race like this gives you more action in one hour than an entire season of sprint racing.   Drive 10 hours and you get more experience then some amateur sprint race drivers might get in a career.

The Lynam Team was truly a team at this event.  It really takes a big effort to make something like this work and still be FUN.

A valiant, come-from-behind effort from Honda Performance Development (HPD) came up just short at the 25 Hours of Thunderhill, as HPD's hybrid Honda CR-Z racer recovered from a near 10-lap deficit to finish second in the Endurance 3 class in the 2010 edition of the National Auto Sport Association's (NASA) season-ending event.

Driving the #19 CR-Z for the final three hours, Lawson Aschenbach moved onto the lead lap during the final hour, and closed to within 1 minute, 10 seconds of the winning Miatacage.net Mazda Miata at the checkers, the closest finish among the half-dozen classes competing in this year's 25 Hours. The two E3 competitors finished 8th and 9th overall in the 72-car field, ahead of many faster-category entries.

It was a weekend of firsts for Honda Racing and HPD, marking the first time the racing arm of American Honda has fielded its own race team; the first appearance of racing cars completely developed and adapted in-house at HPD; and the first appearance of North American racing cars developed from existing production-model gas-electric hybrids: the Honda CR-Z.

After starting from the E3 pole in the hands of Peter Cunningham, refueling problems with the #19 Honda cost it a pair of five-minute "stop-and-hold" penalties early in the race. Later, additional repairs were needed to meet track noise statutes, costing the team additional time as night - and steady rain - fell on the northern California road course, dropping the CR-Z nearly 10 laps off the lead.

A second HPD Honda, the #93 CR-Z, took over the early-race E3 class lead when its teammate was delayed, with driver Simon Pagenaud setting the fast race lap for the class at 2:03.180 in the opening hours. But the CR-Z sustained substantial body and suspension damage in an Hour 4 crash, when Sage Marie lost control and rolled exiting Turn 2.

After three hours of repairs by the HPD crew, the Honda returned to action in 21st position and moved up to 16th in the night hours, but was retired just before 8 a.m. Sunday with transmission failure.

HPD Runs Second at Thunderhill - 2

The dramas involving the #93 Honda helped set the stage for the come-from-behind effort by the #19 team, which began a long, steady climb through the field as Aschenbach, Cunningham and Chad Gilsinger each drove multiple tints, lapping an average of 2.5-seconds quicker than the competition in their effort. Aschenbach turned into the "iron man" of the event, driving more than seven-and-a-half hours in all.

The Honda Team Research-West Honda Fit, prepared by associates from Honda R&D, finished fourth in class, 15th overall, and was the best-placed of three E3 cars built to new "B-Spec" rules.

Featuring only limited performance modifications to an essential stock Fit, the THR-W team had a steady, uneventful 25 Hours, gradually edging out an advantage over the pair of Mazda2s that were also prepared to B-Spec rules, and breaking into the top five in E3 by Sunday morning to finish 15th overall.

Highlights from the 2010 25 Hours of Thunderhill will be televised as a one-hour Versus Network special, airing at 6 p.m. EDT on Wednesday, March 23.

Michael Kinstle (HPD CR-Z Race Team Large Project Leader): "I'd be lying if I didn't admit that we're just a bit disappointed at not being able to pull off a come-from-behind victory. But I'm completely proud of what we've accomplished in our first event as a race team, the first race for the Honda CR-Z, and the first race for a hybrid production-based car. The Honda CR-Z gave us an excellent package as a starting point - we just enhanced it. We also were fortunate to have a truly amazing driver lineup and incredible tires from BFGoodrich. We ran one set of rain tires for more than 330 laps; more than 1,000 miles. So, a big 'thank you' to BFG."

Lawson Aschenbach (driver, #19 HPD Honda CRZ) finished 2nd in the Endurance 3 class and 9th overall: "The Honda CR-Z was fantastic. It handles so great, and ran flawlessly for the whole 25 hours. My hat's off to the entire HPD team, all our sponsors and of course BFG for the excellent tires. It's a shame we came up just a bit short at the end, but this team can take a lot of pride in what we achieved this weekend."

For a photo of the second-finishing Honda CR-Z hybrid racer, go to:
http://www.sportssystems.com/hosting/display.cfm?key=101495