Grand Am Lime Rock coverage

Morning practice is over and the race will begin in a few hours. Here's a link to a gallery of photos from morning practice I just shot. More photos later today.

Grand Am Lime Rock coverage

Morning practice is over and the race will begin in a few hours. Here's a link to a gallery of photos from morning practice I just shot. More photos later today.

Grand Am Rolex-Lime Rock practice

LAKEVILLE, Conn. - The GRAND-AM Rolex Sports Car Series Daytona Prototypes made their long-awaited first appearance at Lime Rock Park on Tuesday, taking part in an unofficial test in preparation for the Memorial Day classic.

A total of 19 cars - including 11 Daytona Prototypes - tackled changing weather conditions throughout the six-hour session. The GRAND-AM Rolex Sports Car Series presented by Crown Royal Cask No. 16 will race here on Monday, May 31, at 2 p.m. ET (SPEED, live), featuring both the Daytona Prototypes and production-based GT cars.

Competitors gave favorable reviews to the new 1.5-mile layout, using the optional uphill with the classic West Bend.

Daytona Prototype teams participating included two cars from both Michael Shank Racing and Starworks Motorsports, along with single cars from TELMEX Chip Ganassi with Felix Sabates, GAINSCO/Bob Stallings Racing, Brumos Racing, Action Express Racing, SunTrust Racing, AIM Autosport and Krohn Racing.

GT teams included three Mazdas from SpeedSource plus the Dempsey Racing/Team Seattle Mazda, Racers Edge Mazda, Magnus Porsche, Turner BMW and Whelen Corvette.

By the end of the day and on a dry track, Daytona Prototype drivers were turning laps in the 49-second range. Drivers in the GT class, which last visited Lime Rock in 2008 on the old course, clocked in at 53 seconds.

"A lap goes so quick here," said Rojas, testing the championship-leading TELMEX BMW Riley with Joey Hand. "The biggest thing I remember is that you have to stay on top of things the entire time. There isn't a lot of time to do things here."

David Donohue is happy to see the Daytona Prototypes becoming part of the Memorial Day Weekend habit.

"Lime Rock was one of the tracks I grew up on and a place my father (Mark Donohue) was really good at," said Donohue, sharing the No. 59 Brumos.com Porsche Riley with Darren Law. "I'm definitely looking forward to coming back on Memorial Day and being part of that tradition."

The only incident of the day occurred late in the session, when Nick Longhi spun the No. 69 FXDD Mazda RX-8 into the guardrail on the back straightaway. Longhi was uninjured. The team currently leads the GT team championship by three points (118-115).

The Memorial Day weekend will also feature a Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge race on Saturday, May 29. The Rolex Series events will be compressed into a single day, with practice at 9 a.m. and qualifying at 11:55 a.m.

Grand Am Rolex-Lime Rock practice

LAKEVILLE, Conn. - The GRAND-AM Rolex Sports Car Series Daytona Prototypes made their long-awaited first appearance at Lime Rock Park on Tuesday, taking part in an unofficial test in preparation for the Memorial Day classic.

A total of 19 cars - including 11 Daytona Prototypes - tackled changing weather conditions throughout the six-hour session. The GRAND-AM Rolex Sports Car Series presented by Crown Royal Cask No. 16 will race here on Monday, May 31, at 2 p.m. ET (SPEED, live), featuring both the Daytona Prototypes and production-based GT cars.

Competitors gave favorable reviews to the new 1.5-mile layout, using the optional uphill with the classic West Bend.

Daytona Prototype teams participating included two cars from both Michael Shank Racing and Starworks Motorsports, along with single cars from TELMEX Chip Ganassi with Felix Sabates, GAINSCO/Bob Stallings Racing, Brumos Racing, Action Express Racing, SunTrust Racing, AIM Autosport and Krohn Racing.

GT teams included three Mazdas from SpeedSource plus the Dempsey Racing/Team Seattle Mazda, Racers Edge Mazda, Magnus Porsche, Turner BMW and Whelen Corvette.

By the end of the day and on a dry track, Daytona Prototype drivers were turning laps in the 49-second range. Drivers in the GT class, which last visited Lime Rock in 2008 on the old course, clocked in at 53 seconds.

"A lap goes so quick here," said Rojas, testing the championship-leading TELMEX BMW Riley with Joey Hand. "The biggest thing I remember is that you have to stay on top of things the entire time. There isn't a lot of time to do things here."

David Donohue is happy to see the Daytona Prototypes becoming part of the Memorial Day Weekend habit.

"Lime Rock was one of the tracks I grew up on and a place my father (Mark Donohue) was really good at," said Donohue, sharing the No. 59 Brumos.com Porsche Riley with Darren Law. "I'm definitely looking forward to coming back on Memorial Day and being part of that tradition."

The only incident of the day occurred late in the session, when Nick Longhi spun the No. 69 FXDD Mazda RX-8 into the guardrail on the back straightaway. Longhi was uninjured. The team currently leads the GT team championship by three points (118-115).

The Memorial Day weekend will also feature a Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge race on Saturday, May 29. The Rolex Series events will be compressed into a single day, with practice at 9 a.m. and qualifying at 11:55 a.m.

Rest in peace Paul Newman

Lime Rock Park Mourns the Loss of Paul Newman

Lakeville, CT – Lime Rock Park lost a legend, a friend and a fan this weekend as Paul Newman, age 83, passed away last night, 26 September 2008, at his home in Westport, CT. With ten Oscar nominations, countless awards and credits, Newman's film career was well documented for the excellence he created in front of and behind the camera. At Lime Rock Park, Newman was a very competitive racer winning numerous events throughout the years with his last win being this very same weekend in 2007, the Sports Car Club of America NARRC Championship GT1 Class. And today, Lime Rock Park remembered Newman with a moment of silence between race groups.

That legendary career took a new turn in the early 1970's when he took an interest in auto racing while filming Winning. Newman became an active racer, cultivating a second career that many racers would cherish. His passion for the sport was no mere fancy as he became a tremendously successful team owner while also continuing to compete as a driver. In the same way that Newman astounded the critics with his ability to age with grace and perform with vigor deep into his life, he brought that same incredible performance to the track, even setting a record by becoming the oldest Rolex 24 Hours of Daytona winner at 70 years old.

A philanthropist with a heavy disdain for any sense of entitlement and glory that those in the limelight often crave, Newman considered Lime Rock Park a second home (a backyard playground), who lived far from Hollywood in (Westport), Connecticut. His unassuming manner meant that Lime Rock Park guests never knew if they might bump into him at the track, getting ready to strap into his GT-1 Corvette and taking the checkered flag on an SCCA race weekend or maybe just rumbling through the paddock in a deceptively fast Volvo station wagon.

“Everyone treated him as a fellow competitor, not as a celebrity,” stated Skip Barber, President of Lime Rock Park. “He came here as a racer, was serious about his racing and…he was good. It was amazing that he was as good as he was at his age. And, he liked going fast. Back in the day when Bob Sharp was building the incredibly fast Nissans/Datsons, Newman was racing at Long Beach with Sharp along with the Indy Cars. Newman was the fastest guy down the straight – faster then the Indy Cars. And when I say fast, I don’t mean lap time…I mean speed. He always enjoyed having a car with a big motor. He was a huge supporter of the track. Everyone (the staff, friends and myself) at Lime Rock Park will miss him.”

But beyond statistics, those amazing blue eyes, and a sense of grace that he brought with him no matter if he was waiting on the false grid or heading to the Oscars, Lime Rock Park mourns the loss of a racer, a humanitarian, a gentleman and a true hero. He will be missed by all.

Thank you, PLN.

Statement from Newman's Own:

"Paul Newman's craft was acting. His passion was racing. His love was his family and friends. And his heart and soul were dedicated to helping make the world a better place for all. Paul had an abiding belief in the role that luck plays in one's life, and its randomness. He was quick to acknowledge the good fortune he had in his own life, beginning with being born in America, and was acutely aware of how unlucky so many others were. True to his character, he quietly devoted himself to helping offset this imbalance. An exceptional example is the legacy of Newman's Own. What started as something of a joke in the basement of his home, turned into a highly-respected, multi-million dollar a year food company. And true to form, he shared this good fortune by donating all the profits and royalties he earned to thousands of charities around the world, a total which now exceeds $250 million. While his philanthropic interests and donations were wide-ranging, he was especially committed to the thousands of children with life-threatening conditions served by the Hole in the Wall Camps, which he helped start over 20 years ago. He saw the Camps as places where kids could escape the fear, pain and isolation of their conditions, kick back, and raise a little hell. Today, there are 11 Camps around the world, with additional programs in Africa and Vietnam. Through the Camps, well over 135,000 children have had the chance to experience what childhood was meant to be.

"We will miss our friend Paul Newman, but are lucky ourselves to have known such a remarkable person."

PHOTO CREDIT: Alex von Kleydorff. News used with permission from Lime Rock Park.

What is it like to watch the ALMS at Lime Rock?

The Corvettes sound like bass drums, like radial aircraft engines from WWII. You want them to win, just because they sound so good. The Ferraris scream, and the Porsches sound like ripping cloth. The lone Panoz, struggling in GT2, sounds like, well it sounds like it is struggling.

Lime Rock is a tight, twisty course with close clearances. Every year the spaces around the track are a little more manicured, a little wider here and there, but it remains true to its original layout. Lime Rock is a New England track, and that is all there is to it. This is no soul-less F1 plant.

It is woven among small wooded hills in former farmland. Clear running streams define the two main straights. The drivers may feel cramped, and may fight the track and the traffic (even a field of 20 cars loads the track to capacity), but it makes for good spectating. The chicane at the top of the rise, just after a full brake uphill corner, is a great place to watch the cars catch air. As the cars clip the curb, lap after lap, the red plastic markers are broken off and scattered down the track. The drivers cut the corner even closer, catching even more air. As the cars pass over, they go whump as the tires hit the pavement.

The drivers may complain, but the spectators don't. Lime Rock is a beautiful track.

RL