CART, INDYLIGHTS: Team Rahal Scoop
3 September 1998
News You Can Use From CART's Team Rahal
Volume 4, Number 15
Vancouver
A Qualified Success
Team Rahal owner and driver Bobby Rahal has done a pretty fair job of
getting in position to win the Molson Indy, even if he hasn't nailed down
a
Vancouver victory. Only once in his eight visits to the Concord Pacific
Place street circuit has Rahal failed to qualify in the top three. "On
tracks like Vancouver where it's tough to pass, qualifying is even more
essential to success in the race," Rahal said. Rahal's three runner-up
runs
and four top fives are certainly evidence of that.
Oh, Canada
For Bobby Rahal, whose racing career began in Canada at age 17 and
included
stints in the Atlantic and Can-Am ranks, the country always has provided a
warm welcome and a fair measure of success. In 24 career Canadian CART
appearances, Rahal has managed two wins (Sanair and Toronto, 1986), four
pole positions, seven runner-up runs, and 12 total podium finishes.
"Canada
in general, and Canadian fans in particular, have always been very
supportive of me," Rahal said. "I can't explain it. We've always just
had
this kind of kinship. With as much racing as I've done here during my
career, maybe it's just familiarity. I don't know, but I really enjoy
it."
Rahal Streaking
Coming in to Vancouver this week, Bobby Rahal has a career-best
scoring
streak going. Through CART's last race at Road America, Rahal has earned
eleven (11) consecutive points-paying finishes, a feat he had yet to
accomplish in 16 previous seasons in the series.
Street Smart
Team Rahal driver Bryan Herta has had his share of success on street
circuits so far this season. After sitting on the pole in the season's
first at Long Beach, he's had two other top-five starts (Detroit and
Cleveland) and two top-five finishes (Long Beach and Toronto) in the four
street races the series has run.
Herta's Excellent Adventure
Bryan Herta had a whirlwind west coast tour during his time off
between
races. The fourth-year series driver was a guest of star Mark-Paul
Gasselaur at the Las Vegas premiere of the movie Dead Man On Campus before
heading to Los Angeles to host a fund-raising event for the Harbor/UCLA
Research and Education Institute. The event raised more than $50,000 for
the medical institute's work in the U.S. and overseas. He also squeezed
in
a couple of days of testing at Laguna Seca Raceway before heading to
Vancouver.
Foundation Tote Board
When three-time CART FedEx Championship Series champion Bobby Rahal
ends his
driving career at the conclusion of the 1998 season, he'll begin a season
of
giving something back to the racing community. Through The Bobby Rahal
Foundation, a not-for-profit endowment he established to coincide with his
retirement season, Rahal is donating proceeds from fund-raising activities
throughout the year to deserving charitable organizations in each of the
markets the series visits in 1998. Sponsors Miller Brewing Company, Shell
Oil Products Company and Marlboro each have made leadership commitments to
the foundation, donating a sum for each lap Rahal completes during his
"Last
Ride." Having completed a series-leading 1,974 laps in the season's first
14 races, Rahal's foundation is now $39,480 richer thanks to $5-per-lap
donations from both Miller and Shell, and a $10-per-lap gift from
Marlboro.
Back On Track
The Team Rahal Indy Lights team returns to action this weekend after a
month
off between races. The team and driver Mike Borkowski kept sharp by
testing
at the Laguna Seca and Thunderhill tracks in central California.