This past weekend the 2013 SRT Viper GTS-R race teams headed
to Road America in Wisconsin for their second American LeMans Series race of
the season after making their debut in Ohio.
The #91 SRT Viper GTS-R team sponsored by Forza Motorsport 4
started in the 11th place in the GT class and 20th overall
with Dominic Farnbacher starting the race in the blue and silver Viper.An hour into the race, Farnbacher had worked
up to 9th in the class and 21st overall.Unlike his stablemate in the #93 Viper,
Farnbacher did not use his first pit stop for a driver change.Two hours and seven minutes into the race,
the #91 Viper jumped into the pits for fresh tires, fuel and a driver change as
Kumo Wittmer climbed into the car for the first time of the day. At the driver
change, the #91 Viper had slipped back to 11th in the class and 23rd
overall.At the two hour and 35 minute
mark, Wittmer had moved the Forza Motorsport car up to the 10th
position in the class (still 23rd overall) and at the 3 hour and 18
minute mark, Wittmer brought the #91 car into the pits for fresh tires and
fuel.From there, Kumo Wittmer would
drive the #91 Viper to the checked flag and a 9th place GT class
finish (22nd overall) –
marking the best finish for the modern Viper GTS-R.Wittmer and Farnbacher were only 1 lap down
at the end of the 4 hour race.
Unfortunately, things didn’t go quite so smoothly for the
#93 Pennzoil Ultra Viper GTS-R team. After starting in the 12th spot in the GT class and 24th
overall, starting driver Marc Goossens spent the first hour and 4 minutes
working his way up to 10th in the class and 22nd overall.At 3:35pm, Goossens brought the yellow and
silver Viper into the pits for 4 tires, a tank full of fuel and the team made
their first driver change.Unfortunately,
after about 45 minutes behind the wheel Tommy Kendall ran off of the track in
turn 3, hitting the wall hard enough to do damage to the front end that would
force the team of Kendall and Goossens out of the race.The #93 Viper GTS-R finished in the second to
last overall position, 13th in the class.
While it was disappointing to see the #93 Pennzoil Ultra car
crash early in the race, the #91 SRT Viper GTS-R posted the pairings best
finish since rejoining the American LeMans Series.The teams will be in action again in two
weeks at the Baltimore Sports Car Challenge Presented by SRT.
"Before I was old enough to walk, my dad was taking me to various types of racing events, from local drag racing to the Daytona 500," says Patrick Rall, a lifetime automotive expert, diehard Dodge fan, and respected auto journalist for over 10 years. "He owned a repair shop and had a variety of performance cars when I was young, but by the time I was 16, he was ready to build me my first drag car – a 1983 Dodge Mirada that ran low 12s. I spent 10 years traveling around the country, racing with my dad by my side. While we live in different areas of the country, my dad still drag races at 80 years old in the car that he built when I was 16 while I race other vehicles, including my 2017 Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat and my 1972 Dodge Demon 340.
"Although I went to college for accounting, my time in my dad’s shop growing up allowed me the knowledge to spend time working as a mechanic before getting my accounting degree, at which point I worked in the office of a dealership group. While I was working in the accounting world, I continued racing and taking pictures of cars at the track. Over time, I began showing off those pictures online and that led to my writing.
"Ten years ago, I left the accounting world to become a full-time automotive writer and I am living proof that if you love what you do, you will never “work” a day in your life," adds Rall, who has clocked in time as an auto mechanic, longtime drag racer and now automotive journalist who contributes to nearly a dozen popular auto websites dedicated to fellow enthusiasts.
"I love covering the automotive industry and everything involved with the job. I was fortunate to turn my love of the automotive world into a hobby that led to an exciting career, with my past of working as a mechanic and as an accountant in the automotive world provides me with a unique perspective of the industry.
"My experience drag racing for more than 20 years coupled with a newfound interest in road racing over the past decade allows me to push performance cars to their limit, while my role as a horse stable manager gives me vast experience towing and hauling with all of the newest trucks on the market today.
