On Friday, March 15th 2013 at 8pm Eastern Standard Time, SPEED TV will air a new documentary on the 2013 SRT Viper GTS-R entitled “SRT Viper: Soul Survivor” – a 1 hour long in-depth look at the development of the current GTS-R racing program starting with its public debut in New York last April and running through the 2012 American LeMans Series. We can expect to get a look at the development of the new race car with the help of Riley Technologies as well as a look at the tough return to the ALMS for the mighty Mopar supercar last year.
The new 2013 SRT Viper GTS-R documentary airs on the eve of the Viper’s return to the 12 Hours of Sebring, which is the first stop on the 2013 ALMS season. This season will mark the first full endurance racing schedule in over a decade, following up to the shortened season that the #91 and #91 Vipers ran in 2012. The teams will be largely the same as they were in 2012 but both Viper teams bring a great deal more experience with the car and the competition for the 2013 season. It is that experience that has the Chrysler Group heads hoping that the Viper will have a far more successful season this year than the 2013 Viper did in its first season.
The good news is that both of the 2013 SRT Viper GTS-R race teams did poorly enough last year that doing better in 2013 shouldn’t be all that difficult. With the first race scheduled to start at 10:45am in Florida so by Sunday morning, we should have a much better look at the state of the Viper racing program for the New Year. With testing having run all week long, both of the 2013 Viper teams have found themselves in the top of the GT class including posting the second best time in the class in the Wednesday test session and the 4th best time in today’s first main practice session.
Remember, SPEED TV, Friday March 15th, 8pm, Viper GTS-R documentary.
"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.
