E3 Spark Plugs News

On his 12th try, the popular hard-luck racer Tony Kanaan finally took the Indy 500 checkered flag.

Do you remember the 18 years that All My Children star Susan Lucci was nominated for the Outstanding Lead Actress Emmy, but left the theatre like a jilted bride every single time before finally snagging the trophy, launching the show’s happiest/sappiest acceptance speech and getting the rowdiest audience atta girl ever on her 19th nod? Okay, maybe not you, but perhaps your wife or mother does. Anyway, we’re betting that Tony Kanaan was sweating a little of that same lady-in-waiting feeling while at the starting line of this weekend’s Indianapolis 500 for his 11th time. Little did he know, his wait was over.

After more than a decade of gunning for the Indy 500 finish line, Kanaan finally crossed it first, serving up a dramatic performance and officially ditching his dubious title of the “best current driver never to win an Indy 500.” And what a win it was! Sunday’s race arguably was the most exciting and contentious event in Indy 500 history. The race boasted 68 lead changes – double last year’s record of 34. Green-flag racing lasted an astonishing 133 straight laps from Lap 61 to 193 – the longest green-flag period in the race’s history since caution-flag laps were recorded in 1976. There were only five cautions for 21 laps in the 200-lap contest. And it was the fastest Indy 500 of all time, with competitors hitting an average speed of 187.433 mph.

But the real story was Kanaan, who drove hard despite torn ligaments in his thumb. The popular hard-luck driver was a favorite to win the event known as The Greatest Spectacle in Racing among fans, and even among a few of his competitors. He drew the loudest cheer from the stands during the driver introductions. And when it became clear that the Brazilian racer’s face would be the 100th etched onto the Borg-Warner Trophy, the crowd truly lost all composure.

“I never had a doubt I could win this thing,” Kanaan said. “Today it worked… I’m glad I’m on the other side and I can put my big nose on that trophy.”

“TK is such a fan favorite,” added competitor Ryan Hunter-Reay, who took third place. “He’s a great guy, a great teammate, great friend of mine. Yeah, absolutely, it’s great to see him win it. If anybody is going to win it in the field, he’s one of the few I’d like to see other than myself.”

Carlos Munoz took second. Mario Andretti and Justin Wilson took fourth and fifth. Three-time Indy 500 winner Helio Castroneves finished sixth and Team Penske teammate and first-time Indy 500 competitor placed seventh. Simon Pagenaud, Charlie Kimball and Ed Carpenter rounded out the top 10.

From all of us here at E3 Spark Plugs, congratulations, Tony Kanaan!

Team E3 Racing Tier 2 winner John Hummel.

Many a graduating high school senior saves his part-time job paychecks and hits up Mom and Dad for help buying a car. Such was the case for John Hummel of Conesus, NY. But he wasn’t looking for a sleek street car that would impress the girls. Instead, he wanted a lean, mean racing machine. And that’s what he got.

The newest Team E3 Racing Tier 2 winner remembers fondly the 1974 Plymouth Duster he bought just after graduating from New York’s Livonia Central School with honors in 1984. It took him and is father two years to ready the car for Hummel’s first race at Williamson, NY’s Spencer Speedway. Hummel finished his debut race in second place and finished the racing season with two major bragging rights – qualifying for the 1987 National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) North East Division Bracket World Finals and being nominated for Rookie of the Year at Motorcity Raceway (now New York International Raceway Park), finishing eighth place in the Street class.

Throughout the 1980s, Hummel would continue to dominate the drag racing tracks, racking up nearly 100 combined final round appearances and more than 50 wins. But his big national media break came in 1993, when he became the first ever two-time consecutive event Fun Ford Weekend Champion – a record that stands to this day. Other great racing moments for Hummel include 1994′s unprecedented third Fun Ford Weekend Championship; three consecutive All Ford Challenge Class Championships; and a second-place finish in the world’s largest sportsman drag race in 2005.

Hummel’s drag racing car dubbed “Grounds for Divorce.”

Hummel also is proud of his 2011 Competition Plus Magazines Sportsmanship Award and 2009 POPS Racing Outstanding Sportsmanship Award. Both take into consideration not just his racing talent but his community service as well. Over the years, he has devoted countless hours as a Livingston County, NY D.A.R.E. Programs volunteer; raising funds for the Teresa House, a comfort care ministry for the terminally ill, and the Golisano Children’s Hospital; and organizing and promoting events for the New York State Police Dept.’s Racing Against Drugs program.

“As I look back at my long career, I can say the best part of my racing success is that it puts me in a position to give something back to the community that has supported me so well over the past 27 years,” Hummel says.

It’s Hummel’s on-track talent as well as his heart for community service that helped land him the roster of Team E3 Racing winners. From all of us here at E3 Spark Plugs, congratulations and welcome to the team, John!

Team E3 Racing winner Shea Holbrook hit the Richard Petty Driving Experience at age 16 and never looked back.

Shea Holbrook recently experienced the “best five laps of my life,” she says. While walking the paddocks at the Homestead-Miami International Speedway during a Formula and Automobile Racing Association event, she spotted her dream car – an Audi Sport Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters (DTM) racecar. As luck would have it, she knew the team and car owners, and thus scored the chance to take it out on the tracks for a few laps.

“The sensation of driving the ‘Batmobile’ came over me because everything is pushed back a few feet,” Holbrook writes in her racing website blog. “I’ve never felt more comfortable in a racecar than driving this one. Cool, calm and collected I roll out of the pits. Getting a feel for the car, aggressively grabbing the upshifts with my foot to the floor and then punching the downshifts as fire lights under my butt (exhaust comes out the side of the car rather than the rear) I feel at ease.”

Holbrook’s passion for racing is evident just from reading that quote. And it’s clear that she’s a natural at her sport. That’s why she’s the latest Team E3 Racing Tier 1 winner.

Holbrook first discovered her passion for driving at age 16. While her friends were just happy to get their driver’s licenses, she was ratcheting things up with a Richard Petty Driving Experience at the Daytona International Speedway. And that was it – She was hooked. Soon, Holbrook was racing high performance driving events throughout Florida and gunning for her Sports Car Club of America (SCCA) license. She since has been road racing competitively nationwide, with event ranging from sprint races to 25-hour enduros.

The gorgeous Groveland, FL resident holds several firsts in her racing career. In 2008, she became the first female alternate for the 2008 VW Jetta TDI Cup, and in 2011, she became the first woman to win the Grand Prix of Long Beach in a touring car during the 2011 Pirelli World Challenge season – making her one of just four women to ever win at the track alongside Katherine Legge, Dancia Patrick and Simona De Silvestro. Other bragging rights include the Sobre Rodas Talent of the Year Award in 2007; Women in the Winners Circle (Lyn St. James Foundation) recipient of the Cooper Tire & Rubber Company Scholarship in 2008; Optima Batteries Best Standing Start Award and the Sunoco Hard Charger Award in 2011; and Living Legend Honoree Award at the Live Your Legacy Summit in 2012.

Holbrook is a formidable competitor off the tracks as well. She’s an accomplished national competitive water skier holding numerous state, regional and national titles. But she’s got a soft heart when it comes to charity. Her team, Shea Racing, partnered with Frito Lay Corp. to raise $12,500 for the Susan G. Komen for the Cure and has helped to raise thousands of dollars for Parent Project Muscular Dystrophy, which benefits Duchenne muscular dystrophy – a condition that affects her own family. As if that’s not enough, she recently earned her Bachelor’s Degree in Interpersonal and Organizational Communications with a minor in Marketing from the University of Central Florida. For her accomplishments was featured in the Women in Motorsports SuperCars Super Show Exhibit and Teen Vogue magazine.

From all of us here at E3 Spark Plugs, congratulations and welcome to the team, Shea!

Team E3 Racing winner David Cerer co-founded Lawmen Racing, Inc.

If you’re cruising the highways of Antioch, Ill, it’s best not to speed. You won’t outrun Officer David Cerer. A no-nonsense law enforcer by weekday, Cerer revs things up on the tracks every weekend, competing as part of the Lawmen Racing Team.

Lawmen Racing’s founder, drivers and crew all are past or current fulltime police officers dedicated to the “pursuit of speed.” And Cerer is one of the team’s stars. He, along with fellow lawman and racer Erik Gherke, also is the newest Team E3 Racing Tier 1 winner.

David has raced competitively for more than a decade, starting with Mini-Modified Sprint Cars in 1994. In 1997, he founded his first race team, CPM (Cerer Performance Motorsports) Racing, driving a Legends Car. It was during this time that he honed his professional racing skills, both trackside and on the business side of the sport, managing, securing sponsorships for and promoting the team. In 2003, Cerer was sidelined with a work-related injury and eventually sold CPM Racing. But he wasn’t finished with racing yet – far from it. Three years later, he and Gherke founded Lawmen Racing. Today, he pilots the #7 Chevy Super Cup car with help from daughter, Jen, who serves as his spotter.  He also races in the American Super Cup Series.

Team E3 Racing winner David Cerer and his beautiful daughter, Jen, who serves as her dad’s spotter.

Along the way Cerer realized that while being a tough competitor on the tracks, he also has a real knack for the business side of racing. And he decided to share that talent, establishing a racing sponsorship package and consultation service to help other race teams in their pursuits.

Over the past 7 seasons, Lawmen Racing has racked up 57 race wins and captured back-to-back Midwestern series driving championships in 2007 and 2008. Drivers and crew regularly attend car shows, parades and charity fundraisers as well as sponsor appearances. And Cerer credits much of his and his team’s success to E3 Spark Plugs.

“I have been using E3 spark plugs in my race car for the past three years and I’m very impressed with their performance,” he says. “It’s nice to promote something you actually use and believe in which make this sponsorship very exciting for the Lawmen Racing team.”

E3 Spark Plugs congratulates Cerer on his continued success. Welcome to Team E3 Racing!

If you’re in the area, check out Cerer and Lawmen Racing on the tracks during throughout the 2013 American Super Cup season:

• Sun May 5th Slinger Super Speedway
• Sat May 18th Rockford Speedway
• Mon May 27th Golden Sands Speedway
• Sat Jun 8th Indianapolis Speedrome
• Sat Jun 22nd Rockford Speedway
• Sat Jul 6th Lacrosse Speedway
• Sun Jul 21st Slinger Super Speedway
• Sat Aug 3rd Dells Raceway Park
• Sat Aug 17th Rockford Speedway
• Sat Aug 31st Indianapolis Speedrome
• Sun Sept 1st Indianapolis Speedrome
• Sun Sept 8th Slinger Super Speedway

E3 Spark Plugs congratulates the newest class of Team E3 Racing Tier 1 Winners. We’ve selected 12 of the most promising up-and-coming racing pros and pro-ams. And you’ll recognize a few of the names.

Making their sophomore appearance on Team E3 Racing are:

• Stephen Foster Kildahl, a competitive speedboat racer since age 16;
• Dan Bunting, a world record-setting competitive speedboat racer;
• Brandon Williams, a dirt track racer and founder of online magazine DirtXtra.com;
• Powered by the Complex, a lawn mower racing team;
• Erik Gehrke, a mini cup racer.

New on the team are:

• Kevin Harter, a kart racer and race team manager;
• Cheyanne Phillips
• Shea Holbrook, a car racer and Living Legends honoree;
• Don Demeny, Traxxas Torc series racer and 28-year racing veteran;
• James R. Steffenhagen, a stock car racer;
• Donnie B. Collins, Monster truck and funny car racer.
• David Cerer, American Cup Series racer.

Each winner takes home a $500 cash prize, a set of 16 E3 Spark Plugs, official E3 apparel and decals, and a publicity boost via the E3 Spark Plugs website blog and Facebook Fan Page. Over the next few months, each Tier 1 winner will be featured in a profile on our blog. So keep a lookout for your favorites.

E3 Spark Plugs sends out big props to the 2012 class of Team E3 Racing Sponsorship Contest Tier 2 winners. Three top picks from our inaugural class made the cut this year as well. They are:

• Alex Prunty, third-generation race car driver;
• Jacob “Camokid” Putman, 7-year-old Kid Kart champ;
• Daryl Barrett, 30-year racing professional

New on the team for 2013 are:

• Cody Perry, Sport Compact / Hornet division racer;
• Parker Abed, a competitive racer since age five;
• Danny Phillips, custom lawnmower builder and racer;
• John Hummel, 26-year drag racer;
• Aidan Montgomery Hinds, 7-year-old racer;
• Tyler Shepard, the “Wheelie Wizzard;
• bobby brown, truck racer;
• Tim Spurlock, engine transmission and builder, and truck racer;
• Tom Benvenuti, vintage snowmobile racer.

Each winner scored a set of 16 E3 Spark Plugs and official E3 apparel and decals. Plus, they’ll get a publicity boost via the E3 Spark Plugs website blog and Facebook Fan Page. Check the E3 Spark Plugs blog regularly over the next few months for feature articles on each Team E3 Racing Tier 2 winner.

1989 Corvette convertible with just 67 miles – a deal of a lifetime thanks to one unnerved Irish car thief.

Talk about your great garage finds. E3 Spark Plugs would love to come across one of these – a mint condition 1989 Corvette – so mint, in fact that it’s still got the first price tag in the window. And it recently sold a Chevy aficionado with a time capsule dream for the original sticker price.

Mike Robertson, a Newport Beach, Calif. advertising executive had long dreamed of buying a brand new car, then promptly storing it away with plans to take it out 20 years later and drive it like it around like it had just come off the lot.

“Like time capsuling a car for myself,” Robertson recently told reporters. “It was just a fantasy.”

But every now and then, fantasies are realized. And Robertson’s chance came with a December 21 article in The L.A. Times. The article told of an Irish immigrant who got mixed up with some ne’er-do-wells stateside and talked into stealing a car off a dealer’s lot. He did the dirty deed, but apparently was so unnerved by his crime that he parked the car in San Diego storage facility the same day, walked away and never looked back.

He did, however, keep paying the bills for the storage unit, apparently pressured either by his criminal cohorts or his own conscious to keep quiet. And so, there the candy apple red, black-topped convertible stayed, untouched and protected from the elements and from prying eyes for more than two decades.

Twenty three years and $70,000 in storage fees later, our car caper had long ago high-tailed it back to the Emerald Isle. To his credit, he lawyered up and spilled the whole story. And no doubt, he was thrilled to learn that the statute of limitations covering his crime had long expired, leaving him scot-free. Police picked up the car and delivered it to the insurance company that had originally covered the dealership’s loss – who sold it to a wholesaler – who sold it to Sherman Oaks dealer Corky Rice – who promptly posted it on EBay.

Despite a few layers of dust and flat tires, D-shaped from two decades of sitting still but otherwise undamaged, the black leather interior car was in immaculate condition. It even still sported that much envied new car smell and had just 67 miles on the odometer. When the story hit the newspaper, Robertson hit EBay, where Rice was hoping to get $39,410 for the car – the same price on the sticker still on the car’s window. Robertson’s winning bid was just $300 less.

Roberson says he may end up selling his time capsule fantasy turned reality on wheels to a dealership, but no doubt will take it for a joy ride or two.

“I’ll drive it when I feel like it,” he told reporters just a few hours before picking it up from Rice’s dealership. “And I feel like driving it today, I’ll tell you that.”

The original Batmobile, used in the 1960s “Batman” TV show, sold at auction for $4.2 million.

Were you the lucky bidder? E3 Spark Plugs has just learned that the original Batmobile has a new owner. Other than the bandied-about phrase “some rich guy from Phoenix,” there’s no official word on just who dropped the $4.2 million final purchase price last weekend at the Barrett-Jackson auction in Scottsdale, Arizona.

The 19-foot-long black, bubble-topped car was used in the 1960s Batman TV show and boasted all sorts of futuristic features including lasers, a batphone, the official Bat Ray projector and the ability to lay down smoke screens and oil slicks. The car’s base is a 1955 Lincoln Futura Concept that seller George Barris bought from Ford for a grand total of one dollar. Holy ROI!

Barris kept the car in his garage for a few years, until late 1965 when he got a frantic call from 20th Century Fox Television and William Dozier’s Greenway Productions. They needed a super hero-worthy ride for the new show and they needed it in 15 days. With short notice and a $15,000 budget, Barris created what has become arguably the most iconic of all Hollywood rides.

The Batmobile sale was undoubtedly the most anticipated deal of the auction, which featured Barrett-Jackson’s much-touted 5,000 series and famed Salon Collection of 50 unique and rare automobiles, and no doubt helped to attract the record attendance.  But it wasn’t the only crowd pleaser at the January 19 affair in Scottsdale. Two new world records were set with the sales of a 1947 Talbot-Lago T-26 Grand Sport for $2,035,000, making it the world’s most expensive T-26; and a 1956 Chrysler Diablo Concept Convertible for $1,375,000, a record for a Chrysler Concept car.

Did you attend the auction? Post your pics and thoughts on the E3 Spark Plugs Facebook Fan Page. And check out these vintage images of the Batmobile undergoing its super hero transformation.

• Original Batmobile Created for 1960s "Batman" TV Series

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• 1947 Talbot-Lago T-26 Grand Sport

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• 1956 Chrysler Diablo Concept Convertible

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Hey racers and racing crew! There’s still time to register for the 2013 class of Team E3 Racing Sponsorship Contest winners.

E3 Spark Plugs is looking for up-and-coming racing competitors and pit crew members who want to rev up their careers. And as long as it has an engine, it doesn’t matter what you race. Our inaugural class of Team E3 Racing members head for the finish line piloting everything from high-dollar speed boats to riding lawn mowers. Crew competitors have been racing team owners, pit crew managers and mechanics.

We want to hear from career hopefuls who understand not just the track side, but the business and promotions side of professional racing, too. If you’re chosen as a Team E3 Racing winner, you’ll get a publicity boost via the E3 Spark Plugs website blog and Facebook fan page. Plus, we’ll send you $500 in cash, 16 E3 Spark Plugs, and official E3 apparel and decals for you, your team and your ride.

But time is running out. To enter, make sure you’re a fan of the E3 Spark Plugs Facebook Fan Page. Then, click the “Sponsorship Contest” tab, complete the form and click “Submit.” You’ve got until 11:59 p.m. on January 31 to enter (be sure to read all the rules and regs). We’ll announce the winners in February.

Good luck!

The late Allen Swift with the 1928 Rolls-Royce Piccadilly P1 Roadster now on permanent display at the Lyman & Merrie Wood Museum of Springfield History.

In 2005, one Allen Swift passed away at the impressive age of 102. But the centenarian left behind something that will keep his memory alive for generations, particularly in his hometown Springfield, Mass. And we here are E3 Spark Plugs are grateful.

Not long before his death, Swift was officially recognized as the oldest living person to have owned a car from new. That car was a 1928 Rolls-Royce Piccadilly P1 Roadster given to him by his father to celebrate his graduation. The green-over-green soft-top convertible was young Swift’s pride and joy, and remained so throughout his lifetime. But it didn’t stay locked away in a garage like many classic cars.

Instead, Swift drove his head-turning roadster regularly, all the while maintaining it meticulously. His fastidious efforts included a complete body-off restoration and engine rebuild in 1988. By 2005, the car’s analog odometer had logged more than 170,000 miles and Swift was honored with Rolls-Royce Motor Cars’ coveted Spirit of Ecstasy award for his length of ownership.

The late Swift continues to care for his beloved ride even posthumously. Before his death, he donated the car to the Lyman & Merrie Wood Museum of Springfield History – a proper place considering the town and Rolls-Royce have a shared history. Between 1920 and 1931, the British automaker built nearly 3,000 vehicles in Springfield in an effort to establish a U.S. plant. Swift also left the museum a $1 million gift to create a new exhibition to care for his roadster and tell the story of Springfield’s Rolls-Royce manufacturing stint. Today, you cans see Swift’s prized ride on permanent display as part of the museum’s Transportation Collection.