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| FastDude |
May 23, 2007 7:28:46 PM |
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Will - Is there added pressure being teamed with your team owner? |
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Team_Sahlen |
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It's not just being with the owner but it's performing on the Sahlen's Six Hours of The Glen weekend. If there's a weekend we need to have a good showing it's that weekend. |
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LeadFoot26 |
May 23, 2007 7:30:47 PM |
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Joe - What's the biggest challenge to being an owner in Grand-Am? |
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Team_Sahlen |
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Sahlen's serves as a sponsor so I'm not really a car owner. Naturally you want to perform at the highest level regardless. I am competing against professionals so the pressure is really to be as competitive as possible but also stay within my experience. |
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SwimRacer |
May 23, 2007 7:31:45 PM |
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Either of you, what do you think about most before a race? |
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Team_Sahlen |
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Joe: I'll basically sit and practice laps in my mind. Concentration is key, any lapse will cause a mistake. I really just try to focus on the lines and not be distracted. |
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Will: Depends on it's a split race or a combined with the DPs. YOu really need to be on the defensive when we run together. We are combined for the Sahlen's Six Hours so it should be a great show for the fans. |
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Joe: In addition, my goal is to put the car into a good position for Will to take over. I work to keep the car in one piece and give Will the best opportunity to excel the rest of the race. |
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AshleyP |
May 23, 2007 7:33:27 PM |
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Are either of you superstious? About racing or just about life in general? |
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Team_Sahlen |
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Joe: No, not at all honestly. |
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Will: You really try not to predict good luck. We don't say "when we do this" or "when we win" because we are just jinxing ourselves. |
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SwimRacer |
May 23, 2007 7:35:55 PM |
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Joe - What made you want to be an owner? |
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Team_Sahlen |
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The Camel Continental, the Grand Prix in the fall and sports car in July. I've been a fan of The Glen since the 1970's. The opportunity came along to drive after taking driving classes and moving up. I met John Beckman, a sales rep from The Glen, and it really progressed from there. |
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FastDude |
May 23, 2007 7:36:58 PM |
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Will - What's it like racing with your dad and brother? |
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Team_Sahlen |
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I think the person that has the most stress is my mom because all three of us are in the pits or on the track. It's pretty intense for the crew. I does work well because our team is very much a family team. Having the Sahlen family at the track really helps us as well. |
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AshleyP |
May 23, 2007 7:38:21 PM |
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What are yawls dream cars/trucks? |
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Team_Sahlen |
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Joe: Oddly enough, I'm 54 yrs old and I have a strong desire for a 1960 Cadillac because cars back then had real style. I'm looking for one of the classics with fins like when I was a kid. Since I race, sports cars on the street just aren't as exciting anymore. I really like the classic cars from the 1960s. |
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Will: Any race car because I've always put all of my money into my race cars. |
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LeadFoot26 |
May 23, 2007 7:39:54 PM |
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Either of you, favorite part of The Glen? |
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Team_Sahlen |
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Joe: The ninety degree turn as you are entering the Boot. That is my favorite turn on the course. |
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Will: Now that we're in the higher horsepower cars, the Esses have to be the best. The closer you can get to flat out the better you are but going through there like that can be really scary. I've wrecked there twice so I know. When you get it right boy does it feel good. |
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FastDude |
May 23, 2007 7:42:04 PM |
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Who usually qualifies? |
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Team_Sahlen |
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Joe: I do because the driver that qualifies has to start the race. Will is the faster driver so it just makes sense for me to go first so he can really bring it home. |
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XanK |
May 23, 2007 7:43:24 PM |
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TPG Racing supports you guys, I drive the #42 Sahlen GT3 in our Sahlen's Enduro
event. |
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Team_Sahlen |
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Will: We love supporting you so keep racing hard. Thanks for running in the series. |
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Team_Sahlen |
May 23, 2007 7:44:50 PM |
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This goes out to everyone, the first 25 fans to bring a Sahlen's hot dog wrapper to us in the garage area will get a free hat. |
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SwimRacer |
May 23, 2007 7:45:55 PM |
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Hardest part about The Glen? |
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Team_Sahlen |
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Joe: Will mentioned the Esses earlier and they are pretty daunting. These higher horsepower cars are great on the track because it's a real horsepower track but the Esses are a real challenge. |
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Will: I've wrecked in the Esses twice so that is also the hardest part as well as my favorite. |
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XanK |
May 23, 2007 7:47:36 PM |
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How's the braking going into turn 1? |
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Team_Sahlen |
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Will: We haven't had the Corvette yet so with that we're not sure. With the Porsche you have to brake before you even see the apex so you have to have a lot of confidence as you come into it. |
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Not having the rumble strips and also the paved runoff really helps. |
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FastDude |
May 23, 2007 7:48:41 PM |
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What do you look most forward to when you come to The Glen? |
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Team_Sahlen |
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Will: Of course going to the concession stand and having a Sahlen's hot dog is my favorite part. |
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Joe: The Glen isn't far from our home. Sometimes you have to pinch yourself because of the history there and all the great drivers that raced there. It's just a thrill that it's the race Sahlen's sponsors. Being the naming sponsor makes you want to do extra well. |
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jaime621 |
May 23, 2007 7:50:51 PM |
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moving from the grand am cup to the rolex series full time.. what has been the biggest difference? |
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Team_Sahlen |
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Joe: We were in both Rolex and Grand-Am Cup so we ran Porsches that were rear weight heavy. Since we now run the Corvettes the weight is in the front so that is a big adjustment. |
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Will: Getting beyond the weight, Grand-Am has done a great job with the Rolex Series. We've had some great fans at the races. It's been great to have such large crowds for our sponsors which is obviously good. We had big crowds so far in Daytona, Mexico and even Laguna Seca. |
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AshleyP |
May 23, 2007 7:52:40 PM |
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What are yawls favorite TV shows? |
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Team_Sahlen |
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Joe: Mine would be the O'Reilly Factor. I don't watch TV as entertainment. The last good shows went away about 25 years ago as far as I'm concerned. So I mostly watch news shows. |
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Will: The Office, Wind Tunnel and Scrubs. |
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LeadFoot26 |
May 23, 2007 7:54:49 PM |
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What got both of you into racing? |
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Team_Sahlen |
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Joe: I've always been interested in cars going back to high school. Business and family requirements prevented me from being involved until recently. I've only been involved for 3 years. Now that my kids are grown I can branch out. It's pretty much in your blood. My uncles always had really nice cars so I got trained to be interested in automobiles. It just grew from there. |
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Will: My dad's first race car was a 1972 Ford Pinto. So like Joe said, racing is in your blood. I was always on my dad's crew so when I got old enough and had enough money I got into it. I scrapped together anything I could and put all my money into racing. You know when you're spending every last dime and putting it into your car you know that you are addicted. |
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SwimRacer |
May 23, 2007 7:57:14 PM |
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Will you miss the IRL this year? |
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Team_Sahlen |
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Will: THe real question is will the IRL miss us? |
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Joe: From a sponsor's angle, I'm much happier being able to be the feature. Last year it was set up as a duel weekend but the IRL really had the main focus. I'm definitely glad to be the focus again this year. |
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Team_Sahlen |
May 23, 2007 7:58:24 PM |
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Will still have a few minutes. Are there any more questions? |
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Will: Just want to make sure everyone knows that we will be racing at Lime Rock this weekend. The race will be on SPEED so make sure to watch it. |
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Joe: Thanks for this opportunity. Its has been a lot of fun. |
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Will: Looking forward to a great day of racing and a dry weekend. |
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Will: Any of the fans that are coming to the race at The Glen or anytime please swing in and say Hi. We are more than willing to sit down and chat with anyone that wants to chat. |
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XanK |
May 23, 2007 8:01:22 PM |
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Have a good Race. |
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Team_Sahlen |
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Will & Joe: Thanks very much. We hope to see you there! Like we said, stop in and be sure to say Hi. |
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Joe: We have a bit of a thrill this coming weekend as Will's mother will be the honorary starter so we are very excited about that. |
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Team_Sahlen |
May 23, 2007 8:04:23 PM |
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Will & Joe: It's time for us to go. Thanks everyone for being here and we will see you at The Glen in a few weekends! |
