Alliant Insurance, the provider of automotive specialty-equipment insurance and more, has announced the acquisition of InvisionBenefit based in northern Illinois. As part of the company’s Employee Benefits Group, InvisionBenefit will further expand Alliant’s Midwest presence while bringing a broad array of benefits, consulting and advisory services under the Alliant banner.

“The addition of the Invision team to Alliant further solidifies our commitment to offering clients a truly comprehensive service experience that strengthens both the business and the workforce,” Alliant Chairman and CEO Tom Corbett said.

Founded in 2000, InvisionBenefit serves as a broker, consultant, and administrator, offering a full range of employee benefits, human resources consulting, enrollment, and advisory services with a presence in all 50 states. The company works closely with clients from a broad range of industries.

“For nearly 20 years, InvisionBenefit has operated according to a service-first approach that places the client at the center of everything we do,” InvisionBenefit Founder and Managing Principal Marko Castillo said. “By wielding Alliant’s leading-edge technologies, deep resources, and national platform, we stand positioned to expand our capabilities, while maintaining our commitment to hands-on, personal service.”

Castillo, along with the entire InvisionBenefit team, will join Alliant and continue serving clients nationwide from its headquarters in Lake in the Hills, Illinois.

For more information, visit alliant.com.

Driver, fabricator, TV personality and racing legend Jessi Combs was killed in a crash yesterday while attempting to break her own land speed record in Oregon's Alvord Desert. The accident took place about 4 p.m. local time as Combs, 39, was piloting her jet-powered North American Eagle Supersonic Speed Challenger, according to published reports.
 
In 2016, Combs was named the "fastest woman on four wheels" after her team's 52,000-horsepower land speed car traveled over 440 miles per hour. A "shakedown run" by Combs in 2018 clocked in a little over 483 mph, but was cut short by a mechanical failure.
 
Combs regularly competed in off-road racing events and was the first woman to place in Ultra4's King of the Hammers. She also took home a Class 10 podium finish at the Baja 1000 in 2011. As a WyoTech graduate and spokesperson, Combs was trained in fabrication and hot rod building. She also served as a host, builder and technical expert on several automotive shows.

In 2016, Combs served as a panelist on the PRI Trade Show's inaugural "Opportunities for Women in Motorsports" seminar, where she took the stage alongside former IndyCar driver Lyn St. James, Roush Yates' Jennifer LaFever, and Jeanette DesJardins of Car Chix and Crank It Media.

Combs was also a longtime SEMA volunteer as well as co-emcee of SEMA events including the Industry Awards Banquet and SEMA Hall of Fame Installation Banquet & Gala. Just last month she joined motorsports personality Jarod DeAnda to help honor the SEMA Hall of Fame class of 2019 in Anaheim, California.
 
“Jessi Combs was a modern-day motorsports hero in the old-school SEMA mold,” said SEMA President & CEO Chris Kersting. “She was a shining beacon of leadership, creativity, courage and authenticity. Her spirit, accomplishments and volunteerism made a tremendous positive impact—and will continue to be an inspiration for so many.”

Mazda has announced an extension of its sanctioning agreement with INDYCAR. The Global Mazda MX-5 Cup cars will continue to support the NTT IndyCar Series on six weekends throughout the year.

The Battery Tender Global Mazda MX-5 Cup presented by BFGoodrich will also continue to be operated and promoted by Andersen Promotions, continuing a relationship that began with the 2016 Global MX-5 Cup season.

“Everyone at Mazda is thrilled to see the Battery Tender Global Mazda MX-5 Cup continue on the NTT IndyCar Series race weekends,” Mazda Motorsports Director John Doonan said. “It is, in my opinion, some of the best racing in the world, with a fantastic group of racers and team owners who have created careers and businesses based on racing Mazda products. Part of the reason for that is the value for them in competing during the INDYCAR weekends.”

The Global Mazda MX-5 Cup series races are streamed live on MazdaMotorsports.com and available for replay on the Mazda USA YouTube Channel. For the 2019 season, Global MX-5 Cup racers are competing for $375,000 in scholarship and prize money from Mazda.

The Global MX-5 Cup has two races left on its 2019 calendar, August 30–September 1 at Portland International Raceway, and September 20–21 at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca.

For more information, visit mazdamotorsports.com.

Photo courtesy of Mazda Motorsports

Lime Rock Park’s annual Labor Day Weekend Historic Festival (August 29-September 2, 2019 in Lakeville, Connecticut) will feature three days of vintage race cars racing and special events.

The Labor Day weekend event opens with the Vintage Race Car & Sports Car Parade on Thursday followed by practice and qualifying sessions on Friday. Racing will take place Saturday and Sunday.

This year's featured race group will be Formula Ford, celebrating the 50th anniversary of the single-seater class which launched the careers of many Formula 1, Indy Car and sports car drivers. Saturday night will feature a Formula Ford 50th anniversary dinner along with a special panel. Panelists include Vintage Motorsport Executive Publisher and RACER Founder/President/CEO Paul Pfanner; Steve Nickless, author of The Anatomy & Development of the Formula Ford Race Car; well-known motorsports author Gordon Kirby; and drivers from the early days of the racing entity.

More than 200 cars are already registered in nine race groups, including A Sporting Mixture: Small bore sports and sports/racers; Skip’s Championship Delight: Formula Ford’s 50th Anniversary Tribute; VSCCA Challenge: Sporting cars conforming to the norms of VSCCA; East Meets West: East street-based cars from Japan, Europe and the U.S.; Speedy & Agile: Racing cars built just to race; Morgan Meets Modena: A classic but unlikely confrontation; Cut & Thrust: Small bore production sports cars; 911’s Vs. Garage Constructors: Can Porsche power confound lightweight science?; and Japan’s Sprite: The historic car of the future is here—the Miata.

Sunday will see one of the festival’s highlights, the Sunday in the Park Concours d’Elegance and Gathering of the Marques.

For more information, including a weekend schedule, visit limerock.com/labor-day-historics.
 
Image courtesy of Lime Rock Park, Chuck Queener

Memphis International Raceway (MIR) and parent company IRG Sports + Entertainment (IRGSE) have announced Justin Kamm as the sports venue’s new general manager.

Kamm brings a vast amount of motorsports industry knowledge, facility management, event marketing and sales experience to the largest motorsports facility in the Mid-South.

“I am appreciative of this opportunity to lead Memphis International Raceway and the dedicated team as we prepare for our 34th year of business,” Kamm said. “The venue has [a] great growth potential that we as a team will continue to build on. I can’t wait to get started and meet the entire Memphis team, our racers and partners.”

Kamm will oversee the day-to-day operations of the 342-acre multi-use facility in Millington, Tennessee, which includes a combined 1/4- and 1/8-mile drag strip, 1.8-mile road course and a 3/4-mile, high-banked paved oval.

Kamm has spent much of his career in motorsports, most recently serving as director of corporate partnerships for John Force Racing in Yorba Linda, California.

Before joining John Force Racing, Kamm was part of the management teams at Palm Beach International Raceway (PBIR) and New Jersey Motorsports Park (NJMP) focusing on event management, sales and marketing. Before joining the management ranks at NJMP, Kamm was a member of the operations team zMAX Dragway, Charlotte, North Carolina.

“Justin is someone that we have worked with and know well. He brings great enthusiasm and valuable sports management and operations experience to us as the new leader of the Memphis team,” IRGSE President and CEO Lou Partenza said. “He joins our passionate IRGSE leadership team that is committed to the continued growth and development of Memphis International Raceway.”

For more information, visit racemir.com or irgse.com.

Building upon the success of the Mazda Miata MX-5 in club racing throughout North America, Mazda Motorsports unveiled the new Spec MX-5.

Designed as an "affordable, reliable, tech-able and fun-to-drive" option for club racers, Spec MX-5 will establish a nationwide ruleset and spec parts list for the 2006-2015 chassis Mazda Miata MX-5.

While the car will be classified into NASA (ST5) and SCCA club racing, Mazda and Winding Road Racing are creating a spec series to compete at select, marquee events in 2020, culminating with what is expected to be the largest prize pool a club racing series will offer in 2020, according to Mazda Motorsports.

Spec MX-5 has already been classified in other series including American Endurance Racing, ChampCar and the World Racing League.

A Spec MX-5 test vehicle—built by Mazda Motorsports and driven by Andrew Carbonell and Tom Long—began development in 2018 and completed successful tests at Carolina Motorsports Park and VIRginia International Raceway mid-August 2019.

“Spec MX-5 provides an opportunity for us to put into place many of the lessons we have learned with our other successful classes, including Spec Miata, and provide a vehicle that has a different window of performance,” Mazda Motorsports Business Development Manager David Cook said.

Mazda Motorsports and the companies providing support to Spec MX-5 have committed additional support in the form of reduced pricing for racers purchasing Spec MX-5 parts kits and enhanced contingency awards.

Key features of Spec MX-5 include:
    •    A high level of performance by utilizing a spec cylinder head by Roush, adjustable Penske Racing shocks, ABS braking and a curb weight of 2500lbs.
    •    Cost and performance controls with numerous spec components including an ECU flash, Penske Racing shocks, Eibach springs and sway bars, Pagid brake pads, Toyo tires, and more.

For more information, visit mazdamotorsports.com.

Photo courtesy of Tony Politi, Mazda Motorsports

The Mint 400 announced that the off-road organization would add several classes of youth racing in 2020, including Polaris RZR 170, 250cc (RZR 170) and 570 classes, dubbed The Mini Mint 400.

Now children between the ages of five and 16 can battle at The Great American Off-Road Race for their chance to become a Mint 400 champion. The youth races will be held at the Primm Valley Start/Finish Line in Primm, Nevada, on Friday, March 6.
 
“We launched UTV youth racing five years ago at the 2015 UTV World Championship and it was a huge success. Today, the field has grown to over one hundred youth racers. Off-road racing is about family and youth racing brings everyone together to support and help kids build their character through the challenge of off-roading,” Mint 400 CEO Matt Martelli said. “These kids are our future and we feel it’s important to have them involved at the highest level of competition to continue to grow a healthy off-road culture.”

In 2019, the UTV World Championship introduced the Youth Production 570 Class that showcased racers from ages 10 to 16.

For more information, visit themint400.com.

Babcox Media’s Engine Builder brand, which has covered the engine building/rebuilding industry for 55 years in print, online, in video and more, has announced the debut of its new podcast.

“Whether we’re telling crazy stories customers deliver, recounting the times things didn’t go right for the engine builder, profiling the industry’s brightest minds or hearing from the future of racing and engine building, you’ll find it here in the Engine Builder podcast,” a company release stated.

Fans can listen to the “Engine Builder Podcast” on Spreaker, which is available online and as an iOS and Android app.

To listen, visit spreaker.com/show/engine-builder-podcast.

Industrial 3D printing company 3rd Dimension Industrial 3D Printing is now fully operational in its new Indianapolis, Indiana, facility. The company announced the move late last year to expand its staff and equipment.

“While it took longer than expected to get our new operation up and running, the move will allow us to expand and to continue adding capability and capacity to become a one-stop-shop for our clients. I'm excited by our temperature and humidity controlled additive manufacturing room; controlling this environment becomes critical as we start down the path to NADCAP accreditation,” 3rd Dimension Industrial 3D Printing President and CEO Bob Markley said in an official release.

In addition to the temperature and humidity-controlled room, the move also allowed for the addition of a new Additive Industries MetalFAB1 system, a large format machine with a build area larger than most in its class. 3rd Dimension is the only place in North America with any public capacity on this equipment and offers both 316L and AlSi10Mg capabilities.

Supporting equipment also includes a new EOS M280, which gives the company more capacity and will primarily be running Inconel, along with a new vacuum stress relief furnace.

The move also allows 3rd Dimension to continue to operate its CNC shop, which can support both additive production and straight machining.

For more information, visit print3d4u.com.

Aeromotive has added new space to its headquarters in Lenexa, Kansas. Until recently, the fuel delivery company housed sales, tech and office personnel in one building, while engineering and R&D were in a neighboring building shared with the SEMA Data Co-Op. Starting Sept. 1, 2019, Aeromotive will be the sole occupant of both buildings.

The additional square footage allows Aeromotive to move all sales, tech, office and engineering personnel into one building, increasing ease of communication between departments. A newly designed “engineering bullpen” will serve as an incubator for the engineering team to collaborate on new designs and innovations. The second building will now be used for R&D and inventory.

“We are excited to add this new space and welcome the opportunity to restructure our facility,” Johnson Barrick of Aeromotive said. “By bringing the sales, tech and engineering departments together under one roof, we can greatly increase workflow and communication across the company.”

Additionally, Aeromotive has combined the sales and marketing teams into one department. The new Sales and Marketing Department is led by Barrick, who was previously Aeromotive’s Sales Director.

The company also hired Sumner Hylton, a Kansas State graduate and accomplished freelance designer, in a new marketing coordinator role.

For more information, visit aeromotiveinc.com.