In an effort to return IndyCar to yesteryear, the series has been attempting to reach out and return to the circuits that used to fill its schedule during the times it rivaled NASCAR in terms of popularity.

One such circuit is Road America, the 14-turn, 4.048-mile circuit in Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin, that played host to the series from 1982-2007.

To the delight of many IndyCar fans, drivers, and teams, the Verizon IndyCar Series announced that it would be returning to the historic road course in 2016 on the June 24–26 weekend, along with all three levels of the Mazda Road to Indy—the Indy Lights, Pro Mazda and USF2000 championships.

"We know how revered Road America is by our drivers, teams and fans and we're confident it will be a great event on the 2016 Verizon IndyCar Series calendar," said Mark Miles, CEO of Hulman & Co., the parent of INDYCAR and the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. "We're thankful to (Road America president and general manager) George Bruggenthies and his staff for their collaboration in bringing INDYCAR back to one of the most iconic road courses in North America. This event, along with a new street race in Boston, are integral additions for 2016 as our efforts to finalize the entire schedule continue to progress."

“It’s truly great news that open-wheel racing will be back at Road America,” said INDYCAR President Derrick Walker. "It's a classic road course: Long, with almost every type of challenging corner. The track is designed to make full use of the natural terrain, which makes for great spectator locations to see the Verizon IndyCar Series at its best. In addition, our cars at Road America with aero kits will showcase some very exciting racing for our fans."

Performance warehouse distributor Turn 14 Distribution has announced the launch of its first-ever customer incentive travel rewards program, Industry Leaders Summit.  
 
Turn 14 Distribution’s Industry Leaders Summit is an exclusive program that combines a vacation atmosphere, gifts, and informative private sponsor interactions. All of these elements are designed to provide customers with the ultimate networking environment with the aftermarket’s movers and shakers.  
 
The Industry Leaders Summit will be held at the Paradisus, a Four Diamond beach resort in Punta Cana, Dominican Republic, from January 27–31, 2016.  
 
Active Turn 14 Distribution customers can earn points from June 1–October 30 toward the trip when they purchase products from participating sponsors. At the completion of the program, 50 customers will receive an invitation for two. Winning customers will receive round-trip airfare for them and their guest, transportation to and from the resort in the Dominican Republic, double occupancy accommodations for them and their guest, all meals, drinks, entertainment, and exclusive access to Turn 14 Distribution’s leadership team and sponsors.   
 
To learn more about Turn 14 Distribution’s Industry Leaders Summit or to set up an account, call 877/7TURN14.  

Richard Petty, the winningest driver in NASCAR history, was honored this week with the Cameron R. Argetsinger Award for outstanding contributions to motorsports.

The award, given by the International Motor Racing Research Center, was presented by NASCAR, International Speedway Corp. and Watkins Glen International during a ceremony at Corning Museum of Glass.

"You can't say thank you enough," said Petty, who retired in 1992. "It's an honor to be involved. Thank you for honoring me. Very few people come along like me at the right time. I couldn't have been in a better place."

The award memorializes Cameron R. Argetsinger, founder and organizer of the first races at Watkins Glen in the late 1940s. Team owner and former driver Chip Ganassi was the inaugural recipient of the award last year.

Petty, who earned a record 200 career wins in NASCAR's top tier and seven Cup championships during his long driving career, competed in eight NASCAR races at nearby Watkins Glen.

The 2015 Pirelli World Challenge features a new race operations committee as well as a new Race Director in Dorsey Schroeder.

Schroeder, a past road racing event winner and series champion, comes to the Pirelli World Challenge after a successful career as a driver and TV racing analyst. In addition, Schroeder will lead the committee with another former racing champion, Brian Till, Pirelli World Challenge Chief Driving Steward, and Chief Steward Pat di Natale. PWC Competition Director Marcus Haselgrove will advise the race committee.

“Dorsey’s racing background as a racing champion as well as a television analyst gives our series a seasoned veteran who understands the drivers’ thinking in a race car,” said Scott Bove, president and CEO of WC Vision, Pirelli World Challenge. “He is a respected professional who can work closely with the drivers and teams regarding competition on and off the track.”

Schroeder, a Missouri native, has competed in variety of racing series throughout his four decades of driving, including Trans-Am, IROC, IMSA, Grand-Am, Sprint Cup, NASCAR trucks, ARCA and SCCA, as well as driving in this year’s Rolex 24 at Daytona. Dorsey’s series titles came in the Lucas Challenge, Trans-Am, and IMSA GTO and GTU categories.

Till is a former Formula Atlanta champion and still serves as an on-air commentator for numerous racing series. Di Natale has served as chief steward in a variety of SCCA-sanctioned series, including the Pirelli World Challenge.

Simpson Performance Products has announced a renewed partnership with the International Council of Motorsport Sciences (ICMS) as the organization's principal sponsor.

The primary purpose of the ICMS is to promote research and discussion relating to safety and performance in motorsports, and to disseminate that information to the motorsports community, including participants, sanctioning bodies, constructors and the general racing population.

“We are enthusiastic about renewing our partnership with the International Council of Motorsport Sciences," stated Debbie Bishop, Vice President of Marketing for Simpson. "Simpson appreciates the opportunity to support these leaders in medicine, science and education as it relates to motorsports safety. This year alone, the Council will be looking at circuit debris and catch fencing updates, emerging technologies as they relate to motorsports and numerous other important safety issues. ICMS will be presenting hands-on race track training sessions and presenting demonstrations from elite safety response teams.”

“We’re very excited to have Simpson return as our principal sponsor,” said ICMS Executive Director Don Andrews. “This is a partnership that brings the number one brand in racing safety equipment together with our team of experts, dedicated to the study of Motorsport Science, to research and promote safety topics and to work together to improve our sport.”

A group of medical, scientific and educational professionals conducted the first World Congress on Motor Sports Medicine in May 1988. From that meeting, the constitutional guidelines were developed for the World Council of Motorsport Sciences, which became the International Council of Motorsport Sciences in 1990 at the request of the FIA (Federation Internationale de l’Automobile).

The ICMS will hold its Annual Congress December 9–11, 2015, in Rooms 206–207 and Ballroom 500 of the Indiana Convention Center in Indianapolis, site of the PRI Trade Show. 

For more, visit www.icmsmotorsportsafety.org.

* A Force For Good: An early summer swing through the South brought yours truly to the doorstep of one of PRI’s staunchest supporters: leading safety equipment manufacturer G-Force Racing Gear. A tour of the company’s Roswell, Georgia, facility revealed a tightly run shop. And my host, Jeremy Curtis, shared some valuable insights into where G-Force is headed. For one, Curtis was quite high on the performance thus far of his one- and two-piece GF 745 racing suits, which debuted at last year’s PRI Trade Show. He also noted the popularity of newly released accessory products for racing crews, including backpacks and helmet bags. Curtis felt confident that 2015–16 would pay dividends for G-Force, as well as the safety sector in general. “Timing-wise, the cycle for product use was typically 2–3 years; now it’s about 5–7 years,” he said. “And we’re currently at the end of that 7-year cycle. Especially with the 2015 helmets coming out this year (the Snell Memorial Foundation SA2015 Standard for Protective Headgear takes effect October 1, after which certified helmets will be available for sale), it’s going to be a good year for the industry. Times are definitely better.” Regardless of market segment—whether it’s drag, dirt, entry-level road racing or elsewhere—Curtis maintained that customer service remains paramount, particularly for today’s competitors. “Racers must be able to get the service they need on follow-up,” he told me. “Those retailers who weathered the storm, and are now getting face to face with the racers, are excelling. The grassroots and local dirt trackers really pay attention to what the pro guys do—they’re researching it on their own. So reach out to the manufacturers,” he advised, “and seek out the answers. Education, for the retailer and the customer, is still key.” We cannot wait to see what G-Force has in store for PRI 2015.

* Youth Flock To Union: Eight minutes. That’s how quickly 32 spots filled up for the headline event at this month’s ECP Racecars 5K Junior Dragster Shootout, which takes place at Union County Dragway in Union, South Carolina. Billed as the biggest Jr. Dragster race ever to hit the Carolinas, perhaps even the Southeast, the event on August 28–30 comes with more than $14,000 in total payouts across multiple classes. The premier race is a bracket-style $5000-to-win High Roller Shootout to the 330 mark—and it’s the one that nearly crashed Union’s server at approximately 8:01 p.m. on May 18. The response was so overwhelming, in fact, that organizers considered adding a second 32-car field for the all-junior event. I spoke with Union’s Tony Brown about the phenomenon during a recent visit to the track, and to be honest, even he seemed a bit taken aback by it. “We announced that it was coming, we put the signups online, and just like that it was full,” he explained. “It was so huge that we went ahead and added another ‘big money’ Jr. Dragster race this season.” Funny thing is, Brown doesn’t really push the youth racing component any harder than he does Union’s Quick 8 Pro Mod, Grudge Fest, Pro Bracket or other regular programs. In fact, on this particular summer day, the juniors took their place alongside a full slate of IHRA Pro-Am racers from across the region. “Of course I like the regular classes,” Brown said, “but look, if I can be known as the premier Jr. Dragster track in the area, that’s just fine with me.” Full- and pint-sized drivers alike will be pleased to know that Brown’s 1/8-mile facility offers a full schedule through November. Now that’s something worth giving thanks for!

NASCAR Sprint Cup Series teams will now face only the loss of pit stall selection for multiple warnings, according to a bulletin issued to teams by the sanctioning body this week.

The change removes the potential for multiple warnings to result in the escalation of the severity of the penalty (to a P1 level or higher), and eliminates all but one of the penalty options previously included in the 2015 NASCAR Deterrence Policy under the warnings category.

For every fourth warning issued to a team, whether during a championship (points) or non-championship (non-points) event, the loss of pit stall selection will be enforced.

If the fourth warning is issued before pit selection has occurred, the loss of pit selection will be assessed at that event. If the fourth warning occurs after pit selection has already taken place, the penalty will be enforced at the next points event.

The modification of the rule takes effect immediately. The NASCAR Sprint Cup and XFINITY Series travel to Watkins Glen International to compete this weekend; the Camping World Truck Series has the weekend off.

Any previous warnings issued to teams prior to Wednesday have been rescinded. According to NASCAR officials, no written warnings were issued during this past weekend’s NSCS and NCWTS events at Pocono (Pa.) Raceway.

Once a team has served its penalty, it begins the next event with a clean slate and no warnings on its record.

Also, warnings will not carry over into the following season.

Previously, the loss of pit stall selection was just one possible penalty for teams that incurred two warnings during the same event, or two warnings during consecutive events.

Other penalties included: track time deductions for practice; track time deductions for qualifying; delay in order of inspection; selection for post-race inspection; specified time delay before unloading vehicle at track; temporary suspension of annual hard card credential(s); reduction or suspension of other event privileges; community service.

NASCAR began issuing written warnings earlier this year due to a significant increase in the number of times teams were required to pass through the inspection line before being cleared.

Such delays impacted practice time and qualifying. At Atlanta Motor Speedway, 13 teams failed to clear pre-qualifying inspection in time to make it on track before the conclusion of the first round of qualifying.

In April, NASCAR began issuing written warnings for cars that failed qualifying inspection or pre-race inspection twice; failure three times resulted in the loss of 15 minutes of practice time at the following championship event.

In an attempt to give teams more time to prepare and present their cars for inspection, NASCAR altered the qualifying day schedule at several events this season.

While P1 and higher penalties, and details of the infractions, are made public, NASCAR does not release details of infractions that result in warnings, only the information that a team or teams have received such warnings.

Greg Hewgill has joined Lucas Oil Products, Inc. as Technical Director, Lucas Oil COO Tom Fredrickson announced.

"Greg has a wealth of experience in the science of oil products technology," said Fredrickson. "We look forward to him playing a key part in the development of Lucas Oil products as we continue to expand into new markets around the globe."
 
Hewgill began his oil industry career soon after leaving Cal State Fullerton, where he studied science. His first full-time position in the oil industry was with Union Oil (later Unocal) Research Center in Brea, California, as part of a team developing, testing and implementing new technologies in the area of well stimulation.

In 1997, Hewgill went to work at Wynn Oil as an industrial chemist, working primarily in metal working fluids before transferring to automotive aftermarket research with the title Senior Chemist and Lab Manager. During his time at Wynn, Hewgill helped develop new products in all areas of automotive fluids, including engine oil, ATF, power steering fluids, gear oils and coolants.

Hewgill will be based at Lucas Oil's worldwide headquarters in Corona, California.  

Motor State Distributing has announced the addition of the Whiteline Performance Suspension product line to its brand selection of automotive suspension products.
 
Whiteline Performance Suspension offers a full range of undercar chassis and suspension components engineered to improve vehicle balance, steering precision, grip levels and outright driving performance.
 
Motor State Distributing offers a large selection of Whiteline Performance Suspension products including adjustable sway bars, suspension bushings, anti-lift/caster kits, bump steer correction kits, strut and shock mounts, rear adjustable control and trailing arms and chassis bracing for many early and late model vehicles.
 
For more information, call 800/772-2678 or visit www.motorstate.com.

Permatex, a Hartford, Connecticut-based firm specializing in chemical technology for automotive maintenance and repair, has named Keith Nelson as its Channel Marketing Manager.

Nelson’s responsibilities include the development and support of business within the retail, traditional, and international channels. He will conduct market and customer analysis, and identify and pursue sales growth opportunities for Permatex while simultaneously supporting all sales team efforts.

Before joining Permatex, Nelson worked for six years at Stanley Black & Decker, where he was responsible for business development, commercialization, and promotional product programming for retail/big box, e-commerce, co-op/wholesale, and independent channels. Nelson started as a regional sales & marketing representative with the Pneumatic Tools and Fastening Division (Stanley Bostitch) and worked his way up to national responsibilities as a Channel Marketing Manager with the Hand Tools & Storage Division.

Nelson holds a BA in Communications from Rhode Island College. He was also an NCAA Academic All-American wrestler.

For more information, visit permatex.com.