-----Original Message-----
From: research [mailto:resea
...@racingarchives.org]
Sent: Thursday, October 01, 2009 1:25 PM
To: A. Davis
Subject: Open House October 1, 2009
Racing Research Center's October Open House
Features Champion Race Driver George Follmer
Versatile racing champion George Follmer will be the keynote speaker at the
annual open house of the International Motor Racing Research Center on Oct.
3.
"Forceful George Follmer - a contender in any kind of racing he tried and a
winner in most," writes the Center's 2008 speaker Pete Lyons on the website
of the Motorsports Hall of Fame of America, into which Follmer was inducted
in 1999.
The open house is a daylong event and is the Center's way of thanking its
supporters. Follmer's talk will be at 3 p.m.
The Center is located at 610 S. Decatur St., Watkins Glen.
Follmer is the only professional racing driver from the United States who
has competed in Indy Cars, NASCAR, Formula 1, the World Endurance
Championship, Can-Am, Trans-Am and IMSA.
"George Follmer distinguished himself in every type of race car he ever
drove - and he drove just about everything," says Research Center historian
Bill Green. "He was the USRRC Champion in 1965, Can-Am champion in 1972 and
was twice Trans-Am champion - in 1972 and 1976. In addition to sports cars,
sedans and prototypes, George raced in USAC, NASCAR and Formula 1. He scored
World Championship points for Shadow in Formula 1, including a podium finish
in 1973."
"I am always happy to return to Watkins Glen where so many of the great race
battles of the 1960s and '70s played out," said Follmer. "I like to remember
the victories, including the USRRC and Trans-Am wins, but they are all great
memories."
In his first racing season in 1960, Follmer earned the honor of California
Sports Car Club Rookie of the Year. He turned pro five years later, winning
the SCCA's 1965 United States Road Racing Championship driving a
Porsche-powered Lotus. Follmer's Can-Am championship in 1972 was at the
wheel of the iconic Penske Racing Porsche 917-10. He won the Trans-Am
championship the same year, driving the Roy Woods Javelin. His second
Trans-Am championship came in 1976 at the wheel of a Porsche.
Follmer's USAC career included an historic victory at Phoenix in 1969,
marking the first Championship Trail win for a Chevrolet-powered car. His
three consecutive appearances in the Indianapolis 500 from 1969 through 1971
were plagued with mechanical misfortune, scoring his best result of 15th in
the 1971 event.
"Despite George Follmer's reputation as a hard-nosed, pure racer, he never
lost his essential sportsmanship," said Michael Argetsinger, a member of the
Racing Research Center's Council and author of the recently released
biography, Mark Donohue: Technical Excellence at Speed, from David Bull
Publishing. "Mark Donohue, who competed fiercely against George as a rival
and often as a teammate, had the highest regard for him as a man and as a
driver."
For his accomplishments at Watkins Glen, Follmer will be inducted into the
Watkins Glen Drivers Walk of Fame during the open house. The Walk of Fame is
a project of the Watkins Glen Historic Committee, sponsored by the Center.
Other activities during the day will include the Center's ever-popular
annual "garage sale" and refreshments.
"We are delighted to have George Follmer at the Research Center to celebrate
this important weekend on our calendar. This is our opportunity to thank our
patrons for their generous support throughout the year," said Mark
Steigerwald, Director of Archives & Administration for the Research Center.
The Center is an archival library dedicated to the preservation of
motorsports, all series and all venues. It is open to the public without
charge and welcomes the casual race fan as well as the serious researcher.
It was created to celebrate the 50th anniversary of racing in Watkins Glen,
the home of post-World War II road racing in America. It opened in June
1999.
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