It seems so easy and uneventful … even whimsical … but that’s the last thing that it is. Actually, the 24 hours of piloting the car on race day is easy in comparison to the 4 months of stress, anguish and financial calisthenics that precede it. Driver searches are based as much on financial where-with-all as they are on skill or intensity. Critical part availability is an investment in faith as much as anything.
No matter how you look at it, the math is just brutal.
Our 2009 effort at Daytona had math that looked like this:
Catastrophic Wreck Insurance: $25,000
22 sets of tires: $46,000
600 gallons of fuel: $3,600
Entry Fee: $8,500
New motor: $25,000
Trans R&R: $25,000
Trackside Support: $125,000
Brakes: $4,200
Livery: $5,400
Uniforms: $5,140
Subtotal: $277,980
Race Damage: $56,000
Total: $333,980 spent to raise $75,000 for charity.
Obviously the math only starts working when the funds raised get into the millions…per event. Yet the potential, when considering the international draw and multi million person fan base keeps eating at me. It feels like raising a few million dollars should be EASY.
Continue reading ‘This is Grueling….’
Wow…big day. First day ‘at speed’ in #18 since our frustrating incident at Watkins Glen on June 1st where we
Guardian Angel Motorsports #18 Entry
met the barrier for some pin striping and general rebuild of the ride hand side of the car. The great news is that Toby (car #18) is back together again in doing just fine.
Day 1 of the Pirelli 2010 Tire Test had the team feeling their way around the track. The day’s momentum built as we started with a wet track that only heightened sensitivity to the car’s traction and going fast in a limited traction situation (read - freaking out behind the wheel). I’ve never driven 170 mph in the rain and have to say, it’s a very unique feeling when the drops hit the windshield like bullets and you’re wondering if you’re going to be able to work off that momentum in Continue reading ‘Sophomore Year - Rolex24hr at Daytona’
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show details 11:24 PM (5 hours ago) |
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The team is in Charlotte (Home Base!) tonight and after many rain delays throughout the day, and only ONE
Charlotte or Bust
practice session—
“The Little Team that Could” (as we have now sometimes been called!) with the help of our driver for this weekend, Mike Bliss, put the #71 car solidly in the show, and Qualified 7th!!!!!!
This is HUGE!!!! Rather than telling you the names of the teams and drivers that we out-qualified, its easier to tell you who we didn’t beat 
(Jimmie Johnson, Mark Martin, Kasey Kahne, Matt Kenseth, Tony Stewart & Ryan Newman).
While the team was at the track working hard, Kevin & Torrey were very busy Continue reading ‘The Little Team that Could’
TRG CMO Torrey Galida with Bobby Labonte & VIDA wealth partner Rich Schuette
Mama, take this badge off of me
I can’t use it anymore
It’s gettin’ dark, too dark for me to see
I feel like I’m knockin’ on heaven’s door
- Bob Dylan -
These were the words, as my traveling companions loaded me into the car,…that I was senselessly babbling from the 8 hours of sensation overload. You see, we’d just spent the day at the TRG Motorsports open house in New Jersey Motorsports Park where Continue reading ‘Knock, Knock, Knockin’ on Heaven’s Door…’
Sorry guys—we had a good car.
Logano spun on lap 2 & we missed him. Menard spun on lap 6 & we didn’t. Got about 4 cars. Totally nothing Bobby could have done. Dang it!!!!!!!!!!!!!
We will try to turn it into a positive & keep communications going w Mahinda . This is a big company. Continue reading ‘Well isn’t that special….’
Victory Celebration P2 of 1500!!!
It was a tough battle with the women in the family leading the charge and taking a last turn pass taking the corner from a Nanna & her grandson…;) (not really)….but we did it! YTD in 2009 we’ve helped raise over $78,380 for children’s charities…that’s the good news, the bad news is that we still have $21,620 to raise to meet our $100,000 goal for the year. Personally, I find it daunting and wonder where we’re going to find the time and means to raise the remaining number.
The Food & Anaphylaxis Shock Network has been on our family radar since the birth of our first son Colin. Born with 7 food allergies, we’ve spent lots of time working with this organization to get educated on how to deal with these allergies. Sadly, this affliction is growing dramatically with over Continue reading ‘Guardian Angel Motorsports - Team Ledoux - finishes P2′
New chassis for TRG #71
Deficit spending….seems to work for our government…so why not our race team? Sometimes, the stars all come into alignment and you’re actually worse for wear if you DON’T seize the day. This is today’s situation.
It’s been such a tough year for all teams and yet the perfect year for a team that built it’s entire 15 year history scrapping it out in….***GASP**….sportscar. Much to the dismay of the team’s naysayers, we’ve tried to make so much from so little. Every race that we planned to race started with a new motor ($65k/ea) and we’ve only had the one COT chassis until now…..which is the heart of the issue….it’s NOW or NEVER. Here is Continue reading ‘Today…….We Race’
….into P26 at Kansas City Qualifying
$50k found - looking for ANOTHER $50k
From: <slugger.com>
Date: September 29, 2009 8:27:57 AM PDT
New Chassis Delivery
Subject: Kansas
Good Morning;
I hope all is well; we are currently finishing our 1st new chassis of the year for Kansas with Bobby Labonte. We are going to load the truck tonight and we be at EGR racing 1stthing in the AM to be on their 4 post pull down machine (also a first for us on 2009) EGR is going to assist us with shocks, springs, bump stops, rear sway bar settings and set up info for Kansas (All like is currently being used by the # 42 team with Juan Pablo)!! This car will be by far our best car and we will be racing this car a lot to finish out the season.
In my post race report from NH, I mentioned about a high center of gravity and the car being heavy! This new car will is projected to be approximately 7.1% to 7.5% lighter, which is huge to a COT NASCAR race car!! Continue reading ‘New Ride - Let’s Labonte Slide’
“The economy and where the sport is at right now and the struggles that some of the teams have had is a
Gilliland & Labbe at Watkins Glen
plus for TRG Motorsports because we only have — I think [crew chief] Slugger [Labbe] said there’s only 10 guys now — but those 10 are guys that deserve and are qualified to be on a top-15 team. They were, but due to downsizing it gave us the ability to handpick some people and that gave us a great big difference.” - David Gilliland -
We are doing a very special event at The Autobahn Country Club, in Joliet, Ill on Oct 6th and the New Jersey Motorsports Park on Oct 7th. These are very special events & something new in the professional racing world. We are bringing out everything under the TRG Umbrella and want to introduce folks to us & what we do & our various programs. Continue reading ‘TRG Motorsports Sponsor Open House - You’re Invited!!!’
Wait….am I reading that right?
How could that be?
What Changed? The answer is simple….the team.
Taxslayer P18 in Qualifying at Dover
The NASCAR press is over the moon. TRG had a 7 race deal with Bobby Labonte thru the balance of the 2009 season. The Dover Race brings Gilliland driving for Taxslayer.com and Labonte back at Hall of Fame racing driving for DLP. In fact, here’s a quick update on our plans for the remainder of the ’09 season:
- 9/27 - Dover - David Gilliland - Start & Park
- 10/4 - Kansas - Bobby Labonte - NEED SPONSORSHIP (or will have to Start & Park)
- 10/11 - California - David Gilliland - NEED SPONSORSHIP (or will have to Start & Park)
- 10/17 - Charlotte - Mike Bliss - TaxSlayer
- 10/25 - Martinsville - Andy Lally - NEED SPONSORSHIP (or will have to Start & Park)
- 11/1 - Talladega - Bobby Labonte - TaxSlayer
- 11/8 - Texas - Bobby Labonte - NEED SPONSORSHIP
- 11/15 - Phoenix - Bobby Labonte - NEED SPONSORSHIP
- 11/22 - Homestead - Bobby Labonte - TaxSlayer
We really need to do everything possible to keep Bobby Labonte from having to Start & Park. This means we have 3 more races where we must find at least $100,000 in sponsorship. Continue reading ‘Gilliland 18 - Labonte 41 @ Dover Qualifying????’
Sun, Oct 4, 2009 at 4:50 PM
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