RACE101 Graduation Weekend (Premier Driver)

I had long anticipated the graduation weekend for RACE101 that took place last weekend. With hopes high to win the highly regarded Premier Driver Award my mother Elaine, father Kevin and crew member Dustin began our 14 hour drive south toward race city USA. I spent Thursday and Friday touring NASCAR race shops and taking in all that the motorsports oriented area had to offer. Saturday was of course the big day that all the RACE101 students of 2011 and 2012 had been waiting for. Who would be the next representative for RACE101 and who were the new RACE101 prospects for 2012?

As the evening drew nearer I relaxed and took the time to reflect on my time spent at RACE101 and all the accomplishments I had secured over the 2011 season as a result of the mentorship and knowledge I obtained in the program. I realized very quickly that no matter what the outcome and no matter how the awards were distributed I had already achieved my goals I had set at the beginning of the year.

The ceremony began with wise words from Adam Ross, Annamarie Strawhand and Tony Blanchard, mentors and founders of the RACE101 program. The energy was high in the room as parents and friends eagerly awaited for Adam to announce the graduates and award winners. My parents and I mingled with the Gage family over supper and talked racing for the minutes remaining. By this point my heart was racing and I had a feeling that I may be the one to shake Tony Blanchard's hand and receive the premier driver award. Although there was many other very deserving and hard working students I believed I had the extra edge needed to perform and represent the premier driver position. After a quick introduction of the premier driver award my name followed. " We ask you to please join us in welcoming.... Luke Whitteker." At this point I felt a huge sigh of relief. I did it! I had reached my goals and then some!It still feels a little surreal right now but I am motivated and ready to attack any task and take on the responsibility of being premier driver. I hope I make everyone proud!

I know that the students of RACE101 will go on to represent themselves and there racing careers to great success. They have all the strength and tools to reach any goals that they apply themselves to. As a representative of the RACE101 program and of RACE101 students I believe we are breed of our own and a forced to be reckoned with in the motorsports world. Keep an eye on each and every student!

Please visit www.lukewhitteker.com, http://www.facebook.com/lukewhittekermotorsports, https://twitter.com/#!/lukewhitteker

RACE 101 Gala and Graduation ceremony just days away; Event to stream live online at www.race101.net

February 7, 2012, DENVER, NC – RACE 101’s inaugural Gala Dinner and Graduation ceremony will be streamed live Saturday night from Hickory, North Carolina. The cybercast can be seen at www.race101.net, and it will start at 7:30 p.m. Saturday evening featuring the announcement of 2011’s graduating class along with special award recipients.

For the first time RACE 101 combined the graduation ceremony with the official introduction of the new class.

“It was important to us to combine a number of celebrations into the same event,” said RACE 101  co-founder and instructor Tony Blanchard. “We are honouring our graduates from last year’s class, but we also plan to introduce significant improvements to our program moving forward, and we wanted to include our new group as well.”

The program’s next Premier Driver will be introduced during Saturday’s Gala, and the faculty admits the decision was tough. One student among the graduating class will be named to compete in the RACE 101 Howe super late model for selected events in 2012.

“We learned that there’s no limit to what our students can achieve,” said co-found Anna Marie Strawhand. “They blew us away with their ambition and their ability to make great things happen. We have high expectations of all our graduates, but only one can be named Premier Driver. I’m confident that we made a great choice, and I’m excited to watch what all of our graduates achieve this year.”

Students from across North America attend RACE 101. It’s a program designed to assist young racers in their areas of need as they progress in the sport. The curriculum is balanced between technical understanding of a race car and its dynamics along with the marketing and media relations skills required to be successful.

“The Premier Driver is something every student wants to win,” said co-founder and instructor Adam Ross. “When you put a group of racers together and create a prize they’re going to compete for it. The Premier Driver is really a tool for us to promote the school, and it’s the best way for us to reward excellence. We believe every graduate should be excited for what lies ahead.”

Along with the Premier Driver title the school will name award winners in the categories of mechanical excellence and  marketing excellence along with a few categories that won’t be announced  until Saturday.

“The awards have great meaning to us,” said Blanchard. “We’re going to recognize some fantastic achievements, and we’re going to announce an initiative to keep our past graduates involved with the program. The knowledge we share is meant to help our racers throughout their careers even though the program is a one-year course.”

To stay informed on RACE 101 and its many students and graduates, visit www.race101.net. For interview requests or specific information, please email pr101@race101.net or adamrossenterprises@gmail.com .

RACE 101 faculty faces difficult decision choosing next ‘Premier Driver’; Numerous students deserving of vacant position

December 16th, 2011, DENVER, NC - RACE 101’s next ‘Premier Driver’ will be announced during the annual RACE 101 graduation ceremony in Feburary. The ceremony will fill the spot left vacant since RACE 101 released current Premier Driver Trevor Edwards today.

“Choosing the right Premier Driver is a challenging task,” said RACE 101 founder and instructor, Tony Blanchard. “When you go to the races it’s easy to determine a winner. We use far more than results to determine our Premier Driver.”

RACE 101 was founded in 2009 by Blanchard along with seasoned public relations and marketing specialist AnnaMarie Strawhand and motorsports commentator and public relations specialist Adam Ross. An acronym for Research, Analyze, Consult, and Educate, 1 on 1 – the program was designed to offer aspiring racers the education they need to advance their careers.

“Racing has evolved to the point where a driver has to be their own best salesperson, spokesperson, and ambassador,” said AnnaMarie. “The days of a driver just getting behind the wheel are over.”
 

Our students have worked hard this year and applied what they have learned to their own racing careers.

RACE 101’s inaugural class graduated at the end of 2010. The class knew that one driver would be named Premier Driver, and that student would drive the RACE 101 Howe super late model in selected races the following year. The competition motivated students to execute the skills they learned through attending classes at RACE 101’s Denver, North Carolina, headquarters, and through online webinars throughout the year.

“Earning the Premier Driver title is definitely motivational for the students,” said Ross. “But I think often times they put too much emphasis on the title when they should be celebrating their achievements. “Only one student will get that title, but we’ve already seen that our graduates accomplish great things with or without our race car.”
 

Graduates from the 2010 class have made significant waves in their respected areas. Florida’s Michael Cenzi entered the program with no concrete racing plans in 2010. The family owned a late model, but the series he hoped to compete in struggled to form a schedule. Cenzi focused on a safe-driving campaign that drew the support of the American Automobile Association among other businesses. He campaigns throughout Florida educating young people on not texting while driving.

RACE 101 Alumni driver, Amanda Ferguson, speaks to this year's class at our open house in November.

Amanda Ferguson left sprint car racing for super late models, and the young Florida racer also makes frequent public appearances to promote herself and her sponsors. Virginia native and RACE 101 graduate Clifton Savage won the program’s public relations award in 2010. The youngster organized and executed a successful charity race while attending RACE 101, and the second annual event in 2011 was even more successful.

The RACE 101/Howe Super Late Model Debuted this past spring at the PASS 150 event at North Wilkesboro Speedway with driver Trevor Sanborn. The car was fast right out of the box, and Sanborn offered good feedback on the car that helped all season.

 “The RACE 101 car is important because even though we teach principles that apply to any division and any driver we still need to perform on the track as well,” said Blanchard. “We took our car to North Wilkesboro with Trevor Sanborn as the driver this spring, and I think we turned some heads when we were fastest in practice.

“We need to combine the success of our students in the program with success on the track. That’s why we’re making a few adjustments for 2012.”

Sanborn relocating to North Carolina to work full-time in RACE 101 shop:

2011 RACE 101 Student, Trevor Sanborn has opted out of the Premier Driver contention. He has come on board with RACE 101 as an instructor, mechanic and R&D driver for RACE 101 owner Tony Blanchard. Here he is shown working with one of Tony Blanchard's younger drivers as an assistant driving coach a few weeks ago.

Trevor Sanborn earned a scholarship to the 2011 RACE 101 program. The 23-year-old Maine native arrived with impressive credentials. He has won numerous super late model races including PASS events, but he knew there was still plenty to learn.

Sanborn and Blanchard recently agreed that Sanborn should remove himself from contention for the ‘Premier Driver’ title. In January he will move to North Carolina to work full-time in Blanchard’s shop helping with the RACE 101 car and with Blanchard’s numerous clients.
Sanborn will serve as a mentor and driving coach in 2012. He will also compete in Blanchard’s super late model and serve as test driver.
“Trevor’s ability behind the wheel will be an asset to my business,” said Blanchard. “Not only will he be a huge help to our next Premier Driver, but he will also help us maintain our race cars. The competition will have to watch out.”

The RACE 101 house car competed just a few times this year. Edwards drove at Winchester Speedway, South Boston Speedway, and most recently at Hickory Motor Speedway where he enjoyed his best finish of 10th place.
Edwards was released as RACE 101 Premier Driver this week after a series of decisions the faculty agreed were unbecoming of RACE 101’s core values. The role will remain vacant until the February graduation ceremony.

Students in contention for the title include: Daniel Alvarez, Chappells, South Carolina; Brandon Atkins, Statesville, North Carolina; Sulo Burbank, Gorham, Maine; Sarah Cornett-Ching, Summerland, British Columbia; Mike Mahaney, King Ferry, New York; Bryce Malcolm, Simpsonville, South Carolina; Anthony Perez, Suffolk, Virginia; Shayne Pierce, Welland, Ontario; Derek Robbie, Bellinngham, Massachusetts; Tommy Stilphen, Kennebunk, Maine; Jerry Tunney, Clark’s Summit, Pennsylvania; and Luke Whitteker, Iroquois, Ontario.
 

To learn more about RACE 101 and the students competing to become the next Premier Driver, visit www.race101.net. For interviews, please contact race101pr@gmail.com.
 

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RACE 101 student Cornett‐Ching to make NASCAR debut

RACE 101 student Cornett‐Ching to make NASCAR debut Saturday in Vernon, British Columbia; Penticton racer to realize her dream behind the wheel

RACE 101 Student Sarah Cornett-Ching

July 20, DENVER, NC –RACE 101 student Sarah Cornett‐Ching will realize a dream Saturday when she straps into the Cruisin’ for a Cause‐sponsored #25 Chevrolet to compete in the NASCAR Canadian Tire Series in Vernon, British Columbia. The Penticton, British Columbia 20‐year‐old couldn’t believe her ears when NASCAR driver and team owner Jason White called her just a couple of weeks ago.

“I wasn’t really sure why Jason White would be calling me,” said Cornett‐Ching. “When he said he might have an opportunity to drive one of his cars at Motoplex Speedway I was blown away. The short time since then has been surreal.”

White and his partner Rob Zimmer entered a Cruisin’ for a Cause car driven by his brother Jim White in 2010. This year he chose to offer the ride to Cornett‐Ching. “Cruisin’ for a Cause is an important event for my main marketing partner A&W Restaurants,” said White. “I’ve watched Sarah for a couple of years now. I know she’ll do a great job as an ambassador for the sport and for the charity event.

“RACE 101 was a big part of my decision. I watched the progress of its students in 2010, and when I saw that Sarah was in the program this year I knew that she would be prepared for everything that’s in store for her.”

On August 25th, A&W hopes to raise $1 million for the Multiple Sclerosis Society of Canada. The same event brought in $700,000 in 2010. All 738 A&W restaurants nationwide will donate one dollar from the sale of every Teen Burger to the MS society on August 25th.

At only 20 years old, Cornett‐Ching feels ready to tackle the challenge of a NASCAR stock car and the responsibility of representing a worthy cause. The charismatic welder by trade is an accomplished race car driver who has made a big impression with the RACE 101 faculty.

“Sarah is something special,” said RACE 101 Founder and instructor Tony Blanchard. “Having the ability to drive a race car is one thing, but showing the tenacity to execute public relations strategies, arrange media interviews, and do all the little things that create success is what sets Sarah apart.”

Cornett‐Ching progressed this year from street stock race cars to the ARCA West OK Tire series which travels throughout BC racing at various speedways. She has scored a few top‐five finishes and turned plenty of heads with her charitable work. Recently Cornett‐Ching visited the BC Children’s hospital to spend time with the kids and share stories of her racing endeavours.

“Sarah exudes the qualities a professional race car driver needs,” said RACE 101 Media Relations Instructor Adam Ross. “She will appeal to almost any corporate sponsor because she is so comfortable talking with or without a microphone in front of her.”

Cornett‐Ching had hoped to find a ride in the support division during the A&W Cruisin’ the Dub 300 race weekend at Motoplex Speedway. Finding herself in the main event wasn’t on the radar.

“It’s amazing how things can change in a short time,” said Cornett‐Ching. “Three weeks ago I was planning to go and watch the race. I had hoped to get a ride in the support class, but this is far beyond anything I had in mind.”

Cornett‐Ching hopes to finish the race and make a solid impression in her NASCAR debut. From there, anything can happen.

RACE 101 is an educational program designed to help racers For more information on A&W Restaurants and its Cruisin’ for a Cause event on August 25th, visit www.aw.ca . To learn more about Sarah Cornett‐
Ching visit her website at www.sccracing.com . To learn more about RACE 101 please go to: www.race101.net. For interview requests, please contact RACE 101 Media Relations representative Adam Ross at adamrossenterprises@gmail.com .

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Scroll Down For More Photos of Sarah Cornett-Ching:

Cornett‐Ching during one of her many public appearances. On this day she was doing a responsible
driving talk

Cornett‐Ching right at home behind the wheel

Cornett‐Ching recently spent time with kids at the BC Children's Hospital