Race fans looking for a great deal on FRAM Autolite NHRA Nationals tickets need look no further than their local O’Reilly Auto Parts dealer. Infineon Raceway has partnered with O’Reilly on an exclusive ticket offer for the NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series’ visit to the Sonoma Valley, July 29-31.
With more than 200 stores in Northern California, there are plenty of places for fans to pick up the special O’Reilly Flex Ticket.
It’s a reserved ticket for either Friday, Saturday OR Sunday for one low price of only $45. That’s a savings of up to $15!
It’s sure to be a special weekend on the Infineon Raceway drag strip, as the stars of the NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series hit the track for three full days of racing, and the NHRA celebrates its 60th anniversary.
To find your local O’Reilly store, click HERE and for more information about the FRAM Autolite NHRA Nationals at Infineon Raceway, go to www.infineonraceway.com/nhra. We’ll see you at the races!
As you probably know, Bill Lester is one of our favorite Northern California race car drivers here at NorCal Car Culture. He grew up mostly in San Jose and lived for many years in Oakland. He was back home on Saturday, racing in the Grand-Am series at Laguna Seca Raceway. Bill did not have the race he was hoping for, finishing 10th and dropping to 2nd in the points standings. But, the good news is, that Bill got to come back home and see a lot of old friends and secondly, there are four more races to get back in the win column. There was a great article about Bill and his very interesting path to racing in the Silicone Valley Mercury News last Thursday by Daniel Bohm. Here is a short excerpt and link to the entire article.
NorCal Driver Bill Lester from San Jose.
Grand-Am GT driver Bill Lester comes home a winner
By Daniel Bohm
San Jose, CA (July 7, 2011) – After steering his way through many racing series for the past few decades, Bay Area-native Bill Lester finds that his passion for driving is starting to pay dividends.
Lester raced part time since the 1980s and ’90s, but 13 years ago he left his corporate job at Hewlett-Packard to drive full time. This season, Lester has found a home racing the Autohaus Motorsports No. 88 Camaro in the Grand-Am Rolex Sports Car Series.
Lester, 50, and co-driver Jordan Taylor lead the GT class points standings with five races left in the season, including Saturday’s event at the Continental Tire Sports Car Festival at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca.
“The high-tech industry provides a great occupation for those who are cut out for it,” said Lester, who graduated from Cal in 1984 with degrees in electrical engineering and computer science. “But it wasn’t my calling. Racing was my calling.” Read More Here
J.R Hildebrand from Sausalito, CA is coming off an exciting 4th place finish in Iowa two weeks ago and now finds himself in 9th place in the points standings. Here is a release from his team about the upcoming race in Toronto, Canada.
J.R. Hildebrand from Sausalito, CA leading rookie in the IndyCar Series.
TORONTO, Ontario (July 7, 2011) – The IZOD IndyCar Series returns to Canada this weekend for the third Honda Indy Toronto race on the streets of downtown Toronto. Historically, races on the 1.75-mile, 11-turn street course have hosted some of the most exciting non-oval races in the series, and this year’s IZOD IndyCar Series field is one of the most talented and evenly matched in league history.
“Toronto is a tough track, for sure,” Hildebrand admitted. “This is one of those places that looking at the schedule before the season you know is going to be a tough place for everybody. It’s a rough track and it’s difficult to set the car up to be good all the way around the place, and there are a couple sections specifically where you can make up a lot of time.”
At the midway point in the season National Guard Panther Racing rookie JR Hildebrand is in ninth place in the IZOD IndyCar Series Points Standings after a thrilling fourth-place finish at the Iowa Corn 250. After a break in the action over the Fourth of July holiday, Panther and Hildebrand are looking forward to the upcoming race weekend and hope to keep their momentum going through the streets of Toronto.
In the team’s two previous starts in Toronto, former driver Dan Wheldon finished 10th in 2010 and 14th in 2009.
“We had a little bit of a rough start on the road and street circuits but we’ve done some development and are excited to get back on these types of tracks,” JR continued. “We take a lot of pride in this and we know we’re all good at it and that’s why we’re excited about getting back to the road courses.”
Though this will be his first IndyCar race in Toronto, Hildebrand has raced the circuit in a Firestone Indy Lights car; finishing second in the Toronto 100 in 2009. Hildebrand, the Indy 500 runner-up and Rookie of the Year, is the top rookie in the IZOD IndyCar Series, leading Toronto hometown favorite James Hinchcliffe by a total of 27 points.
The Honda Indy Toronto race will be broadcast Sunday on VERSUS at 2pm (ET) with additional coverage provided by the IMS Radio Network, XM channel 94 and Sirius channel 212.
Race fans looking for a great deal on FRAM Autolite NHRA Nationals tickets need look no further than their local O’Reilly Auto Parts dealer. Infineon Raceway has partnered with O’Reilly on an exclusive ticket offer for the NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series’ visit to the Sonoma Valley, July 29-31.
It’s sure to be a special weekend on the Infineon Raceway drag strip, as the stars of the NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series hit the track for three full days of racing, and the NHRA celebrates its 60th anniversary. 
