by Tara Pachmayer | Oct 11, 2017 | EMS Ferrari Challenge
The great Ayrton Senna once said, “Racing, competing, it’s in my blood. It’s part of me, it’s part of my life.” During Senna’s life, he would become one of the greatest Formula One drivers of all-time. A life that was cut much too short on the same track that hosted the 2017 Ferrari Challenge in Italy. During Race 1 at the Autodromo Enzo e Dino Ferrari di Imola, EMS Race Team unfortunately lost control of ERIN the ems+ Ferrari 488 Challenge on a slick track at 111 mph in the famous Tamburello Corner where the legendary Senna tragically crashed and passed away on May 1, 1994. ERIN’s collision with the inside wall was softer than expected, fortunately, damaging only the car. After the race, driver James Weiland visited a nearby memorial commemorating the life and legacy of Senna and shared a collection of those pictures on Facebook.
“ERIN ran pretty well in practice and qualifying so we were feeling good heading into the race,” Weiland said after qualifying P4 of 22. “Unfortunately, we lost control in the corner. It had been a long time since I lost ERIN like that. It usually takes about three mistakes to have a crash, and unfortunately, I checked all the boxes in Tamburello. But the damage could’ve been much worse. We spent time visiting the memorial to Senna after the race, and feel grateful to have not sustained any injuries. Hopefully we can use this as a learning experience.”
After paying tribute to Senna, Weiland did the same thing Ayrton would’ve done when he got back in the car for Race 2. While the damage to ERIN was too extensive to be repaired in time for Sunday’s race, EMS Race Team used a backup car. As a result of using a new car, Weiland was forced to start in last position—P22 of 22. But EMS Race Team would finish the weekend strong by charging hard during Sunday’s race, picking off 10 cars over 18 green flag laps to finish 12th overall.
“It was great to get back on the track and continue raising awareness for Cornerstone of Hope, PETA Cruelty Free and Coach Sam’s Inner Circle here in Italy,” Weiland said. “Considering we had only one flying lap to set her up, it really was a magnificent job from the team to put us in a position to compete. Big thanks to our European Team Rossocorsa for providing a brand new, three-day old car with one kilometer on the clock for us to drive. Also, special thanks to David Cameron, Ray Banda, Gianluca and others who were in the garage until 3am getting new ERIN prepared.”
The next stop for EMS Race Team is the Mugello Circuit in Italy for the Finali Mondiali on October 26-29. Stay tuned for more coverage previewing that race in the days ahead. For more on Cornerstone of Hope, Coach Sam’s Inner Circle Foundation and PETA Cruelty Free you can visit their websites. To check out behind-the-scenes coverage from the weekend at Imola visit EMS Race Team on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
by Tara Pachmayer | Oct 3, 2017 | EMS Ferrari Challenge
EMS Race Team’s worldwide tour continues October 6-8 at the Ferrari Challenge in Imola, Italy. Fresh off a podium finish at Silverstone Circuit in England—which followed a victory at Circuit of the Americas in Texas—driver James Weiland and the crew from Boardwalk Ferrari is now set to compete in their fifth country outside the United States this season. With races in Canada, Hungary, France and England already in the rearview, Weiland and company will now focus on raising awareness for PETA Cruelty Free, Coach Sam’s Inner Circle Foundation and Cornerstone of Hope with a podium effort in Italy.
“We had a great trip to England and really enjoyed competing at Silverstone,” Weiland said. “Our goal is to build on that experience and keep making progress as a team while we’re in Imola. We’re also looking forward to spreading the word about PETA Cruelty Free, Coach Sam’s Inner Circle and Cornerstone of Hope while we are in Italy as well. Hopefully we can maximize that exposure by doing everything in our power to finish the weekend on the podium.”
Erin the ems+ Ferrari 488 Challenge will be racing the Autodromo Enzo e Dino Ferrari when she arrives in Italy for Ferrari Challenge weekend. The track is located roughly 50 miles east of the Ferrari factory in Maranello. The circuit is named after Ferrari’s late founder Enzo and his son Dino who had died in the 1950s. Before Enzo Ferrari’s death in 1988 it was called Autodromo Dino Ferrari. Imola, as it is colloquially known, is one of the few major international circuits to run in an anti-clockwise direction. The track has hosted several Formula One Grand Prix races which featured wins by Michael Schumacher, Ayrton Senna, Alain Prost and others.
“We’re excited to compete against all of the terrific drivers in Italy and to race an historic track like Imola,” Weiland added. “We will be racing against some of the best Ferrari Challenge drivers in the world so we know the competition will be stiff. We also know that Imola will be a fun but challenging course and we’re looking forward to the test. We’re dedicating the trip to Coach Sam’s Inner Circle Foundation who begins their tutoring work for the school year this week throughout the Cleveland Metropolitan School District. The support they provide for third graders in our community is always inspiring so we’re hoping to honor that with a strong performance.”
Coach Sam’s Inner Circle Foundation’s mission is to provide educational support to at risk children through a combination of literacy, personal development and health and fitness programs designed to develop the whole child. Since 2009, Coach Sam’s has been successful in reaching hundreds of children and motivating them to believe in themselves, leading to improved academic performance and self-confidence, setting them on the path toward a brighter future.
For more on Coach Sam’s Inner Circle Foundation and how you can support their effort to help at-risk third graders visit their website. You can also visit PETA Cruelty Free and Cornerstone of Hope to learn more about how they are helping our communities. To follow along with behind-the-scenes coverage throughout race weekend in Italy, visit EMS Race Team on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
by Tara Pachmayer | Sep 27, 2017 | EMS Ferrari Challenge
EMS Race Team captured a podium finish during an epic battle at the Ferrari Racing Days in England. After races outside the United States in Canada, Hungary and France this season, driver James Weiland and the crew from Boardwalk Ferrari continued their Ferrari Challenge world tour at the Silverstone Circuit on September 22-24. Fresh off a win at Circuit of the Americas in Austin, Texas during the Pirelli World Challenge earlier this month, EMS Race Team kept the momentum going with a P3 performance in Race 1 at the site of the British Grand Prix. Erin the ems+ Ferrari 488 Challenge fought hard down the stretch to hold her final position in an effort that Ferrari.com described as “extraordinary.”
“Erin was really strong throughout the race and that’s a credit to our Boardwalk Ferrari team who had her dialed in all weekend,” Weiland said. “Silverstone is a fun track to drive but it’s also challenging. The competition was stiff as well, like it always is when we travel to Europe, so I’m proud of our team for being prepared and responding to those challenges in the way that we did. If you watched the broadcast, you could see how tight things got down the stretch. It took a total team effort to hold our competitor off and get onto the podium, and I’m proud we were able to accomplish that.”
After qualifying in fourth position for Race 1, the second qualifying session was hampered by a slower car that impeded Erin’s progress during her flyer lap. The net result was starting in eighth position for Race 2, which went on to feature an especially chaotic start. Weiland picked off three cars during the early chaos and moved into fifth position with an opportunity for a second podium of the weekend. Unfortunately, EMS Race Team would later receive a drive through penalty for passing in a yellow corner that nobody on the team saw or heard, as it was never announced on the official radio. But despite finishing 10th in Race 2 following the penalty, the trip to England was still very much a success.
“Obviously Race 2 didn’t go the way we would’ve hoped but that happens in racing,” Weiland said. “We came here to England to raise awareness for Cornerstone of Hope, Coach Sam’s Inner Circle Foundation and PETA Cruelty Free and that’s really what we’re most excited about accomplishing. We dedicated the race weekend to the tremendous work that PETA has done helping stranded animals who were victims of the hurricanes in Texas and Florida recently, and we’re glad to be able to get up on the podium to honor that effort. We’re also looking forward to continue raising awareness for those three causes in a couple weeks at the Imola Ferrari Challenge.”
After Hurricane Harvey devastated much of the Texas Gulf Coast, PETA’s Community Animal Project rescue team members spent a week on the ground in Texas, where they trudged through the floodwater to search for abandoned, lost and injured animals. You can read more about that here. PETA also made similar efforts in Florida following Hurricane Irma as they have in the past after devastating storms, flooding’s and weather events.
For more on PETA Cruelty Free and how you can support their effort to help the animals who were victims of Hurricanes Harvey and Irma visit PETA’s website. You can also visit Coach Sam’s Inner Circle Foundation and Cornerstone of Hope to learn more about how they are making an impact in the community. For more behind-the-scenes coverage from Silverstone in England, visit EMS Race Team on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Next up for EMS Race Team is the Ferrari Challenge at the Autodromo Internazionale Enzo e Dino Ferrari in Imola, Italy on October 6-8.
by Tara Pachmayer | Sep 18, 2017 | EMS Ferrari Challenge
The world tour continues for EMS Race Team as Erin the ems+ Ferrari 488 Challenge travels to Silverstone Circuit in England on September 22-24. After races outside the United States in Canada, Hungary and France this season, driver James Weiland and the crew from Boardwalk Ferrari will compete for the first time ever in the United Kingdom later this weekend. The trip marks a return to Ferrari Challenge action for EMS Race Team who most recently secured a first-place finish in the Pirelli World Challenge Sprint X class at Circuit of the Americas in Austin, Texas earlier this month.
“We enjoyed making our debut in the Pirelli World Challenge at COTA but are certainly excited for the Ferrari Challenge at Silverstone,” Weiland said. “After representing PETA Cruelty Free, Cornerstone of Hope and Coach Sam’s Inner Circle in Canada, Hungary and France, we’re also excited to spread the word for those missions in England as well. This will be our first trip to the UK as a team so we’re focused on being as prepared as possible and putting forth an effort we can be proud of when we get on the track.”
The Silverstone Circuit is built on the site of a World War II Royal Air Force bomber station, RAF Silverstone. The first race was held at Silverstone in 1947, which went on to host its first British Grand Prix a year later. In 1950, King George VI and Queen Elizabeth attended the British Grand Prix as the first and only time a reigning monarch attended a race in Britain. Over the next several decades, innovative upgrades to the track helped Silverstone continue to host England’s premier Formula One race on an annual basis. Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes) is the reigning F1 champion at Silverstone and has won the British Grand Prix each year from 2014-17.
“We’re excited to compete against all of the terrific drivers in England and to race an historic track like Silverstone,” Weiland added. “We will be racing against some of the best Ferrari Challenge drivers in the world so we know the competition will be stiff. We also know that Silverstone will be a fun but challenging course and we’re looking forward to the test. We’re dedicating the trip to PETA Cruelty Free and the tremendous work they’ve done helping stranded animals who were victims of the vicious hurricanes that touched down in Texas and Florida recently. It’s been inspiring to see the effort that so many people have taken to rescue those affected animals and we’re hoping to shine a spotlight on that with a strong outing.”
After Hurricane Harvey devastated much of the Texas Gulf Coast, PETA’s Community Animal Project rescue team members spent a week on the ground in Texas, where they trudged through the floodwater to search for abandoned, lost and injured animals. You can read more about that here. PETA also made similar efforts in Florida following Hurricane Irma as they have in the past after devastating storms, flooding’s and weather events throughout the country.
For more on PETA Cruelty Free and how you can support their effort to help the animals who were victims of Hurricanes Harvey and Irma visit PETA’s website. You can also visit Coach Sam’s Inner Circle Foundation and Cornerstone of Hope to learn more about how they are helping our communities as well on a daily basis. To follow along with behind-the-scenes coverage throughout race weekend in England, visit EMS Race Team on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
by Tara Pachmayer | Sep 7, 2017 | EMS Ferrari Challenge
EMS Race Team competed in their first Pirelli World Challenge Event during the Grand Prix of Texas at Circuit of the Americas over the weekend and brought home the hardware. Racing in the Sprint X class, drivers James Weiland and Conrad Grunewald earned pole position for Race 1 before combining to finish an hour-long race first-in-class on Saturday. During the practice sessions leading up the race, Grunewald talked about the finer points that the team worked on to ensure their success on the track.
“First of all, this is a very long race for Erin,” Grunewald said of the EMS+ Ferrari 458 Challenge EVO. Erin was built for a 35-minute race, so the tires and fuel capacity are designed for a shorter length than the Sprint X series requires. Extending the race to an hour means managing fuel consumption and tire wear more carefully. “The last couple of days we’ve been working on figuring out how the tires are going to wear. Trying to get the setup of the car so that the tires last a little bit longer, so it will help us out for the whole race. It’s been quite a challenge, this is a big departure from what the Ferrari Challenge is, what this car was designed for. But trusty old Erin is going to make it through.”
Trusty old Erin did make it through successfully at COTA thanks to the great work of the Boardwalk Ferrari / R3 Motorsports team who had her dialed in all weekend. Despite some early mayhem in Race 1 that Grunewald was able to avoid which resulted in a caution, EMS Race Team built a nice lead over the Porsche that finished second. From there, a well-executed driver change was followed by Weiland going on to hold the lead and secure the P1 finish. With over 25,000 kilometers on the track, and wins in Asia, Europe and North America on her resume, the victory may have been the last for Erin the EMS+ Ferrari 458 Challenge EVO who is poised to now retire on top.
“If this ends up being Erin’s last race weekend, it was a great way to go out,” Weiland said. “She ran strong on Saturday and Sunday, and definitely put us in a great position to succeed. You have to give credit to Conrad Grunewald for some terrific driving, and you also have to give a lot of credit to our Boardwalk Ferrari / R3 Motorsports team who helped keep Erin in top shape. Big thanks to Ryan Negri, Rudy Courtade, Dave and Daryl Cameron, Carl Dragus, Travis Low, Andrew Prendeville and everyone else who contributed to the victory. We would’ve certainly liked to earn two wins at COTA, but we’re proud of our overall effort for sure.”
On Sunday during Race 2, a snag with the new seat belts cost EMS 18 seconds on the driver change which would eventually prove to be the difference. That unfortunately left Grunewald down nearly 20 seconds when he got on track for the second half of Race 2. Despite 30 minutes of epic driving, where he caught up to the Porsche who was holding P1 in class, EMS simply ran out of laps finishing 2nd by 0.4 seconds. While the narrow loss was tough to swallow, it certainly didn’t dampen the spirits on a weekend that resulted in a first-place trophy during EMS Race Team’s Pirelli World Challenge debut.
“It was great to be able to dedicate this weekend to Coach Sam’s Inner Circle Foundation who is starting another school year right now working with at-risk third graders in Cleveland, Ohio through their literacy and reading program,” Weiland added. “So, we were proud to get onto the podium for Coach Sam’s with everything they have going on. We were also honored to be representing PETA Cruelty Free and Cornerstone of Hope Foundation in the Pirelli World Challenge for the first time. Hopefully we were able to raise some awareness and people will take time to visit each website and learn about what those great causes are doing on a daily basis.”
For more interviews inside the Boardwalk Ferrari / R3 Motorsports Garage during the Pirelli World Challenge at COTA visit EMS Race Team on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. You can also visit BoardwalkFerrari.com and R3Motorsport.com. To learn more about Coach Sam’s Inner Circle Foundation, PETA Cruelty Free and Cornerstone of Hope visit their websites.
by Tara Pachmayer | Aug 24, 2017 | EMS Ferrari Challenge
After racing in Canada, Hungary and France this season, EMS Race Team will return stateside on Labor Day Weekend to compete in the Pirelli World Challenge at Circuit of the Americas in Austin, Texas. The Grand Prix of Texas on September 1-3 will be the first Pirelli World Challenge event for driver James Weiland and his team from Boardwalk Ferrari. The last time Weiland competed at COTA was during the 2016 Ferrari Challenge when he earned a pair of first-place finishes in the Trofeo Pirelli AM class. This time, the Pirelli World Challenge event will feature an hour-long race with a driver change after 30 minutes. Weiland will be teamed up with Conrad Grunewald for a weekend of racing that expects to be a lot of fun for drivers and fans.
“Circuit of the Americas is one of our favorite tracks and we’re looking forward to competing in the Grand Prix of Texas,” Weiland said. “Racing in the Pirelli World Challenge will be a different experience for us this year, but we’ll remain focused on controlling what we can control and being as prepared as possible. Our goal as a team is to always put forth our best effort collectively, and that’s what we plan to do throughout the weekend. If we accomplish that goal, we’re always willing to accept the results.”
This will also be the first time that Weiland and company will be representing PETA Cruelty Free, Cornerstone of Hope and Coach Sam’s Inner Circle Foundation in Pirelli World Challenge competition. The race comes at a special time of year for Coach Sam’s, specifically, with the school year beginning for the Cleveland Metropolitan School District third graders the foundation serves. Coach Sam’s Inner Circle has expanded operations of its literacy program into two additional schools this year, and that’s a success story Weiland hopes to highlight during his trip to COTA.
“We’re dedicating the Pirelli World Challenge at Circuit of the Americas to Coach Sam’s Inner Circle Foundation because it’s a special time of year for the students they work with,” Weiland added. “We’re always proud to have the Coach Sam’s logo on our car, but with the school year getting underway it means even more. We’re hoping to raise awareness for the work they’ve done to prepare for another year and are proud of everything they continue to do for the community. Hopefully we can find a way to get onto the podium at COTA to salute their effort.”
Coach Sam’s Inner Circle Foundation’s mission is to provide educational support to at risk children through a combination of literacy, personal development and health and fitness programs designed to develop the whole child. For more on Coach Sam’s, Cornerstone of Hope and PETA Cruelty Free check out their websites. For behind the scenes coverage of the Pirelli World Challenge at Circuit of the Americas, follow along at EMS Race Team on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
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