by Brendan Bowers | Sep 7, 2020 | EMS Ferrari Challenge
After earning a victory in Barcelona to open the 2020 campaign, EMS Race Team will now be competing at Spa during the Ferrari Challenge in Belgium on September 11-13. Driver James Weiland and his team from Ferrari of San Francisco, R3 Motorsports and Rossocorsa will be returning to a track where they earned a P1 finish during the 2018 Ferrari Races while looking for a similar result this time. In pursuit of that podium, the team will once again race to raise awareness for PETA Cruelty Free, Coach Sam’s Inner Circle Foundation and Cornerstone of Hope.
Electronic Merchant Systems Race Team earned a pole position in the wet during their last trip to Spa and leveraged that start to a victory. The Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps is the famous host of the Formula One Belgian Grand Prix, the Spa 24 Hours, World Endurance Championships, and many other high-profile racing events along with the Ferrari Challenge. The historic track held its first ever race in 1922 and was used for Grand Prix racing for the first time in 1925. Early on, it quickly developed a reputation for being the fastest track in Europe.
“We’re looking forward to being back at Spa,” Weiland said. “It’s a challenging course but we’ve had great experiences there. Hopefully our team will have another memorable weekend.”
Last month, Weiland shared his experiences as a race car driver in a Ferrari Fast Lane article. He described his feelings and expectations during his eighth year in the Ferrari Challenge while looking forward to the rest of this season.
“It gets harder and harder every year,” Weiland told Ferrari Races in the article. “But I love this series – it’s fantastic. Plus I love the environment, the drivers are great people and I really feel at ease. I have fun, my family has fun, and the circuits are great. I simply love it.”
The charities that EMS Race Team races to raise awareness for starts with PETA, the largest animal rights organization in the world. Coach Sam’s Inner Circle Foundation is also represented on the car and their mission is to provide educational support to at risk children through a combination of literacy, personal development and health programs designed to develop the whole child. Cornerstone of Hope, meanwhile, is dedicated to providing support, education, and hope for the grieving.
For behind-the-scenes coverage of the Ferrari Challenge in Belgium follow EMS Race Team on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
by Brendan Bowers | Oct 20, 2019 | EMS Ferrari Challenge
EMS Race Team travels to Italy this week for the Ferrari Challenge World Finals on October 24-27 at the Mugello Circuit. The Finali Mondiali event will mark the 10th different country that EMS Race Team will compete in this season. With victories at Bahrain, Le Mans and Nürburgring, driver James Weiland and his team from Boardwalk Ferrari / Ferrari of San Francisco will look to add to their 2019 total of seven podium finishes overall. While competing against the best Ferrari Challenge drivers in the world, Weiland and his team know they will need to be on top of their game in order to eclipse their season total of seven podiums from a year ago.
“The Ferrari Challenge World Finals are always a special event that we look forward to every year,” Weiland said. “Mugello is a circuit that we’ve raced before and we’re excited for the opportunity to do so again. We tested there last week and ERIN ran great so hopefully that continues for us throughout the weekend.”
The 2018 Ferrari Challenge was also in Italy but held at the Autodromo Nazionale di Monza. EMS Race Team earned a second-place finish at Monza to close out the season a year ago. At the 2017 event, EMS Race Team earned a sixth-place finish while racing at Mugello. The 2016 Finali Mondiali was held at Daytona International Speedway in Florida where Weiland and company secured the North American Ferrari Challenge season championship.
“We’re especially excited about racing to raise awareness for PETA Cruelty Free, Coach Sam’s Inner Circle Foundation and Cornerstone of Hope on the world stage in Italy,” Weiland added. “There’s always so many drivers and fans in attendance at the World Finals throughout the week and our goal is to make each of those foundations we race on behalf of proud of our effort. If we can accomplish that much we’ll be happy with the results.”
People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) is the largest animal rights organization in the world, with more than three million members and supporters. Products proudly displaying the bunny logo are cruelty-free, meaning that they were produced without testing on animals. 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. Cornerstone of Hope, meanwhile, is dedicated to providing support, education, and hope for the grieving.
Road races were first held on public streets around Mugello in Italy during the early 1920s. The present-day closed Mugello Circuit was constructed in 1973 and opened in 1974, just east of the original road circuit. Measuring 5,245 km in length, the Mugello Circuit stands out from other fast tracks thanks to the drastic elevation changes and the high-speed chicanes. The main straight, at 1.141 km, is followed by a blind rise into the tight turn one, San Donato, where speeds drop quickly. The front straight is the fastest part of the track, with the rest an exciting mixture of quick direction changes and long corners without any tight hairpins or stop-and-go sections to break up the flow.
For behind-the-scenes coverage of the Ferrari Challenge World Finals at the Mugello Circuit in Italy throughout the trip, be sure to follow EMS Race Team on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
by Tara Pachmayer | Jul 30, 2019 | EMS Ferrari Challenge
The great Formula One champion, Lewis Hamilton, once described his racing career by saying, “There have been some ups and some downs but that’s the way racing is supposed to be.” Following two-straight race weekends highlighted by back-to-back Ferrari Challenge victories, EMS Race Team was forced to come back down off the podium at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. After wins at Le Mans in France and the Nürburgring in Germany, driver James Weiland and his team from Boardwalk Ferrari / Ferrari of San Francisco finished outside of the top-three during their trip to the Brickyard. In two races at IMS, Weiland and PARIS the ems+ Ferrari 488 Challenge finished in 5th and 10th while continuing to raise awareness for PETA Cruelty Free, Coach Sam’s Inner Circle and Cornerstone of Hope.
“PARIS had a good day on Saturday,” Weiland said. “She qualified 7th though only .4 off pole position. We picked up a position at the start and another a couple laps in and finished 5th. But we struggled on Sunday when we qualified 10th and finished the race in that position. That’s racing, though, sometimes you’re up and sometimes you’re down. But I know our team will bounce back in Singapore.”
Even though EMS Race Team didn’t win, they still had the opportunity to spread the word about PETA Cruelty Free, Coach Sam’s Inner Circle and Cornerstone of Hope to the racing fans who were at the Brickyard. The team will do the same when they compete at the Marina Bay Circuit in Singapore next time out in September. People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) is the largest animal rights organization in the world. Products proudly displaying the bunny logo are cruelty-free, meaning that they were produced without testing on animals. Coach Sam’s Inner Circle Foundation is driven by a mission 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. Cornerstone of Hope, meanwhile, is dedicated to providing support, education, and hope for the grieving.
“It’s always special for us to be able to help raise awareness for PETA Cruelty Free, Coach Sam’s Inner Circle and Cornerstone of Hope when we race at a venue for the first time,” Weiland added. “To be able to do that at a famous track like the Indianapolis Motor Speedway is even more special. Next time, when we’re in Singapore, hopefully we’ll be able to get them up onto the podium.”
For behind the scenes coverage of the Ferrari Challenge at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, follow EMS Race Team on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
by Tara Pachmayer | Jul 3, 2019 | EMS Ferrari Challenge
EMS Race Team turned in their best performance of the year at the Le Mans Ferrari Challenge in France last month when they earned pole position, a first-place finish and the fastest lap while competing in a support race for the 24 Hours of Le Mans. Now, driver James Weiland and his crew from Boardwalk Ferrari / Ferrari of San Francisco will set their sights on the Nürburgring in Germany. The team will look for a similar result while racing to raise awareness for PETA Cruelty Free, Coach Sam’s Inner Circle Foundation and Cornerstone of Hope during the Ferrari Challenge event scheduled for July 5-7 in Nürburg, Germany.
“We’re looking forward to getting on the track in Germany,” Weiland said of the upcoming weekend. “We were able to have some success during our last race and hopefully we can carry some of that momentum over to the Nürburgring. Regardless of the outcome, though, we expect this to be a fun and challenging course to drive and are hoping to put forth our best effort while we’re there.”
The Nürburgring is a 150,000 person capacity complex located in the town of Nürburg, Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It features a Grand Prix race track built in 1984 that has played host to the Formula One Grand Prix, European Grand Prix, the German Grand Prix and the Ferrari Challenge among other notable racing events. Previously surrounding the Grand Prix course at the Nürburgring was a much longer “north loop” track that was built in 1927 around the village and medieval castle of Nürburg in the Eifel mountains.
“This is a new track for us,” Weiland added. “So whenever we get the chance to travel to a new venue our goal is always to raise as much awareness as we can for PETA Cruelty Free, Coach Sam’s Inner Circle Foundation and Cornerstone of Hope. The best way we can do that is to get each of those foundations up onto the podium so that will be our goal throughout the weekend.”
People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) is the largest animal rights organization in the world, with more than three million members and supporters. Products proudly displaying the bunny logo are cruelty-free, meaning that they were produced without testing on animals. 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. Cornerstone of Hope, meanwhile, is dedicated to providing support, education, and hope for the grieving.
For behind the scenes coverage of the Ferrari Challenge in Germany throughout the weekend, be sure to follow EMS Race Team on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
by Tara Pachmayer | Jun 18, 2019 | EMS Ferrari Challenge
EMS Race Team turned in their best performance of the year at the Le Mans Ferrari Challenge in France. During what is considered the most important event of the season outside of the Finali Mondiali, driver James Weiland and his team from Boardwalk Ferrari / Ferrari of San Francisco collected a clean sweep. While racing to raise awareness for PETA Cruelty Free, Coach Sam’s Inner Circle Foundation and Cornerstone of Hope, Weiland and ERIN the ems+ Ferrari 488 Challenge earned pole position, a first-place finish and the fastest lap while competing in a support race for the 24 Hours of Le Mans.
“James Weiland took the top step of the podium in the second most important event of the season after the Finali Mondiali,” Ferrari.com wrote in their race recap. “The American of Rossocorsa finished ahead of a brilliant Fons Scheltema (Kessel Racing) and the Austrian Ernst Kirchmayr (Baron Motorsport), in a race where Tani Hanna (Formula Racing) and Thomas Tippl (Rossocorsa – Pellin Racing) were both competitive.”
The win was a total team effort from start to finish and Weiland was extremely grateful to everyone who contributed to the victory.
“There are so many people to thank and so much to say,” Weiland said following the race. “But for now, we are pleased to report that ERIN did what she does and we took home the victory. A clean start and initial lap was key as we avoided some carnage and then ERIN stretched our advantage to 18 seconds at the checkered flag. Pole, win, fast lap. Just a fantastic experience racing here and then to get this result definitely over the top.”
After earning pole position, Weiland was asked by reporters during a pre-race press conference what his strategy would be when he hit the track. After laughing and joking that he wished he had a strategy, the EMS Race Team driver offered the following.
“Just to get a good start,” Weiland said of his goals heading into the Le Mans Ferrari Challenge. “By a good start, I just mean keep it clean. Run some good laps, enjoy the weekend and hopefully finish where I start.”
Weiland was able to accomplish each of those goals. In doing so, he helped get the three charities he races to raise awareness for onto the podium in France in front of thousands of racing fans. That includes People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) which is the largest animal rights organization in the world. Products proudly displaying the bunny logo are cruelty-free, meaning that they were produced without testing on animals. It also includes Coach Sam’s Inner Circle Foundation who is driven by a mission 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. Along with Cornerstone of Hope, who is dedicated to providing support, education, and hope for the grieving.
“It was great for us to be able to help raise awareness for PETA Cruelty Free, Coach Sam’s Inner Circle and Cornerstone of Hope with a win at Le Mans,” Weiland added. “Each time we take the track we’re just trying to make those tremendous groups of people proud in honor of everything they do for our communities. Hopefully we were able to do that during our trip to France.”
For more behind-the-scenes racing coverage, be sure to follow EMS Race Team on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
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