Derek DeBoer Takes First Pirelli World Challenge Victory
PETALUMA, CA (June 28, 2016): The acclaimed sportscar team from Northern California continues its compelling story in the catalogues of race history. This weekend, at the Pirelli World Challenge race at Road America, all three drivers showed amazing pace, put all three cars in the Top 10 and achieved an impressive victory. TRG drivers Derek DeBoer, Max Riddle and George Kurtz drove hard all weekend, and the competition and hospitality team itself answered the challenge with an exemplary setup both on and off the track. The skilled Aston Martin V8 Vantage drivers put on a fantastic show for new fans and team guests and then shared racing stories, wine and camaraderie over excellent evening events.
DeBoer started a new chapter in his personal racing history over the weekend by earning the honor of being a Pirelli World Challenge race winner. His absolute dedication to the craft of racing finally paid off in a big way on Saturday, as a series of skillful moves saw his No. 09 BRM Chronographes/Rebounderz Rohnert Park/Racing for Cancer/Pirata Della Strada/Simon Ward car take the lead at midway and hang on through the checkered flag. A race victory, and a Hard Charger award for overtaking the most competitors in the race, led to a podium celebration with his family and TRG-AMR’s guests.
“I’m ecstatic to finally get my first pro victory, and with TRG – the guys who made this all happen for me,” said DeBoer. “The crew and the team put together an amazing car for this track. I absolutely love it here and I think I might have a new favorite North American track! To do this on a weekend with support from BRM Chronographes, Racing for Cancer, and to be here representing the Mason’s Hope and #CateStrong projects made it a very, very special win.”
Max Riddle also had an excellent race and earned a Hard Charger award of his own on Sunday. “The crew stayed up late last night and got up early this morning to make sure my car was good to go, so this race is going to be for the crew,” Riddle said before his Sunday race. “I couldn’t be happier with these guys – the TRG guys always do the best.”
He maneuvered through traffic from his unfortunate start at the back of the grid due to a failing clutch on Saturday, and was determined to make up for lost ground – and he did just that. His striking matte-black and chrome red No. 07 V8 Vantage was able to gain 12 positions, taking him to a Top 5 finish as his father (and former top driver) Dave cheered him on.
TRG-AMR also brought a stealthy weapon to this racing game: George Kurtz in the No. 04 Crowdstrike car. Though Kurtz has experience in Radical Cup cars, the two races at Road America were his first in both the Aston Martin and in the Pirelli World Challenge series, and he showed amazing pace. “I feel pretty good,” he said in advance of Saturday’s race. ”P6 was a good outcome for me. The car feels good – the Aston Martin has been great all weekend.” After driving some of the fastest overall laps in the weekend’s practice sessions, then finishing in a Top 10 position on Sunday, he earned his credibility as a force to watch amongst fans and drivers in the series.
Even better for Kurtz was that his stunning Aston Martin, with the logo of the company he co-founded, Crowdstrike, was on display both on and off of the track for the company’s VIP guests. They, along with team partners LaSalle Solutions, friends, and family, also had the opportunity to enjoy the summer vacation atmosphere of beautiful Elkhart Lake and its surroundings. An evening sunset cruise and wine dinner, captained by a native of this tranquil Wisconsin town, served as a welcome party from the TRG-AMR family. The next day, Chicago restauranteurs and longtime friends of the team hosted a lakeside wine dinner from their holiday home on Crystal Lake. A fabulous multi-course dinner and select Adobe Road Wines were served while guests mingled amongst tiki torches as the sun set over the water. Experiences like these are hallmark offering from TRG, built on friendships from nearly three decades of racing at Road America.
“What an amazing weekend at one of our favorite tracks – Road America and what a fantastic event for Derek,” said Kevin Buckler, CEO of The Racer’s Group. “He is such a professional, and has been so committed in his pursuit of becoming a top-level racecar driver that I just love it when a plan comes together like this. He rocked it! We’ve been racing here since 1988, and to continue our success with these 3 awesome drivers means a lot to everyone at TRG. We’ve really created a family environment here – the kids and the families of our drivers and team partners enjoy the race weekend as much as we do. It was great seeing Max and Dave spend time together and Max drove like a champ. A big ‘Welcome to the Family’ to Crowdstrike, whose guests came out to cheer George Kurtz on. We can’t wait to have them back with us later this season!”
“Our relationship with TRG-AMR has grown into a series of key relationship-building events around the country,” said Steven Robb, President of LaSalle Solutions. “When we invite our best clients and partners to share the team’s race weekend hospitality with us, they love seeing LaSalle Solutions on the side of the cars. It’s even more fun when one of those cars ends up winning the race as Derek DeBoer did on Saturday! The real value is the relationships made and maintained while we’re in the TRG-AMR paddock, an Adobe Road wine dinner, or many of the other events the team hosts. We’re looking forward to continuing our partnership throughout the season!”
Guests of the team can learn more about joining TRG at their next races by visiting theracersgroup.com/events. Next on the PWC schedule is Mid-Ohio, July 29-30.
Watch the Road America GTS race broadcast on CBS Sports, Thursday, July 7th at 9pm ET.
TRG, based in Petaluma, California, has competed at the top level of motorsports since it was founded in 1992. The team has earned four series championships, four Rolex 24 At Daytona victories, a victory at the fabled 24 Hours of Le Mans, a victory at Petit Le Mans, and an impressive 175 combined podium finishes in major North American sports car competition, the third-highest total in history and the most for any privateer team. TRG-AMR, The Racer’s Group professional racing branch, exclusively operates the Aston Martin Racing (AMR) sports car program in North America and races in IMSA’s SportsCar Championship and the Pirelli World Challenge.
The company also offers comprehensive sponsorship, business networking, and experiential marketing programs including race hospitality, VIP/client entertainment, track days, corporate events, and employee team building.
LaSalle Solutions provides customers with flexible quality solutions that optimize their financial and technology resources.They are customer focused, providing solutions to help manage the life-cycle of customer assets. Learn more at elasalle.com.
RingCentral is a leading provider of cloud-based business communication and collaboration solutions. RingCentral’s cloud solutions are easier to manage, and more flexible and cost-efficient than legacy on-premise communications systems. Learn more at ringcentral.com.
CrowdStrike is the leader in next-generation endpoint protection, threat intelligence and response services. CrowdStrike’s core technology, the Falcon platform, stops breaches by preventing and responding to all types of attacks — both malware and malware-free. Learn more at crowdstrike.com.
Adobe Road is an award winning Californian boutique winery located in Petaluma, Sonoma County, producing small handcrafted lots of select varietals and extraordinary blends from both Sonoma and Napa counties. The “A Team” produces world-class wines that owner Kevin Buckler is proud to serve alongside any of the reference point wines in his personal collection. Focusing on capturing the time and place of harvest from extraordinary vineyards these distinctive wines are reflective of terroir in the true French sense. Their accolades are impressive with placements in some of the top restaurants in America and eighteen 90+ ratings from the Wine Spectator as well as numerous awards and medals. A multimillion-dollar winery headquarters and events center is slated to open on the vibrant Riverfront in downtown Petaluma in the summer of 2017. A transitional tasting room, only blocks away, in the Petaluma Mill building, offers visitors a memorable experience and the opportunity to see the progress firsthand. Learn more at adoberoadwines.com.
For media inquiries, please contact Danielle Crespo at danielle@theracersgroup.com or 512-820-3567.