2004 - The Year of Teamwork for Petersen/ White Lightning

The select members of the Petersen Motorsports/ White Lightning Racing team that descended on the car on the eve of the 24 Heures Du Mans may not have fully gathered the long-term implications of this moment either. However, in the amber hue of left as the sun disappeared behind the main grandstand of the Circuit de la Sarthe, as the car was put through a final shakedown run on the closed runways of the Le Mans regional airport, the mood of the eager and aggressive teamed changed. Left behind were the individuals that gathered on race weekends to assemble one of the strongest GT endurance sports car efforts in the business. In its place was a cohesive unit that worked as one, indeed, was one. Teamwork at the Michael Petersen-owned operation, according to team manager Dale White, was the greatest gain the team made in a very successful 2004 sports car racing season.

“I’ve watched this team grow and change over the years,� commented White. “But, to me, the team we ended the season with at Laguna Seca is the best group that has ever worked for Petersen Motorsports/ White Lightning Racing. We had to make a lot of tough decisions over the course of the season but with each choice that Mike, Stefan (Pfeiffer, crew chief) and I made, the team got stronger. You strive to create a team that meshes so perfectly that it is seamless,� continued White interlocking his fingers as illustration. “We ended our season with half the people that most of the teams in the ALMS bring to the track and we were accomplishing everything in half the time that we did at Sebring. Our pit stops were the fastest they have ever been and when we left the track each night, the guys were all laughing and enjoying working with one another. That is what I want to see. I know we have a team then; not a group of individuals. Synergy is so important in this business.�

“This season has been very incredible with the success that we have had as a team,� reflected Mike Petersen. “That success, because of the team, has just been a dream come true. We had so many good, close races with the other competitors that it was always up in the air as to who could win. From the start our goal was to win the championship and the privateer points. Although we did not, we still had excellent results with the defending of the Le Mans victory to always trying to stay on the podium in the ALMS. We had some personnel changes and the team became that much more focused. I am so proud of the guys and all of their hard work. We were not the biggest team but were one of the strongest consistently. That is quite a feat.

� the year begins –
2004 began with the American Le Mans Series (ALMS) traditional season-opener at Sebring. The 52nd running of the Mobil1 Twelve Hours brought the Las Vegas, Nev. based team its second-straight podium finish in the event. The third-place was hard-earned by the driving duo of second-year team member Craig Stanton (Long Beach, Calif.) and team newcomer but ALMS standout David Murry (Cumming, Ga.). The battle to the podium foreshadowed the season as the No. 31 Westward Ho Casino/ MMPIE/ PAWS/ Michelin Porsche battled to the bitter end with the two-Porsche Alex Job Racing operation and the upstart Flying Lizard two-car team. The third at Sebring earned the No. 31 its first IMSA Cup- awarded to the highest ranking privateer team in each class- of the season. At year’s end, they would earn four of nine IMSA Cups.

The ALMS season-break that reached from April to June would prove to be hectic for the Petersen/ White Lightning squad. Preparations for Le Mans began in company with Sebring planning. The need to ship the team’s new 911 GT3 RSR, transporter and equipment to Europe for Le Mans pre-qualifying as well as prepare and race the team’s 2003 GT3 RS at Sebring challenged every member of the team. However, at the end of the weekend in Florida, the team had loaded everything needed on a ship to France and a trailer to the Midwest to meet the team for the second-round of the ALMS season two weekends after Le Mans.

le mans –
In late April the team re-assembled in France for the traditional day of testing on the world famous circuit that hosts the 24 Heures Du Mans. Joining the crew for Le Mans were Porsche factory pilots Jörg Bergmeister (Langenfield, Germany) and Patrick Long (Oak Park, Calif.). 2003 Petersen/ White Lightning Le Mans driver Sascha Maassen (Raeren, Belgium) missed the April test but was back for the race in June. Bergmeister and Long, with Michael Petersen also turning testing laps, dominated pre-qualifying obliterating the old LM GT class track record. The return to Le Mans for race week continued the smooth run— fastest laps, pole position and pre-race favorites for their second straight victory. However, the tenth hour of the historic event would shake the dream sequence. While lapping with a demanding three lap lead, a shift linkage broke. To the astonishment of all but those involved, the Petersen/ White Lightning team went about the repair in its usual deceptively fast manner. In an unheard of 20 minutes the No. 90 Westward Ho Casino liveried Porsche returned to the track with a repaired shift linkage, a replaced front shock absorber, new brake pads on each corner and four new Michelin tires. The precision teamwork and pre-race preparation of the Petersen/ White Lightning crew won-out again. The team began to hunt the competitors that gained two laps on them during the stop. One-by-one they fell prey giving way to the daunting lap times being put-in by Bergmeister, Long and Maassen. Despite short-lived problems due to a broken throttle cable and one off-track adventure, the team never gave up. Pressing its competitors hard, the second-year Le Mans effort passed on-track, in the pits and outlasted all comers to take the American team’s fifth endurance sports car race and their second straight title at Le Mans.

north american return –
With the first of their goals behind them, Petersen and White again rallied their team for what could be seen as the third act in a three-act play that toured stages in Europe, Canada and from coast-to-coast in the United States. Less than two weeks after Le Mans, the race-proven Porsche returned for round-two of the ALMS season at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course. Murry and Stanton returned to take on all comers. Despite the rush to return from Le Mans, the Petersen/ White Lightning Porsche was now again adorned with the No. 31 for ALMS competition. The team took its second podium finish of the ALMS season, a third, at Mid-Ohio.

Entering round three of the ALMS season, at Lime Rock Park in Connecticut, the team continued to gain momentum under the watchful eye of longtime motorsports manager Pfeiffer. In pursuit of the strongest team in the heat of the summer, Pfeiffer and White began to fine-tune dropping the number of crew members for the utmost efficiency. The Fourth of July weekend at Lime Rock would prove a disappointment as a daring pit strategy did not pay off. The team would finish fifth in its third race in four weeks.

The fourth ALMS race of 2004 looked strong as they rolled into Infineon Raceway in Sonoma, Calif. in mid-July. Stanton would use the Series’ experimental single-car qualifying format to take the No. 31’s highest grid position of the season, a third. Stanton chased the leaders hard for the early going. An on-track incident forced an extended pit stop. However, again showing teamwork always shines, the left front corner, including the radiator, was quickly replaced and the Porsche returned to the track. While finishing a disappointing ninth, the weekend highlighted the strength of the operation and showed that the aggressive approach of Petersen and White was paying off.

The second back-to-back weekend continued north of California in Portland, Ore. The return to one of the country’s best road courses was a return to the ALMS podium for Stanton and Murry. Murry started the Porsche fourth and shadowed the leaders handing over the car in a strong podium position. Once in the car, Stanton took the lead and held it with ten minutes to go in the race. With fading tires in the 100 degree summer heat, he was passed in the final laps by two Porsches with fresher Michelins. He and Murry would salute their crew from the third step on the podium. Two weeks later the team would again show that they were a threat to take any GT class win at any time. The drivers put on an exhibition. Murry took the lead from third-place in one highlight reel pass entering the ultra-fast front straightaway at Mosport Park in Canada. Stanton held the lead until damage to the car’s underbody and a late-race splash for fuel dropped the team to third. With time running short, the Californian carved through lap cars and top-runners gaining two-seconds on the leader with each lap. Time would run short however, and the hard-fought race would end in the team’s first second-place of the season and its second IMSA Cup of the year.

Road America was the site of Petersen Motorsports’ greatest ALMS success in 2003. Hoping to defend their ’03 GT class victory, they started third. The crew of ten would lead early, very early, as Murry overhauled the two leading Porsche’s before the first lap’s mid-point. However, brief seconds after taking the lead, Murry would be knocked off track and to the back of the field. Never giving up, brilliant strategy, driving and pit stops would result in another IMSA Cup and a second-place at Road America. The ten hour/ 1,000 mile Petit Le Mans made the penultimate round of the ALMS season in September. The Road Atlanta race has been a traditional favorite of the team. Murry and Stanton raced as the only two-driver team in the GT class. All other efforts rotated three. At the end of the day, the duo again stood on the podium, this time in third and again holding the prestigious IMSA Cup- the team’s fourth of the year.

the season comes to an end –
All signals pointed towards a successful season-ending race in the four-hour daylight to night race at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca. However, despite constant efforts, the result would not be. Starting fourth the car fell through the standings. A ray of hope began to fall from the sky in the form of rain during the race’s final hour. As a thunderstorm set itself over the Monterey, Calif. peninsula, Stanton, who had started the car before being relieved by Murry who himself turned the nighttime drive back to Stanton, agreed to a daring move to regain track position. The Petersen/ White Lightning brain trust gambled on Stanton’s skill and some luck to gain positions calling for the 27-time tri-athlete to stay on the rain-soaked track on slick tires. Stanton’s skill came through but luck did not. The track went back to green-flag racing conditions one lap too early for the strategy to pay off. Stanton was not able to move a lap up on the competition. Instead, he was a sitting duck as the rain tire-shod cars made their move around him toward the checkered flag. The Westward Ho Casino/ MMPIE/ PAWS/ Michelin Porsche 911 GT3 RSR would finish the season sixth in the race, third in the GT team championship and second in the season-long IMSA Cup. Murry and Stanton would finish tied with one-another for fifth in the GT driver standings.

In a year of ten races, two trans-Atlantic trips, four endurance races ranging in length from four to 24 hours, success is accomplished not in pure willpower or cubic dollars spent. Instead, it can be found in the cohesive bond that transforms a group of individuals into one, singular being; thinking and acting as one. While not all of the on-track goals were reached, one overpowering and ultimately most important goal was achieved. A true team was born. A team thats style, personality and desire promises to reap outstanding success in the future.

2004 Petersen Motorsports/ White Lightning Racing team members

Full season –
Mike Petersen, owner and driver- Las Vegas, Nev./ Southern Calif.
Dale White, team manager – Las Vegas, Nev.
Stefan Pfeiffer, crew chief – Island Krk, Croatia
David Murry, driver – Cumming, Ga.
Craig Stanton, driver – Long Beach, Calif.
Sam Andrus, fueler/ transportation director – Santa Clara, Utah
Nico Castellaccio, technician/ tire changer – Tracy, Calif.
Dennis Chizma, technician/ tire changer – Seattle, Wash.
Andrew Cushman, technician/ tire changer – Columbia, Calif. (partial season- ended season with team)
Stan Demas, technician/ tire changer – Belmont, Calif. (partial season- ended season with team)
Troy Hildreth, tire technician – Las Vegas, Nev.
Brian Monoprode, Michelin Tire Engineer – Detroit, Mich.
Kent Moore, technician/ shop prep. – Las Vegas, Nev.
Tom Moore, media relations director – Franklin, Tenn.
Jodi Shamaley, marketing and promotions consultant – Southern Calif.
Partial Season –
Doug Chernis, technician – Mesa, Ariz.
Claire Chizma- deadman valve operator – Seattle, Wash.
Harry Haggard, engineer – Palos Verdes Estates, Calif.
Joe Hullett, data acquisition – Southern California
Michael Lamont, deadman valve operator –Milwaukee, Wisc.
Chris Manfredi, tire technician – Stony Brook, NY
Dean Richardson, deadman valve operator – Atlanta
Darrin Rudicil, technician – Las Vegas, Nev.
Shawn Steele, technician – Tampa, Fla.
Le Mans –
Jörg Bergmeister, driver – Langenfield, Germany
Patrick Long, driver – Oak Park, Calif.
Sascha Maassen, driver – Raeren, Belgium
Roland Kussmaul, chief engineer – Weissach, Germany
Julie Audrin, French Liaison in Le Mans – Le Mans,
France Poco Cruz - Spain

For more, please visit www.petersenmotorsports.com