Speed Secrets Announces Scholarships Finalists

(April 20, 2004) Speed Secrets, Inc., announced yesterday the three finalists who have been chosen in the first stage of the selection process to move on to compete for the annual Speed Secrets Driver Development Scholarship.

Steve Welk of Greenfield, Wisc., Chris Wehrheim of Norcross, Ga., and David Jurca of Federal Way, Wash., were chosen from over 100 applicants by a selection committee consisting of Rob Howden of Howden Communications, Tim Blaney editor of ShifterKart Illustrated, Jeff Braun of Tracc5 Racing, Jeremy Shaw, motorsports broadcaster and journalist and Ross Bentley, Head Coach of Speed Secrets.

“We were absolutely overwhelmed by the amount and quality of applicants. I think it says a lot about the level of competition out there and the awareness that drivers are starting to have for the vital role that coaching and driver development services can play in their career”, says Ross Bentley, Head Coach for Speed Secrets.

The three drivers selected will move on to the next level in the competition, a one day test in Buttonwillow, California on May 4th in one of Speed Secrets’ Fran-Am 1600 cars , where they will be coached and evaluated on and off the track. One driver from this group will be granted the overall scholarship, which consists of a full Career Plan (a 5-year “business plan” or “road map” to help the driver achieve his goals), Driver Development (technique/skills coaching) Plan, and Personal Coaching for the season which represents over $20,000 worth of support.

“Our goal is to discover and develop young drivers; help them to live up to their potential to make a career driving race cars; and develop them into the champions they want to be,” says Bentley. “This past year we helped Colin Braun, Benny Moon and numerous other drivers successfully transition from karts to cars. Colin, at age 14, became the youngest driver ever to win a professional open-wheel race in North America – the first car race he ever entered. He went on to win the 2003 Fran-Am 1600 Championship. We helped prepare Benny for the Skip Barber scholarship shoot-out. He won and received a full season in the Barber National Series. With the Speed Secrets Scholarship, we’re looking for the next driver to follow in these two young stars’ footsteps.”

The Speed Secrets Scholarship is unique because it is not just based on current experience and abilities. “We’re looking for potential in a driver rather than their speed or results today. If we select a driver who is fast and wins now, and he or she goes on to win again in the future, all we’ve proven is that we can select a fast, winning driver. And that’s been done before,” Ross says. “We would rather select someone who has potential and help that person develop that potential into speed, wins and championships.”

Speed Secrets is committed to providing the very best driver development to young racers who wish to make a career in the sport. Its services include the unique Speed Secrets Driver Development Camps, Inner Speed Secrets seminars, personal Coaching, Career Development Plans, and the line of Speed Secrets books. More information can be found www.speed-secrets.com.