May 26, 2008: Grand-Am racing article
May 28, 2008: Hamilton Spectator article
Grand-Am KONI Challenge
Driver, Ashley McCalmont
Ancaster, ON
Contact: Tara Hansen-Rix
Day phone (905) 304-9971
Cell (905) 745-6603
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Ashley McCalmont drives the race of her career at Lime Rock Park
Lakeville, CT – May 24, 2009- Ashley McCalmont and Jamie Holtom led Georgian Bay Motorsports to their fist podium finish of the season, placing third at Lime Rock.
Holtom is returning to the team after finishing school, and will now stay on as McCalmont’s new race partner letting Kirk Spencer return to his position as Crew Chief.
The teams first priority is to qualify in the top ten, and then, focus on making the podium in the race. Their strategic thinking became a reality when they qualified seventh, and then finished the race in third.
McCalmont started in the car, and quickly began working her way through the pack. She took sixth position with little effort. While fighting for fifth position with the Turner car, the race became more intense. On the last turn of the track, a downhill hairpin right, the Turner car went off to the left, over corrected and crashed into the guardrail in front of McCalmont’s car. Thanks to her quick thinking and strategic driving, McCalmont was able to miss the car, and take fifth position.
McCalmont then passed Christian Miller, driver of the Compass 360 car, who currently holds first place in the championship. McCalmont was able to hand the car over to Holtom in fourth place, and thanks to an excellent driver change and the great speed and precision of the crew, the car came out of the pits in second. Holtom fought to keep his position, and was in third when the race was called.
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The last ten minutes of the race were reckless, and due to a collision near the end of the race, the race was called because there was trouble getting the track cleared. McCalmont and Holtom were ecstatic to make the podium, and hope to carry this on to their next race in Watkins Glen.
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Quotes:
Ashley McCalmont (No. 01 T.T.L Chevrolet Cobalt; third, ST): "I was just trying to keep the car in one piece for Jamie. I got it up to second before we pitted. The Georgian Bay team did a great job preparing the car."
Jamie Holtom (No. 01 T.T.L Chevrolet Cobalt; third, ST): "The last few laps were intense. It was all I could do to hang in with those guys. I was sandwiched between a rock and a hard place between Travis (Walker) in one Compass360 car and (Randy) Pobst in the other. We were just pushing. Everybody was going ten-tenths and racing cleanly. My hat is off to Travis. I've known that guy for years and years, and to see him finally win a race is gratifying."