RFM Front Page News

HOUSTON, Texas (April 20, 2007) – Last year at the Grand Prix of Houston, “Speedy Dan” Clarke was a rookie with the CTE/HVM team, and he was happy to be here, he said, because he loves to race. He proved throughout 2006 that there’s a lot to be said for a zestful pursuit of one’s career, and gained many supporters and both a pole position and a couple of podiums as he electrified the fans in the stands.

In 2007, Dan has matured and is a little more serious of mien, some of that because of the challenging start he’s had to the 2007 season but some of it no doubt to the experience he has gained in serious competition. While Speedy Dan is not a serious man by nature, he takes his work seriously and the teething problems the team is having with the new Panoz DP01 are frustrating as well as challenging for everyone. “I don’t want to come across as negative,” he stressed, “because I’m not casting the blame or anything like that. But this car has been tricky to work with out of the box. There’s not so much you can engineer in a one-make formula car; it’s kind of like working with a Lego set. Our engineers and crew – everyone on the team – are doing everything we can to get this car to be faster, and we have hope that it won’t be too long until we succeed.”

The Houston track, he said, is much improved over last year. “They have smoothed out a lot of the bumps,” he said, “particularly those that were right in the corners and upset the car so much last year. This car doesn’t do as well over the bumps as the old Lola did, so that’s bound to affect all the teams. For us, I just hope we can find some way to make our car go faster.”

One thing that has certainly taken off faster than a Speedy Dan is the “Speedy Dan” brand name. Dan confirmed that there were plans to sell Speedy Dan hats – an item frequently requested by fans; they are hoping to get a sponsor to sign on to the project before the hats are made up. “Maybe now that Molson isn’t a sponsor of a race, they’d like to sign up with us!” Dan speculated. Why not? There is also a prototype “Speedy Dan” cartoon character (something like the “Seninho” Senna cartoon character of old), which now exists in one issue that details the career of one Speedy Dan to this point. This, too, is awaiting a sponsor, “because,” Dan said, “these things take money to get off the ground.” Other things may be in the works too. Stay tuned.

Overall the mood at Team Minardi USA (the Paul Stoddart iteration of CTE/HVM), and that of Speedy Dan, is upbeat. “Today,” he said, “we had a not so great day at the office. But we’re a good group and we all work well together. When you’re away from home for 24 days in a row, you need to be with people you enjoy. Team Minardi wanted to sign me up back in Laguna and I stayed focused and trained hard so I could be ready to jump into the car when the deal came together. Now it’s hard to keep the focus, but you have to stay calm and be patient until it all comes right.”

So look for Speedy Dan Clarke to climb back up the grid as quickly and as strongly as 2006 when he thrilled the crowds who sometimes wondered if he was absolutely mad, but cheered him to the echo. He’s determined and nobody could say that Paul Stoddart or Keith Wiggins either one was a man who lacked stubbornness. They will see it through together, because they believe in each other. And they believe in Speedy Dan Clarke, and so does Speedy Dan.