Sparco

Sometimes on holiday you meet some amazing people, like what happened to me a couple of days ago when I met a young German lady, Leoni Stiem, who races in German rallies driving a Ford Puma.

Leoni is extremely promising and equally determined to make her name on the racing scene along with her team, SPEED CAT Racing, which is actually the only women’s team competing in the German championship.
She lives on the shores of the Bodensee and when she’s not racing she makes the best pizza in the northern Alps at her restaurant the Fischerstüble. I’ve tried it so I assure you she’s not kidding.

I asked her a few questions to get to know her a bit better.

How and when did you start to race?

I started racing in 2006 – the first 2 years as navigator and since 2008 as driver.

Can you give us a summary of your race career?

During the first two years I clocked up my first special stage miles and got a lot of experience in the hot seat as co-pilot of a Ford Puma. Then came the chance to swap seats and finally my big dream came true, so I’ve been successfully driving the Ford Puma around Germany since 2008. I spent the first year just getting to know the car and all the situations you get into in a rally because unfortunately there are no training facilities here, just “on-the-job”. By the second year I was already winning my first races, and since then I’ve notched up several class victories and really honed my skills.

How was your championship this year?

I ran in eight rallies with my Speed Cat Racing Team in 2011. Four of them were valid for the German Rallye Mastership, during which I clocked up an incredible mileage, not to mention the experience.
Let’s say the balance of the last racing season was three class victories, three 2nd places, but a couple of failures due to technical problems as well, unfortunately.

What are your goals for the next year?

Keep on proving that women can be fast and kick some men’s butt!

Leoni and her team have won a lot of women’s trophies and championships in their category, so she’s pretty certain to keep her promise.
Good luck for next year Leoni!

The “Dress me for the finale” competition is over and now we can announce the winners: Tino Buschmann (Germany) and István Kalmár (Hungary).

There’s still one suit to see, the one for the Abu Dhabi GP, but we already know what Hamilton and Button will be wearing for the Brazil GP: the German suit for the former and the Hungarian one for the latter.
If the victory of the German suit was decided by a draw, for the second one there was a real and proper vote.
So what do you think? Do you like the winning suit or did you vote for another?

We at Sparco like them all, obviously, we made them.

On Sunday we lost a friend who loved racing and speed.
He ran every race with incredible passion and was certainly destined to be one of the brightest stars in the motorcycle Grand Prix firmament.
All too often we forget that pursuing this passion can sometimes mean losing everything. On the TV screen a lot of people only see crazy guys racing around defying the laws of physics, while others see heroes doing their utmost to pursue their dreams.
Marco Simoncelli was one of the latter, and that’s the way he’ll always be remembered.

Yesterday, during an Indycar race at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway, Dan Wheldon lost his life. The accident happened at the eleventh lap, caused by an accidental contact between the two cars in front of him, and which involved 15 other cars. His car caught fire and was thrown into the air, smashing into the guard rail and trapping him in the wreck. They managed to get him out and dashed him to the University Medical Center where he died from his injuries.

Dan Wheldon was just 33 years and raced for Bryan Herta Autosport.
Born in England, his career in racing started at age 14 on karts, where he progressed up to Junior category despite frequent pauses for study since he was still at school.
In 1999 he moved to the ‘States because at home his parents weren’t able to finance his career, started racing in the F2000 Championship Series and won the title.

In 2001 he came second in the Indy Lights series and moved up to the Indycar series in 2002, where he achieved 16 victories and one title in 2005. Still in 2005 and again this year 2011, he won the Indianapolis 500.

Our thoughts go out to his wife Susie and their two children, Sebastian and Oliver.

Just two more races ‘til the end of the Formula 1 season, but the champion has already been crowned and once again this year it’s Sebastian Vettel who wins his second world title.
Throughout the season there’s been great emotion and perhaps even some disappointment, but it certainly has been an intense contest and not lacking in surprises. In March some people were giving Massa and Button as favourites, but second place is still to be decided.
Which was the greatest ever Grand Prix for you?
Write and tell us how you think this season went.

He started out on karts back in 1987, then a pause to get a university degree and a grand return to the circuits in 2002. Now at age 38, Jesús Pérez-Santander has the experience of 14 kart seasons behind him, full of incredible thrills and victories.
We met up with this Spanish driver for a chat and he told us all about his favourite passions: Karting and Sparco.

How and when did you start racing karts?
I ran my first ever race when I was 14, but karting is a long-standing tradition in my family, so I’ve been breathing karts since I was born.

They say you’ve been using Sparco stuff right from the start. What was it you liked about it?
True, true. I’ll always remember my first racing suit. Sparco was already legendary in the ‘eighties, so when it came to choosing it was really no contest.

Since you came back to the circuit in 2002 you’ve always gone for the Rotax Max Challenge. Have you ever thought of racing in other categories?
Absolutely not. I still think the Rotax Max Challenge is the most interesting category, especially for the Grand Finals that are practically the Kart world cup, with all the winners of the national championships competing, and each one representing his own country. And the level is extremely high. It’s the dream of every kart driver.

How did it feel, the first time you won the Rotax Grand Finals in Egypt in 2009?
It went much better than I had ever hoped. I was absolutely psyched up for the races and I will remember the entire week for the rest of my life. Stepping onto the top step on the podium in category DD2 Master was one of the best moments of my entire career.

Are you going to encourage your 8 year old son to race karts?
I certainly am. Actually he’s already started on a Federación Aragonesa de Automovilismo program. When I was his age I saw some of the greatest drivers in the history of motorsports wearing Sparco suits, so I know he’ll likely do the same. He’s only 8, but like me when I started out, he’s already made his choice: Sparco.