For immediate release

WESTERN MICHIGAN GRAND PRIX
August 23, 1999.
(Press release complements of Toad Hall Racing)

Toad Hall Motor Racing, of Minneapolis, Minnesota, has entered two Porsche RSRs for the Grand Rapids Michigan, SPEEDVISION World Challenge GT Sportscar race, at Grand Rapids Michigan on Sunday August 29, 1999. A total of 38 cars are entered.

The Western Michigan Grand Prix is the 6th stop in a ten race series for the World Challenge Championship.

Peter Kitchak, of Minneapolis, will drive the Keewaydin/Toad Hall Porsche and Jim Oppenheimer, Chicago, will drive the Impac/Toad Hall Porsche.

Kitchak won the most recent race in the series at Trois Rivieres, Quebec. Kitchak now stands second in the driver’s championship.

Porsche also took over the points lead in the manufacturer’s championship at Trois Rivieres.

Kitchak also won the third race of the season at Mid Ohio. And, he won the only other World Challenge Race he entered in 1997, at Minneapolis, on a street course very similar to Grand Rapids. He did not participate in the series in 1998.

The Speedvision World Challenge GT series is North America’s leading professional series for exotic production sports cars. Pitting European marks such as Porsche and BMW against the “big iron” from North America, the 8 liter Dodge Vipers, the Corvettes and the Mustangs, and the best sports cars from Japan with the turbocharged Toyota Supra and the Acura NSX, the season is shaping up as a top level series with a broad spectrum of manufacturers competing. 8 different manufacturers are now represented in the top 12 positions in the driver’s points race.

Kitchak and Oppenheimer will both driver 3.8 liter Porsche RSRs. Modified to tight racing specifications determined by the Sports Car Club of America (SCCA), these normally aspirated cars produce 370 horsepower and will reach 135-140 miles per hour on the city streets of Grand Rapids..

“We won the last race at Trois Riveries and have made some changes to our set-up with the expectation to be very competitive at Grand Rapids,” Kitchak said, “Our crew has been working very hard in an effort to find the additional speed we need to improve our chances to win both the race at Grand Rapids and the season championship.”

The Toad Hall Porsches are prepared by Moorespeed Race Engineering in Austin, Texas.

David Moore, president of Moorespeed will be the team’s crew chief, manager and chief engineer. Moorespeed is a specialty race car engineering and preparation shop specializing in Porsche and other race cars. Other crew members are Lee Kemper and Mike Whitley, both from Texas and Mike Breckenridge of Minnesota.

Jim Oppenheimer will drive his second World Challenge race this weekend. After an 11th place finish at Trois Rivieres, significant changes have been made to the suspension of Oppenheimer’s car to make it more competitive at Grand Rapids.

Kitchak won the 1998 24 hours of Daytona GT-2 class in a Twin Turbo Porsche. He recently finished 18th overall, 6th in class and was a driver in the top GT-2 Porsche at the 1999 24 Hours of LeMans. Driving in the American LeMans Series for the Germany based team of Konrad Motorsports, he was also 3d in his class at the 12 Hours of Sebring and 3d at the Grand Prix of Atlanta in 1999.

Kitchak was the Canadian American Ice Racing Champion in 1970 (driving a Porsche on the frozen lakes of the US and Canada) and the International Ice Racing Champion in 1973. He did not drive any race cars between 1974 and 1992 when he started his road racing career. At 58 years old, Kitchak is one of the oldest drivers in the field. “Age is not a factor, ” he says, “I stay in good shape and am driving better than I ever have.”

Oppenheimer is a resident of Chicago, Illinois. He is 56 years old, married to Leslie with sons Michael and Jim. An executive in the packaging conglomerate, “The Impac Group”, Oppenheimer is a successful race car driver and Porsche collector.

Kitchak is a resident of Excelsior, Minnesota. He is 58 years old, married to Patricia. He is considered on the top “deal makers” in American corporate real estate and is the President of The Keewaydin Group, a real estate consulting firm headquartered in Minneapolis.

More information:
Toad Hall Motor Racing: www.toadhallracing.com
SCCA World Challenge and immediate results: www.sccapro.com
The Keewaydin group: www.keewaydin.com

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