Lee and Jeannette Apostale, of Hornell, N.Y., Win Porsche 911
WATKINS GLEN, N.Y. (Oct. 12, 2018) – Lee and Jeannette Apostale of Hornell, N.Y., were the winners of the 2003 Porsche 911 Carrera 4S raffled by the International Motor Racing Research Center.
“This is the Center’s 20th anniversary year. We’re very excited that we are able to celebrate our successes and award such a beautiful classic sports car,” said Kip Zeiter, IMRRC Coordinator of Visitor Services and Outreach.
“We sincerely thank everyone who purchased tickets and made this year’s raffle of the Porsche and other prizes a successful fundraiser,” Zeiter added. This year the Center sold 2,065 tickets and raised over $100,000. The winning ticket was drawn at the Center on Oct. 6 as part of the IMRRC’s “RacetoberFest” anniversary celebration.
The Apostales purchased the winning ticket at this year’s Grand Prix Festival in Watkins Glen, where the IMRRC has a booth annually. Jeannette looked across the street to where the Porsche was parked, saw that the drawing was on Oct. 6, and said, “I’m going to win that; that’s on my birthday.” While the Apostales don’t have any immediate plans to bring the Porsche back to Watkins Glen, Lee participates in the Grand Prix Festival every year and “the car will be back to Watkins eventually,” he said.
Two other prizes were awarded at the event. Second prize, a set of four tickets to any 2019 SVRA event in the United States and a $500 Visa Gift Card, was won by Marcus Steck, of Newfane, N.Y., who plans to use the race tickets at his home track, Watkins Glen International. Andrew Wensel, of Rochester, N.Y., took home the third prize, a 50-inch Samsung Flatscreen Television.
Car raffles have supported the IMRRC’s programming and operations throughout its history. An exciting array of cars has been raffled off over the years. Past raffles have featured both new models provided by the manufacturers or vintage cars donated by friends of the Center, including a 2017 MINI Cooper John Cooper Works, a 1982 Ferrari 308 GTSi, a 2013
Boss Mustang 302 and a 1967 E-type Jag Series 1.
The International Motor Research Racing Research Center is an archival library dedicated to the preservation and sharing of the history of motorsports, of all series and all venues, through its collections of books, periodicals, films, photographs, fine art and other materials. For more information about the Center’s work and its programs, visit www.racingarchives.org or call (607) 535-9044
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WATKINS GLEN, N.Y. (Nov. 23, 2015) – The Dec. 12 date to draw the winning ticket in the International Motor Racing Research Center’s annual car raffle is just a few weeks away.
Tickets still remain for a 2015 Toyota Camry XSE V-6 generously donated by Toyota North America for this major fundraiser for the Racing Research Center, an archival and research library dedicated to the preservation and sharing of the materials of motorsports, all series and all venues worldwide. “With a Toyota Camry as our raffle car, we join the many fans of Kyle Busch in celebrating his NASCAR Sprint Cup Series championship – at the wheel of a Camry,” J.C. Argetsinger, IMRRC president, said.
The championship is the first NASCAR manufacturer’s crown for Toyota, which celebrated its 11th season in NASCAR competition this year. Several racers drove Toyotas in 2015, and the XSE also was the model that paced the season’s races at the world-renowned Watkins Glen International and other NASCAR tracks.
“While promoting the raffle over the last few months, every conversation we’ve had has been a thank-you to Toyota for its generosity and support of our work,” Argetsinger added.
The drawing of the winning ticket for the Center’s Camry will be on Saturday, Dec. 12, at 1 p.m. at the Center, located at 610 S. Decatur St., Watkins Glen. The winning ticket will be drawn by Judy McKinney Cherry, executive director of the local economic development agency, SCOPED, Schuyler County Partnership for Economic Development. The holder of the
winner does not need to be present. The car is valued at $35,004, and no more than 3,504 raffle tickets will be sold. The price is $40 for one or $100 for three. Ticket sales are limited to residents of the continental United States.
Tickets may be purchased by mailing in a form available at the website www.racingarchives.org; by calling the Center at (607) 535-9044; or by sending the necessary information to research@racingarchives.org. Online orders are not an option.
The annual car raffle is the Racing Research Center’s major fundraiser. The Center is a 501 (c)(3) charitable organization.
The car being offered by the IMRRC boasts 268 horsepower with a six-speed transmission with paddle shifters. It has a power tilt/slide moonroof, sporttuned suspension, 18-inch machined alloy wheels, dual exhaust, smart key with push-button start, LED daytime running lights and blind spot monitor with rear cross-traffic alert. Color: ruby flair. Other features include an Entune Premium JBL audio system and Bluetooth.
Toyota Motor Sales was established in the U.S. in 1957. Camry has been the best-selling car in America for the last 13 years and has been the bestselling car in America for 17 of the past 18 years. The Toyota Camry is built at the Toyota manufacturing facility in
Georgetown, Kentucky. The Camry has been built in Kentucky for more than 25 years.
WATKINS GLEN, N.Y. (Aug. 20, 2015) – A 2015 Toyota Camry XSE is this year’s raffle car offered by the International Motor Racing Research Center. “We are extremely grateful to Toyota for donating this impressive vehicle for our annual raffle,” J.C. Argetsinger, IMRRC president, said. “One of our friends called the XSE a ‘four-door with attitude.’ We definitely think the description fits.”
The XSE is the model that has been pacing the races at the world-renowned Watkins Glen International race track, which on Aug. 9 hosted the Cheez-It 355 at The Glen NASCAR race. The drawing of the winning ticket will be on Dec. 12 at 1 p.m. at the Center, located at 610 S. Decatur St., Watkins Glen. The winner does not need to be present. Tickets are $40 for one or $100 for three. Only 3,504 tickets will be sold.
Tickets may be purchased by mailing in a form available at the website www.racingarchives.org; by calling the Center at (607) 535-9044; or by sending the necessary information to research@racingarchives.org. Online orders are not an option. The annual car raffle is the Racing Research Center’s major fundraiser. The Center is a 501 (c)(3) charitable organization.
“As an archival and research library dedicated to the preservation and sharing of the materials of motorsports, it’s appropriate that the IMRRC would be offering a prize car that fans can see at work on a race track,” Argetsinger said. Toyota is celebrating its 11th season in NASCAR in 2015, with several teams fielding Camrys. The XSE, new in 2015, leads the pack as a pace car at Watkins Glen, Daytona International Speedway and other tracks. Automotive writers have described the XSE as the Camry with a sportier look and feel.
The car being offered by the IMRRC boasts 268 horsepower with a six-speed transmission with paddle shifters. It has a power tilt/slide moonroof, sporttuned suspension, 18-inch machined alloy wheels, dual exhaust, smart key with push-button start, LED daytime running lights and blind spot monitor with rear cross-traffic alert. Color: ruby flair.
Other features include an Entune Premium JBL audio system and Bluetooth. The 2015 XSE is “a substantial midcycle update for the best-selling car in America,” wrote Jonathan Wong, Autoweek road test editor, in March. Autotrader reviewer Doug DeMuro described the XSE as “a truly fun-to-drive midsize sedan.”
Toyota Motor Sales was established in the U.S. in 1957. Camry has been the best-selling car in America for the last 13 years and has been the bestselling car in America for 17 of the past 18 years.
Toyota began competing in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series with the Tundra in 2004 and has logged 138 wins.
The Camry has competed in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series and NASCAR XFINITY Series since 2007, with178 total victories.
The Toyota Camry is built at the Toyota manufacturing facility in Georgetown, Kentucky.
The Camry has been built in Kentucky for more than 25 years
WATKINS GLEN, N.Y. (Dec. 18, 2014) – Nancy Loughlin of Montour Falls, N.Y., was the winner of the Fiat 500 Abarth and trip to Italy offered by the International Motor Racing Research Center.
“This is the Center’s 15th year of raising much-needed financial support with a significant raffle. We’ve had winners from all over the United States, but Nancy is our first winner from our own Schuyler County. We’re thrilled,” Center President J.C. Argetsinger said. “We sincerely thank everyone who purchased tickets and made this year’s raffle of the Fiat and the trip a successful fundraiser,” Argetsinger said.
The winning ticket was drawn at the Center on Dec. 13 by Anthony J. Specchio Sr., grand marshal of the 2014 Italian American Festival in Watkins Glen.
WINNER OF THE FIAT and TRIP TO ITALY: NANCY LOUGHLIN of WATKINS GLEN
Loughlin, who lives just a few miles south of the Center, is a retired Watkins Glen High School guidance counselor. She has purchased tickets in previous Center car raffles.
“Paired with the opportunity to travel to Italy, this one was very attractive,” Loughlin said.
“I remember when Fiats were in the States before, and I’ve grown to admire them. They’re cute little bugs,” she said. “And this is a turbo! It purrs loudly.”
Loughlin bought her ticket in September at the downtown Watkins Glen Grand Prix Festival. Three months later she learned about her new car and trip when she listened to a voice mail message from Argetsinger. She was getting ready to go to her part-time job as hostess at the Watkins Glen Harbor Hotel Blue Pointe Grille and could not immediately get to her
phone. Moments later she listened to the message and soon was at the Center.
She was two hours late for work.
“I could not believe it,” Loughlin said days later. “I’m kind of still in shock.” Loughlin visited Venice, Italy, in 1999 and said she’s looking forward to returning.
The Racing Research Center is an archival library dedicated to the preservation and sharing of the history of motorsports, of all series and all venues, through its collections of books, periodicals, films, photographs, fine art and other materials. For more information about the Center’s work and its programs, visit www.racingarchives.org or call (607) 535-9044.
WATKINS GLEN, N.Y. (October 20, 2014) – Tickets are still available to win a Fiat 500 Abarth Turbo Hatchback and a trip to Italy.
The International Motor Racing Research Center is raffling the car and trip to help support its mission to preserve and share the history of motorsports. The drawing for the winning ticket will take place on Dec. 13, at 1 p.m. at the Center located at 610 S. Decatur St., Watkins Glen, N.Y. The winner does not need to be present.
Only 3,500 tickets will be sold for the annual car raffle, the biggest fundraiser for the Racing Research Center, which is a 501 (c)(3) charitable organization. As an archival and research library focused on the history of motorsports, the Center welcomes everyone, from the casual race fan to the serious researcher.
A significant and desirable car is selected each year for the annual fundraiser.
“The Fiat is the car you can use for grocery shopping during the week and take to the track on the weekends. There’s a reason reviewers dubbed it ‘small but wicked’,” Racing Research Center President J.C. Argetsinger said. “And the trip to Italy is real enticing. Back to where the Fiat was born!” Tickets are $40 for one or $100 for three. Tickets may be purchased by mailing in a form available at the website www.racingarchives.org; by calling the Center at (607) 535-9044; or by sending the necessary information to research@racingarchives.org. Online orders are not an option.
WATKINS GLEN, N.Y. (August 22, 2014) – The International Motor Racing Research Center’s 2014 raffle is all Italian.
A Fiat 500 Abarth Hatchback Turbo and a trip to Italy combine to make a “primo” prize for the Center’s annual fundraising project. The 2013 model is a sporty bright red with black interior and trim.
The drawing of the winning ticket will be on Dec. 13 at 1 p.m. at the Center, located at 610 S. Decatur St., Watkins Glen. The winner does not need to be present. Tickets are $40 for one or $100 for three. Only 3,500 tickets will be sold.
The Racing Research Center is an archival and research library dedicated to preserving and sharing the history of motorsports, of all racing series and all tracks worldwide. The annual car raffle is the Racing Research Center’s major fundraiser. Support through the Center’s Sponsorship Team campaign is the other key source of funding. The Center is a 501 (c)(3) charitable organization.
Tickets may be purchased by mailing in a form available at the website www.racingarchives.org; by calling the Center at (607) 535-9044; or by sending the necessary information to research@racingarchives.org. Online orders are not an option.
Reviewers of the Fiat 500 Abarth are quick to revive the “small but wicked” description coined in the 1960s for Karl “Carlo” Abarth’s cars. These cars are fun, too. “The Fiat 500 Abarth is a blast. Fun to drive, fun to listen to, fun to look at, and fun to experience,” wrote Jamie Doyle for Sports Car Digest. Says the company: “The Fiat 500 Abarth brings to life the legendary racing heritage of the brand and becomes the Italian high-performance car for everyday driving.”
“With its origins part of automotive and motorsports history, the Fiat 500 Abarth is an especially appropriate choice as a Racing Research Center raffle car,” Center President J.C. Argetsinger said.
The collaboration between Abarth and Fiat started in the early 1950s. The driving public loved the Fiat 500, first released in 1958. Abarth’s tuning and exhaust system redesigns would take the 500 to many class and outright race victories.
The Fiat 500 was “the car that would cement Abarth and Fiat’s name into automobile history,” Doyle wrote. The Abarth brand was re-launched in 2007, and the Fiat 500 Abarth arrived in the U.S. in 2012.
Fiats are once again earning checkered flags on tracks around the world, and perhaps the raffle winner will see some of those racing Abarths on his or her tour of Italy – the other half of this year’s prize package.
BTI The Travel Consultants, a first-class travel agency in Syracuse, N.Y., will custom-design a $5,000 trip to Italy for the winner. BTI will create “the Italian vacation of your dreams” for the lucky winner. Said Argetsinger: “As we’re saying at the Center these days: ‘Tutte le strade conducono a Roma … in un Fiat!’ That means ‘All roads lead to Rome … in a Fiat!’ We know someone is going to be very happy with this ‘small but wicked’ car.”