VLN Race

March 26, 2011 / Test drive & trial run

"The start into 2011 - a full success

Great interest in the [s.i.g.]-Team"

After many weeks of preparation and screwing in the team housing it was time for the [s.i.g.]-Team to get back on the race track at the Nürburgring. At the trial and test drives everyone was excited to see whether the hard work would finally pay off. The white Mini in [s.i.g.]-Design started on the first rounds on the North Loop in 2011. After 6 hours on the race track team manager Lothar Sausemuth was relaxed: “For the entire team is was of course exciting, if everything would turn out as we wanted it to.

” The Mini was fast from the beginning and the mechanics were able to concentrate on the fine tuning and further adjustments.

“I am really happy, that our car remained intact. There were many accidents and a lot of interruptions; therefore it was most important to get our Mini back into the garage safely. At the season opener next week we want to attack. One could sense that the entire [s.i.g.] team is on fire.”

Also the drivers Ingo Gaupp, Andy Glanc und Steffen Schmid were completely satisfied with their car for the coming months. The final harmonization & fine-tuning was achieved and we can start into the new season. Additional motivation came with the great interest in the [s.i.g.]-pits. Many drivers, officials and experts gathered around the Mini and wanted to take a closer look and get more information before the start of the race season. There was a special conversation with the ADAC Coordinator in Japan, Miura Takeshi, about cooperation at the 24 hours Nürburgring. “The first talks were already very promising and I hope that we will have Japanese team members at the 24-hour race”, said a happy Lothar Sausemuth about the interest in his team.In the coming days the final preparations will be made for the first race. The coming weekend, the [s.i.g.] team will start into the VLN-Season 2011 with only one Mini Cooper Works R56. The second race car will join the team for the race on April 30, 2011.

A detailed preliminary report for the season opener will follow.

VLN Race

April 2, 2011 / 2nd place - SIG-Team starts with a bang into new season!

„It is really great. The race couldn’t have gone better for us.”.

Team manager Lothar Sausemuth was overwhelmed after the VLN-Season opener at the Nürburgring. Place 2 in the class SP2T was the result at the finish line. This meant some extra hours for the [s.i.g.]-Team. The ceremony in the Nürburgring-Freizeitwelt in front of thousands of spectators was a great experience for Lothar Sausemuth – “one, I could get used to”, he admitted, implying how motivated he and his team is. Not only place 2 in this categorie was a reason to celebrate, also Steffen Schmid und Ingo Gaupp drove to place 54 in the overall ranking. “Considering that more than 180 cars started the race, among them numerous Porsche, Mercedes and Ferrari, our 54th place cannot be rated highly enough”, classifies Lothar Sausemuth the result. What the test drive last week already suggested, has come true. The white [s.i.g.]-Mini drives exactly, as team manager Lothar Sausemuth had imagined last winter. “There was not a single problem with the car. The work of the last months finally paid off and we were able to enjoy the race at perfect motorsport weather”. The next VLN-race will take place on April 30, 2011. “We want to be faster and better. Even if our Mini works perfectly, we will keep on optimizing. More parts are already on the way, which will make us even faster, announces the [s.i.g.]-team manager.