“Weekend of Giving” for Street Tuner Class, IMSA

This weekend at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca will be more meaningful for a handful of teams in the Continental Tire SportsCar Challenge Street Tuner (ST) class paddock.

For the No. 17 RS1 Porsche Cayman team, this weekend marks the culmination of a charitable campaign that kicked off at Watkins Glen International in July.

“This whole thing got started by my longtime sponsor, Philip Frengs,” said Nick Galante, who co-drives the No. 17 with Spencer Pumpelly. “His company, Legistics, he’s been helping me out for almost the past ten years now, and he’s very closely connected and affected by Alzheimer’s within his family. He had this great idea to create this charity to help raise some money and awareness and most of all, fund some research to really find a cure for this. I think it’s something that can be done.”

For $250, those affected by Alzheimer’s or those who wish to donate are able to display their name or that of a loved one on the car this weekend, in honor of World Alzheimer’s Day on Thursday, Sept. 21.

In a remarkable twist, Frengs and the rest of the car sponsors have agreed to remove their corporate logos from the car this weekend as well.

“This charity in particular, 100 percent of the money raised is going to charity,” Galante continued. “We’re not using any of it for racing, obviously. We’re not using any of it for our costs to sticker the car or anything. One hundred percent of the money raised is going to the charitable cause which is very rare these days.”

RS1 is not the only ST team looking to give back at this weekend’s race.

As part of the track’s Military Appreciation Day on Saturday, Sept. 23, Mazda has organized a presentation during the Continental Tire Challenge pre-race grid walk. The campaign will look to give back to several military families in appreciation of their service and in honor of the track’s history, as the 2.238-mile circuit was built on Fort Ord in 1957.

All Mazda drivers in ST, six from Freedom Autosport and two from Murillo Racing, will be present for the awards.

“We welcome all veterans and active members of the United States Armed Forces to Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca,” said Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca’s Gill Campbell. “Offering veterans or those who serve and one guest free admission on September 23 is a small token of our appreciation for everything they sacrifice that allows us the freedom to put on great motorsports events for all to enjoy. We hope to extend that appreciation further by offering a fantastic show once they get in the gate and properly recognizing our Armed Forces during the event.”

While these two campaigns will be taking place in Salinas, Calif., IMSA’s own two charities have events going on this weekend and for the rest of the month.

Also on Saturday, Sept. 23, IMSA is sponsoring the Austin Hatcher Foundation’s Celebration of Life & Hope in Chattanooga, Tenn. The Roaring 20s-themed event celebrates the Austin Hatcher Foundation’s 10th anniversary and the opening of its new Education Advancement Center, focused on diagnosing and treating the educational and functional deficits associated with pediatric cancer.