Simonton Hoping to Follow Crew Chief Anderson with U.S. Nationals Victory

Courtesy of NVW Motorsports Promotion
Photo courtesy of Kon Rodz Racing

CLERMONT, Ind. (August 27, 2013) – Top Alcohol Funny Car driver Cassie Simonton will end a two-month break in on-track action when she hops back in the Kon Rodz Racing entry at the 59^th Annual Chevrolet Performance U.S. Nationals, August 30-Sept. 2. Though Simonton and the Ontario, Canada-based team last competed at the Summit Racing Equipment Nationals at Norwalk in early July, they have spent weeks preparing for the prestigious “Big Go”.

“A few of the crew members and I have been in Indy for a couple weeks, preparing parts for the weekend. We also installed several new carbon fiber pieces from Aerodine Composites Group. The boys have been back in Canada working on Spiro’s hot rods. I moved to Indy so I’ve been here working out with Cam (team clutch technician and NCAA All-American wrestler) getting myself ready for this race. I’ve been hitting the practice tree, making sure I’m ready after two months out of the car,” Cassie said of the team’s U.S. Nationals preparations.

The young team has experienced a few moments of success at Indy – a first round win over defending event champion Jay Payne in 2011 being the highlight. Cassie and the team hope this will be the year that they break through to the semifinals for the first time at this legendary event.

“We’ve always seemed to have a pretty good car here,” Simonton said.  “We struggled last year because we changed a few things after back-to-back finals. We’ve qualified well here, we’ve made it to the second round, but now we need to get past second round, where we’ve struggled all year.  We ran some of the big guys first round and beat them, but we want to keep going rounds on Monday as well.”

 

Numerous factors combine to make this race very special for Kon Rodz Racing.

“The Big Go is the biggest race of the year. There is a lot of history behind the event and it’s the one that everyone wants to win. All of the top cars from around the country show up, hoping to add the U.S. Nationals Wally to their trophy case. This would be a great race for us to get our first win. There have been a lot of drivers who earned their first win here,” Cassie said.

Among those drivers is Kon Rodz crew chief Randy Anderson, who won the 1992 U.S Nationals behind the wheel of father Brad’s Top Alcohol Funny Car. His achievement gives the team additional motivation to earn their first victory this weekend.

“That would be a surreal moment, to share that with Randy, to have the same experience he did to win his first national event. I know this is something he’s been pushing for real hard. He wants to win this race – he wants to win many races. We’re all working very hard and he wants it just as bad as the rest of us on the team,” Simonton noted.

Simonton and Kon Rodz Racing will be highlighting major team sponsors Bell Racing USA and Speedway, Ind.-based Aerodine Composites Group through the course of the weekend. Cassie will be wearing one of her new Bell helmets, painted by Off Axis Custom Paint. Indy is the debut race for the Kon Rodz TAFC’s new Aerodine carbon fiber pieces, including a computer box, fuel tank braces, and tin work.

Top Alcohol Funny Car qualifying at the 59^th Annual Chevrolet Performance U.S. Nationals begins on Friday with two sessions followed by single sessions on Saturday and Sunday. First round of eliminations is set for Sunday night. The balance of eliminations will continue on Monday, Labor Day.

Kon Rodz Racing is a NHRA Top Alcohol Funny Car team owned by Canadian businessman Spiro Kontos. Minnesota native Cassie Simonton drives the team's KonRodzRacing.com Monte Carlo Alcohol Funny Car in the NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series. Spiro, Cassie, and the entire Kon Rodz team are grateful to the quality companies that support their racing program; Sadi, Lucas Oil, NGK Spark Plugs, Goodson, Goodyear, Clevite, Mac Tools, Artist ButchM, Flaming River Industries, Bell Racing, CRC Automotive Products, Mid-Ontario Mack, Sparco USA, and Top Alcohol News.

For more information on Kon Rodz Racing, please visit www.konrodzracing.com. Keep up with Cassie and the team on Facebook (www.facebook.com/konrodzracing) and Twitter (www.twitter.com/CassieSimonton and www.twitter.com/KonRodzPR).

Simonton Falls to Manzo Early at Norwalk

Courtesy of NVW Motorsports Promotion
Photos courtesy of Kon Rodz Racing

NORWALK, Ohio (July 9, 2013) – Top Alcohol Funny Car favorite Cassie Simonton ended a busy month of racing with another top eight qualifying position and round win at the 7^th Annual Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Nationals in Norwalk, Ohio. Though Simonton and her Randy Anderson-led team anticipated better results, the weekend wasn’t considered a loss.

“We were going into the race hoping we would have the same success as we did last year,” said Simonton, who reached the finals at this event last year. “We went out second round, but we can’t really get upset about it. We raced the best of the best and we gave them a good race. The car is running consistently – it’s been down the track eighteen consecutive runs without any tire shake or problems. Now we’re just working really hard on running faster so we can qualify better and win more rounds.”

The Spiro Kontos-owned team worked with just two qualifying sessions to get the KonRodzRacing.com Monte Carlo solidly into the field. Periodic rain storms teased the teams all weekend long, leading to one qualifying session on Friday and one on Saturday. Simonton established a baseline 5.71 in the first session, then stepped up to 5.67 in the final session to take the No. 7 spot heading into first round of eliminations against Brian Harvanek.

 Simonton ran a consistent 5.66 to move on to a second round match-up with 16-time TAFC champion Frank Manzo. Manzo, a friend of the team and rival of Anderson’s during his driving career, ultimately outran Simonton, despite another improved run from Cassie. She left on the drag racing legend, but her 5.64 at 256 MPH wasn’t enough to beat Frank’s 5.57 at 261 – low E.T. of the event.

“I knew we would race Frank early in the race so it was just something that we had to do. We stayed positive and optimistic going into second round. Racing Frank is always a challenge – he’s the best in the class. The car picked up and I did my job on the starting line but we just didn’t have enough on the top end. I ran my quickest run of the weekend but it wasn’t enough to beat Frank,” Cassie said.

Cassie and her Aerodine Composites/Bell Racing USA team will get a well-deserved two month break after a month of races and preparation. They’ll return to competition at the Chevrolet Performance U.S. Nationals at Lucas Oil Raceway in Indy over Labor Day weekend.

“The team has been very busy over the last few weeks, getting the new body ready. I’m sure it will be nice for all of the guys to have some time off but we’re not really looking forward to two months off. Unfortunately that’s just how our schedule is going to work out this year. I’ll do my best to keep up during the time off – working out and practicing my lights – so we can go to Indy and pick up where we left off. Hopefully we’ll be able to go some rounds and move into the top ten in points.”

Kon Rodz Racing is a NHRA Top Alcohol Funny Car team owned by Canadian businessman Spiro Kontos. Minnesota native Cassie Simonton drives the team's familiar orange and purple KonRodzRacing.com Monte Carlo Alcohol Funny Car in the NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series. Spiro, Cassie, and the entire Kon Rodz team are grateful to the quality companies that support their racing program; Sadi, Lucas Oil, NGK Spark Plugs, Goodson, BAE, Goodyear, Clevite, Mac Tools, Artist ButchM, ithreesixty Music Infused Apparel, Flaming River Industries, and Sparco USA.

For more information on Kon Rodz Racing, please visit www.konrodzracing.com. Keep up with Cassie and the team on Facebook (www.facebook.com/konrodzracing) and Twitter (www.twitter.com/CassieSimonton and www.twitter.com/KonRodzPR).

Kon Rodz, Simonton Unveiling New Look at Chicago

Courtesy of NVW Motorsports Promotion
Photos courtesy of Kon Rodz Racing

JOLIET, Ill. (June 27, 2013) – Canadian Top Alcohol Funny Car team Kon Rodz Racing announced today that new sponsors Bell Racing USA and Aerodine Composites Group would increase their involvement in the team, which includes driver Cassie Simonton and veteran tuner Randy Anderson. Kon Rodz will debut a brand new look highlighting the colors and logos of Bell and Aerodine at this weekend’s O’Reilly Auto Parts Route 66 Nationals just outside of Chicago.

Aerodine Composites Group joined on as an associate sponsor at the beginning of the 2013 season. In addition to the Kon Rodz Racing Monte Carlo TAFC, Aerodine’s products can be found on some of the top tier IndyCar, NASCAR, and NHRA fuel entries. They specialize in the design, manufacturing, and maintenance of carbon fiber and other composites used in the automotive and aviation industries. Aerodine is well-known within the drag racing circles for their development of the Top Fuel canopy in cooperation with Don Schumacher Racing. Other drag racing applications include injectors and wings. The company chose to work with Kon Rodz Racing to help market their products to the Pro Sportsman and Sportsman competitors.

“Aerodine Composites was looking to expand our presence in the NHRA Top Alcohol ranks. We wanted to go with one of the top teams out there. The Kontos family was the type of team we were looking for. They have a very professional, hands-on driver in Cassie Simonton and one of the top crew chiefs in the business in Randy Anderson. We are learning what they need and how we can help them achieve their goals of winning races and championships,” said Steve Schiewer, general manager at Aerodine.

Like Aerodine, Bell Racing USA began their partnership with Kon Rodz Racing at the start of the season. The Champaign, Illinois-based safety company provided Simonton with a set of top of the line helmets, which later received a fresh coat of outstanding paint at Off Axis Custom Paint. The Chicago national event, the site of the team’s first final round last year, is also the home race for Bell Racing.

“Certainly any time we get a major racing event in Illinois we like to think of it as an opportunity to showcase our products on our home turf. The ability to have Bell employees from the main office come out to the track and get a taste of the support we provide to the drivers is an added bonus as well,” said Toby Hallett of Bell Racing USA. He added, “Our partnership with the Kon Rodz team and driver Cassie Simonton only strengthens our commitment to the NHRA Drag Racing community from the Professional ranks down through the Sportsman teams. The entire Kon Rodz organization is top notch and we couldn’t be more excited to have them represent Bell Racing USA and show off the new Bell logo to all the fans and teams starting right here in Illinois,”

Kon Rodz Racing chose the Route 66 Nationals to debut their new look due in part to the race’s proximity to the Bell Racing (Champaign, Ill.) and Aerodine (Indianapolis) company headquarters.

 The team’s success at the Windy City race track was another deciding factor. Simonton earned the team’s first #1 qualifier award at the 2012 Chicago regional before reaching her first final round at the national event, beating class veterans Steve Gasparrelli, John Lombardo Jr., and Mickey Ferro before falling to Frank Manzo. Cassie and the team raced to the finals at this year’s regional event, held just weeks ago.

“We love racing at Route 66 Raceway. We’ve been to the finals at our last two appearances at the track so we have plenty of data built up. Our goal this weekend is just like any other event – win the race. We couldn’t think of a better time to earn our first Wally, with our new look and our friends at Aerodine and Bell joining us,” claimed Simonton, the Minnesota driver now in her fourth season as the driver of the Kon Rodz Racing entry.

“The team has been working around the clock this week to get the new body ready for this race. We’re very excited to show the fans our new red, white, and black look with support from Aerodine Composites and Bell Racing USA, among others. The team has enjoyed success at this track in the past, but we’re looking to go one round further this time. Everyone on the team is hungry for our first win,” said Stefan Kontos, Kon Rodz team president.

Cassie Simonton and the Kon Rodz Racing TAFC team will take to the track for Friday qualifying at 11:30 AM and 3 PM CST. Another qualifying session is scheduled for 3 PM Saturday. Top Alcohol eliminations begin at 9 AM Sunday morning.

Kon Rodz Racing is a NHRA Top Alcohol Funny Car team owned by Canadian businessman Spiro Kontos. Minnesota native Cassie Simonton drives the team's KonRodzRacing.com Monte Carlo Alcohol Funny Car in the NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series. Spiro, Cassie, and the entire Kon Rodz team are grateful to the quality companies that support their racing program; Aerodine Composites Group, Bell Racing USA, Sadi, Lucas Oil, NGK Spark Plugs, Goodson, BAE, Goodyear, Clevite, Mac Tools, Artist ButchM, ithreesixty Music Infused Apparel, Flaming River Industries, CRC Automotive Products, Mid Ontario Truck Centre, Off Axis Custom Paint, and Sparco USA.

For more information on Kon Rodz Racing, please visit www.konrodzracing.com. Keep up with Cassie and the team on Facebook (www.facebook.com/konrodzracing) and Twitter (www.twitter.com/CassieSimonton and www.twitter.com/KonRodzPR).