for the Fourth-Consecutive Year at The 50th Anniversary Rolex 24 At Daytona, January 26 – 29
Porsche Team Joins Magnus Racing for 2012 Effort with Returning Team Drivers Ryan Eversley, Daniel Graeff and Ron Yarab
Racing4Research, a motorsports-based fundraising program developed by the Children’s Tumor Foundation (CTF) to find treatments and a cure for neurofibromatosis, or NF, will compete in the Rolex 24 At Daytona for the fourth consecutive year in 2012 in a Magnus Racing Porsche GT3 with returning team drivers Ryan Eversley, Daniel Graeff and Ron Yarab.
Since its debut in the 2008 running of America’s premier endurance race, CTF has raised over $1.5 million through Racing4Research in the last four runnings of the Rolex 24 At Daytona. The team will race in next month’s 50th Anniversary running of the 24-hour classic with Magnus Racing, a top Porsche entrant in the GRAND-AM Rolex Sports Car Series, with Eversley, Graeff, Yarab and a fourth driver to be named in the coming weeks. The team participated in a two-day test at Daytona on Tuesday and Wednesday where all three drivers put in ample time behind the wheel of the No. 04 CTF Racing4Research Porsche GT3.
“The test went really well,” Eversley said. “It is the first time for the Children’s Tumor Foundation to be involved with Magnus Racing, but not my first time, so I knew the quality program I was going to be a part of when I came onboard. The last two days have been like that completely. Ron and Daniel have been as fast as they have ever been here before and we have honestly been working more on long-range setup. So for them to be as fast as they have ever been in our first time with this car is a very, very positive thing.”
Eversley also supported the CTF Racing4Research program in other series and races in 2011.
“It is one thing to be a race car driver,” Eversley said. “That is something that is really cool to me, and something that I have always wanted to do, but to be able to use my racing to give back to a community like the CTF and NF communities is something that I am very grateful for and extremely honored to be a part of.”
Eversley, the 2011 GRAND-AM Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge ST (Street Tuner) Championship runner-up, will race with CTF for the second-straight year in the Rolex 24 while Graeff and Yarab have been team drivers since the program’s inception.
“It’s always good to be at Daytona and we are looking forward to our partnership with Magnus,” Yarab said. “There is a good synergy between the team’s goals and what we want to do with the charity in 2012 with GRAND-AM. Magnus has put together a quality package and our lap times indicate that. Daniel ran laps in the (one minute and) 52s, I ran in the 53s, and we are looking good.”
Yarab has also noticed some fast growth off the track since the Racing4Research program was started.
“The first year we did this I think we had about 20 kids, and now it has grown to over 100 and their families,” Yarab said. “It is just really great to see their faces on race day. It makes you feel good because usually you get into racing for your own selfish interests, but now we can literally help thousands of people through the money we raise doing this. It is just a great experience, I hope we can keep doing this, and actually do more of it.”
Graeff was equally pleased with the team’s initial outing with Magnus.
“It was a very productive two days,” Graeff said. “We have a platform that is very strong, we feel good about it, and there is still some room there to do some minor tweaking to make it even that much better. As a team, in terms of the drivers and the crew working on the car, we have really jelled together well, and we are showing the results.”
Founded in 1978, the CTF is dedicated to improving the health and well being of the more than 2 million people around the world living with NF. The charity’s research program has played a key role in the discovery of the genes that cause NF, understanding the biology of NF, creation of the NF Clinic Network and preclinical screening of drug compounds that appear promising in treating the disorder. Donations can be made at http://racing4research.org.
Next up for the No. 04 CTF Racing4Research Porsche team is the Roar Before the Rolex 24 Test Days at Daytona, January 6 – 8. The 50th Anniversary Rolex 24 At Daytona will be run January 26 – 29.
Noteworthy
- Beyond his annual Rolex 24 participation, Graeff is an active and year-round supporter of the CTF and is on the organization's Board of Directors. “I am a parent, I look at my own children and I am exceedingly thankful that they are healthy,” Graeff said. “When I see families dealing with NF, and I see how brave they are, and how courageous the children are while still being child-like and filled with joy, it is just a tremendous inspiration for me, personally and professionally.”
- A benefit of running with Magnus Racing is working with the team’s full season No. 44 Porsche GT3 team with team owner/driver John Potter and recently signed multiple GRAND-AM Rolex Sports Car Series Champion Andy Lally. “It is the second year in a row that I will be on the same team with CTF and with my buddy Ryan Eversley as a teammate,” said Lally, who took a few laps in the No. 04 CTF Racing4Research Porsche on Tuesday. “I got to get out, jump in the car and get a few laps in there, just to kind of give a second opinion, but the run was virtually identical to Ryan’s. I think they are on a good direction there. All the guys in the car have been getting faster and faster this week, two of the guys hit their personal best, and I am sure that was a thrill. For being only December, and us having January test days to go, they have got a lot to look forward to.”
About The Children’s Tumor Foundation: The Children's Tumor Foundation is a 501(C)(3), nonprofit organization and recipient of a four-star rating from Charity Navigator. The Foundation is dedicated to improving the health and well-being of people living with neurofibromatosis (NF), a term for three distinct disorders: NF1, NF2 and schwannomatosis. NF causes tumors to grow on nerves throughout the body and can lead to blindness, bone deformities, cancer, deafness, disfigurement, learning disabilities and disabling pain. NF affects more people than cystic fibrosis, Duchenne muscular dystrophy and Huntington’s disease combined. The Children’s Tumor Foundation funds critical research to find treatments for NF. This research is shedding new light on several forms of cancer, brain tumors, bone abnormalities and learning disabilities, benefiting the broader community. Learn more about the Children’s Tumor Foundation at (www.ctf.org).
