JEFF COURTNEY RECAPS 2008 SEASON

Milwaukee, Wisc. (October 24, 2008) – Jeff Courtney, driver of the No. 99 Kenda/TJM IWM/Coins of America Dodge Viper, along with the entire Woodhouse Performance Team, is decompressing and re-grouping after a tumultuous season in the SCCA Pro Racing SPEED World Challenge GT Series. “It was intense, we suffered our share of bad luck, but a lot of great things happened,” said Courtney. For the second year in a row, Courtney finished in the top ten in Championship points.
Although Courtney was unable to climb the podium, he was awarded the Sunoco Hard Charger Award and the Racing Electronics Holeshot award a couple times this season. “We had a lot of twists and turns this season, but for a relatively small operation, Woodhouse Performance has done amazingly well. The only thing that would have made it better was if I would have gotten a win, not just for me, but for the entire team,” said Courtney. “I know that Erik (Messley) and Eddie (Martin) wanted a win as badly as I did.”
In between action at the track, Rick Maxwell and Ashley Wick worked hard to keep both the No. 99 and the No. 13 cars ready for upcoming races across the country. Countless hours were spent going over the cars and making adjustments to obtain peak performance on race day. “Everyone worked really hard this year, and it really showed in the results. I’m very proud of my team,” said team owner Bob Woodhouse.
Woodhouse Performance did collect three checkered flags this season from driver Tommy Archer in the No. 13 Foametix Dodge Viper.
“There are so many behind-the-scenes people to thank too,” said Courtney. “Susan Dunklau, Andrew Richmond and Louise Woodhouse, they all helped so much from making travel arrangements to washing race suits between events.”
Another key component was John Mills, whose engineering experience was pivotal and helped the team earn honors this year.
“In addition to the crew and the team, I have to thank all of my sponsors. Without their support, I would not be able to participate in this great series,” said Courtney. Courtney’s sponsors include Kenda Tires, TJM Integrated Wealth Management, Coins of America, Badger Components, Karavan Trailers, JG Wheels, Eibach Springs, and Foerster Signs. I would also like to thank the following sponsors who sponsored special single events this year, such as Accurate Metal Products, Kapco Inc., and Foametix.
“MPI has done a great job of promoting me this year, a special thank you to LesleyAnn Neulrich, Dave Wied and Emily Golden for their promotional and marketing efforts,” said Courtney.
“I want to leave everyone with my appreciation,” said Courtney. “Thanks to all who have supported me, whether on television, at the race, or in the pits, all of my family and friends, it took all of you to make this work. See you again next year.”

END OF THE ROAD

Up and Down Season Ends at Road Atlanta
Atlanta, GA (October 3, 2008) – The Woodhouse Performance Team descended on Road Atlanta unified with a strong desire to finish on the podium. For Jeff Courtney, river of the No. 99 Kenda/TJM IWM/Coins of America Dodge Viper, it was the last chance this season for a checkered flag. The SCCA Pro Racing SPEED World Challenge GT finale was sponsored by FOAMETIX, a state-of-the-art foam building insulation supplier owned by teammate Claudio Burton, driver of the No. 13 FOAMETIX Dodge Viper, who with a large crowd of supporters also planned a good finish. When hopes are so high, anything less is disappointing, and the Woodhouse team felt the piercing disappointment of two cars in the DNF category at the end of the race.
On Tuesday after only three laps into the first practice session, Courtney’s No. 99 car lost the motor. The team scrambled to install the back-up motor, which was found to be a bit down in power. “In the last practice session Tuesday, I ran it three laps to shake it out, but it was still a little slow in the straight-aways,” said Courtney.
During the second practice session, Burton had an unfortunate crash in the No. 13 car and the Team struggled to determine whether to attempt to fix the No. 13 in time for the race, or to try and find an alternate car to run. As Foametix was sponsoring the finale, pressure to see the branding in the race was acute.
The race day, it was decided that Courtney would carry the FOAMETIX branding on his No. 99 Kenda/TJM IWM/Coins of America Dodge Viper in the SCCA Pro Racing SPEED World Challenge GT finale. Along with the additional logos, Courtney’s car would be equipped with the SPEED Channel camera, giving the No. 99 car increased visibility. “I was proud to carry the branding for [Burton],” said Courtney. “I really wanted to make a good run for both [Burton] and FOAMETIX, it was just an unfortunate weekend for both of us.”
After a very limited number of practice laps, the No. 99 car made a great start on race day, earning Courtney the Racing Electronics Holeshot Award as he advanced three positions in the opening lap of the race. “I had a great start,” said Courtney. “I would gain a lot of ground in the technical sections of the track, only to lose it on the straight-aways. I still feel we could have finished in the top ten.” A top ten finish would have kept Courtney in the sixth place position in the 2008 Drivers Championship Points race, but he had to settle for eighth after being slammed from the rear and taken out of the race.
During lap 8, Jason Foster’s Dodge Viper came into turn 10 carrying excessive speed and used Courtney as a brake, crashing into the left rear portion of Courtney’s car, knocking the wind out of him. A full course caution allowed the other cars to circulate while the two wrecked cars were flat-bedded back to the pits, marking the end of the race for Courtney and the Woodhouse Performance Team.
“It wasn’t how we wanted to go out, I had great hopes for this race,” said Courtney. “But as I’ve said before, that’s racing. I can’t stress enough how much work the whole team was forced into this weekend and how much I appreciate all they did. No matter what happened, they kept their chins up and worked hard.”
“Although disappointing, the results from Road Atlanta were not a measure of the Woodhouse Racing Team’s ability to perform during this amazing 2008 season,” said Courtney. “The entire team accomplished fantastic results during the season, and that is what should be remembered.”
Watch the race on the SPEED Channel on Wednesday, October 15 at 1 pm (EDT).

THE FINISH LINE

Road Atlanta Last Chance for Checkered FlagMilwaukee, Wisc. (Oct. 1, 2008) – The final race of the SCCA Pro SPEED World Challenge GT race is this Friday, October 3 at Road Atlanta, followed by the awards banquet Friday evening. This will be the last opportunity for drivers to capture that elusive checkered flag or podium finish. The Woodhouse Racing Team is ready.

Jeff Courtney, driver of the No. 99 Kenda/TJM IWM/Coins of America Dodge Viper heads into Road Atlanta optimistic, he has some previous success at this track and is looking to make the last race count with a podium finish. Courtney, along with all Viper drivers, was hoping for some help from SCCA to lift some of the Viper restrictions, but so far the SCCA is silent.

“I don’t want to sound desperate, but I can’t tell you how bad I want to be standing on that podium in Atlanta,” said Courtney. “Some terrific opportunities slipped away from us this season, I honestly expected us to have been to the podium holding a checkered flag already.”

Teammate Claudio Burton will be driving the No. 13 Foametix Dodge Viper for the Road Atlanta race. Burton’s company, Foametix, makers of high-quality, environmentally friendly spray foam insulation will be sponsoring the finale.

“It should be a great event, especially for Claudio. I hope he has a great race in front of his 30 plus guests,” said Courtney. Courtney, currently in a tenuous 6th place in the SCCA Pro SPEED World Challenge Championship Points race, will have a battle to defend that position against Mike McCann, who trails Courtney by only three points.

The race is set to begin on Friday, October 3, at 12:20 EDT.