Tim Keene is one of the most iconic behind-the-scenes people in the sport of road racing and open-wheel, and his success is only matched by his mouth. Working through a number of crew and manager roles in the sport, Tim has worked with Chip Ganassi Racing, Panoz, Meyer, Shank and now finds his home with the reigning IMSA champions at Action Express Racing. The guy has stories and opinions unmatched by anyone, and we’re happy for the time. Dinner was served by Tim himself in Denver, NC, with the song “Straight to Hell” by Hayes Peebles taking us out. Thanks again to Continental Tire, Acura, and Valvoline for making it all happen.
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Jon Ikeda is a great one for us because he’s the boss’s boss’s boss at Acura. His current title is Brand Officer, but he’s more of a designer than a manager, but most importantly, he’s a racer. Yeah, he’s the boss, but we only chose to sit with him because he’s a character and a great storyteller and sheds a lot of light on just how it all works. Dinner was served at Saint & Second in Long Beach, CA, with the song “Future Hit” by Louis II taking us out. Thanks again to Continental Tire, Acura, and Valvoline for making it all happen.
Eric Foss is a classic journeyman driver who has gone from amateur racer to coach to now one of the staples of the touring and production ranks of current sportscar racing. Having won in nearly everything he’s competed in, Eric is a champion of the IMSA Pilot Challenge ranks and one of the most universally respected people in the paddock. Lunch was served at Fred’s Texas Cafe in Fort Worth, Texas, with the song “Father Texas” by Birdtalker taking us out. Thanks again to Continental Tire, Acura, and Valvoline for making it all happen.
Felipe Nasr is one of the modern greats of road racing, and his legend is only growing. A native of Brazil, Felipe found huge success in European junior racing, including winning the British F3 championship before moving on to Formula One. He scored a top-five on his debut. He’s since gone on to become one of the greats in IMSA prototype ranks, winning his second championship this year on top of wins at the 12 Hours of Sebring and beyond. Dinner was served at The Cellar in Corning, NY, with the song “I’ll be Fine” by Hayes Peebles taking us out. Thanks again to Continental Tire, Acura, and Valvoline for making it all happen.
Michael Printup is the current President of Watkins Glen International, but his history as one of the sport’s most dynamic track developers is long heralded. A staple of NASCAR and the former ISC family, Michael has developed race tracks ranging from California to Michigan, including one of the craziest stories on a development project in Staten Island, NY. Dinner was served at the Blue Pointe Grill at the Harbor Hotel in Watkins Glen, NY, with the song “Trust Be a Cop” by Husbands taking us out. Thanks again to Continental Tire, Acura, and Valvoline for making it all happen.
Butch Leitzinger is a legend of the sportscar scene, having driven for some of the most historic programs in the 1990s and 2000s, including the Nissan GTU, the Bentley LMP, and most notably, Dyson Racing’s famed series of programs. Affable and very easy to get along with, Butch’s success at events like Le Mans, Daytona, Sebring, and beyond have made him a respected veteran of the sport and a heck of a storyteller. Lunch was served at Mad Mex in College Station, PA, with the song “Tommy Schnebbit” by his old friends Jonesing for Soma taking us out. Thanks again to Continental Tire, Acura, and Valvoline for making it all happen.
Tommy Milner is a second-generation racer who has become a staple of American sportscar racing, most notably as part of Corvette Racing’s program. The son of Tom Milner, who has come up several times in our podcast, Tommy broke out of his family shadow by racing for some of the most prestigious brands in the sport, including BMW, Panoz, and eventually Corvette, where he’s gone on to win the 24 Hours of Le Mans and just about everything there is to win in IMSA. Tommy and his wife Lauren joined us for dinner at The Seneca Lodge in Watkins Glen, NY, with the song “Where I Wanna Be” by Dazy Chain taking us out. Thanks again to Continental Tire, Acura, and Valvoline for making it all happen.
Jeroen Bleekemolen has become a staple of GT racing around the world; there’s virtually never a weekend where he isn’t driving something…somewhere. It’s because he’s good. Born and living in the Netherlands, Jeroen is a Le Mans winner, an IMSA champion, and was even a national hero when driving for the famed Dutch A1GP program. Breakfast was served at Donna’s Restaurant in Corning, NY, with the song “Everything You Need” by Jamie Lono taking us out. Thanks again to Continental Tire, Acura, and Valvoline for making it all happen.
Kevin Schwantz is one of America’s greatest motorcycle racers, and it doesn’t hurt that he’s funny as hell. Coming up through the American ranks in the 1980s, Kevin went on to become one of Suzuki’s MotorGP factory riders, engaging in legendary battles with Wayne Rainey through the 1990s until finally winning the MotoGP World Championship in 1993. Lunch was Chinatown in Austin, TX, with the song “Texas” by Loveland taking us out. Thanks again to Continental Tire, Acura, and Valvoline for making it all happen.
A special message to our fans on the future of our “Dinner with Racers” streaming service, with a special thank you to Continental Tire and our fans.
We’ve said we’d avoid doing remote interviews but, well, changing times call for changing approaches. The final in our series of catch-ups with previous guests, we reached out to Zach Veach, who in only five months has encountered a whole number of life changes, luckily he can laugh. Closeout song is “Climb Down That Tree” by Jacob Montague. Thanks to Continental Tire, Valvoline and Acura for making this happen.
We’ve said we’d avoid doing remote interviews but, well, changing times call for changing approaches. The fourth in our series of catch-ups with previous guests, we reached out to Fonzie’s Dad’s Brother, Ricky Taylor, who since his initial recording with us in 2015 went on to be the dominant force in the 2017 DPi debut, drive for Roger Penske, become an Acura factory driver, test an IndyCar, and is now bringing this all back to his father’s team for 2021 . Closeout song is “Big Shot” by IRONTOM. Thanks to Continental Tire, Valvoline and Acura for making this happen.
We’ve said we’d avoid doing remote interviews but, well, changing times call for changing approaches. The third in our series of catch-ups with previous guests, we reached out to Andy Lally, who since his initial recording with us in 2015 was unsure of his future with Magnus Racing or in the sport, where he’s continued to thrive taking another win at Daytona, multiple other wins and podiums, as well as several NASCAR outings. Closeout song is “Champion” by That Kid CG. Thanks to Continental Tire, Valvoline and Acura for making this happen.
We’ve said we’d avoid doing remote interviews but, well, changing times call for changing approaches. The second in our series of catch-ups with previous guests, we reached out to Mike Shank, who since his initial recording with us in 2016 went on to run a factory GTD program, win a GTD championship, start an IndyCar team, and now returns to the top tiers of IMSA with the Acura DPi. Closeout song is “Benedictus” by SAILR. Thanks to Continental Tire, Valvoline and Acura for making this happen.
Recovering from a global pandemic, living in a world at odds with itself and in the throws of economic collapse, we’re of course talking about the 1930’s, right? In looking to our past to help us understand the future, our search for a hero came back with, well, something more on-brand for us. Welcome to the story of Mike Boyle, the “business man” who started an Indianapolis 500 dynasty. Recorded specifically for our Amazon Prime series, here are the less-edited versions of the same stories, closing with John Pappas who is one of the partners in the Boyle Racing Headquarters Foundation. Closeout song is “I’ll Change My ways” by Danny Stewart, and lunch served at Dawson’s on Main in Indianapolis, Indiana. Thanks to Continental Tire, Valvoline and Acura for making this happen.
With the country in lockdown in the midst of the COVID 19 pandemic, our hosts took a 15,000 mile road trip during the month of June, 2020, to see just what the effect was on race tracks across the country. This was all part of the first episode of Season Two “Dinner with Racers” on Amazon Prime. Here now are the less edited versions of some of those meetups. This episode focuses on corporate owned race tracks, namely Texas Motor Speedway’s Eddie Gossage, who manages one of the biggest oval facilities in the country for Speedway Motorsports, and John Story, who runs PR and marketing for Sebring International Raceway, a famed road course that is now part of NASCAR Holding’s ownership of IMSA. Music of JMR’s “Sugar Cane” taking us out. Thanks again to Continental Tire, Acura and Valvoline for making it all happen.
It’s Mark Martin. We drove to Montana. Dinner was delivered courtesy of Rosa’s in Bigfork, MT with Beeleaf’s ”Love Thy Neighbor” taking us out. Thanks again to Continental Tire, Acura and Valvoline for making it all happen.
Zach Veach is most known in American open wheel racing for making his opportunities happen for himself. Not growing up with the same wealthy means as others, Zach created a series of opportunities for himself first in Indy Lights, where he won multiple races, and then securing his own sponsorship in IndyCar to run the last three seasons with Andretti Autosport. Funny and charismatic, Zach’s personality really shines through. Lunch was served at Blue Sushi Sake Grill in Indianapolis, IN, with Stephen Day’s “Twenty Two and Some Change” taking us out. Thanks again to Continental Tire, Acura and Valvoline for making it all happen.
He may not be a household name outside of NASCAR, but Richard “Slugger” Labbe is a true throwback Crew Chief from the last several decades of NASCAR. Working for some of the biggest teams in the sport, Slugger is known as a bigger-than-life personality who is known for finding “performance advantages” in the rulebook. He clearly enjoys his current job in a more executive NASCAR role, so that’s about as much as we’ll say, but we hope you enjoy him not telling any of his best stories while recording. Dinner wasn’t served at his home in Enochville, NC, with Trenton’s “Find a Way” taking us out. Thanks again to Continental Tire, Acura and Valvoline for making it all happen.
If you follow NASCAR then you already know Bobby’s name, but he’s one of the most celebrated drivers of the last several decades. The 2000 series champion and recent Inductee to the NASCAR Hall of Fame, Bobby’s career not only spans the golden years of 1990’s and 2000’s stock cars, but he’s also forayed in to sportscar racing, and currently runs a fruitful activation business centered around the sport. Sharing a common past with co-host Sean Heckman, Bobby is as funny as he is likable… and fast. Dinner was served at Real Kitchen in High Point, NC, with Ben Richter’s “The Thanksgiving Song” taking us out. Thanks again to Continental Tire, Acura and Valvoline for making it all happen.