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Aug302011

Tuesday, August 30, 2011 at 09:38PM

August 31, 2011

The ALMS "responsible and sustainable racing" road show goes to Washington.

By Peter M. De Lorenzo

Detroit. For many people racing has been and should be a raucous, unruly, fun endeavor that is the antithesis of any idea of "green." And I can certainly see and understand that point of view. But I can also understand a different view, which I have been espousing since January of 2007. And that is, given the nature of the ongoing societal shift that is happening across the globe, to me the fundamental questions should be these: Which would you rather have? A sport that is gradually more and more ostracized for not being responsive to the prevailing "efficiency" frenzy sweeping the political agendas of nations worldwide, which could spell certain doom for racing itself if left unchecked? Or would you rather see racing get out front of the discussion and become part of the solution, rather than continue to be an easy target?

Here's what American Le Mans Series President and CEO Scott Atherton had to say in a speech to journalists, political leaders and government officials in Washington at the National Press Club today: “Ten days ago at Road America, renewable fuel use by our race cars reduced petroleum consumption by 48 percent compared to traditional all-petroleum racing fuel – an ALMS record. According to the Department of Energy, if such a result was translated to the U.S. vehicle fleet, the nation could decrease imported oil dependency by half enabling us to keep $175 billion every year inside our economy.”

Touting motorsports as a catalyst to develop new technologies, the American Le Mans Series teamed up with the U.S. Department of Energy, the Environmental Protection Agency and SAE International three years ago in order to earn an "official" Green Racing designation. And I applaud Atherton for being the only chief executive of a major league racing series in this country who is willing to take his "responsible and sustainable" message right to the politicos who make decisions based - rightly or wrongly - on the tidal wave of information that washes over their desks every day, be it accurate or not. Atherton's zeal in taking the "green" racing message to Washington instead of letting the political winds constantly shape the discussion is very important for the ALMS, and for all of motorsport here in America.

"We are not yet finished in developing Green Racing,” Atherton continued. “In order to remain the Global Leader of Green Racing, the American Le Mans Series will keep moving forward. We expect to soon have manufacturers and teams competing with new alternative fuels, both bio-based and Compressed Natural Gas. Our rules makers are actively working with auto manufacturers and government officials to steadily reduce the total energy consumed by the cars. Among the options are percentage reductions in fuel allocations over time and total energy allocations as early as 2014. We intend to work with our partners, teams and manufacturers to move toward turning these goals and objectives into reality in the not distant future. At the same time I want to assure our partners and competitors that we value rules stability while work goes on developing the details of Green Racing 2.0."

Certainly the most visible partner with the ALMS in projecting this idea of "green" racing is Michelin. The ever forward-thinking French tire company launched its MICHELIN GREEN X Challenge to showcase such innovative technologies as direct injection, turbo-diesels, gas/electric hybrids, flywheel hybrids, electric-wheel motors, as well as low-sulfur gas-to-liquid diesel, E10, cellulosic E85 and isobutanol fuels. Using the Green Racing steering group’s formula to recognize the Prototype and GT cars that post the best scores for clean, fast and efficient performance, the MICHELIN GREEN X Challenge is a race within the race at every ALMS event.

Using a formula of Clean factor + Fast factor + Efficient factor = MICHELIN® GREEN X® Challenge score, 2011 ALMS MICHELIN® GREEN X® Challenge champions win automatic invitations to the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 2012. Similar MICHELIN GREEN X Challenge competitions are also held at European and Asian series events and at the prestigious 24 Hours of Le Mans.

A breakdown of the formula looks like this: The Clean factor measures greenhouse gas emissions and the amount of oil used during the race for each car. This factor is calculated on the total life-cycle basis, commonly called “well-to-wheel.” The Fast factor is taken from the car’s average race speed. The Efficient factor takes the amount of energy consumed by each car and divides this by its mass. The score is calculated for each lap of the race — for each car in the LMP and GT classes. It is designed so the lowest score wins.

And 25 races later (this weekend's inaugural Baltimore Grand Prix will mark the 26th MICHELIN GREEN X Challenge event), it's still going strong. As a matter of fact 22 of the first 50 MICHELIN GREEN X Challenge winners have also won their respective class on the track. “People think that you can’t be clean, fast and efficient, but the racers and the manufacturers know that the most efficient cars usually win,” said Silvia Mammone, Michelin motorsports manager.

Atherton concluded his speech with this: “We are immensely proud of the partnership between our Series, our participating OEMs and tire companies, and our government. The automotive industry’s most important race today is not Daytona, Indy or Le Mans. The new race is defined by global concerns for energy supply and climate change. The great race of the 21st Century is for economic, socially responsible, sustainable transportation solutions, and we are proud of the role we have in that race.”

I think it's important that enthusiasts of all stripes embrace what Atherton, the ALMS - and Michelin - is up to, because it could actually shape the future discussion as to how racing is perceived going forward in this country.

No big deal? Maybe. But I believe the fact that the ALMS is there and visible on radar screens in Washington prevents a lot of negativity about racing from cropping up and gaining any traction whatsoever.

And that's an exceedingly good thing.

Publisher's Note: As part of our continuing series celebrating the "Glory Days" of racing, we're proud to present another noteworthy image from the Ford Racing Archives. - PMD

(Courtesy of the Ford Racing Archives)
Milwaukee, Wisconsin, August 23rd, 1964. A.J. Foyt debuted his No. 1 Sheraton/Thompson Lotus-Ford in the Tony Bettenhausen 200 at The Milwaukee Mile. He qualified 3rd in the USAC Champ Car Series race behind pole-sitter Parnelli Jones (No. 98 Team Lotus Lotus-Ford) and Rodger Ward (No. 2 Kaiser Aluminum Watson-Ford) but would finish dead last after his transmission failed on the first lap. It was one of the few days that didn't go Foyt's way that year as he won 10 out of 13 races on his way to capturing the 1964 USAC Champ Car Series championship.

Publisher's Note: Like these Ford racing photos? Check out www.fordimages.com. Be forewarned, however, because you won't be able to go there and not order something. - PMD

See another live episode of "Autoline After Hours" with hosts John McElroy, from Autoline Detroit, and Peter De Lorenzo, The Autoextremist, and guests this Thursday evening, at 7:00PM EDT at www.autolinedetroit.tv.