Press Contact: Dennis Punch (704) 530-4754
Watkins Glen, NY (August 11, 2006) Watkins Glen International and the Dyson Family are both legendary in the Grand American Rolex Sports Car Series. However, in their final Rolex series race for 2006, Rob and Chris Dyson fell pray to an alternator problem and finished a disappointing 20th in the Crown Royal 200 at The Glen on Friday evening.
Dyson patriarch Rob was selected to qualify the #16 Thetford / Norcold Pontriac Crawford on Thursday afternoon at The Glen. Rob posted a fast lap of 1:11.682 / 123.043 mph to earn the 23rd starting position for the Crown Royal 200 at The Glen.
Rob Dyson quickly moved up to 20th position after only three laps of the two-hour sprint race, and by lap eight, has jumped all the way up to the 15th position. However, his advancement was cut short on lap 11 when the veteran racer brought his Pontiac Crawford to pit road. The Thetford / Norcold crew quickly began to search for the problem, and eventually pushed the car behind pit wall for a thorough inspection. It was determined that the alternator was the problem, and the crew worked quickly to overcome this temporary setback.
After the problem was handled, Rob Dyson reentered the race on lap 41 in the 22nd position. He would remain behind the wheel until he returned to pit road on lap 62 for fuel, tires, and a driver change.
Chris Dyson took control of the #16 Thetford / Norcold Pontiac Crawford at this point and reentered the event in the 22nd position. Chris was able to turn consistent lap times during the remaining laps of the race and take the checkered flag in the 20th position.
“The car was good,” Rob Dyson stated after the race. “It was very unfortunate about the alternator problem. Had it been the Rolex 24 (At Daytona), being out thirty minutes wouldn’t have been as big of an issue. When the car was fixed, Chris (Dyson) just tried to run the race and stay out of the way of the race and championship contenders. Overall, the car was good and the team did a great job fixing the car and getting it back out.”
The Crown Royal at The Glen was the final Rolex Series race for the Dyson Thetford / Norcold Pontiac Crawford for 2006. In their six Rolex Series races this season, their best finish was a seventh at the Homestead-Miami Speedway on March 25th. The team began the season with an impressive 10th-place finish in the DP Class in the Rolex 24 At Daytona in January, and also finished tenth at Virginia International Raceway in April. Overall, the #16 Thetford / Norcold Pontiac Crawford Racing Team posted three top-ten finishes in six events during the competitive Rolex Series season.
