Ask Patty is looking for support from race teams and race car drivers
to display the United Spinal Motorsports logo to bring awareness and
educate people with disabilities about the opportunity to compete on an
equal playing field with able bodied race car drivers in the Sports Car
Club of America.
The mission of United Spinal Association’s Motorsports program
is to encourage people with disabilities, including individuals who use
adaptive automotive equipment, to participate in competitive
motorsports. It is also to cultivate partnerships within the
motorsports industry in support of the program, thus raising awareness
about spinal cord injuries and disorders.
Meet a Motorsports Team Member:
Carol Hollfelder’s
interest in cars goes back to her childhood. Cars were and are a family
passion. Although Carol has always loved cars, she began competing one
horse at a time at the age of nine. She rode hunters and jumpers until
she was injured in a motorcycle accident in 1987 at the age of 18. Due
to a spinal cord injury, she could no longer compete as an equestrian
so she turned her drive for competition towards sportcars.
Racing
began with club events at Willow Springs, Riverside Raceway and other
historic tracks. Driving courses came first, then club races. Carol
began using her street car, a Toyota Supra, in these events. It was an
automatic because a decade ago there were no hand controls for a manual
transmission. In 1999, Carol won SCCA’s Cal Club Regional Championship
in the T1 class. In 2003, she began campaigning a Ford Mustang equipped
with Ford’s ASM/SSM transmission out of their Aston Martin Vanquish.
She also drives with a brake/throttle system that was designed by her
father. Tom Hollfelder. and fabricated by Steele Therkleson, a mechanic
on the Le Mans winning 1966-67 Ford GT40 teams.
As a paraplegic,
Carol has been faced with many obstacles which the able-bodied never
confront. As a result of this, she is extremely interested in issues
and research affecting the disabled.
Carol hopes to bring
people’s attention to the hand control system that she uses. She hopes
to show other people with disabilities that nothing is beyond their
reach, not even the ultra competitive world of motorsports. She is also
looking ahead in her own driving. Endurance racing with her husband at
Daytona is a goal that she looks forward to achieving.
And recently Jody DeVere, Ask Patty President was named the Chairperson of the Motorsports Committee!
Please
pass this article along to race teams and drivers you know who might be
interested in supporting this wonderful program. Spread the word by
writing a post or sending an email note about the United Spinal Motorsports program.
Upcoming Event:
Victory Lap 2007 will be at Irwindale Speedway in Southern California on April 12, 2007. You can find more information at Redi Autosport. Come out and show your support!