Gentlemen,
At Rally 12 in Utah I handed out three “Friend of the Forum” awards on behalf of the Ford GT Forum. Those members who were there know pretty much what I’m about to write but for those not in attendance here is some information about the awards and who they went to. The impetus for these awards goes back to 2009 when we became aware that Matech Competition was going to enter their Ford GTs at the 24 Hours of Le Mans. I posted immediately something I thought was audacious at the time and in hindsight, it was. I said that “If Ford GT goes back to Le Mans, we are going as well AND we are going to put “Ford GT Forum” on the race cars”. DBK’s first comment was that I was not aware of how expensive it would be to acquire sponsorship space on the side of one of those cars. Undaunted I began the Forum’s sponsorship effort and two weeks into my fundraising I received a call from Switzerland. Martin Bartek, owner of Matech Competition had been following my efforts on the Forum and told me he was flattered that American GT owners were following his team. Martin graciously accepted our small sponsorship effort and not only put “Ford GT Forum” prominently on the rocker panels of both cars, he puts three stickers on each car listing all of the contributors names. In addition he provided a first-class race week hospitality area for Ford GT Forum members and gave us all unprecedented access to the pit area at all times, even during the race. Matech GT #60 led the race for the first nine hours but the car was eventually sidelined with an engine failure. Still, we had all witnessed the Ford GT’s first return to Le Mans since 1969. At the end of the race I made one more audacious request. I asked Martin if he would give me all eight spark plugs from both race cars that were used during the actual race. Lo and behold, the plugs were removed and each one packaged separately detailing the car that it came out of and the cylinder that it was firing during the race. In addition, all six sponsor name badges were carefully removed and labeled with the car they were on and the place they were located on each car.
Here I had some priceless pieces of Ford GT history at Le Mans. The #3 cylinder spark plugs from both cars will remain with me forever. The other spark plugs and name badges I decided to turn into awards to be presented to individuals who have done something extraordinary for the Ford GT fraternity.
The first three awards were presented years ago at Rally V in Virginia. The #1 spark plugs from both cars went to David Bannister of course. He has done more for the Ford GT community than all of the rest of us combined. The second award went to the Forum’s top contributor during our Matech sponsorship effort, Joe Dozzo. The third award went to Ray Hofman who had just set a World Record in the Standing Mile in his yellow Ford GT. Ray generated tons to publicity for Ford and was one of the nicest and most accomplished men any of us had ever met. Ray lost his life in an aviation accident a couple years later.
The 2017 “Friends of the Forum” awards went to…….
Henry Ford III – Henry Ford was with us in Utah and was infinitely patient and gracious as always. With one of the most famous names in history, it must be both a blessing and a curse. Everybody, at every event, wants to have their picture taken with, get an autograph from, and exchange a few words with Henry Ford. I have never seen him without a smile on his face and he appears to have an endless reserve of good cheer. He’s an extraordinary ambassador for the Ford Motor Company and he has been an amazing friend of the Ford GT Forum. A sincere thank you from all of us to Henry Ford III.
Raj Nair - When it comes to audacious, I don’t hold a candle to Raj Nair. After his pet “Project Silver” to take a special Mustang to Le Mans was shot down, Raj and his small team conceived of and created the new GT, got the whole project approved for production, and helped engineer a victory at LeMans on the 50th Anniversary of the GT’s first win in 1966. At Rally 10 Raj stood before all of us and made it clear that existing GT owners would be given special consideration in the allocation of the new GT. He was true to his word and as a result many of us are receiving one. This new supercar has rekindled interest in all GTs and reinvigorated our Forum and GT enthusiasm worldwide. A sincere thank you from all of us to Raj Nair.
Mark McGowan - Mark has been a fixture at GT Forum Rallies for a decade now. He has provided most of us with some of the most thrilling rides we have ever experienced on racetracks across the country in both Mustangs and Ford GT’s. But Mark has also come through behind the scenes with some extraordinary effort on behalf of the GT Forum. As Ford Motor Company’s head honcho test driver and vehicle dynamics engineer Mark is a big part of the reason why our cars handle so well. Plus, he’s amazingly kind, generous, considerate, and most of all, a very talented driver. A sincere thank you from all of us to Mark McGowan.
I enjoyed putting these together and I hope the recipients enjoy these small pieces of Ford GT history at Circuit de la Sarthe.
Chip Beck
At Rally 12 in Utah I handed out three “Friend of the Forum” awards on behalf of the Ford GT Forum. Those members who were there know pretty much what I’m about to write but for those not in attendance here is some information about the awards and who they went to. The impetus for these awards goes back to 2009 when we became aware that Matech Competition was going to enter their Ford GTs at the 24 Hours of Le Mans. I posted immediately something I thought was audacious at the time and in hindsight, it was. I said that “If Ford GT goes back to Le Mans, we are going as well AND we are going to put “Ford GT Forum” on the race cars”. DBK’s first comment was that I was not aware of how expensive it would be to acquire sponsorship space on the side of one of those cars. Undaunted I began the Forum’s sponsorship effort and two weeks into my fundraising I received a call from Switzerland. Martin Bartek, owner of Matech Competition had been following my efforts on the Forum and told me he was flattered that American GT owners were following his team. Martin graciously accepted our small sponsorship effort and not only put “Ford GT Forum” prominently on the rocker panels of both cars, he puts three stickers on each car listing all of the contributors names. In addition he provided a first-class race week hospitality area for Ford GT Forum members and gave us all unprecedented access to the pit area at all times, even during the race. Matech GT #60 led the race for the first nine hours but the car was eventually sidelined with an engine failure. Still, we had all witnessed the Ford GT’s first return to Le Mans since 1969. At the end of the race I made one more audacious request. I asked Martin if he would give me all eight spark plugs from both race cars that were used during the actual race. Lo and behold, the plugs were removed and each one packaged separately detailing the car that it came out of and the cylinder that it was firing during the race. In addition, all six sponsor name badges were carefully removed and labeled with the car they were on and the place they were located on each car.
Here I had some priceless pieces of Ford GT history at Le Mans. The #3 cylinder spark plugs from both cars will remain with me forever. The other spark plugs and name badges I decided to turn into awards to be presented to individuals who have done something extraordinary for the Ford GT fraternity.
The first three awards were presented years ago at Rally V in Virginia. The #1 spark plugs from both cars went to David Bannister of course. He has done more for the Ford GT community than all of the rest of us combined. The second award went to the Forum’s top contributor during our Matech sponsorship effort, Joe Dozzo. The third award went to Ray Hofman who had just set a World Record in the Standing Mile in his yellow Ford GT. Ray generated tons to publicity for Ford and was one of the nicest and most accomplished men any of us had ever met. Ray lost his life in an aviation accident a couple years later.
The 2017 “Friends of the Forum” awards went to…….
Henry Ford III – Henry Ford was with us in Utah and was infinitely patient and gracious as always. With one of the most famous names in history, it must be both a blessing and a curse. Everybody, at every event, wants to have their picture taken with, get an autograph from, and exchange a few words with Henry Ford. I have never seen him without a smile on his face and he appears to have an endless reserve of good cheer. He’s an extraordinary ambassador for the Ford Motor Company and he has been an amazing friend of the Ford GT Forum. A sincere thank you from all of us to Henry Ford III.
Raj Nair - When it comes to audacious, I don’t hold a candle to Raj Nair. After his pet “Project Silver” to take a special Mustang to Le Mans was shot down, Raj and his small team conceived of and created the new GT, got the whole project approved for production, and helped engineer a victory at LeMans on the 50th Anniversary of the GT’s first win in 1966. At Rally 10 Raj stood before all of us and made it clear that existing GT owners would be given special consideration in the allocation of the new GT. He was true to his word and as a result many of us are receiving one. This new supercar has rekindled interest in all GTs and reinvigorated our Forum and GT enthusiasm worldwide. A sincere thank you from all of us to Raj Nair.
Mark McGowan - Mark has been a fixture at GT Forum Rallies for a decade now. He has provided most of us with some of the most thrilling rides we have ever experienced on racetracks across the country in both Mustangs and Ford GT’s. But Mark has also come through behind the scenes with some extraordinary effort on behalf of the GT Forum. As Ford Motor Company’s head honcho test driver and vehicle dynamics engineer Mark is a big part of the reason why our cars handle so well. Plus, he’s amazingly kind, generous, considerate, and most of all, a very talented driver. A sincere thank you from all of us to Mark McGowan.
I enjoyed putting these together and I hope the recipients enjoy these small pieces of Ford GT history at Circuit de la Sarthe.
Chip Beck
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