• Demonstration runs planned for today

• Engineers and crew worked well into the morning hours Friday in preparation for the first full-on test run of the Corsa Motorsports Ginetta-Zytek 09 hybrid prototype race car. Test laps will happen at 12:20 p.m. and 3:10 p.m. today.
  
  Officially, the test laps will be called a demonstration run. Steve Pruitt, owner of Corsa Motorsports and the man behind the hybrid race car, recognizes it as the first step in a “long road ahead.”
  
  “Everything is just so new. We just don’t know, at this point, what to expect. We’re trying to take our time to make sure we do it right rather than run the risk of doing something wrong,” he said from his garage at the Miller Motorsports Park in Tooele, Utah.
  
  The hybrid race car was designed and built by engineers at Zytek in the United Kingdom over a 13-month period. It made a single lap under electrical power in England last week and was then shipped to Utah for entry in the American Le Mans Series’ Larry H. Miller Dealerships Utah Grand Prix this weekend.
  
  Part of the car’s power will come from a 4.0 liter internal-combustion engine. The second half will be a Zytek-designed electric motor.
  
  The electric motor has the capability of running at 16,000 RPM and produce between 35 and 45 kilowatts of power “which is plenty of power to get the car up to the high speeds necessary to race at this level,” said Pruitt.
  
  “But, it’s not at full song, yet. For one thing, we don’t have all the bells and whistles necessary for the battery management system to increase voltage.”
  
  Under this system, electricity begins life as kinetic energy that is then converted to thermal energy that is then converted into DC electrical energy stored in an on-board 140-volt lithium-ion battery.
  
  When the electrical power is called upon, much like turning on the switch of a flashlight, it passes through an inverter that converts it to the required three-phase current.
  
  The large size of this electric motor requires that DC current generated during braking be converted into three-phase current.
  
  “At this point it’s a matter of anticipation. We’re interested to see what will happen. We obviously hope it’s going to work, but we’ll know a lot more after the test run today,” said Pruitt.
  
  The car, sponsored by the Salt Lake Hilton, will be driven by Johnny Mowlem Friday. He will share driving duties during qualifying on Saturday and during the race on Sunday with Stefan Johansson.
  
  The race is part of the season-long MICHELIN Green X Challenge. Tickets for the race are available at americanlemans.com or millermotorsportspark.com.

TOOELE VALLEY, UTAH (May 9, 2009) — Miller Motorsports Park has developed an affordable program to allow fans to take advantage of both warm summer evenings and America’s finest road racing facility. The second Wednesday of each month from May through September will be “Wide-Open Wednesday” (WoW), and will offer fans unprecedented access to the facility’s variety of racing venues.

The program, which kicks off this Wednesday, May 13, at 5:00 pm, is designed to allow fans to come out to the track after work and spend a few hours satisfying their need for speed at very inexpensive prices.

The main track will be open for fans to drive their street cars for $20. The track will be configured into a high-speed gymkhana, with traffic cone “chicanes” set up to keep speeds to a safe level, and cars will run one at a time. For those who always wondered what it would be like to take their car on a real racetrack, this is a very unique opportunity.

The Kart Complex will host, as it does every Wednesday evening throughout the summer, its “Five for $5” program, allowing fans to drive five laps for $5. This is a significant savings over the regular price of $22.50 for 10 laps. In addition, there will be a WoW Grand Prix kart league, with three weight-based classes to ensure a competitive field. Race day will consist of practice/qualifying, a heat race and the main event. Fees include a $20 license fee (one-time annual payment), $55 per event for Birel N-35 Rock Karts or $90 per event for Birel 100 cc Super Karts. Drivers will need to progress to the Birel 100cc Super Kart. Prizes will be given each week to the winners, and at the end of the year to the overall point leader. Although it is a five-race league championship, drivers have the option of competing in as many or as few races as they prefer.

Perhaps the most fun for the money will be the “Buck a Run” autocross. A cone-marked autocross/gymkhana handling course will be set up in the paddock, and fans can drive it in their street cars for $1 per run. Test your skills against the clock, and find out if you missed your calling as a professional racing driver!

Motorcyclists can test their abilities on the Motorcycle Skills Course. Similar to that employed by the Utah State Patrol Motors, this low-speed handling and agility test can vex even the most experienced riders. This, like the autocross, will be available for only $1 per run. There will be competition among classes, and monthly prizes awarded.

For off-road enthusiasts, Miller Motorsports Park’s new seven-acre Off-Road Course will be open. Fans can bring their four-wheel-drive vehicles and test their skills and their vehicle’s capabilities on the amazing variety of terrain and surfaces for only $20 in the “Off-Road Ruckus” program.

Finally, if you’re tired of driving or riding, or just want to come out and enjoy the ambiance, the Larry H. Miller Total Performance Museum will be open for tours at no charge, giving fans the opportunity to see some of the most historic racing cars in American history and one of the world’s finest collection of street and racing cars associated with the legendary Carroll Shelby and Ford Motor Company.

“Larry Miller’s vision for this facility was to make it available for average enthusiasts to come out and have fun with their cars and bikes, just as much as the professional racers do,” said Miller Motorsports Park President and CEO Dan Davis. “The Wide-Open Wednesday program will do exactly that, and we hope everyone will come out and enjoy this magnificent facility the way it was intended.”

Wide-Open Wednesdays will run from 5:00 pm – 8:00 pm. Subsequent WoWs will be June 10, July 8, August 12 and September 9.

For more information on Miller Motorsports Park, call the track at (435) 277-RACE (7223) or visit the website at www.millermotorsportspark.com.

U92's Cinco De Mayo Custom Car Show and Concert is Saturday May 2nd featuring Pitbull, Lil' Rob, Mims, Chamillionaire, Gorilla Zoe, Chino 4 Real, David Rush, and Jay Rock.

 Tickets are on sale at all Smith's Tix locations.

This year's categories to enter are:

• Imports
• Domestics
• Lowriders
• Lowrider Bikes
• Trucks and SUV's
• Classics and Hot-Rods

Limited registration is $40 and includes you, a passenger and your vehicle. The show will be capped off at 100 vehicles this year, so enter quickly.

Click here to register and pay online

Click here to download a registration form to mail in with your payment

If you have any questions you can e-mail carshow (at) racingutah.com or call 801-774-5322.