Randy Ruhlman News

PORTLAND, Ore. (June 17, 2005)--Randy Ruhlman fresh off the Trans-Am win at the Long Beach Grand Prix is in a good position for the start of the Rose City 100 Trans-Am race at Portland International Raceway--he is starting in the pole position. Ruhlman, driving the #49 Preformed Line Products Corvette, will start on the pole for tomorrow’s race, as the first five starting position are inverted. Ruhlman posted the fifth fastest time at a 1:14.002 in a qualifying session that was significantly time shortened. Starting next to Ruhlman on the front row will be last year’s Trans-Am Driver’s Champion and Portland winner, Paul Gentilozzi.

"I like the car, it's fast,” said Ruhlman. “Starting on the front row, in the pole position, is always a great place to be. The car felt much better in qualifying than it had in the earlier practice, so I think we will be in good shape for the race. It is going to be a long race though, and I want to be in the first position at the end, too. With the added weight we have, we might need to be a bit more careful at the start. That doesn't mean we aren't going to try to do everything we can to make it two in a row. We are here to win."

Following the win at Long Beach, Ruhlman’s #49 Corvette was awarded 25 pounds of added “winner’s weight”. Ruhlman and the other normally aspirated [carbureted] cars already weigh 100 pounds more than the fuel injected Jaguars of Klaus Graf and Paul Gentilozzi. The added weight, which affects all aspects of the car, especially the tire wear and braking distances, was implemented in a continuing attempt to equalize the cars.

The Rose City 100 Trans-Am race will begin at 4PM PDT tomorrow Saturday, June 18th. The race will be 52 laps or 75 minutes of the 1.952 mile 10 turn flat road course at Portland International Raceway. Television coverage will be on SPEED at 1PM EDT next Sunday, June 26th.

Randy Ruhlman got the first win of the 2005 Trans-Am season on April 10 in the Cytomax Challenge at the Long Beach Grand Prix. He is a veteran of both road racing and NASCAR short track programs, but has recently concentrated his driving skills in the Trans-Am Series. Ruhlman finished third overall in the 2004 Trans-Am Driver’s Championship, in a closely fought battle that saw the tightest points margin ever in Trans-Am history.

Last year, Ruhlman scored seven straight top five finishes, including three podiums: a second at Road America, another second at Toronto, and a third at Infineon. He was the pole sitter for the Road America race and sat on the front row for the Cleveland Grand Prix. Randy Ruhlman is fourth in Top Ten finishes in Trans-Am history.

Randy Ruhlman, the driver of the #49 Preformed Line Products Corvette in the Trans-Am Series, spent some of the time between races working with the Buckle Up America program to promote seat belt use. Ruhlman was the keynote speaker at the Cleveland House of Blues Kick-off of the Northeast Ohio "Click It or Ticket" campaign. The program was spearheaded by UHHS Rainbow Babies & Children’s Hospital’s Outreach Program. Ruhlman also continues to work closely with the Lance Armstrong Foundation, especially in helping to promote the Tour de Road America on August 20th, to raise money for cancer survivorship.

Founded in 1947, Preformed Line Products (NASDAQ: PLPC) is an international designer and manufacturer of products and systems employed in the construction and maintenance of overhead and underground networks for energy, communications and broadband network companies.

Headquartered in Cleveland, Ohio, the Company operates three domestic manufacturing centers, located in Rogers, Arkansas, Albemarle, North Carolina and Asheville, North Carolina. Preformed serves worldwide markets through international operations in Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, England, Mexico, New Zealand, South Africa, Spain and Thailand.