07/13/2008 Hildebrand Infineon Program Story
 
 
POSSIBLE INFINEON INDYCAR WEEKEND PROGRAM STORY
For more information:
Linda Mansfield
Cell: 317-201-0729
E-mail: LindaKMansfield@cs.com
 
HEAD:
Hildebrand Is Taking the Right Steps
To Become a Professional Race Car Driver
 
SUBHEAD:
Sausalito Driver to Compete in Firestone Indy Lights Doubleheader
 
 
By Linda Mansfield
 
It's been a long trip for J.R. Hildebrand from the top of the hill at 
Infineon Raceway.
 
Growing up in Sausalito, he used to be one of the Jim Russell Racing School 
students who honed their race craft at the kart track at the top of the hill 
here. 
 
This weekend he'll be down a bit in elevation physically but up quite a bit 
as far as his racing career goes.
 
After dominating the Cooper Tires Formula 2000 national championship in 2006 
and competing in the Atlantic series in 2007, Hildebrand has been driving the 
Allied Building Products No. 25 for RLR/Andersen Racing in the Firestone Indy 
Lights Series in 2008.
 
That puts him in a whole different arena than the one he used to focus on 
here at Infineon. This weekend he'll be based in the Firestone Indy Lights 
paddock nestled at the bottom of Infineon's hills, preparing for two races on 
Saturday and Sunday.
 
The Firestone Indy Lights Series is the official development series of the 
IndyCar Series, so Hildebrand is on the right path towards his goal of becoming 
an IndyCar driver. His team, Andersen Racing, is the official development team 
of IndyCar's Rahal Letterman Racing (RLR). And although he's a rookie in the 
Firestone Indy Lights Series, at press time Hildebrand had already won one of 
the Firestone Indy Lights races being held this year.  
 
He'd like nothing better than to add to that list of victories here at 
Infineon Saturday and Sunday.
 
Born in San Francisco 20 years ago, he was graduated from Redwood High School 
in Corte Madera a semester early in December 2005 with a 4.12 GPA. 
 
He's definitely a product of the San Francisco Bay area. In addition to New 
Jersey-based Allied Building Products, he has support from several California 
companies, including Mockett.com (Torrance), Formotion Products (Sausalito), 
Spy (Carlsbad) and Santa Cruz Bicycles (Santa Cruz).
 
"Infineon is where I started racing," said Hildebrand. "I did the Jim Russell 
School in karts, and then worked my way into the Russell Championship Series. 
 I won that in 2004 as a rookie.  I was the only driver since Scott Speed to 
win the Russell Runoffs and then the championship the following year.
 
"I also won a couple of two-liter [Formula 2000] races at Infineon in 2005," 
Hildebrand continued.  "I won a vintage F1 race there in a 1975 Penske PC3, 
and I was in the two Firestone Indy Lights races there last year as well."
 
Those two races last year were Hildebrand's first foray into the Firestone 
Indy Lights Series.  
 
"We were fast there last year; we were in the top three in both practice 
sessions," Hildebrand noted.  "We didn't get the results we wanted in the races 
though. The throttle stuck in qualifying.  Then I was involved in a crash in the 
first race, and I had to drop out of the second race because of an injury to 
my wrist that I got in the crash in the first race.  But we were fast there 
last year, and I expect we'll be quite competitive there this year too."
 
When he joined RLR/Andersen Racing at the beginning of the year, Hildebrand 
was reunited with Dominic and Nicholas Cape, who are engineers for that 
Palmetto, Fla.-based team. Under the Cape brothers' direction, Hildebrand won the 
2006 F2000 championship with 12 victories and 11 poles in 14 races.  He set a 
record for the most consecutive victories in a season at seven; the most 
victories in a season with 12; the most poles in a season with 11; and the most laps 
led in a season in that series' 17-year history.
 
Andersen Racing is one of the most unique teams in the sport.  It 
concentrates on providing comprehensive training for up-and-coming drivers like 
Hildebrand.  It has its own 1-mile road course test track in Palmetto, Fla., which is 
very popular with karters.  It fields multiple entries in the F2000 
Championship Series presented by Hoosier Racing Tire and the Star Mazda Championship 
presented by Goodyear in addition to multiple entries in the Firestone Indy Lights 
Series. Besides Hildebrand's car, it fields the Best Friends Animal Society 
No. 5 for Andrew Prendeville in the Firestone Indy Lights Series. IndyCar's 
Graham Rahal was one of its Star Mazda drivers in 2005.
 
Of the dozen drivers Andersen Racing is working with in 2008, Hildebrand is 
the only one that calls the San Francisco area home.  He's an enthusiastic 
ambassador of both Infineon Raceway and the area.
 
"It's a complex track with its elevation changes and all the different 
configurations that you can run there," he said.  "It's a track where a good driver 
can make up a little for the car more than some other places where we go.
 
"They changed the configuration a little this year, so it should make it even 
more exciting," he added.
 
Before he tried his hand at driving karts, Hildebrand was one of the fans in 
the grandstands at Infineon.  
 
"It's about a half-hour from my house, and my dad and I had season passes 
when I was a kid," Hildebrand recalled.  "We went to everything: vintage races, 
motorcycle races, car races, everything."
 
The area is among the most beautiful anywhere in the world.  "Heading into 
Sonoma, the scenery is beautiful; it's in the heart of wine country, and you can 
count on the weather being good," Hildebrand pointed out.  "The Pacific Ocean 
is only 20 minutes away too.  Then San Francisco is a quick shot on 101, and 
there are all kinds of things to do there.  You have the things available in a 
big city as well as great coastal towns.  It's a really nice area, but it's 
not your typical touristy area."
 
Since locals usually know the best places to eat, does Hildebrand have any 
recommendations?
 
"Well, Angelo's Deli off 121 is the best you can get close to the track," he 
suggested.  "I don't really have a favorite restaurant there though; my 
favorite place to eat is my mom's kitchen."
 
With the nomadic life of a professional race car driver, that's a special 
treat.
 
"I'll sleep in my own bed that weekend, and I'll get to drive my own car 
again," Hildebrand said.  "It's a black-on-black 1995 Firebird Trans-Am. It'll be 
great to be home, even if it's just for awhile."
 
And then Hildebrand will be back on the road, with more hills to conquer.