CP: Carol, thank you for agreeing to dialog with us. You must have had a hectic time at the SEMA Show in Las Vegas.

Working a convention is a lot tougher than it seems. The days are long and the walk back and forth from the hotel to the booth is even longer! It's fun talking to the crowd though. Everyone has their opinion on which aftermarket products are worth the money and which concept car puts it all together the best. It was gratifying to hear from a lot of people that they felt our car was the one.

CP: Tiger Racing built and showed a 2005 Mustang GT -- equipped for drivers with disabilities -- in Ford's booth at SEMA this year. Tell us how that project evolved.

Tiger Racing has been working with Ford for a few years now. Ford Advanced Powertrain has been supporting our World Challenge race car and, in return, we do marketing to bring awareness to Ford's Mobility Motoring Program. That program provides a rebate of up to $1,000 to people who buy a new Ford, Lincoln or Mercury vehicle and need adaptive equipment added to it. Mobility Motoring has been using the image of our 2003 race car and me as a spokesperson, but with the new model coming out, they asked us if we would be interested in creating a 2005 show car. We thought it was a great opportunity to expand awareness of our race team by tying the two programs together and so we agreed.

We put in a proposal to the appropriate department at Ford and were a bit shocked when we found out that we were one of 15 companies to be awarded a car that would appear in Ford's booth at SEMA. From racing in World Challenge all these years, we're used to being small fish in a big pond, but it was still an interesting feeling to have our show car parked between Steeda, Roush and Saleen's cars.

CP: What are your impressions of the 2005 Mustang GT?

I love the new Mustang. I think it's beautiful. It's the best update of the classic that I could have hoped for. It's looks are aggressive, but reflect the original car's sleekness and it sounds like the power has been suitably improved for the new, model year. Although I have to admit that I haven't driven the car yet. We've been so busy thrashing to get it done in time for SEMA, that there just hasn't been any time for me to give it a whirl. My crew chief, Paul Brown, tells me that it's a better all around car though. He's driven one and says the balance is better and so is the handling. The chassis is also stiffer and the motor's got decent power. We're both looking forward to getting more time behind the wheel.

CP: Congratulations on winning a Ford Product Excellence Award at the show. Were there some specific features of the car that contributed to this recognition?

Thank you. Paul worked especially hard on this car. The award recognizes excellence in product development and total product execution. It was partly based on use of aftermarket parts, new product development, vehicle appearance and fit with the brand. We have to thank all of our sponsors for helping us put together this car. Vortech Superchargers and Bassani Xhaust boosted the power to around 400 hp. Classic Design Concepts, MOMO wheels and StopTech brakes were especially beneficial in creating the look of the car. And I don't know what we would have done without Mobility Products and Designs hand controls. The very point of our project was to present a trick car, accessible to drivers with disabilities. Mobility Products controls are the best I've seen or used.

CP: Carol, you have competitively raced a 2003 Mustang in the SCCA Speed World Challenge GT Championship. Is that effort continuing next year?

Absolutely. We're about a year behind in development on that car. It's just getting to the point where it is competitive. 2004 was a frustrating year. Our car was better, but the competition has been outrageous. I'm driving against guys like Max Angelelli, Stu Hayner, Tommy Archer, Lou Gigliotti and Derek Bell. Derek Bell!

I've only been racing for a few years and this car is basically a prototype. My transmission and shifter system are amazing and Ford Advanced Powertrain has done a lot for us, but it's really complicated software. Getting the calibration right and keeping all the sensors working correctly is tough. In order for the computer to shift as quickly and as hard as we are asking it to, it's got to have all the right information fed into it.

We've also been working on the suspension. This car is incredibly sensitive to setup. One click in either direction can turn this car from a pushing pig to absolutely tail happy. We're getting it though. My times at the last race at Laguna were 5 seconds faster than they were last year and were closer to the leaders than we've ever been. I'm really looking forward to next season.

CP: By the way, that's also a great looking car and it helps deliver the Mobility Motoring message to all. What is the message that you want to bring to anybody with a disability?

To be honest, I'm not always sure. I do know that any 'message' that I have isn't just going to people with disabilities. The able bodied public needs to be educated on what others are capable of or at least that they shouldn't make assumptions about limitations. I think the stereotype of people with disabilities being incapable of independent lives has been greatly eroded over the years. I hope that in a small way, I've helped with that just by being an independent person and presenting that image to people. That's pretty much all I'm looking for. I can't speak for everyone with a disability, All I can do is encourage people to strive for what they want and to be supportive of others as they do the same.

CP: When are you going to start on a 2005 Mustang race car?

As soon as someone gives us one! Seriously though, Paul doesn't want to be the first one to bring a 2005 Mustang to the track. He'd rather let someone else do some of the development and then improve on what they come up with.

CP: It seems that you and your team have enough to keep you busy for the time being. Thanks for speaking with us.

Additional coverage on Tiger Racing is provided here.

What do you think? - Discuss this article