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Long
Earns Scholarship to renowned Human Performance International
LONG BEACH, Calif. -- Patrick Long, the young California
racer who will
compete in this year's Slick 50 Formula Ford Zetec Championship
in England,
was recently named the 2001 recipient of The Gorsline Company
Human
Performance International Development Scholarship.
By earning the HPI
scholarship, Long will participate in HPI's renowned two-day
Driver
Performance Enhancement Program.
Long's physical and mental abilities will be put to the
test in 2001.
Driving for the Van Diemen works team, Long will be a favorite
in the
Formula Ford Championship, acknowledged as the most competitive
junior series
in the world. Last year in the Zetec Series, he scored
eight Top-Ten
finishes in fourteen starts, as well as earning a factory
ride for this
season. Long won one race, secured two pole positions,
and was consistently
quick in testing and practice.
The HPI program profiles a racer's strength and weaknesses
in five major
areas: Physical Readiness, Mental Skills, Dynamic
Visual Skills, Nutritional
Status, and Medical Status. On the basis of this profile,
specific training
programs are designed to improve a driver's physical and
mental performance.
Started at McGill University in Montreal, HPI has been at
the forefront
of studying human performance for athletes since 1983.
Now located in
Huntersville, North Carolina, HPI has evaluated hundreds
of amateur and
professional race car drivers, building a data base of human
performance
statistics and developing effective training programs.
It has been
recognized internationally for its effective role in the
enhancement of
driver performance. As a result many driver development
programs have
contacted HPI to be a part of their driver training programs.
Many drivers
from Formula One, CART, NASCAR, IRL, SCCA, ALMS, and Grand-Am
have been
evaluated by HPI. Among those are Ayrton Senna, Jeff
Gordon, Emerson
Fittipaldi and Nigel Mansel.
For the past ten years, John Gorsline, president of The
Gorsline Company
-- a pioneer in the business of insuring high-risk professionals
-- has been
awarding a scholarship to the HPI Driver Enhancement program
to the hottest
young drivers in auto racing.
Previous winners of The Gorsline Company scholarship include
FedEx CART driver BRYAN HERTA; NASCAR driver Jerry Nadeau,
Atlantic, Toyota
Atlantic Champion Buddy Rice; NASCAR and sports car
driver, Anthony Lazzaro;
and 1997 Barber Dodge Pro Series Champion Derek Hill, who
will be racing FIA
F3000 in Europe this season. Last year's Scholarship
winner finished second
in the Skip Barber National Series, and this season
will run USAC F2000
series with the DSTP team, with whom Rice raced.
Butch Leitzinger was the 1997 HPI winner. He has raced
in NASCAR as well
as various sports car series, including the 24 Hours of
Le Mans. Leitzinger
is now one of the newly-nominated drivers for the Bentley
Motors sports car
program, has been a factory driver for the new Cadillac
sports car team, and
has raced with Dyson Racing in sports cars for the past
few years, winning
the 1997 World Sports Car Championship.
The Gorsline Company, located in Rochester, New York, is
a pioneer in the
business of providing insurance for high-risk professionals.
The company
specializes in racing drivers and teams, providing custom-designed
insurance
package and full financial planning services.
For further information please call 716.232.3725.
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