tokidoki, the pop culture brand meaning “sometimes” in Japanese, is speeding onto the racetrack this year with its continued sponsorship of TrueCar/Star Girl Racing Rally Driver Verena Mei, driver for the only all-female team in the 2013 Rally America National Championship.
tokidoki is thrilled to support rally racing through sponsorship of Mei and her team. “Verena is a great driver, and she embodies the tokdioki spirit. She is tough and aggressive behind the wheel, while still being feminine and fashionable out of the car,” says tokidoki creative director, Simone Legno. “We’re excited to be a part of Verena’s winning team.”
Verena and her co-driver, Leanne Junnila won the B-Spec Championship in 2012 started their 2013 season by placing 5th in 2WD National Class at last weekend’s Rally America’s Sno*Drift.
After their first year in Rally America where they finished 4th in overall 2WD and won the 2012 B-Spec Championship – the first all-female team to win any championship in Rally America’s history, Verena Mei and Leanne Junilla return to Sno*Drift today in Atlanta MI where temperatures will reach a low of – 9 degrees and snow is expected. The competition will be intense with both Ken Block and the 2012 overall champion, David Higgins both running.
"I've never been more excited to race than I am at Sno*Drift this year.” Said Mei, “Now that I have a rally season under my belt, have been working with Leanne for a year now, and more confidence behind the wheel, this race is a completely different race for me than last year."
Santa Monica, CA, August 15, 2012 -- Rally America announced today that TrueCar Rally Driver Verena Mei and co-driver Leanne Junnila have been awarded the inaugural Rally America B-Spec National Championship driving the #335 TrueCar Ford Fiesta, making them the first all-female team to win a Rally America Championship. B-Spec rally cars are modified for safety and durability but retain the same engine and horsepower as the standard consumer vehicle.
Verena & Leanne taking NEFR by storm
"This title means a lot to me as a member of the TrueCar Racing Women Empowered initiative, and to all of my TrueCar Racing teammates, because now we're part of Rally America history. When people look back on who won the inaugural season of the B-Spec Rally America Championship, they'll see that it was a women's team, and that will never change” added Mei.
Mei’s TrueCar rally team brought numerous years of rally experience and passion for the sport in support of her first year of competing in the Rally America National Championship, and are a huge part of her success this season.
Mei had high praise for her co-driver, Leanne Junnila, her sponsors and New Hampshire-based Team O’Neil Rally School.
Verena & Leanne going for the win at New England Forest Rally
“It's such an honor and a huge accomplishment for me and the TrueCar Rally Team, to win the B-Spec Championship in it's inaugural year. My amazing co-driver, Leanne Junnila, has taught me so much and our trust and reliance on each other in the car was how we were able to take the championship” Mei added “I'm so fortunate to have the incredible support of TrueCar, Virgin, Team O'Neil, and Tokidoki, all of whom believed in making my dream a reality. I thank all of them immensely, and I definitely wouldn't be at this point, without them behind me.”
Mei and Junnila will finish their 2012 season at the Olympus Rally in Washington on September 22-23, in the TrueCar Fiesta #335 aka "Trixie".
For more information about TrueCar Racing, please visit www.truecar.com/ racing. You can follow TrueCar Racing on Twitter (@TrueCarRacing) and become a fan of TrueCar Racing on Facebook.
Follow Verena Mei at www.verenamei.com
www.facebook.com/VerenaMeiRacing
Twitter/Instagram: @VerenaMei
The TrueCar Racing Women Empowered initiative was created to support top female racecar drivers in premier racing series, along with rising stars across several developmental series. Through this program TrueCar empowers high-potential women with the tools they need to succeed both on and off the track, including full sponsorship support with top-tier racing teams, professional coaching and training and marketing exposure and publicity. TrueCar Racing currently sponsors women in the following series: IndyCar, Star Mazda, USF2000, World Challenge, Mazda MX-5 Cup and Rally America.
TrueCar Racing Driver Verena Mei finished this weekend’s Rally America National Championship event, the New England Forest Rally, in 7th Place in the hotly contested 2WD Division. Her finish was especially significant as it was the one-year anniversary of her first career rally race at the same event last year. Mei has finished five of five races this season, which is a critical factor in the physically and mentally punishing rally racing format that takes place at very high speeds on rough dirt roads, in all weather and often with low visibility.
With one event left, Mei stands at 5th place in the 2WD division, with her #335 TrueCar Fiesta the only production car in the top 5. While others in the class compete with highly modified versions of the stock car, including added horsepower, Mei’s TrueCar Ford Fiesta carries the same 1.6-liter 120-horsepower engine that powers the consumer version that can be purchased on TrueCar.com. In only her first year competing in the sport Mei is also ranked 15th overall nationally ahead of 36 other drivers.
SANTA MONICA, Calif., June 7, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- TrueCar Rally America Driver Verena Mei and her Co-Driver Leanne Junnila finished the fast and extremely narrow stages of the The Susquehannock Trail Performance Rally (commonly know as the STPR) in 5th Place in the highly competitive 2WD Division of the Rally America National Championship. The TrueCar B-Spec Fiesta #335 was dubbed "The Little Fiesta That Could" by fans and competitors alike as Verena and Leanne climbed from back in the pack and steadily moved up to compete with highly modified entries and European Spec Ford Fiesta R2's.
