Patrick Dempsey promotes ‘Visit Florida’ at Daytona

A recent weekend gave race car drivers a chance to “feel” the newly paved Daytona International Speedway track surface and team mechanics and opportunity to get a few more bugs out of their equipment before the Rolex 24 At Daytona starts on Jan. 29 and finishes 24 hours later.

Rog Patterson

Patrick Dempsey (left) and his lead co-driver, Joe Foster, respond to questions during media interview session.

Rog Patterson

Patrick Dempsey's VISIT FLORIDA Mazda RX-8 GT negotiates the Daytona Speedway infield hairpin during "Roar Before the 24" shakedowns on January 8th.

There will be 13 Daytona Prototypes entered. These sophisticated combinations of exotic chassis and sleek bodies with maker names like Riley and Dallara powered by BMW, Chevrolet, Ford or Porsche motors are raced by the big bucks teams and sponsors. More recognizable GT Class machinery will be at least 30 Mazda RX-8 sedans and Porsche GT-3 coupes plus a mixture of Ford Mustangs, Chevrolet Camaros and odd Ferrari 430 or two and I even saw Subaru sedan #32 being prepped in the garage.

Among the GT drivers is a fellow named Patrick Dempsey. Moving smoothly from his TV role in "Grey's Anatomy" into the seat of his Mazda race car, Patrick Dempsey merely wants to become "as quick as those other guys". Responding to a media query about his Hollywood background, Dempsey replied he and his lead co-driver, Joe Foster, simply wanted to "be there when the Rolex 24 Hour race when it ends" at the Daytona International Speedway on Jan. 30. Patrick assured the questioner he considered racing more than a hobby and hoped to join the quick drivers as his team progressed.

Along the way, Dempsey has attracted sponsorship from Pennsylvania modular building manufacturer and, of local interest, has been promoting our state's official Visit Florida program with his Mazda RX-8 GT race car's eye-catching Share a Little Sunshine paint job.

The Rolex 24 At Daytona is a big enough deal to lure NASCAR names like Jimmie Johnson and Juan Paul Montoya, as well as Indycar drivers Helio Castroneves and Dario Franchitti among others. It will be the first race on the re-paved track which, according to 40-year Daytona race veteran Hurley Haywood, is now “completely free of bumps and smooth as silk”. For information about ticket specials, call 1-800-PITSTOP (that’s 1-800-748-7907) or click on www.daytonainternationalspeedway.com.