Watch how the Rum Bum Racing team prepares for the unveiling of their new Porsche 997 GTS. With the team’s attention focused on tuning and testing, how did they perform at Mid-Ohio?
Video after the break.
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Watkins Glen, NY (29 June 2013) – After getting off to a challenging start to the race, Rum Bum Racing came roaring back at Watkins Glen to score second place in the Continental Tire 150 on Saturday.
The GRAND-AM podium appearance was the 20th for Rum Bum Racing, and the second in a row for drivers Matt Plumb and Nick Longhi after winning the previous round at Mid-Ohio.
After starting the race from eighth on the grid, Longhi was working his way forward in the pack early on when he misjudged distances in a heavy braking zone, making contact with the No. 9 Camaro.
The impact sent both machines off course and into the gravel trap, but the two championship-leading cars were both able to fight through the sand trap. Unfortunately, the hit loosened the hood on the Porsche as it flipped up, coming to rest on the windshield, robbing Longhi of any view out the front.
Fortunately he still had a strong awareness of where he was as well as hundreds of laps at Watkins Glen, and along with some helpful radio transmissions from the team, was able to make it back to the pits for repairs.
“I lost track of where I was and things slowed down a lot faster than I expected,” said Longhi. “The last thing I wanted to do was hit that car of all cars. It was my fault, and I apologized to the entire Stevenson team and crew after I got out of the car.”
Longhi was deep in the pack after the team used all the adhesive resources it could muster to keep the hood down in an early pit stop. The group made the most of the yellow flag, getting Longhi back on the road and on his way. The incident was deemed avoidable by GRAND-AM, and Longhi was forced to serve the first penalty of his racing career, stopped for 60 seconds before being released back into the fray, still on the lead lap.
A subsequent stop saw Plumb rejoin the field deep down the order. But still on the lead lap and with the proven Rum Bum Racing car and crew in his corner, Plumb was able to click off a series of laps that saw him escalating up the order after running as low as 23rd to race his way up to run second with 30 laps in the books. The team effort was once again on display as the final pit exchange saw Plumb emerge in the lead, clear of the field.
The changing conditions caught several teams and drivers off-guard as Plumb worked on building his lead. But with the rains gaining steam, several drivers had offs and a long full course caution culled the field for over half an hour as Plumb held the point behind the safety car.
While it looked like a run to the checkered flag was once again in the cards, a one-lap dash to the finish saw Plumb cede the lead as he fought through the last lap on slick tires on the still very-wet track. The huge team effort netted yet another podium as Rum Bum Racing grew its championship points lead.
“It was crazy!” said Longhi after the race. “All of the credit goes to the team, 100%, we never give up. Matt (Plumb) is a rockstar to get it to the front and the whole team was just fantastic.”
The wildly changing and challenging conditions had the fans breathless for the final circuit of the race, as no one knew what kind of grip was on offer. Fortunately, Plumb handled the pressure perfectly, holding off the charge from cars with wet tires to score second place at the finish.
“I think Continental has developed a new slick rain tire,” smiled Plumb about how he was able to make the slicks work in the wet conditions. “We worked really hard to get the car balanced both in the dry and the wet and that was how we got to the front. I’m really sorry to the Stevenson guys, we never intend to do things like that and I hope they didn’t get pushed back too far because of it. Thanks to Luis Bacardi, and Rum Bum Racing once again prevails.”
Rum Bum Racing will be back in action at the fabled Indianapolis Motor Speedway on July 26th as GRAND-AM stages the Brickyard Grand Prix.
The post Team Effort Takes Rum Bum Racing to Watkins Glen Podium appeared first on Rum Bum Racing.
Orlando, Fla. (28 June 2013) – New car blues? Not for Rum Bum Racing.
When Matt Plumb took the checkered flag at Mid-Ohio ahead of the entire GRAND-AM Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge field last weekend, it not only marked the 13th time that a Rum Bum Racing car has won in GRAND-AM, but it also was the third time that the team took a brand new machine directly to victory lane.
The team opened its first chapter of GRAND-AM competition back in 2010 by kicking down the door to the fabled winner circle at Daytona International Speedway as young Gian Bacardi teamed with Matt Plumb to bring the team’s BMW M3 a victory in the group’s first-ever race. The team went on to score three wins in 2010 and then scored three more victories with the No. 13 M3 in 2011 to help power BMW to the GRAND-AM Manufacturer Championship.
Fast forward to April 2012, when Rum Bum Racing made the shock switch to the Porsche 911 at Barber Motorsports Park. Using a car that another group had built, the move to the rear-engined car didn’t faze the team one bit as Plumb and co-driver Nick Longhi came home with a big win in the Porsche 200 as the team debuted with the famed car from Stuttgart. The duo, who have a combined GRAND-AM win total of over 30 victories, went on to take five wins in 2012 as the team scored the Team Championship honors.
Led by Luis Bacardi, the team looked forward to 2013 to build and develop the group’s first-ever in-house entry. Taking the full opportunity to not only build the best possible Porsche but also test the car ahead of duty, the Joe Varde-led squad once again impressed at Mid-Ohio as the team won in its first-ever outing in the 911.
“Nick (Longhi) and I work really hard in the car to get the best possible result that we can, but we all know that without the hard work of this crew that we would have no chance of success,” said Plumb. “To win with the car that the team built, and to have it be the 13th victory for the team, was really something special. All the credit goes to Mr. Bacardi for believing in this group and to Joe (Varde) for his vision and leadership on the pit wall. Hopefully we can continue to bring that kind of result for the entire team and work towards another championship.”
The team enters the Continental Tire 150 race weekend at Watkins Glen as defending race winners and will look to once again show what the group is capable of on Saturday.
A 15-minute qualifying session will take place Saturday morning at 10:40 AM (ET) with the 2.5-hour race set to go green at 3:00 PM (ET) Saturday.
Live timing and scoring is available at www.grand-am.com throughout the weekend. SPEED will televise the Continental Tire 150 Sunday, July 7 at 4:00 PM (ET).
The post Mid-Ohio Victory Marks Another Winning Debut for Rum Bum Racing appeared first on Rum Bum Racing.
On June 26, 2013 the Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE) revised their policy for evaluating proposals to convert obsolete, offshore oil and gas production platforms into artificial reefs rather than require companies to remove them in accordance with the ‘Idle Iron’ requirements. These federal regulations require offshore oil and gas operators to seal wells that are no longer producing and remove any associated infrastructure associated with the production platform…removing fish habitats for many of the Gulf of Mexico’s most sought after game fish.
BSEE’ s new policy will allow companies to avoid the removal process by making their rig part of the ‘Rigs to Reef’ program to enhance a state’s artificial reef program . Once all hazardous materials have been removed from the platform and depending upon the location and the bottom characteristics, the rigs can either be reefed in place or towed to a designated reefing area.
The new policy also supports and encourages the use of obsolete oil and gas structures as artificial reefs and provides greater opportunities for reefing by reducing the five-mile buffer zone between reefing areas to two miles. The policy also provides for extensions to regulatory decommissioning deadlines for companies actively pursuing a “Rigs to Reefs” proposal.
Oil rigs in the Gulf of Mexico provide productive fishing grounds for recreational fishermen and popular dive sites for divers. Removing them as a result of the ‘Idle Iron’ regulations not only has detrimental impacts on fish habitat, but reduces the potential fishing locations in the Gulf of Mexico. The revised policy surrounding the ‘Rigs to Reef’ program will truly benefit both the recreational fishing and diving industries in the Gulf of Mexico.
To read BSEE’s new ‘Rigs to Reef’ Policy, Click Here
The post New Federal Policy Will Enhance Gulf of Mexico’s Rigs To Reef Program appeared first on The Billfish Foundation.
Orlando, Fla. (25 June 2013) – Not only is Luis Bacardi’s Rum Bum Racing fresh off of the team’s most recent victory at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course two weeks ago, but as Nick Longhi and Matt Plumb return to Watkins Glen this weekend they enter the event as the defending Continental Tire 150 race winners. The duo head to the fabled upstate New York track with an 11-point advantage in the GRAND-AM championship with five rounds in the books.
The Mid-Ohio victory was a big one for Plumb as he became the winningest driver in GRAND-AM Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge Series (CTSCC) history when he claimed his 15th–career overall CTSCC win.
“I was surprised to find out about that statistic, but most of that success-and those wins-is just a result of being a part of this Rum Bum Racing team that Mr. Bacardi assembled,” said Plumb. “Wins are great of course, but the big focus is the championship. The plan was to come away with points from Mid-Ohio with a car all straight and undamaged for the next round. With these close races back-to-back it really sets you back if you bang up the racecar, you go to the next weekend and you’re just a little bit more behind. We’ve got a good car – a winning car – and we’re going into a place where we won last year, so the confidence is high.”
Longhi and Plumb dominated the Watkins Glen event last year on their way to winning the 2012 GRAND-AM team championship by leading a race-high 17 laps in the No. 13 Rum Bum Racing Porsche en route to the win. It marked the team’s fourth of five wins in last year’s 10-race season and helped Rum Bum Racing secure the 2012 team championship title in just its third year of CTSCC competition.
In a shrewd strategy move, Rum Bum Racing crew chief Joe Varde made the calculation to be the first car to take the last pit stop in last year’s race with a bold move to bring Plumb in under green flag conditions with over an hour yet to run.
While the significant loss of track position from the stop seemed to signal the end of the day for the team, a series of yellow flag caution periods meant that the team made up the lost ground while also being able to conserve fuel for the final stages of the race. That paid huge dividends as Plumb raced from third to the lead in the final laps, scoring a victory by just .336-seconds.
“We knew what our (fuel) window was, and we just focused on doing what we had to do so that we could pit then and still be good to go the distance,” said Varde of the 2012 Watkins Glen win. “Our car carried a lot of extra weight from GRAND-AM, so we knew we were not going to take it on pace. We had a quick car, but not enough muscle to move up in the pack. This series is incredibly competitive. So we had to figure out another way to win, and I couldn’t be happier with how it turned out.”
Having sat among the top of the point standings for much of the 2013 season to date, Rum Bum Racing currently leads the championship and is hoping for a repeat performance as the team targets another trip to Watkins Glen victory lane and a healthy haul of points toward the 2013 championship.
“We knew last year that we had to pull a bit of a rabbit out of the hat to win the race, so hopefully we can have the pace to be competitive this year,” said Longhi. “We are lucky to get to race on tracks like Watkins Glen and I think you see the whole field raise their game when we go there. The fans are just awesome—really knowledgeable about the sport and so enthusiastic about the show that we put on. It is special to be going back there as defending winners, and hopefully we can do it again this year!”
The Continental Tire 150 at the Glen event opens on Thursday with a promoter test day followed by official practice on Friday. A 15-minute qualifying session will take place Saturday morning at 10:40 AM (ET) with the 2.5-hour race set to go green at 3:00 PM (ET) Saturday.
Live timing and scoring is available at www.grand-am.com throughout the weekend. SPEED will televise the Continental Tire 150 Sunday, July 7 at 4:00 PM (ET).
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Lexington, Ohio (15 June 2013) – Sometimes all you need is a little bit of luck and that’s exactly what Luis Bacardi’s Rum Bum Racing got in Saturday’s Diamond Cellar Classic as the team scored lucky number win 13 in the No. 13 Rum Bum Racing Porsche.
The usual shrewd strategy from the Rum Bum team as well as perfect driving by drivers Nick Longhi and Matt Plumb propelled the No. 13 machine to the front of the 56-car combined class GRAND-AM Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge field. But as fuel strategy came into play late in the race, it was a lucky full course caution with under 10 minutes remaining that sealed the deal for Rum Bum Racing to take their second win of the season.
The result marked a return trip to the Mid-Ohio podium as Plumb and Longhi finished third in last year’s event on their way to claiming the 2012 GRAND-AM Team Championship Title.
Longhi opened the race from the fourth row after having qualified the No. 13 Porsche eighth on the grid. He ran a very strong opening stint – moving up to fifth on just the first lap. He continued to move his way forward to run as high as second before a brilliant call from the Joe Varde-led Rum Bum squad saw the No. 13 take its first pit stop immediately prior to a full course caution about an hour into the race.
“The first time I got in the car was yesterday and I actually, quite frankly was feeling terrible,” said Longhi. “I had a long travel day on Thursday and missed the promoter test day and had a migraine yesterday so definitely wasn’t feeling on top of it and the car was new to me. But this morning I woke up feeling better. This is a strong team. I knew on the start I had to make up for lost time and I got a couple of guys, which was great. It just went really well. We also had a bit of a radio issue, but fundamentally we made the right call at the right time to pit and we were able to get in at the right time.”
A quick, efficient pit stop by the Rum Bum crew saw Plumb return to the track sixth in the order for the restart, and he wasted no time in moving forward, making it look easy as he maneuvered his way up into the second position in just a matter of laps. When the third of four cautions was displayed on Lap 50 with about 45 minutes remaining in the race, the leader headed down pit lane, but the Rum Bum team took a gamble and kept the No. 13 Porsche out on track in hopes that another full course caution would give them the necessary fuel mileage to make it to the end.
Plumb restarted at the point and led for 31 laps defending against the hard charging No. 96 BMW of Bill Auberlen. As the laps waned, so did the fuel in the No. 13 machine. The team knew it would be very close on fuel in order to make it to the finish, but with less than 10 minutes remaining in the race, a full course caution was displayed and the Rum Bum team breathed a collective sigh of relief – knowing that Plumb would indeed make it to the checkered flag on the amount of fuel in the car.
However, the caution also set up a two-lap dash to the finish with a bevy of hungry GS machines also pursuing the victory behind the No. 13 Rum Bum Porsche. But Plumb once again kept his cool behind the wheel as he brought the No. 13 Porsche across the finish line first with a .452-second advantage.
“It was perfect! We got so lucky there at the end,” said Plumb of the win. “Once again ‘Lucky 13’ came through at the end for us. We were spot on from the beginning to the end. We only did one set of Continental Tires and they were just so consistent throughout the whole run. I’m sorry Luis Bacardi couldn’t be here today but hopefully we did well for him.”
“It’s crazy, congratulations to everybody in this field,” added Longhi. “The level of driving and preparation in the Continental Tire Challenge is fantastic. It’s just such a privilege to be here. With that said, I personally didn’t do what I needed to do in qualifying but hopefully I made up for it today and just handed the car off to Matt in a good position. I’m calm because, I keep saying it over and over again, this is the best team I have ever worked with. It’s mind-blowing.”
The victory extends Rum Bum Racing’s championship lead to an 11-point advantage as the team returns to race action at Watkins Glen in two weeks to defend their 2012 win at the Upstate New York road course.
SPEED will televise the Diamond Cellar Classic event on Sunday, June 23 at 4:00 PM (ET).
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Lexington, Ohio (14 June 2013) — Luis Bacardi’s Rum Bum Racing will start the Diamond Cellar Classic from ninth on the grid at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course on Saturday after Nick Longhi posted a fast lap time of 1:31.297-seconds in qualifying on Friday in the No. 13 Rum Bum Racing Porsche..
The result is the fifth top-10 start of the season for Rum Bum Racing, which leads the championship points standings in pursuit of a successful defense of its 2012 GRAND-AM Team Championship title.
Longhi will open the 2.5-hour race from the cockpit before turning the car over to Matt Plumb as the Joe Varde-led squad looks to extend its record of success at the natural terrain circuit, having scored three podium finishes in four visits to Mid-Ohio.
“The car was good, but frankly I just didn’t get everything out of it that I could,” said Longhi. “I’m frustrated–but just with myself. I had a tough travel day yesterday so missed the promoter test. So this was my first day in the car. It should be fine for the race, but I know I left some time out there so I’m hoping to be able to make up some ground in the race tomorrow.”
The team, which staged an open-house for an enthusiastic group of Porsche Club members during the day, showed little sense of concern despite starting from deeper in the field than is the Rum Bum Racing norm. But time and time again, the team has found its way to the front, no matter what the circumstances and that will be the target again on Saturday.
“It is great to be back at the track racing again,” said Plumb as the Continental Tire Challenge resumes after a month-long break in action. “I know Nick wasn’t entirely happy with how qualifying went but we know we’ve got a great car underneath us and there are a lot of laps to run tomorrow. This team is incredible, and we’ve got some guys trying to chase us down in the championship so the big focus is the big picture tomorrow.”
The race will go green at 10:35 AM ET–you can follow the timing at www.grand-am.com.
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FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – A report released today by The Billfish Foundation (TBF) reveals that sportfishing has been a major factor in attracting tourists to Panama providing a valuable fishing-based economic lift to the country. In 2011 (most recent data), 86,250 visitors fished in Panama. Those anglers and the rest of their travel companions spent $97 million on charter boats, fuel, food, lodging, and other related expenses. The number of anglers visiting Panama has doubled from 2001 to 2011 and the surge could only be the beginning, provided that fishing remains great and consumers are made aware of it. For every U.S. angler that has visited the country, eight more are interested in Panama as a fishing destination. If each interested angler was enticed into visiting, it could translate into an additional $776 million for the Panamanian economy. The study, entitled “Sportfishing in Panama: A Natural Economic Gold Mine,” was conducted by Southwick Associates with critical on-the-ground support from Vista Group-Panama, OCEARCH, and TBF Scientist Dr. Russell Nelson, and was funded by Panamanian government agency SENACYT.
• $97 million new dollars via spending by visiting anglers.
• $170.4 million in total retail and business-to-business sales within Panama.
• 9,503 Panamanian jobs.
• an increase in Gross Domestic Product of US $48.4 million.
“This boom in tourism in Panama is really no surprise. Panama’s wonderful climate, natural beauty, and amazing beaches alone are major attractions, but one in four tourists that fished visited Panama JUST to fish,” said Ellen Peel, the President of TBF. “It is paramount, though, that governmental agencies continue to focus on implementing responsible management and conservation measures for marine fisheries and continue to restrain foreign purse seine and local longline vessels for the benefit of billfish and all species. If managed correctly, Panama’s sportfishing sector will become an even bigger cash-cow for Panama’s tourism economy.“
The survey asked U.S. anglers why they choose to fish in some countries but not others. Beyond the excellent fishing, Panama scored high among surveyed anglers regarding the reasonable cost of travel, safety, and availability of quality charter boats. In fact, 87 percent of the anglers surveyed were “satisfied” or “very satisfied” with their trips. This bodes extremely well for Panama tourism because 68.5 percent of people choose a vacation destination based on friends or family recommendations. Because people leaving Panama have such a high rate of satisfaction, word-of-mouth between friends and family will drive even more people to the country.
“For every 10 sportfishing visitors to Panama, another Panamanian job is supported,” Peel said. “But to continue to add to these jobs, Panama needs to maintain top notch fishing, which requires an abundance of fish in the water that comes from good management and strong, well-enforced fisheries regulations. Anglers reported they favor fishing destinations that tightly and effectively control commercial and recreational harvests. Panama needs to communicate that they are on board with these tourism-driving factors.”
Ms. Peel went on to add, “This study emphasizes that, if Panama wants to grow sportfishing tourism, improvements to Panama’s infrastructure and services must be made based on fishery science and strong economic and conservation policies. By looking at the experience in other countries, poorly planned and managed fisheries will lead to less employment, not more.”
The post TBF Releases Study ‘Sportfishing in Panama: A Natural Economic Gold Mine’ appeared first on The Billfish Foundation.
Orlando, Fla. (10 June 2013) – When Luis Bacardi’s Rum Bum Racing team arrives at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course for the Diamond Cellar Classic & Round 5 of the GRAND-AM Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge, the driving duo of Matt Plumb and Nick Longhi will be targeting the team’s third consecutive Mid-Ohio podium in just four years of racing at the popular 2.258-mile Ohio road course.
Rum Bum Racing won the 2011 season-finale at Mid-Ohio driving the No. 13 BMW M3, but following the season-opening race in 2012, the team made the decision to transition to a Porsche 911 and the decision proved to be a good one. The podium run of third at Mid-Ohio helped Rum Bum Racing secure the 2012 Team Championship title with the Florida-based team also winning five races of the 10-race championship last year.
Longhi, who initially spotted for Rum Bum Racing before moving to the cockpit late in the 2010 season, proved to be a strong addition to the team from day one, playing a key role as the qualifying and starting driver. He qualified fourth in the 2011 Mid-Ohio event and followed that up last year with the second quickest qualifying time to start from the outside pole.
“The Rum Bum guys have worked hard to give us a strong, quick car each and every race weekend and those efforts have certainly shown on the track,” said Longhi. “We’ve had a strong year with solid results and I’m really looking forward to returning to Mid-Ohio. It’s a fun and challenging track and I think we have another good shot for a finish at the front.”
Rum Bum Racing played a crucial role in helping BMW win the 2010 and 2011 GRAND-AM Manufacturer Championships when the team campaigned a BMW M3. In 2012, it was Porsche that was helped most by Rum Bum Racing on the way to the Manufacturers Championship after the team made the switch to Porsche.
Rum Bum Racing has shown that no matter what they are racing, they can take it to the front. What makes this team click? Luis Bacardi assembled a veritable all-star team when he brought Rum Bum Racing together.
“Luis Bacardi and Jennifer Bacardi definitely made all of our dreams come true with the championship,” said Plumb. “There were ups and downs but Rum Bum Racing is always there and is always doing the right thing. They’re always prepared and keep moving forward. “
The team recently tested at the Mid-Ohio facility in preparation for this weekend’s event. The weekend opens with a promoter test day on Thursday followed by official practice and qualifying on Friday. The 2.5-hour Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge race will begin Saturday at 10:35 AM (ET).
Live timing and scoring is available throughout the weekend at www.grand-am.com. SPEED will televise the race Sunday, June 23 at 4:00 PM (ET).
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This month, Australia is on the brink of establishing the world’s largest network of marine reserves that will cover close to 900,000 square miles including vast zones that would restrict anglers from iconic fishing grounds in the Coral Sea. The science and regulatory processes used to design these reserves remains a very contentious issue and the debate still continues at the federal level. Approval of the reserves’ management plans by both the Lower (Representatives) and Upper (Senate) Houses of Parliament marks the final step before the reserves can be implemented.
Resistance in Australian Parliament has been led by the Opposition who on June 3 filed a motion to disallow the management plans, arguing that the lack of public consultation with key stakeholders and that inadequate impact assessments were both rushed and insufficient to make a decision on such an important issue. In addition, the Opposition’s fisheries spokesman, Tasmanian Senator Richard Colbeck, stated that the creation and management of Australia’s marine reserves are lacking a sound scientific basis and that foreign NGOs have misled the public. “We want marine protected areas that are sensible, that don’t involve locking up huge swathes of the ocean, like the whole Coral Sea, just because the Pew Foundation thinks it’s a good idea and have run a campaign to Tony Burke,” he said.
In a split decision to approve the management plans just one day before the June 4th deadline, the final outcome came down to the vote of independents who voted in favor of marine reserves. Fortunately, there is still a chance that the Upper House will not approve the management plans by the June 25th deadline. Other actions are being taken including the introduction of the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Amendment (Making Marine Parks Accountable) Bill 2012 which would mandate that rigorous independent reviews of the science and regulatory practices are conducted. Currently in front of Parliament awaiting a vote, this bill could effectively disallow the proposed marine reserves and require that the design for these reserves starts anew- this time requiring much more thorough scientific justification.
The events that have unfolded this past week in Australia have further demonstrated how important, yet polarizing the management of marine resources can be. TBF agrees with many others that in Australia, which has demonstrated the ability to successfully and sustainably manage its marine resources, restricting access to important users such as anglers is not warranted and could cause detrimental impacts on the benefits generated from sportfishing. Restrictive marine zones do not protect against the more pressing threats like pollution or coral bleaching, but will displace many businesses with losses that some estimate could total in the billions of dollars. Already, many charter boats in Queensland are experiencing a decrease in business and one independent report predicts that as much as half of the Cairns charter boat fleet will be lost as a result of the marine closures. Australia is not only setting a bad precedent for the management of marine resources all over the world , but is also showing a general lack of transparency when making decisions that impact individuals, businesses, and the economy as a whole. If the management plans for the marine reserves are passed by Parliament, implementation will not take place until July of 2014 with the exception of the South-West Commonwealth Marine Reserve which will be implemented as soon as July of this year.
The post The Future of Australia’s Marine Reserves appeared first on The Billfish Foundation.
photo credit – Andrés Carrasco Martínez
Do you have any amazing billfishing pictures? We’d love to see them AND reward you with some free stuff ! The Billfish Foundation and HookBuzz.com are proud to announce a monthly photo contest where the winner will be eventually decided by the YOU! Each month, one winner will be voted on and then after 12 months of winners are announced, a grand prize winner will win a bag full of gear! Not too shabby for just sending in a picture.
All you need to do it submit your picture to us via email and be sure to “like” our facebook page as well as HookBuzz.com’s page. Once we contact and confirm the details of the photographer, we will post the top choices to be voted on by the public on on our facebook site. The winning photo will be posted on our social media outlets and we’ll mail out your stuff! We might even use your photo in a future publication!
RULES:
The photos can be of billfish in the water or jumping shots, and must be submitted by the 15th of the month. The top choices will be voted on by the public and the winner will be announced the 1st of every month. The contest will begin June 1, 2013 and you have until June 15th to submit your picture. The top pictures will be voted on the from June 21-26th and the winner announced following the votes being tallied. The next picture submission date will be July 15th.
PLEASE NOTE: Any photo of a fish that has been removed from the water will be disqualified. Not only is this harmful for the fish, but it is also illegal in the Atlantic and its surrounding waters according to Atlantic Federal Regulation 50 CFR 635.21.
**By submitting photos to The Billfish Foundation you have given us the right to use your photo in any of our digital (Facebook, twitter, etc.) or traditional (brochures, publications, etc.) media outlets.
The post Introducing TBF/HookBuzz Monthly Photocontest appeared first on The Billfish Foundation.
Going out fishing is great, but did you ever wonder how science is involved with sportfishing? The Billfish Foundation’s (TBF) current educational program with LMR tackle, based out of Fort Lauderdale, actually allows young people to understand the “Science Behind Sportfishing,” while also participating in it. With assistance from the Fish Florida Grant, young people are discovering how school subjects like science and math are applied in the creation of some of the most popular fishing products. It also allows the kids to see that the recreational fishing community is not only limited to people fishing on the water but also see those businesses who are dependent on a healthy fishery and healthy recreational community like LMR Tackle.
An inside look at LMR Tackle in Fort Lauderdale
Over the past month, TBF brought two groups of students from South Broward High School to LMR tackle to learn and discover how many companies are involved in recreational fishing. Capt. Tony DiGiulian and LMR Tackle owner, Andy Novak, gave a the kids a tour of the tackle shop and a huge list of vendors who sell their products at LMR. TBF’s Peter Chaibongsai and Parker Crawford talked about the “Science behind Sportfishing” by illustrating how much science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) are involved in the production of some of items in the store like a rod.
LMR Staff, Shawn Fairbanks, shows Jason how to put on one of the guides. Photo Credit – Parker Crawford.
Following the tour and the discussion, and to drive home the concept of STEM, the students began to build their very own rod. For two days, starting at 9am, the kids build their own light tackle rod with help from the LMR staff until the afternoon. We know we had a couple of the kids already “hooked” when they came to class on the second day from fishing and talked about what type of fish they would catch on their own personal rod they built. We can’t wait to see and hear what they actually catch on their rods in the upcoming weeks. We’ll be sure to post those pictures and stories when we get them.
Seeing a young person’s face when they catch a fish is fantastic, but when that young person can build their own rod and then use it later to catch their very own first…that is priceless. Thanks to the assistance of LMR tackle and Fish Florida Grant, TBF will be holding more of these programs during the summer and hope to get more kids out fishing…
TBF’s Peter Chaibongsai (far left) with LMR owner, Andy Novak (center) with students from South Broward High School. – Photo Credit Parker Crawford
To learn more about TBF’s education programs, please contact us.
The post Students learn about the “other side” of sportfishing appeared first on The Billfish Foundation.
A recent decision to prohibit the commercial harvest of marlin in New Zealand waters represents another victory for billfish conservation. Last year a reevaluation of the management of billfish and tuna species in New Zealand was undertaken with the possibility of introducing marlin (blue, black and striped marlin) into the quota management system. This would mean that an estimated 25 metric tons of marlin caught commercially could be potentially harvested and sold commercially each year. Fortunately, the Minister of Primary Industries, recognizing the importance of billfish to New Zealand’s sportfishing industry has decided to not include marlin into the quota management system and maintain their status as recreational only species.
New Zealand is recognized the world over as a premier location for billfish and especially striped marlin. In fact, 20 of 22 line class records currently held for striped marlin have been caught in New Zealand waters including a 494 pound all tackle world records. Several of some the top billfishing captains in the world also come New Zealand including TBF award winners Marty Bates, John Gregory and Graeme “Bonze” Fleet. Sportfishing in New Zealand has grown to support more than 100 charter businesses and generates an estimated NZ$90 million annually. Anglers in New Zealand also do their part to help conserve billfish through tagging programs, practicing catch and release, and even go beyond government regulations by self-imposing size limits for billfish.
The greatest threat to striped marlin stocks in the western Pacific are the estimated 1,305 distant water longline vessels predominately from Japan, Taiwan and Korea which target albacore tuna. Assessments have indicated declining numbers for striped marlin and that stocks are in the brink of overfishing. Since record seasons in the early 90’s New Zealand fishing clubs have seen decreasing catch trends and some charter businesses predict they will no longer be able to operate if catch rates worsen. Fortunately, New Zealand has made a responsible decision by prohibiting the commercial harvest of marlin.
Since 1987 there has been a ban on the commercial harvest of marlin in New Zealand and TBF is glad to see that this will continue. New Zealand’s decision to prohibit the commercial catch of marlin also represents the growing trend of nations recognizing the socioeconomic importance of sportfishing and ensuring that billfish species are conserved for anglers to enjoy. Sportfishing organizations in New Zealand are also taking additional actions to protect billfish and working to establish a ban on the estimated 4.5-5 metric tons of billfish imported into the country annually. An economic assessment of the striped marlin fishery in nearby New South Wales, Australia, has shown that the recreational and charter sectors generates an estimated AUD$112 million annually compared to a mere AUD$5 million for the commercial sector. A prohibition on all billfish imports would follow after the precedent set by the by Billfish Conservation Act (BCA) that was recently established in US. Like the BCA in the states, prohibiting billfish imports in New Zealand faces the challenges of existing trade agreements, monitoring and tracing the origin of imports. For more information on New Zealand’s billfish management and the BCA please contact TBF or see our advocacy page.
The post Victory for Marlin in New Zealand appeared first on The Billfish Foundation.
Not many people want to go back to school, one time through is enough for many, but that is exactly what The Billfish Foundation’s Peter Chaibongsai did last week at the La Jolla Country Day school in La Jolla, California. TBF was invited by Mr. Christopher Uyeda, a science teacher, to present to several classes on the importance of the conservation of recreational fish stocks and why programs like TBF’s Tag & Release program are essential for billfish conservation.
Chaibongsai spoke about TBF and our mission to conserve billfish populations worldwide as well as those communities dependent on healthy billfish (and their associated species) fish stocks. While many have never heard of billfish initially, they all could make the connection when Chaibongsai explained that it was the same type of fish from Hemingway’s “The Old Man and the Sea.” The students were enamored to find out that these fish begin their lives as tiny plankton and can grow to over 2000 lbs.
A “baby” blue marlin. Planktonic stage -Photo credit by Cedric Guigand
TBF’s Tag & Release program was then discussed and how the public can assist scientists and policy makers to the conservation of these important fish. Chaibongsai showed them why they tag fish, how it is done, and why they do it. Students were surprised to hear that how many stakeholders could be involved in recreational fishing, the money invested in the sport, that over 170,000 tags have been deployed on billfish and how far they can travel. By the end of the presentation, the students understood that the learning more about billfish (through tagging, releasing, and reporting) and their conservation were important to the economy, since many livelihoods are dependent on them.
Not a bad afternoon back at school. TBF would like to thank Mr. Uyeda and La Jolla Country Day for the invitation to come to the school and hope to see some of these students out on the water soon!
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On May 2, 2013 The Billfish Foundation submitted their official comments for Draft Amendment 8 for swordfish management in the United States as part of the Consolidated Atlantic Highly Migratory Species Fisheries Management Plan. Draft Amendment 8 proposes the establishment of a new Open-Access Commercial Handgear Permit for Swordfish as a means to increase access to fishery and decrease the amount of unharvested quota.
Even though the North Atlantic swordfish stocks are fully recovered, which represents a success story for international fisheries management, the U.S. has failed to catch its allocated quota in recent years. From 2007 to 2011, a persistent underharvest of quota at roughly 70% of the baseline has put the U.S. in jeopardy of losing unharvested quota. A number of factors have contributed to this issue including failure by many recreational anglers to report swordfish landings as well as the lack availability of commercial permits.
The authorization of new gear types into the commercial swordfish fishery, as proposed in Draft Amendment 8, may increase landings and the likelihood of the U.S. retaining its quota. The National Marine Fisheries Service believes that there will be a large shift from the recreational sector to the commercial sector since it would provide a legal way to sell swordfish to licensed dealers. It is believed that a large number of recreationally caught swordfish enter the market illegally, something that poses problems for not only fisheries management, but also health concerns. NMFS believes that more than 4,000 vessels will obtain this permit, more than 1,2000 of those coming from the ‘Florida Swordfish Management Area’. The Billfish Foundation believes that these numbers are over-inflated and have caused significant opposition by some commercial fishermen because of their inaccuracies.
NMFS is also proposing retention limits that would reduce the incentive for fishermen to obtain these permits. Additionally, these retention limits are less than what is currently allowed for a recreational vessel. The Billfish Foundation believes that in order for this permit to be effective, a retention limit must be equal to that of the recreational catch limit (1 per person, up to 4 per vessel) for the Florida Swordfish Management area and six swordfish for the other areas. This will provide the economic incentive for individuals to obtain this permit and provide a legal avenue to sell swordfish, hopefully reducing the amount of illegal sales and transfers from recreational vessels. To read The Billfish Foundaiton’s full comments, please read below.
TBF’s comments can can also be read by clicking here.
The Billfish Foundation has particular interest in the swordfish fishery and the development of Amendment 8 because of the importance of the fishery to both the recreational and commercial fishing industries.
To read more about this topic please check out the following stories:
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Australia’s proposed network of marine reserves is threatening to close off close to a million square kilometers to anglers, but fortunately, several scientists and organizations have been working to try and stop this from happening. A recent publication by Professor Robert Kearney in the Open Journal of Marine Science has echoed many of the points made by TBF and that the closures of vast marine zones are not logical or necessary for Australia to protect its marine resources. By some estimates, implementing these reserves will mean economic losses totaling in the billions, yet they will do little to protect from the true threats to Australia’s marine habitats. Not only is it not sound management but it is unfair to anglers and all Australians.
Australia’s fisheries management has consistently ranked among the best in the world by several independent reviews and has a history of effectively and sustainably managing its resources. In 2004, stock assessments indicated that overfishing was occurring in close to 40% of Australia’s managed fisheries. Just two years later in 2006, the percentage of overfished stocks was slashed to just 11%. Accomplished through traditional management practices of regulating catches and controlling fishing effort, the recovery of these stocks demonstrates the effectiveness of Australia’s fishery management as well as the resilience of marine species to recover from an unhealthy state. At both the national and state level, fisheries management in Australia focuses on conservation as well as promoting the sustainable use of marine resources. So why then is Australia shutting out important user groups like anglers and forfeiting socioeconomic opportunities when they do not pose a threat to the conservation of marine resources?
Many argue that the push for marine reserves is largely due to the influence of environmental NGOs and the failure of the country to inform the public on the true nature of the issues at hand. Many NGOs do not care to take the time to inform the public that almost all fishing practices (especially sportfishing) in Australia are sustainable and well managed. Instead, environmental NGOs with imposing media campaigns have misconstrued the facts and portray a “doom and gloom” message that all forms of fishing are a threat to the marine environment. Unfortunately, environmental NGOs have led many to believe that the smallest amount of overfishing is the equivalent of an environmental catastrophe and extreme measures like marine reserves are necessary to ensure their conservation. This is all despite the fact that Australia already effectively manages its resources and that marine reserves do not address the real threats to Australia’s marine environment such as pollution or coastal development. Even recreational anglers have been negatively portrayed despite the fact that anglers are conservation oriented and are a tremendous advocate for conservation efforts. In fact, Australian anglers annually generate close to $20 million AUD through the sale of licenses that helps fund habitat restorations, stock enhancements, and enforcement. Additionally, anglers are significant drivers of local economies through both direct spending and tourism generated from sportfishing. In New South Wales alone, recreational fishing for striped marlin is estimated to have an annual economic impact of $112 million compared to less than $5 million for that of commercial catches of striped marlin.
Currently, Australia imports 70% of its seafood, a figure that is expected to rise given the restrictions placed on fishing by the proposed marine reserves. Importing seafood means exporting the responsibility of sustainable fishing practices to other countries, which for Australia are predominately Asian countries that rank as some of the worst managed fisheries in the world. A dependence on seafood imports also draws into question issues of food security, especially for a country like Australia that is situated near many developing nations with growing demands for protein to sustain their expanding populations. In the Coral Sea Commonwealth Marine Reserve, an area of over half a million square kilometers is posed to shut all forms of fishing and create an annual loss of over 600 metric tons of tuna and swordfish that are harvested each year from this area. The displacement of these catches and highly migratory nature of these fish may mean that these fish will be harvested by nearby countries. Unlike Australia, other countries in the south Pacific do not responsibly manage their fisheries and use unsustainable practices such as those associated with high bycatch of important sportfish like billfish.
There are always two sides to every story and there is an important lesson to be learned from what is going on in Australia: stakeholders such as anglers need to take the time to educate themselves about the issues and work together to ensure that the real issues are addressed. Anglers and other important stakeholders do not have the resources or powerful social media tools of some international NGOs. They do however make efforts to conserve marine resources and make significant contributions to local economies. Unlike commercial longliners, anglers have almost no bycatch, tag and release virtually all billfish. It is unfair for NGOs to negatively portray anglers and to lock out anglers when they do not pose a threat to conserving biodiversity. Australia has demonstrated that it is capable of managing its marine resources so why try to fix something that is not broken.
The link to read Professor Kearney’s article can be found by clicking here
Full citation of article: Kearney, Robert. 2013. Australia’s Out-Dated Concern over Fishing Threatens Wise Marine Conservation and Ecologically Sustainable Seafood Supply. Open Journal of Marine Science, Vol. 3 No. 2, 2013, pp. 55-61. doi: 10.4236/ojms.2013.32006)
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The Billfish Foundation would like to welcome Pelagic Gear as a new Tag & Release Sponsor! We are excited to have them on board to support and promote TBF’s Tag & Release Program. Pelagic joins Bisbee’s Black and Blue, Costa Sunglasses, and King Sailfish Mounts as Tag & Release Sponsors for 2013.
Pelagic Gear has been a sponsor of TBF’s website section “In the Spread” for several years, but reaffirmed and increased their support of TBF’s main conservation program.
This partnership works perfectly with Pelagic’s own Ocean Conservancy Project line. This project raises funds for organizations that are on the forefront of scientific research, conservation, and recreational fisheries management. Pelagic Gear will now be on the forefront of billfish conservation!
TBF is looking forward to having Pelagic on board and excited for the future with all these great companies coming on board to support TBF’s Tag and Release Program! To learn more about becoming a sponsor of TBF, please contact us via email or by phone (954) 938 0150.
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The winner of TBF’s first Sid Johnson Memorial Conservation Trophy was won by team Vesper from Trinidad for releasing the most billfish during the 2012 Southern Caribbean Billfish Circuit. The Vesper team includes boat owner Jerome Mcquilkin, Captain Gerard “Frothy” de Silva; mate Nigel Garcia, three anglers Derick Tardeau, Ayoub Kabli and James Layton. TBF president Ellen Peel presented the trophy to Captain Frothy at the Marlin Madness tournament for the rest of the team was competing in the Bonnier World Championship in Costa Rica.
The late Sid Johnson from Trinidad was an early advocate for catch and release of billfish and fought hard to try to get Trinidad to stop allowing the distant-water-fishing nation of Taiwan from using the nation’s port as a major transshipment location. Johnson was recognized with a Special Achievement Award by TBF in 1998 for his push for conservation, responsible fishing and fighting overfishing from distant-water-nations that overfish billfish, which they kill as bycatch. Johnson later served on TBF’s board of director and was very helpful in keeping TBF informed on issues in the southern Caribbean.
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April 30th, 2013
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
(New York, NY) – Multi-platinum rockers Saliva are set to release their first album for new label home Rum Bum Records; IN IT TO WIN IT is due out this summer in North America. The first single from the forthcoming album, the aggressively anthemic title track “In It To Win It” is now available on iTunes and can be purchased here.
IN IT TO WIN IT, Saliva’s eight full-length release, was produced by Bobby Huff (known for his songwriting work with Meat Loaf, Halestorm, Drowning Pool, Saliva, Papa Roach, 3 Doors Down and more) and executive produced by Rum Bum Records Owner Luis Bacardi and new Saliva lead singer Bobby Amaru.
Saliva is an American rock band formed in Memphis, Tennessee in 1996. Saliva self-released their self-titled debut album in August, 1997 after competing in the National Academy of Recording Arts & Sciences Grammy Showcase competition, where they advanced to the final round in New York City. The album sold 10,000 copies independently, prompting record labels to take notice. Saliva signed with Island Records and went on to release six more albums with the label including the double-platinum certified EVERY SIX SECONDS, the offering which also contained their Grammy-nominated single, “Your Disease.” Saliva has enjoyed widespread success at Rock radio with such hit singles as “Always,” which nabbed the #1 spot on the Modern Rock Chart and climbed to #51 on the Billboard Hot 100.
In late 2012, Saliva signed to Rum Bum Records to begin a new phase of their already impressive career with new lead singer Bobby Amaru on board. To date, Saliva has sold millions of albums worldwide and has toured with the likes of KISS, Aerosmith, Godsmack, 3 Doors Down and many more. Saliva is Bobby Amaru (vocals), Dave Novotny (bass), Paul Crosby (drums) and Wayne Swinny (guitar).
For more information, please visit:
www.saliva.com
About Rum Bum Records
Rum Bum Records is an independent record label based in South Florida. Led by a team of industry veterans dedicated to finding original talent of all genres, the label offers worldwide distribution, and provides artists with the resources necessary to develop and expand their careers. By utilizing a variety of platforms including imaging, video production, marketing, social media, and publicity, Rum Bum Records is able to create versatile portfolios for talent, opening the doors to as many opportunities as possible. Additionally, the label has a full state of the art HD Film studio to successfully build an artist’s image and brand identity into one that is fully recognized and sought after by the public.
The Billfish Foundation would like to welcome Bisbee’s Fish & Wildlife Conservation Fund as a new Grand Slam Sponsor! We are excited to have them on board and working with them to lead TBF’s Tag & Release Program into the future.
Bisbee’s Fish & Wildlife Conservation Fund (BFWCF) has partnered with The Billfish Foundation, top software developers, database experts, and environmental engineers to evaluate and redesign The Billfish Foundation’s Tag & Release program, software, and systems so that it may efficiently and effectively report a wide range of data to scientists around the world. With your help we will learn how to better protect our waters highly migratory species.
Photo Credit – Capt. John Pearce
TBF and its partners are looking at technological advances in tag designs offer scientists new information that help us understand the feeding, spawning, and migration patterns of billfish. In order to organize and utilize this new data, TBF’s Tag & Release program needs a redesign and to be more engaging for the public so they can report and share their data. With a new and efficient program, TBF will continue help protect our oceans highly migratory species.
Copyright – Bisbee’s Fish & Wildlife Conservation Fund
BFWCF does not only limit itself to billfish and the ocean, they also have a African Rhino Project. This project is an aggressive campaign to protect and prevent the poaching of the endangered African rhino. Training field rangers with state of the art technology to venture into the bush on anti-poaching patrols on private game reserves (where most of the rhinos live) is the crux of the project.
Click here to learn more about the Bisbee’s Fish & Wildlife Conservation Fund.
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Cam V. Sigler, Sr. age 71, passed away March 20, 2013 following a year- long battle with cancer.
Cam was famously recognized as the man in the “Broad Brimmed Hat” and was known for his innovative outdoor products; particularly for the sport of saltwater fly fishing. Seasoned saltwater fly anglers are well acquainted with his acclaimed billfish flies, rods, reels and tackle.
In 1968, Cam moved his family to the Pacific Northwest to accept a job with the Eddie Bauer Company. In 1986, he left Eddie Bauer to start his own business, The Cam Sigler Company, which is now one of the top names in the industry.
Cam Sr. is survived by wife Sue, sons Cam Jr. and Shane, and two granddaughters, Teal and Lily. He was a long-time member of The Billfish Foundation and his family has designated TBF as a memorial recipient.
If you would like to make a donation in tribute to Mr. Sigler, click below or contact Deborah Cummings at (800) 438 8247 ext.106.
The post Cam V. Sigler, Sr. Memorial appeared first on The Billfish Foundation.
Atlanta, Ga. (20 April 2013) – Luis Bacardi’s Rum Bum Racing got knocked back, but didn’t fall down. Drivers Matt Plumb and Nick Longhi suffered two tough hits and some bad luck in pit lane during Round 4 of the GRAND-AM Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge at Road Atlanta, but that didn’t keep the team from retaining the championship points lead.
Longhi opened the PWC 250 at Road Atlanta event from the pole after Friday’s qualifying session was rained out and the grid was set by championship point order. Showing strength from the drop of the green flag, the No. 13 immediately pulled out a two-second advantage over the 60-car combined class field. But just four laps into the 2.5-hour event, the GS field encountered the slower ST traffic and a pack of cars began to catch the No. 13.
Longhi found himself in a battle for the point with the No. 55 but unfortunately his very strong run was thwarted when the No. 55 punted the No. 13 Porsche out of the lead with Longhi falling to eighth in the order.
“It is such a shame, because the first 10 laps were great,” offered Longhi. “I was running a pace that would preserve the car because you know you’re going to catch traffic. Everything was going according to plan until the contact from the 55 car. The car was great – it was really hooked up and we had a good lead. I just don’t know what he thought he was doing there.”
The Rum Bum squad didn’t let the setback slow them down as Longhi was back to fourth prior to the team’s first pit stop with 45 minutes completed in the race.
Ready to make a traditional fast Rum Bum pit stop and driver change, Longhi brought the No. 13 to pit lane only to find the bad racing luck continue when tow trucks on pit road forced him to come to a complete stop and excruciatingly wait while several other cars who had already passed the trucks were able to make their pit stops and return to the track.
Once finally in the pit box, the Rum Bum crew delivered a lightning fast pit stop, but the track position had already been lost and Plumb restarted from the 15th position.
Despite the fact that the Porsche was losing a bumper due to the early-race contact and slowing the car considerably as it acted like a parachute, Plumb once again began a relentless charge through the field during the second half of the race to challenge for the fifth position with just under 20 minutes remaining.
But that strong run was again halted when a competing BMW misjudged his braking distance taking to the grass (which was wet from Friday’s rain storms) and only slowed down by hitting the No. 13 Rum Bum Racing Porsche.
Following the hit, Plumb fell to 10th in the order and the track immediately went yellow for another on-track incident. The race would finish under the yellow and Rum Bum Racing settled for 10th at the finish.
“We came away with some points, but we definitely had bad luck today,” said Plumb. “We lost a ton of track position when the two tow trucks stopped us in pit lane. I went back out and for as good of a car as we have there is nothing you can do against all the torque and horsepower out there. Where we’re quickest there is no usable space on the racetrack to pass. Towards the end we were challenging for fifth and I felt like we could have maybe made it up onto the podium, but then boom, contact from the No. 48. This track just breeds impatience. All in all not a great day, but you can’t win them all.”
With the result, Rum Bum Racing maintains the provisional GRAND-AM Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge championship standings with a six-point advantage.
The PWC 250 At Road Atlanta will be televised on Saturday, April 27 at 2:00 PM (ET) on SPEED.
Rum Bum Racing will see an eight-week break in Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge race action before Round 5 of the championship at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course June 13-15.
The post Double Bumps Knock Rum Bum From Strong Result at Road Atlanta appeared first on Rum Bum Racing.
Atlanta, Ga. (19 April 2013) – The No. 13 Rum Bum Racing Porsche will start from the pole in Saturday’s PWC 250 At Road Atlanta for round four of the 2013 GRAND-AM Championship.
The grid was set by point order when qualifying was cancelled due to heavy rains in the Atlanta area. Nick Longhi will open the two hour, thirty-minute race before handing the Porsche over to co-driver Matt Plumb to take to the finish.
Luis Bacardi’s Rum Bum Racing, who has finished in the top-five in each of the three opening rounds of GRAND-AM Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge competition this year – including a victory in the previous round at Barber Motorsports Park, currently leads the Grand Sport championship.
“It would have been nice to show what we could do in qualifying but at the same time it’s really great to be starting up front at Road Atlanta,” said Plumb. “With this being a challenging track as well as a new track for GRAND-AM, I think we could see some attrition tomorrow so it’s all the more important to be starting at the front. The team has just been fantastic so far this season and has put us at the top of the championship so a big thanks to the Rum Bum guys. We’ve had good pace so far this weekend so hopefully we can stay out of trouble and convert our pace into another strong finish.”
The event marks the fifth time Rum Bum Racing has started on the pole. The team has scored 12 wins and 18 podiums since its debut in 2010.
The 2.5-hour PWC 250 at Road Atlanta race is set to begin Saturday at 11:30 AM (ET). Live timing and scoring can be followed at www.grand-am.com.
SPEED will televise the event Saturday, April 27 at 2:00 PM (ET).
The post Rum Bum Racing to Start on Pole at Road Atlanta appeared first on Rum Bum Racing.
Orlando, Fla. (17 April 2013) – When Luis Bacardi’s Rum Bum Racing team arrives at Road Atlanta, the driving duo of Matt Plumb and Nick Longhi will be targeting the team’s 13th victory in just three years of racing as the GRAND-AM Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge makes its debut at the historic 2.54-mile world-class circuit.
Fresh off a dramatic victory in the previous round of Barber Motorsports Park, where the team rallied back from a lap down to take the win in the No. 13 Porsche, Rum Bum Racing leads the GRAND-AM championship heading into Round 4.
“It truly was one of our greatest wins just because we had to come back from such unfortunate circumstances,” said Plumb of the Barber event. “We had a rough pit stop and went a lap down. We got our lap back with the wave around, but you have to keep digging the whole time. We thought we were down but this team never, never gives up. (Team owner) Luis Bacardi put together this team and all the pieces of the team just work together.”
Though the Road Atlanta facility is a new venue to many of the drivers competing in the Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge Series, both Plumb and Longhi already have years of experience at the circuit – with Plumb having raced at the track in the open wheel ranks as well as in World Challenge competition and with Longhi having competed in ALMS GT competition.
“I drove at Road Atlanta quite a bit in both two liter formula cars and Barber Dodge and then World Challenge,” offered Plumb. “And now I do a lot of iRacing which is amazing how similar it is to actually racing at the track. I think it’s really great that GRAND-AM is going back to Road Atlanta. It’s one of the cooler tracks that we have in North America so the fact that we’ve been missing it, is a bit of a bummer. Now that we’re there again it just adds to the excitement of the Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge racing!”
“Road Atlanta is a track that I like a lot – it’s one of my favorite ones in North America,” echoed Longhi. “It’s a real race course. It’s fast and up and down hill and it’s a lot of fun to drive. I like it personally, a lot. It has a great history. It’s really fun to drive. It’s a really great atmosphere in terms of the fans – they appreciate what they’re watching. I’m very, very excited to go there. I’ve raced there before in ALMS in various cars years ago. But obviously in GRAND-AM we haven’t been there in a few years so I’ve missed it a lot. It’s great to be able to race there again. It’s one of the greatest race tracks in North America for sure.”
Rum Bum Racing Crew Chief Joe Varde, who calls the strategy for Rum Bum Racing and played a major role in securing the team’s championship title last year, also has a vast amount of experience at the track. Varde is one of the most successful championship-winning road racers of the last 25 years and has plenty of knowledge of the Road Atlanta road course having driven in ALMS, Cayman Interseries and IMSA Firehawk competition – among others.
“I think it’s great,” said Varde of the Road Atlanta addition to the GRAND-AM schedule. “We grow up road racing and we go to all of these tracks and then when the big separation came we didn’t go to Road Atlanta anymore and we missed that a lot. And now that (the two series) are back together we’re going to be racing those tracks and I think it’s going to be good for everybody. I’ve got a lot of great Road Atlanta memories. In 1983 I won the (IMSA Firehawk) race there and I had my son there on the podium – he was very young at the time and I had a picture with him on the podium and I thought that was very cool.”
The weekend kicks off with a promoter test day on Thursday, April 18. Official practice and qualifying takes place on Saturday with the race set to go green on Saturday, April 20 at 11:30 AM (ET).
Live timing and scoring is available throughout the weekend at www.grand-am.com. SPEED will televise the event April 27 at 2:00 PM (ET).
The post Rum Bum Racing Revved Up for Road Atlanta Debut appeared first on Rum Bum Racing.
“Surrender The Fall’s stock in trade is pounding pedal-through-the-floor rock, a loud abundance that includes first single “Love Hate Masquerade”-Billboard
“Surrender the Fall finds its own ‘spotlight’”-Flint Journal
Surrender the Fall’s new video for Some Kind of Perfect is premiering on MTV.com Buzzworthy right now.
“The music of Memphis’ Surrender The Fall is a throwback to the days when glammy hard rock bands ruled the airwaves, so it’s no surprise that their videos would call some of the classic tropes of the hair metal period as well. Their new clip for “Some Kind of Perfect,” from their recent Burn In the Spotlight album, is a collection of those timeless rock video themes that we remember from back in the day, but with a contemporary update. Clearly, Surrender The Fall has learned from their forefathers — and they wanna ROCK. Which, I might mention, they totally do and they totally do well.” – MTV Buzzworthy
The band’s debut album, Burn in the Spotlight was released via Rum Bum Records on September 18, 2012 and has already spawned two Top 40 Rock Singles with Love Hate Masquerade and Some Kind of Perfect.
Check Some Kind of Perfect out here:
http://buzzworthy.mtv.com/2013/04/09/surrender-the-fall-some-kind-of-perfect-video/
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (April 6, 2013) – Matt Plumb took advantage of a rare mistake by John Edwards to win Saturday’s Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge race, giving the No. 13 Rum Bum Racing Porsche Carrera its second consecutive victory at Barber Motorsports Park.
Edwards was seeking his second victory of the day when he missed a shift in the No. 9 Stevenson Motorsports Chevrolet Camaro with 24 minutes remaining. Plumb led the final 14 laps, beating Edwards to the checkered flag by 2.407 seconds. It was the team’s sixth victory since switching to Porsche at the 2012 Barber event.
“I never thought I’d love Alabama so much,” Plumb said. “It was awesome. It was truly one of our greater wins, just because we had to come back from such unfortunate circumstances. We had a problem on a pit stop and went a lap down, got the lap back with a wave around and I just had to keep digging the whole time.”
David Empringham finished third in the No. 15 Multimatic Motorsport Aston Martin Vantage started by John Farano.
Tom Long led a podium sweep of Mazda MX-5s in Street Tuner. Long and Derek Whitis won in the Freedom Autosport No. 25, edging teammates Andrew Carbonell and Rhett O’Doski in the No. 26, and Jason Saini and Chad McCumbee in the No. 5 CJ Wilson Racing entry.
“It was a 1-2 for Freedom Autosport, but better yet, it was a 1-2-3 for Mazda,” Long said. “I just couldn’t be happier. To have three Mazdas up on the podium here at Barber Motorsports Park, I don’t believe this track could suit these cars any better.”
The race was slowed by three cautions, with the longest coming after an impact by Rob Ecklin Jr. into the guardrail at the exit of Turn 12. Ecklin was uninjured, but the No. 99 Invisible Glass BMW M3 sustained major front-end damage.
Charles Espenlaub won the pole and dominated the opening stages of the event in the No. 48 Fall-Line Motorsports BMW M3. He led 36 of the 83 laps, finishing seventh with co-driver Al Carter.
The next Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge race will be on Saturday, April 20, joining the Rolex Sports Car Series during GRAND-AM’s first visit to Road Atlanta in Braselton, Ga.
Story Credit: www.grand-am.com
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Grows Championship lead with strong run to victory
Birmingham, Ala. (6 April 2013) – Last year, Rum Bum Racing flipped the script. This year, it was a re-run.
Rum Bum Racing returned to victory lane at Barber Motorsports Park on Saturday to score a repeat win at the Alabama road course. Drivers Nick Longhi and Matt Plumb fought back from a lap down to score Rum Bum Racing’s 12th GRAND-AM victory.
Longhi opened the race from the fourth row after having qualified the No. 13 Porsche eighth on the grid. He ran a strong opening stint among the top-six throughout the first 20 laps before the team called him to pit lane just past the 30 minute mark for a routine pit stop and driver change.
A traditional quick Rum Bum pit stop was thwarted when a problem with the refueling system saw the stop take much longer than it should have and the No. 13 fell a lap down. Fortunately, a yellow flag was displayed soon after the pit stop which saw Plumb pick up the pace car ahead of the race leader and earn the ‘wave around’ to return to the lead lap.
Plumb restarted from the 20th position but wasted no time in moving forward as he made a charge through the field to run fourth with just under an hour remaining in the race.
A caution late in the race saw Plumb circulating with a clear shot for a podium finish. When asked by the Speed pit reporter if he was thinking about a win or the championship, crew chief Joe Varde didn’t hesitate as Luis Bacardi looked on.
“I am thinking ‘championship,’ but the boss likes to win so we are going to go for it!”
Indeed, Plumb was on the same page as he out-dueled the leader to score the point before one final full course caution. Plumb led the field to the green and never looking back, scoring Rum Bum Racing’s first victory of the season.
“I never thought I’d love Alabama so much!” exclaimed Plumb. “It was awesome. It truly was one of our greatest wins just because we had to come back from such unfortunate circumstances. We had a rough pit stop where we had a problem with the fuel system and went a lap down. We got our lap back with the wave around, but you have to keep digging the whole time. When the boss is in town, you got to make sure you win!”
“This team is just unbelievable and Matt is an amazing driver,” said Longhi. “The combination of this whole team working together is incredible. We were a lap down and the strategy early on was just to be careful. Try to keep the car in one piece and keep the tires underneath you and it was a bit hectic. We were doing okay. The yellows were timed the wrong way and we thought we were down but this team never, never gives up and Luis Bacardi put together this team and I just can’t get over how strong it is all the time. All the pieces of the team just work together. I’m really so happy to be a small part of this amazing operation.”
The victory extends Rum Bum Racing’s championship lead with a 17-point advantage. The team will return to race action at Road Atlanta in two weeks, April 18-20.
SPEED will televise the Barber Motorsports Park event Saturday, April 13 at 2:00 PM (ET).
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Birmingham, Ala. (5 April 2013) – After starting the 2012 race at Barber Motorsports Park from fifth, Rum Bum Racing took a dramatic victory in the team’s first-ever outing with a Porsche 911 on the way to scoring the 2012 GRAND-AM Championship. Drivers Nick Longhi and Matt Plumb will look to defend last year’s victory with another strong outing as the duo enter the race weekend leading both the driver and team championship standings ahead of the third Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge round.
The picturesque track has not featured post card weather to go with the high quality of facilities, with cold temperatures and variable precipitation keeping the drivers busy on the 2.3-mile circuit during the opening two days of testing.
The weather started to turn for the better on Friday as the field was ready to set the grid in a 15-minute qualifying session on Friday morning.
The session proved to be a stop and start affair, as an early yellow flag saw Longhi forced to cool his heels in pit lane before the track went green again with just over four minutes to go. Unfortunately, Longhi, along with several other competitors, was judged to have been a little too eager to get out of pit lane.
A quick roll back through the pit lane to serve a pit speeding penalty meant that he had only one more flying lap to set a time, and he made the most of it with a fast lap time of 1:35.699-seconds to score eighth on the grid.
“On my first lap, the tires were just too cold because it had been raining,” said Longhi. “I really thought there’d be more grip. And so I went through the last corner with a lot of understeer, and I should have known it was going to take a couple of laps to warm up, but I didn’t want to take “no” for an answer. So I was sideways and sliding around too much, figuring that the next lap it would settle in.”
The weather has kept the drivers and engineers on their toes, but with a more consistent and hospitable forecast for race day, the team is optimistic for a strong result.
“I felt like if I could have done one or two more laps before the black flag, we would have been faster, but I don’t know if we had the pole,” said Longhi. “But this is what happens in this series. There’s a lot of black flags, especially at a track like this where there’s going to be a lot of cars off track and a lot of contact. But it is what it is, we are where we are, we have a great team, and we’ll win anyway.”
The 2.5-hour Barber race will go green on Saturday at 4:00 PM local time. Live timing and scoring is available at www.grand-am.com.
Saturday’s race will be broadcast on SPEED, April 13 2:00 PM ET.
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A look back at Rum Bum Racing’s Rolex 24 Effort
Notes:
*Rum Bum Racing will be guests of the Birmingham area Porsche Club of America during the event, with drivers Matt Plumb and Nick Longhi featured guests for a race-day Q&A and tech talk
Orlando, Fla. (1 April 2013) – With just over a month between Rounds 2 and 3 of the 2013 GRAND-AM Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge championship, Luis Bacardi’s Rum Bum Racing is ready to go at Barber Motorsports Park this weekend as the team is set to defend its 2012 victory at the track.
Looking to mount a vigorous defense of its 2012 GRAND-AM team title, Rum Bum Racing currently sits atop the championship standings heading into Round 3 after strong performances in the first two rounds.
The 2.3-mile, 17-turn scenic road course located in Birmingham, Alabama is one of the most technical tracks on the 2013 calendar, and drivers Matt Plumb and Nick Longhi are eager to return to race action.
Last year’s Barber victory came in the team’s first Porsche start after making the transition from BMW. Despite driving a brand new car with a nearly empty notebook, Plumb and Longhi showed that Rum Bum Racing preparation and team execution are second to none, no matter what the equipment is. The victory kicked off a string of wins for Rum Bum Racing as the team went on to claim five victories in 10 races on the way to securing the 2012 team championship title after taking a dramatic victory in the season-finale race at Lime Rock Park.
The team has delivered two strong performances in the first two rounds – scoring a second place result at Daytona International Speedway and a fourth place finish at Circuit of the Americas in GRAND-AM’s Texas debut. As the Rum Bum squad returns to Barber Motorsports Park, the team would like nothing more than to take a repeat win in Saturday’s 2.5-hour event.
“It is always great to come back to a track where you won the last year,” said Plumb. “Winning on debut with the Porsche was to me a great display of what this Rum Bum team is capable of. So far this year, we haven’t won a race, which is always the ambition, but with two races under our belts, we’re happy with where we are in the points. Every weekend, we know that we have to pull out as many points as possible and stay out of trouble. We saw that in Texas–some very strong championship contenders had issues. We just have to focus on our game plan and hope to have a little racing luck in there as well!”
Barber Motorsports Park tends to flatter the high horsepower V8s with its low speed corners and high-speed straights and due to the track’s technical layout, it’s all the more important for Longhi to qualify the Porsche machine toward the front of the nearly 60-car combined class grid.
“We’ve found that this car has a good race pace, but on a track like Barber you need a lot of grunt to pull out of the slower corners,” said Longhi. “So with our Porsche, the more track position we can earn in qualifying, the better we’ll be in the race as this car runs well out front. The big thing is keeping the nose clean and turning the car over ready to go in the final laps of the race. Barber can be a messy track for contact, so hopefully we can just stay out of trouble and be at the front when it counts.”
The weekend kicks off with a promoter test day on Wednesday with official practice on Thursday. Qualifying will take place on Friday at 11:15 AM (ET). The green flag is set to wave on the 2.5-hour race at 5:00 PM (ET) on Saturday.
Live timing and scoring can be followed at www.grand-am.com throughout the weekend. SPEED will televise the event Saturday, April 13 at 2:00 PM (ET).
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