Purdue’s 55th Grand Prix Set for April 21

grandprix-penixPurdue University's 55th annual Grand Prix race, with Purdue alumnus and NASA astronaut Drew Feustel serving as grand marshal, will take place April 21.

The race will be at the Grand Prix track on campus, near the corner of McCormick Road and Cherry Lane.

During a prerace ceremony, Feustel will present the Purdue banner that he took into space on a shuttle mission in 2011 to Purdue President France A. Córdova.

While a Purdue student, Feustel drove in the Grand Prix for Sigma Phi Epsilon fraternity for three years. He is still involved in karting with the International Karting Federation.

NASA selected Feustel as a mission specialist in 2000. In his first space shuttle mission in 2009, he served on the crew of the final mission to the Hubble Space Telescope. His last shuttle flight, in May 2011, was to the International Space Station. It was the penultimate space shuttle mission.

To date, 23 Purdue alumni have been chosen for spaceflight, including Neil Armstrong, the first person to walk on the moon, and Eugene Cernan, the most recent to do so.

"It's exciting to honor Purdue's historic connection to NASA and space exploration with Dr. Feustel's banner presentation to President Córdova," said Kayla Peas, promotions director of the Grand Prix Foundation.

The Purdue Varsity Glee Club also will perform during the prerace ceremonies.

Justin Penix, a senior from Indianapolis majoring in mechanical engineering technology geared toward a motorsports degree at Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis, has won the last two races.

This year, 33 student drivers will compete for the trophy in what has been called the "Greatest Spectacle in College Racing."

Qualifications will take place Saturday (April 14). Practice for qualifications starts at 11:20 a.m., and the main time trials are at noon. The top 27 qualifiers will be in the main event on race day. Top finishers in three qualifying sprints will fill six other slots on race day. The top two karts from each sprint race on April 21 will enter the main event to round out the 33-kart starting grid.

The 160-lap feature race starts at 2 p.m. April 21 with driver introductions and the national anthem. Pits are open to the public from 8-9:45 a.m., and track seating is open to the public at 8:45 a.m. Practice is from 9:25-10:50 a.m. Heat races start at 11:20 a.m. The Classic Alumni Kart race (pre-1986 karts) is scheduled for 12:50 p.m., and the Modern Alumni Kart Race (post-1986 karts) will be at 1:20 p.m.

Tickets are $7 in advance or $10 at the gate. Tickets for children under age 12 are $5.

Advance tickets will be on sale Saturday and Sunday (April 14 and 15) during Purdue's Spring Fest at the Grand Prix tent on Memorial Mall. Ticket sales will continue Monday (April 16) in the Stewart Center lobby, outside of the Class of 1950 Lecture Hall, on the Engineering Mall and in the Purdue Memorial Union basement. Tickets also can be purchased by emailing sales@purduegrandprix.org

Grand Prix Student Ambassadors promote the event leading up to the race. They are Vignesh Gouthaman, who's studying mechanical engineering, and Jacob Stevens, who's studying agricultural systems management.

Among their duties, ambassadors serve as spokespeople for the Grand Prix Foundation and encourage race support and business sponsorship. The ambassadors each received a $1,000 scholarship from the Grand Prix Foundation. Fourteen other students received scholarships ranging from $250-$750.

The Grand Prix Foundation will host a recognition and victory banquet at 6 p.m. April 22 in the Purdue Memorial Union North Ballroom. All drivers and team members are invited to attend. Drivers and team members planning to attend should RSVP to business@purduegrandprix.org.

The Grand Prix Foundation is a student-run, nonprofit group that conducts the kart race and related events to raise money for scholarships. The foundation also receives support from Lockheed Martin, Cottages on Lindberg and Coyote Logistics, as well as Bosch, Chauncey Square, Monster Energy, Wright Implement and Ford.