AUTOMOTIVE AND RACING GREAT TO JOIN 2020 SHOW OPENING DAY LINEUP
For Immediate Release
Vancouver, BC — One of the great leaders and innovators in both the automotive and racing industry over the last 50 years will join the opening day lineup for the Vancouver International Auto Show. Roger Penske will help celebrate the 100th Anniversary of the popular annual BC show on Wednesday, March 25th.
“We’re thrilled and honoured to welcome Roger to the 2020 Vancouver Auto Show,” says Jimmy Pattison, Honourary Chair and Grand Marshall of the 100th Anniversary of the Vancouver International Auto Show (March 25-29, 2020). “Roger is a legend, he’s an inspiration to countless young drivers as well as business professionals and he’s a true ambassador of the auto sector.”
Born in Shaker Heights, Ohio in 1937, Roger Penske developed a love for cars as a young boy. His passion for racing came to life when he attended his first Indianapolis 500 with his father in 1951. Penske became a standout race car driver in the late 1950s and early 1960s before he walked away from his career as a driver in 1965 to focus on business and an opportunity in the automotive industry – as a Chevrolet dealer in Philadelphia.
His on-track prowess was soon followed by business success, but racing continued to be his passion. He formed his own race team in 1966 and Team Penske has been winning ever since. With over 540 all-time race wins – including a record 18 Indianapolis 500 victories – and 37 national championships, Team Penske is one of the most successful sports organizations in the world. The team’s rich history includes victories in BC as driver Al Unser Jr. won for Team Penske at both the 1994 and 1995 Molson Indy Vancouver on the Pacific Place street circuit.
Penske Corporation is a closely-held, diversified, on-highway, transportation services company whose subsidiaries operate in a variety of industry segments, including retail automotive, truck leasing, transportation logistics and professional motorsports. The company employs more than 64,000 people in over 3,200 locations around the globe. In January, Penske’s company began its newest opportunity, taking over as the owners of the historic Indianapolis Motor Speedway, the NTT IndyCar Series and IMS Productions, a leading video services and production company.
In recent years, Penske has been recognized for his accomplishments both on the track and in the boardroom, including being inducted into the Automotive Hall of Fame (2015) and the NASCAR Hall of Fame (2019) and being presented with the Presidential Medal of Freedom last year – the highest civilian honour awarded in the United States.
As a special guest of the 2020 Vancouver International Auto Show, Penske will participate in a breakfast panel for media and industry attendees on March 25 to discuss the global automotive sector with Canadian automotive icon and friend Jimmy Pattison, along with a number of other VIP participants. Penske will also join several other special guests in the 100th Anniversary ribbon cutting ceremony. Two of Team Penske’s most recent winning race cars will also be featured at the show – the Dallara/Chevrolet driven by Josef Newgarden to the 2019 IndyCar Series Championship and the 2018 Indianapolis 500 winning car that was driven by Will Power.
For more information about the 2020 Vancouver International Auto Show, March 25-29 at the
Vancouver Convention Centre West, visit: www.VancouverInternationalAutoShow.com.
About the Vancouver International Auto Show
The Vancouver International Auto Show is owned and operated by the New Car Dealers Association of BC (www.newcardealers.ca). As Western Canada’s best attended consumer show, it is British Columbia’s new model showcase for the Canadian automotive industry and represents nearly 40 distinct brands from the world’s leading manufacturers.
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Reference:
Laura Ballance
Media Relations
604-637-6646
[email protected]
