Ralph is a track stud.

sun diego

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At Spring Mountain Nevada on Sunday he earned pole position ahead of Tanner Foust and other hotshoes in the ACRX race.

Our CEO is faster than your CEO. He is probably the fastest car CEO of modern times.

I doubt he will allow boring cars to be built once the pipeline is all his.

He apparently has a Karting track on his property, and uses it to melt stress. He has a shifter Kart, now converted to electric because of noise complaints from neighbors. You know you're a redneck when...


There are many reasons he fits Viper.
 

Bobpantax

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Because of the behavior described, he is also the coolest automotive executive of modern times.
 

Dave Scott

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He is a very impressive driver who really stepped it up yesterday. He is also a helluva nice and self-effacing guy. :2tu:
 

96GTS

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In Iraq we have Dubai 1 and Armed Force Radio/Television Services (AFARTS). We don't get commercials and we don't get Versus, so could someone PLEASE tell me what happened? It's killing me because I was stationed at Las Vegas, and I've been on Spring Mountain a few times.
 

Dave Scott

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I think it is very admirable to see an auto company's leader racing his own products, and especially to be at the front of the pack.
 

ACR steve

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It was some of the best racing I have ever seen. Yes huge hats off to Ralph for the pole on a track that he was at for the first time that Saturday morning.

How great is it that the Viper along with Dodge and Chrysler is lead by a guy that can not only talk the talk but can walk the walk with the best of them.

We couldnt have a better guy in the world at our helm :)
 

Mopar Boy

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We Dodge folks really should be proud. Not maky CEOs would do this type of stuff. Something to be said about that! :)

You da man Corey! :D
 

Viperless

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At Spring Mountain Nevada on Sunday he earned pole position ahead of Tanner Foust and other hotshoes in the ACRX race.

Our CEO is faster than your CEO. He is probably the fastest car CEO of modern times.

I doubt he will allow boring cars to be built once the pipeline is all his.

He apparently has a Karting track on his property, and uses it to melt stress. He has a shifter Kart, now converted to electric because of noise complaints from neighbors. You know you're a redneck when...


There are many reasons he fits Viper.

Tanner Foust?!?!? Good grief. :(

Way to go Ralph!!!
 

redtanrt10

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1st time I've met Ralph, what a nice guy and what a modest guy!!

During the Saturday race Michael VonQ got nugged off the track on the front straight and sprayed rocks as he was probably doing 130 off road.

Ralph showed us the picture of his windshield from his blackberry, looked like it was sprayed with bullets!! One rock came through the side window, hit his helmet then broke out the rear glass! (Note to all, wear a full shield on the track even in a coupe!)

Not sure what Versus will show but his in-car and others would be wild!



What's wrong with Foust? he did a great job, drove well, raced clean, and was a great guy to everyone.[/quote]

He's a very nice guy in person and told us the winey smart ass comments are mandatory for the show.

It was obvious in the first race he could have won, and after the championship was settled Saturday he was free to show us his skills!
 

vooodoo

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FYI - Ralph raced as "Karl Black" this past weekend at Spring Mountain...

Personally, I like Corey Vetzsuck better! ;)
 

TrackAire

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Yeah, although Ralph is awesome on a real race course, the CEO of GM handles his Vette bodied golf cart with amazing skill :lmao:

Props to Ralph for a great job....but, is there ANY reason we're not seeing TV commercials with Ralph in the ACRX races? This is the attitude we need to convey on how Dodge is being run, who is running it and how we feel about the cars we build, drive and race. I can promise you 99% of the Vette and Mustang GT owners (potential Dodge customers, not just for Vipers) have no idea what Ralph and Dodge have accomplished. I think seeing Ralph (corporate CEO) out on the track is a huge marketing advantage.

Everytime I see the Challenger commercial with George Washington driving I still get goose bumps....I think a "Ralph Gilles" racing commercial would be a powerful tool for getting increased awareness of who Dodge is, where it is heading and what the passion is.

Vooodoo, I know Ralph is a humble guy, but really, he is the most powerful marketing advantage Dodge has....we need to let other potential customers know about him and his automotive passion.

Cheers,
George
 
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sun diego

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Good point TrackAire.

When people see an ad, they tend to disbelieve it. I heard someone say the SRT engineers breathed on his motor, for example. Easy to disprove, as he wasn't pulling people on the straights, but on the corners.

The best thing is give a national car mag and an on-line site access to his crew and a race weekend. It's free and believable.

Fred Lux looks after the celeb cars and Cindi coaches them. We have to keep Ralph away from Fred and his 40mph battery scooters called "The Crippler" When Bucky Lasek the skateboard pro calls them insane, you know it's wild. Fred was way faster than Tanner on them. Take a look at all the videos.

YouTube - LuxPerformanceGroup's Channel
 
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Bill Pemberton Woodhouse

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I tend to agree that we need to exploit the track adventures of Corey Vetzsuck and Karl Black, and done right that could be a fun story in itself. The press should not have too much difficulty in realizing the real story here, as Ralph has been out playing with SRT products for years. Those of us that went to SRT-4/SRT conventions often found Ralph there testing a fun car , or one that he had run at Targa Newfoundland. His passion for fast cars is well known and marketing wise it might be engaging to show his exploits as if he is sneaking out to race and play with his fellow gearheads and then lead into a more prominent position ( say next year ) where he runs under his full , and official name de plume.

After all " Gilles" does denote quite a few fast Canadians and I see no reason not to add the Dodge CEO/Head of Chrysler Design to that list !!??:2tu:
 
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BAD BOYZZ GARAGE

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With this new driver "De Plume" that Bill is talking about, along with Corey Vetzuck & Mr. Black, I think we need to bring in the famous Pink Panther hunter himself to solve the case of " Who is really Piloting the Red Viper? " :D

Inspector Clouseau :2tu:
 
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sun diego

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Tanner was in the red, Carl Black was in the black one at Spring Mountain.
 

Bill Pemberton Woodhouse

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Next race ve vill hab Karl Schwartz , International Driver of Mystery. Heck, could Ralph be the new " Stig" on the US Version of Top Gear?

Dang, ain't it fun to start racing rumors, ha,ha?!
 

02 Graphite GTS

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I loitered around the Lux tent quite a bit on Sat. Pretty cool seeing Ralph, Tanner and the others talking after each session. Definitely good times !

You must be registered for see images attach
 

Boxer12

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I heard someone say the SRT engineers breathed on his motor, for example. Easy to disprove, as he wasn't pulling people on the straights, but on the corners.

Just to fan the flames a bit, my neighbor is a former Chrysler engine plant manager, and he says they were always getting calls to make up special parts for top brass. Also, faster in the corners could be indicative of more tq, rigid frame, etc. I am just sayin. The 01 is, after all, the Dodge factory race car.

There is no doubt that nobody has more seat time in an ACR than Ralph, and prob same holds true for the ACRX. I doubt he has to pay for repairs or anything whatsoever if he has a shunt either, so that adds to the 'drive it like you stole it factor.' Whatever, he still has to handle the wheel so even if his car was the best of the pack, he still had to drive it and it takes talent to do that. I applaud him for getting out there and mixing it up. Now what about NASCAR? That would be something!!
 
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sun diego

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More tq doesn't make you faster around a corner. You are at neutral or light throttle. Cornering is the right line, absolute grip(same tires on all cars), big balls and smooth steering. I believe he drove the red car at Miller, the black one at Spring Mountain.

If there was a cheat available, such as chassis stiffening, every privateer would be all over it. There's real money at stake.

Nascar doesn't have any real Dodge cars in it. Only COTs.
 
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Bill Pemberton Woodhouse

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Boy, Boxer 12 , when you are off, you are way, way off. No need to fan the flames ,as Ralph ran the red car to 2nd and 3rd in qualifying at Miller, and you sure can't know the situation if you think the car he pops in is different than the others.

The one comment that really is extremely inaccurate, is that no one has more seat time in an ACR than Ralph. Wow, I can probably name 20 folks right away and given time, likely more, as Ralph has absolutely no time to run Vipers. This is a gentleman who works 16-18+ hour days , and often Saturdays, and feels a chance to jump in an ACR-X is a vacation day. Heading Dodge and as the Head of Design for Chrysler Corp., most folks who work with Ralph are tickled to death that he takes these extremely infrequent breaks.

Now if you want to talk about Eric Hueschle or Chris Winkler or others that drive Vipers almost daily, you have a good case for them doing well in a race or setting a track record ( in Chris's case at Laguna Seca ), but those of us who do race are quite amazed at what Ralph has done on the track , as his time is so severely limited , it is incomprehensible to most.

Lux Peformance sets up the cars, and there is no one I know with more integrity than Cindi Lux and Fred Lux. Ralph has popped into any car she has suggested and it makes no difference. I had the pleasure of sitting at a corner called the " Attitudes" with Cindi at Miller Motorsports Park and listening in as she coached Ralph. Ralph made mistakes , but adjusted quickly with Cindi's guidance and skill at picking up small areas for improvement. I watched, and listened as he worked on two areas that took him from mid pack to a top three qualifying spot. Frankly if Ralph has a secret weapon , or any advantage, it is Cindi Lux and her talent.

Nuff said, but just not a correct assessment of what is really happening and there is no one out there that is not enamored that we have a Motorhead directing Dodge, and racing them to boot!!

Respectfully Submitted,
Bill Pemberton
 

fireball

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Yea Ralph!
:can1:

One more thing about marketing Ralph as the face of the brand. Dieter Zetsche had a very distictive and distinguished look - perfect. Ralph is (according to my lovely wife) very attractive. Dark skin and blue eyes - he'll sell well.

Greg
 

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