Lee and Jeannette Apostale win a Porsche 911
Head archivist Jenny Ambrose, with winner Lee Apostale, holds the Porsche title and car keys. Photo by Anthony Bristol.
Lee and Jeannette Apostale of Hornell, N.Y., were the winners of the 2003 Porsche 911 Carrera 4S raffled by the International Motor Racing Research Center.
“This is the Center’s 20th anniversary year. We’re very excited that we are able to celebrate our successes and award such a beautiful classic sports car,” said Kip Zeiter, IMRRC Coordinator of Visitor Services and Outreach.
“We sincerely thank everyone who purchased tickets and made this year’s raffle of the Porsche and other prizes a successful fundraiser,” Zeiter added. This year the Center sold 2,065 tickets and raised over $100,000.
The winning ticket was drawn at the Center on Oct. 6 as part of the IMRRC’s “RacetoberFest” anniversary celebration.
The Apostales purchased the winning ticket at this year’s Grand Prix Festival in Watkins Glen, where the IMRRC has a booth annually. Jeannette looked across the street to where the Porsche was parked, saw that the drawing was on Oct. 6, and said, “I’m going to win that; that’s on my birthday.” While the Apostales don’t have any immediate plans to bring the Porsche back to Watkins Glen, Lee participates in the Grand Prix Festival every year and “the car will be back to Watkins eventually,” he said.
Two other prizes were awarded at the event. Second prize, a set of four tickets to any 2019 SVRA event in the United States and a $500 Visa Gift Card, was won by Marcus Steck, of Newfane, N.Y., who plans to use the race tickets at his home track, Watkins Glen International. Andrew Wensel, of Rochester, N.Y., took home the third prize, a 50-inch Samsung Flatscreen Television.
Car raffles have supported the IMRRC’s programming and operations throughout its history. An exciting array of cars has been raffled off over the years. Past raffles have featured both new models provided by the manufacturers or vintage cars donated by friends of the Center, including a 2017 MINI Cooper John Cooper Works, a 1982 Ferrari 308 GTSi, a 2013 Boss Mustang 302 and a 1967 E-type Jag Series 1.
