Alfe Racing Honors A.J. Foyt Legacy with Retro Look for Grand Prix of Indianapolis. [Bill Ray Photo]
INDIANAPOLIS May 1, 2014 (Throwback Thursday)—Something old and something new.
The vintage “Coyote Red” colored No. 41 Alfe Heat Treating Honda, piloted by rookie Martin Plowman, made its debut on a brand new road course as the Verizon IndyCar Series conducted its first test on the 2.439-mile infield circuit of the venerable Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
The retro-look was the brainchild of graphic designer Jason LaFrenais and Alfe Heat Treating’s Motorsports Manager Ryan Westman, who said, “The first time that Alfe got involved with IndyCar racing, it was on a Coyote orange colored car in 2011. We thought that it looked great and it worked well for us because it is the color of our corporate identity,” said Westman.
“It’s great to see my old colors come back,” said team owner A.J. Foyt. “I won a lot of races in cars with those colors, but I’m not putting pressure on Martin. He’s a rookie and we just want to get him comfortable in the car. I know he can do his job if we do ours.”
“I love the retro livery on the 41 Alfe Heat Treating car,” said Plowman, the 26-year-old Englishman who lives in Indianapolis. “It seems to have been very well received so far. It’s an honor to be able to drive the car in tribute to A.J.’s fourth Indy 500-winning car from ’77. Looking over the car for the first time, I noticed that the chassis number of the DW12 was #077. It’s a very cool coincidence and hopefully a good omen for the race!”
Not only the car, but the team will sport uniforms that evoke the design of the famed Gilmore checked shirts that Foyt’s crew wore in the ‘70s. The red and white checked shirts were created by Diane Gilmore, wife of sponsor Jim Gilmore. An orange and white checked pattern is featured on the sleeves of the predominantly white Alfe Heat Treating crew shirts.
“Throwback is in right now and it’s just a cool thing to do,” said Westman. “And most of all, we wanted to honor A.J.’s legacy because he won his last two Indy 500s as a driver in cars painted that color. We feel privileged to be able to incorporate these historic elements in the team’s overall look for the Grand Prix.”
Alfe Heat Treating was founded in 1979 by Kurt Westman, who derived the company’s name from the symbols in the periodic table for aluminum (Al) and iron (Fe), and combining them into Al-Fe. In fact, the symbols will be featured on the rear wing of the car when it takes to the track for practice on May 8th in preparation for Saturday’s race on May 10th.
Headquartered in Fort Wayne, Indiana, Alfe Heat Treating, Inc. is the largest commercial aluminum heat treating operation in the United States. The company operates plants throughout the Midwest and Southeast serving aerospace, automotive, military, and commercial customers with both ferrous and non-ferrous facilities.