The Penske Way

There were several core points to take away from the seminar.

 Efforts = Results.

Roger’s principles are integrity, honesty, and kindness.

Followed by the philosophy of the Penske Way.

Details, preparation, anticipation, and execution.

 Always look forward.

Mastering Mid-Ohio Rain

The captain was prepared, anticipated, and executed to achieve results. This story was from George Follmer at Mid Ohio with the Porsche 917. Mid Ohio is famous for pop-up rainstorms. Roger Penske knew what was coming and the shortness of that storm. When all others pitted for rain tires, Roger placed a sign on the pit board to George: “Keep Going.” 

Navigating the Storm

George was in complete dismay because the car was a handful to drive on  slicks in the dry; in the rain it was crazy. Roger, just keep the car on the track. The time saved not going into the pits and when the pop-up storm passed led to them winning the race. The other competitors had to re-enter the pits to change back to slicks.

The Weight-Saving Camaro

This Trans Am Camaro has an interesting story. The captain was always seeking a competitive advantage. They decided to acid dip this particular chassis to reduce the overall weight by 300 lbs to gain an advantage over their competitors. The problem was they left it in the acid dip too long. The result was the roof became incredibly thin. To keep some strength in the roof, the Penske team decided to add a vinyl top to the car, which conformed with the rules. This hid the competitive advantage in the weight savings.

Rusty Wallace’s Second Chance

The story from Rusty Wallace. After achieving success with Penske at first, he experienced some major difficulties and was let go by Penske. He went back home and regrouped and finally honed his skills. He joined Penske once again; however, he wasn’t completely in the Penske Way. After a series of embarrassing results, Roger was ready to terminate the relationship and his NASCAR team. Rusty asked Roger not to spin out on him. 

“Just Float” Moment

Rusty was given another chance after committing to the Penske Way. They begin to achieve tremendous success when Roger said to him over the headphones during a race, “Just Float” the car into the corner. Those simple words changed Rusty’s driving style to win the NASCAR championship. After winning the championship, Rusty commented to Roger, “Aren’t you glad you didn’t spin out on me?”