Ed Carpenter Racing (ECR) announced a partnership with Preferred Freezer Services for the team’s #21 Indianapolis 500-mile race entry driven by 2011 Indy 500 Rookie of the Year J R Hildebrand. The ECR team recently announced Hildebrand will join team owner/driver Ed Carpenter in a two-car effort in the May 25 racing classic known as the “Greatest Spectacle in Racing.”
Hildebrand will drive the blue-and-white Preferred Freezer Services Chevrolet-powered IndyCar with the temperature-controlled refrigerated warehouse storage and logistics company’s polar bear logo as part of its look in this year’s 500. “I am thrilled to team up with Ed Carpenter, a respected Indianapolis racer who has a passion for the Indy 500 and quality, and J R Hildebrand, an experienced American driver, which is in perfect harmony with how we run our company,” said John Galiher, chief executive officer of Preferred Freezer Services. The Carpenter-Hildebrand combination currently is the only All-American team entered in this year’s Indy 500. Hildebrand, 26, won the 2011 Indy 500 Rookie honors after placing second to Dan Wheldon, and the California native captured the 2009 Indy Lights championship. Prior to the Indy Lights title, Hildebrand won the 2006 US F2000 crown and the 2004 SCCA Formula Russell points. Now living in Boulder CO, Hildebrand is a three-time starter at the Indianapolis 500. Practice for the 98th Indy 500 will begin Sunday, May 11, with qualification runs scheduled for May 17-18. The Indy 500 is set to start at noon May 25.
