SearchCaroline Candas to make Mazda MX5 Cup debut at Daytona roundRACERSJan 142 min read2024 Porsche Sprint Challenge North America Vice-Champion Caroline Candas will continue her journey with RAFA Racing Team debuting in the Whelen Mazda MX-5 Cup for the Daytona season opener Photo courtesy: RAFA Racing Team / @madebycodiFrench racer Caroline Candas is set to continue her racing journey in the United States with RAFA Racing Team and announced she will make her debut in the highly competitive Whelen Mazda MX-5 Cup who became Vice-Champion in the 2024 Porsche Sprint Challenge North America Cayman class will contest the first two races at Daytona International Speedway in her first race weekend at the iconic venue in Florida Caroline will therefore make her first start on the IMSA support package in a series that traditionally is synonymous with close racing and a big field The French racer in fact also joins Uruguayan Maite Caceres - who was recently announced as part of the RAFA Racing Team - as well as Mazda female scholarship winner Ashlyn Speed and Heather Hadley Candas contested the 2023 FFSA TC championship where she finished third in the standings despite being unable to compete in every race due to a lack of funding Her ability to maximise her performances however saw Caroline claim a stunning victory at Val de Vienne on her way to a podium tally which reached double figures The perfect opportunity was presented to her when she was invited to take part in the inaugural RAFA Racing Shootout which saw the young Frenchwoman up against some of the most promising female talents in the world; with no previous experience of rear-wheel-drive machinery and in her first ever experience in the US Caroline highly impressed the judges and emerged as the winner of the selection securing a funded seat in Porsche Sprint Challenge NA Caroline adapted exceptionally well to the Cayman GT4 machine and was immediately quick enough to challenge for podiums and race victories The Le Mans-native was twice on the podium in Sebring then claimed a third-place finish at Barber Motorsports Park and two at VIR two second-places at COTA - before a breakthrough victory at Watkins Glen While Road America proved to be challenging for a heavy accident not of her own making at the start she fought back at the season finale in Sonoma before clinching the final win of the season in race 2 she became the 2024 Cayman class Vice-Champion as well as the Junior and Female Champion Entering her second season with RAFA Racing Team Caroline Candas is aiming to keep momentum and further climb the sports car ladder in the US Or you simply want to stay up-to-date with their results Privacy Policy SearchCaroline Candas crowned Porsche Sprint Challenge North America vice-champion with victory at SonomaLIAM REDFORDSep 30 20244 min readCaroline Candas concluded her Porsche Sprint Challenge North America season with a dominant victory at Sonoma securing second in the championship after a stellar performance in a lights-to-flag win in race 2 Photo credits: Kyle Schwab / Porsche Motorsport NACaroline Candas ended her Porsche Sprint Challenge North America campaign on a high by claiming a dominant victory at Sonoma Candas showed excellent speed throughout the weekend in California and although she just missed out on claiming pole position The RAFA Racing Team by JDX driver consistently applied pressure to teammate Ian Porter in race one taking the checkered flag in second position Candas controlled the race superbly to lead every lap and claim her second victory of the season with a flawless drive Candas arrived at Sonoma remaining in mathematical contention for the Porsche Sprint Challenge North America title however sealing second place in the championship and contending for race victories was to be her primary aim The RAFA Racing Club Shootout winner hit double figures for podium finishes last time out at Road America on a weekend where she maximised her results in light of a challenging event After an incident not of her own making at the start of the Porsche Endurance Challenge North America race the RAFA Racing Team by JDX squad prepared a new car for Candas to race at Sonoma The first on-track action of the weekend began on Thursday with a pair of test sessions for Caroline to familiarise herself with another new circuit Candas was immediately inside the top-3 within the Cayman Pro/Am class and this speed continued into Friday’s two final sessions ahead of qualifying Finishing second practice in the runner-up position in class Candas was looking to cut the gap on teammate Ian Porter ahead of Saturday’s running Qualifying took place on Saturday morning and Candas was immediately showing good speed sitting in second position in Cayman Pro/Am after her initial laps Candas was able to improve and dipped below a lap time of 1:43 for the first time during the event Showing excellent speed in the middle sector especially the RAFA Racing Team by JDX driver qualified second overall with a gap of over a second to the third-place driver in class Lining up from the front row of the grid for race one Candas made an excellent start to hold position while immediately challenging teammate Ian Porter for the lead Setting the fastest final sector of any driver to close out the first lap Candas was less than a second behind the multiple race-winner and closed in further after clocking the fastest time on lap two The race was then neutralised as Cayman Masters driver Alain Scalzo had stopped out on track with his car requiring recovery The race resumed on lap six with Candas remaining close behind Porter rarely allowing him to open out a margin of over a second Two further fastest times on laps seven and ten underlined her superb pace with the RAFA Racing Team by JDX driver enjoying one of her strongest races of the season Despite Caroline’s best efforts to mount a late challenge Porter was able to hold on to claim victory with Candas taking the checkered flag in an extremely strong second position Courtesy of her speed and consistency throughout the weekend at Sonoma Candas lined up from pole position for the season finale Candas held the lead through the opening turns despite a challenge from Ian Porter A strong end to lap one saw the RAFA Racing Team by JDX driver open up a margin of over a second to Porter Consecutive fastest laps followed and with her strength in the final sector evident Porter remained in close proximity and after a fastest middle sector of the race on lap six he had reduced the margin to less than a second After resisting this pressure from her teammate Candas was able to maintain a lead of a little over one second during the middle portion of the race Porter was still determined to fight for the lead and with seven minutes of the race remaining Candas’ advantage was cut to less than a second Porter was now less than half a second behind as Candas was starting to defend from her teammate A mistake from Porter on lap 18 then offered Caroline some breathing space with this error seeing the gap grow to almost two seconds Porter rallied once more and even attempted a late-braking manoeuvre on the final lap however Candas was able to claim her second victory of the season with an exceptional Candas was able to secure second position in the Porsche Sprint Challenge North America Pro/Am standings following her two trips to the podium at Sonoma Her speed throughout the event at Sonoma was superb and her victory in race two was fully deserved as she defeated newly-crowned champion Porter in an equal fight After winning the inaugural RAFA Racing Club Shootout last November Candas has enjoyed an excellent debut campaign stateside and asserted herself as a consistent front-runner in the series Caroline will now be looking ahead to the potential of competing in her longest endurance event to date with six-hour finale of Porsche Endurance Challenge North America taking place at Circuit of the Americas on the weekend of November 23rd/24th SearchCaroline Candas produces remarkable comeback on Whelen Mazda MX-5 Cup debutLIAM REDFORDJan 305 min readRAFA Racing's Caroline Candas banked vital knowledge in her debut appearance in the Mazda MX-5 Cup where she rallied from 35th on the grid to finish 17th in Daytona marginally missing out on the highest finishing female in race 2 Photo credits: RAFA Racing ClubCaroline Candas rallied from 35th on the grid in her debut appearance in the Whelen Mazda MX-5 Cup to finish 17th at Daytona International Speedway The RAFA Racing Team by MMR driver battled changeable conditions throughout the weekend as she banked experience in the closely-contested one-make championship Candas started race one from 33rd position and drove smartly to finish 28th in dark and drizzly conditions Caroline negotiated a spectacular opening lap incident in race two and although receiving damage she gained 18 positions to secure a top-20 finish while missing out on the prize for the highest finishing female driver by less than two hundredth of a second Following an exceptional debut year stateside claiming runner-up honours in Porsche Sprint Challenge North America Candas embarked on a new challenge to begin her 2025 campaign Caroline entered the opening round of the Whelen Mazda MX-5 Cup at the legendary Daytona International Speedway Candas lined up as part of a sizeable grid for the curtain-raiser with a record entry of six female drivers taking part in the event Working in partnership with RAFA Racing Team experienced squad McCumbee McAleer Racing provided technical support on her first entry into the series Caroline was joined by former F1 Academy racer Maite Caceres with the pair of RAFA Racing Team by MMR drivers aiming to get up to speed quickly as they adapted to a new style of racing The Whelen Mazda MX-5 Cup has quickly become a fan favourite with close-quarters racing guaranteed particularly at Daytona International Speedway where the powerful slipstream effect plays a significant role Candas was relishing the challenge of competing at the World Center of Racing in support of the IMSA WeatherTech Sportscar Championship with the first of two practice sessions held on Wednesday afternoon Session one was held in tricky conditions and thus gaining familiarisation with both the car and circuit was challenging Candas steadily improved her times and ended first practice in 29th position the RAFA Racing Team by MMR driver ran confidently in the slipstream banking vital experience ahead of the two races Caroline was therefore able to make significant lap time improvements and ended the day in 26th position Qualifying was held on Thursday afternoon over a shortened duration of fifteen-minutes This increased the intensity among the Whelen Mazda MX-5 Cup drivers as all 36 racers hunted for the all-important slipstream As the drivers were set to begin their first flying lap Candas received contact at turn one and although she was able to make it back to the pits with a puncture A great job by the RAFA Racing Team by MMR crew allowed her to rejoin however she just ran out of time to start a final flying lap Following the challenging qualifying session Candas had set the 35th fastest time and was later promoted to 33rd following two post-session penalties for drivers ahead Photo credits: RAFA Racing ClubPrior to race one getting underway light rain had begun to fall and the race was subsequently declared wet with all drivers required to start on the grooved tyres since the track was still predominantly dry with low track temperatures at Daytona International Speedway the race initially got underway behind the safety car in order for the drivers to assess conditions before the green flag was displayed on lap two Candas held her position at the end of the first racing lap as she battled for position with fellow female racer Ashlyn Speed After Nate Cicero pitted to change onto slick tyres at the end of lap three Candas was up to 32nd position and working with Speed to maintain good speed in the slipstream Candas and Speed had swapped positions with Caroline also getting her first circuit racing experience under the lights Reigning champion Gresham Wagner then retired from the race which promoted Candas back to 32nd spot before the rain began intensifying at the halfway point of the contest The RAFA Racing Team by MMR driver was racing smartly in the tough conditions and remained in close proximity to Speed as the drivers continued to gain experience The track became increasingly treacherous in the second half of the race and on lap 13 A nice move on Speed then saw Candas enter the top-30 with visible spray now apparent on the banking of the oval Caroline’s speed in the wetter conditions was now more competitive and she began to close in on the group of cars ahead Christian Hodneland retired with a technical issue and after flames appeared from underneath his car This resulted in a late full course yellow period and with Glenn McGee also pulling to the side of the circuit with damage the contest was ended behind the safety car with Caroline enjoying a productive debut in the Whelen Mazda MX-5 Cup Photo credits: RAFA Racing ClubWeather conditions had improved for the second race of the weekend which was held on Friday morning Candas lined up from 35th on the grid and when the green flag waved a significant incident occurred on the approach to turn one Almost half of the field had received damaged while 13 cars immediately retired from the race Candas received damage to the front of the car but she able to drive back to the pits for repairs to be made Following superb work from the RAFA Racing Team by MMR crew Candas rejoined the race while remaining on the lead lap as the drivers circulated behind the safety car before gaining three further places as her rivals pitted for further repairs however the race resumed with a little over fifteen-minutes remaining Candas made an excellent restart and immediately moved past Sally McNulty and Ethan Tyler with the latter spinning in the infield section A resurgent Ethan Goulart was able to pass Candas on the restart lap however a drive-through penalty assessed to Helio Meza elevated the French racer to 17th position Candas was battling hard with fellow female driver Ashlyn Speed with the duo vying for the $2000 prize of being the highest-placed female racer Candas moved ahead of Speed and into 16th position while working hard to remain in the slipstream of the drivers ahead This proved difficult with the damage to the car and instead Caroline fought well to resist the challenge of Speed The pair regularly raced side-by-side and with one lap remaining Candas was just two tenths of a second behind her rival A thrilling final lap saw Speed hold onto 16th position it was an excellent recovery from Candas in her debut even in the Whelen Mazda MX-5 Cup Gaining 18 positions during the course of the second race while developing her racecraft in a highly-competitive championship Caroline banked vital knowledge in her debut appearance with the RAFA Racing Team by MMR crew Candas will be looking to build upon these new experiences throughout the 2025 season as she continues her motorsport career stateside This website is using a security service to protect itself from online attacks The action you just performed triggered the security solution There are several actions that could trigger this block including submitting a certain word or phrase You can email the site owner to let them know you were blocked Please include what you were doing when this page came up and the Cloudflare Ray ID found at the bottom of this page situated within the confines of a disused shipping container, ‘I/P/O-cle’ by istanbul-based artist candaş şişman is an installation which simulates the viewer into perceiving a warped reality variables and cycles that are present in the process of seeing, I/P/O-cle — or I (input) CLE (cycle) — changes the viewers sense of space so that they may perceive only a limited portion of the actual reality that surrounds them the immersive space is made of a high-strength light source installed within a vast and dark container the light source is positioned in such a way so that the filters through the lenses it transforms the beam and reflects it back into space as all the while a fog machine makes the dispersed light visible to the eye and a deep base frequency keeps plays in the background the light and its source describe physical reality and input the lenses illustrate the various factors of perception and the mirrors channel what is seen viewers to the installation see light projected on mirrors within the space mirrors refracted within the space expand and contact the space the perception of the viewer is altered as they move throughout the immersive installation light tunnels down the disused shipping container AXOR presents three bathroom concepts that are not merely places of function but destinations in themselves — sanctuaries of style Candas Fiogbe scored the decider of the road game against Lecce finding his first league goal after the two nets scored in the Coppa Italia game against Vicenza "Still - as the 05s' striker born in Benin and a Nerazzurro since the age of 14 cared to let us in on this professional secret of his - headers are not my strongest suits I owe my goal to the specific sessions coaches Bosi and Zanchi put us through during the week I'm happy to have halted my scoring drought in the league considerably more so as it gave the team the win If we brought home these three key points it's mainly thanks to the effort from the whole team I knew I was in with a great chance and I'm most pleased I could have honoured it properly I dedicate my goal to all the people who cared for me and stood by my side An the list is vast: from my coach and my teammates at Atalanta On the top of Candas' list of honourable mentions sits mum Lucia: "In my childhood I used to carry a football wherever I went to then play with my friends after school for hours on end whenever I came back home even 3 or 4 hours late Even though my mother wanted me to study for my future she knew football was my dream and she never deterred me from pursuing it not mine - my marks weren't disrupted by it "Every gift I received - Candas recalls- was football-biased: cleats I still recall the very first kit I was gifted: it was a Cristiano Ronaldo shirt I had a whale of time mimicking all his moves and faints I've always been drawn by the thrill only a great dribble can give you whenever I played with people older than me Which saddened me a lot given my one desire to play upfront The move from Africa to Atalanta was a huge leap of faith: "The first time I stepped into the Centro Bortolotti I was awestruck when I saw all those pitches at once I thought I was dreaming but it was the real deal The first thought that crossed my mind was: "I'm in heaven" it dawned on me just how big of a step being here meant for the pursuit of my dream an opportunity I had to seize no matter what I always fixate on the best footballers to soak up as much as possible in my attempt to be better my role model is Lookman: not only is he technically strong and he scores many goals I can't help but reaffirm how an inspiration he is for me" While football has been Candas' first crush the black-and-blue striker is a music buff off the pitch:  "I also have a walk-up song: before and after the matches I always listen "M3lo" by Tiakola The lyrics are about how we shall never forget our roots spurring us to always give our best to break our limits Metrics details Although the efficacy of cancer radiotherapy (RT) can be enhanced by targeted immunotherapy the immunosuppressive factors induced by radiation on tumor cells remain to be identified we report that CD47-mediated anti-phagocytosis is concurrently upregulated with HER2 in radioresistant breast cancer (BC) cells and RT-treated mouse syngeneic BC Co-expression of both receptors is more frequently detected in recurrent BC patients with poor prognosis CD47 is upregulated preferentially in HER2-expressing cells and blocking CD47 or HER2 reduces both receptors with diminished clonogenicity and augmented phagocytosis CRISPR-mediated CD47 and HER2 dual knockouts not only inhibit clonogenicity but also enhance macrophage-mediated attack Dual antibody of both receptors synergizes with RT in control of syngeneic mouse breast tumor These results provide the evidence that aggressive behavior of radioresistant BC is caused by CD47-mediated anti-phagocytosis conjugated with HER2-prompted proliferation Dual blockade of CD47 and HER2 is suggested to eliminate resistant cancer cells in BC radiotherapy especially the dynamic communications between RT-surviving tumor cells and immune cells need to be investigated especially its communication with growth factors in radioresistant cancer cells remains unclear This study reveals a coordinative transcriptional regulation of CD47 and HER2 in the radioresistant BC cells Expression of both CD47 and HER2 is enhanced in irradiated BC cells in RT-treated mouse syngeneic breast tumors and in BC patients with recurrent diseases associated with a poor prognosis Blocking CD47 not only enhances macrophages-mediated phagocytosis but also suppresses HER2-associated aggressiveness in the radioresistant BC cells which is recapitulated using mouse syngeneic BC that can be synergistically suppressed by RT with inhibition of both receptors These results demonstrate a latent pro-tumor growth mechanism due to the cross-talking of CD47-enhanced immune-avoidance with HER2-promoted intrinsic cell proliferation causing the aggressive behavior of resistant BC cells Dual blocking CD47 and HER2 may effectively abolish resistant cancer cells in BC radiotherapy Statistical significance was analyzed by log-rank test Expressions of HER2 and CD47 in radioresistant MDA-MB-231/C5 cells (a) in radioresistant MCF7/C6 cells (b) both were derived from surviving clones after FIR c Expression of HER2 and CD47 in syngeneic mouse 4T1 breast tumors 16 h after local RT with single-dose radiation or FIR (pooled samples from six tumors) d Enhanced CD47+/HER2+ population in MCF7/C6 cells compared to parental MCF7 cells measured by flow cytometry (n = 3; *P < 0.05 e Induction of CD47 by radiation in an array of human cancer cells (breast cancer MCF-7 and colorectal carcinoma HCT116 cells) measured by immunoblotting 16 h after radiation (5 Gy) f Induction of CD47 expression in xenograft tumors (duplicated samples from each tumor group) following RT with fractionated doses (FIR Radiation enhanced CD47+ cell populations were reduced by inhibition of HER2 in MCF7/C6 (a) and in SKBR3 cells (b) treated with Lapatinib (10 µM 72 h) in the presence or absence of IR (5 Gy) (n = 3; *P < 0.05 c Immunoblotting of CD47 in HER2+ RD-BCSCs treated with PBS or Herceptin (10 µg/ml for 5 days refreshed on 2nd and 4th day) followed by sham or 5 Gy IR (HER2−RD-BCSCs included as a control) d CD47+ populations detected by flow cytometry in HER2+ RD-BCSCs and HER2+ RD-BCSCs with CRISPR-mediated knockout of HER2 (HER2−/−) e Basal and radiation-induced CD47 expression was absent in HER2+ RD-BCSCs with CRISPR-mediated knockout of HER2 (HER2−/−) f NF-κB luciferase reporter activity in radioresistant MCF/C6 cells and MCF/C6 cells with HER2−/− g CD47 promoter-controlled luciferase reporter activity containing wild-type or mutant NF-κB-binding motif in MCF7/C6 cells treated with TNFα (n = 3 h CD47 promoter activity with wild-type or mutant NF-κB-binding motif measured in control and irradiated MCF7/C6 cells in the presence or absence of NF-κB inhibitor IMD-0354 (2 μM i Representative images of immunofluorescence of CD47 in irradiated MCF7 and MCF7/C6 cells pretreated with IMD-0354 (IMD); CD47 was visualized by confocal microscope 16 h after IR j Immunoblotting of CD47 and HER2 in IR-treated MCF7/C6 cells with or without IMD-0354 k ChIP-qPCR assay for NF-κB recruitment in human CD47 promoter in MCF7/C6 cells irradiated (5 Gy) or treated with 10 ng/ml TNF-α Chromatin precipitation was conducted with anti-p65 where anti-c-Rel served as a positive control in IκB-α promoter l Reduced HER2-expressing populations in MCF7/C6 cells with CRISPR/Cas9-mediated knockout of CD47 these results demonstrate that CD47 and HER2 are coordinately upregulated at a transcriptional level causing activation of two receptors in the radioresistant BC cells a Macrophage-mediated phagocytosis was enhanced in both MCF7 and MCF7/C6 cells by CD47 antibody detected by flow cytometry analysis with THP1-derived mature macrophages stained with DIO and incubated with 3 × 104 DDAO-labeled tumor cells at a ratio of 5:1 for 2 h at 37 °C tumor cells were pre-incubated with 10 µg/ml of CD47 antibody (B6H12 2) for 1 h prior to incubation with macrophages (n = 3 n = 3; **P < 0.01) of MCF7/C6 cells with or without anti-CD47 treatment (no treatment and IgG were used as controls) f Enhanced macrophage-mediated phagocytosis on MCF7/C6 cells treated with Lapatinib g Clonogenic survival of MCF7/C6 cells received radiation with different antibody combinations (IgG or B6H12 5 Gy) was calculated by normalizing to the clonogenic fractions of control cells received 0 Gy IR (n = 3 h Lack of targeted gene expression in CD47−/− or HER2−/− in MCF7/C6 cells i Enhanced macrophage phagocytosis on CD47−/− or HER2−/− MCF7/C6 cells (*P < 0.05) j Immunoblotting of CD47 and HER2 in MCF7/C6 cells with CD47−/−/HER2−/− status k Macrophage phagocytosis of CD47−/−/HER2−/− MCF7/C6 cells (*P < 0.05) l Clonogenic radiosensitivity of MCF7/C6 cells with CD47−/− or CD47−/−/HER2−/− status calculated by normalizing to the clonogenic fractions of control cells received 0 Gy IR (n = 3 a Growth rate of mouse breast tumors generated with radioresistant 4T1/C2 cells with CD47−/− b Representative images of tumors at the end of experiments c Repeated experiment of a with a single dose IR (5 Gy) at day 9 and representative images of the tumor at the end of experiments shown in d; in a and c representative IHC images of CD11b+ macrophages in CD47−/− CD47−/−/HER2−/− tumors; scale bar = 100 µm; right The radioresistant breast cancer cells that are enriched with breast cancer stem cells can not only survive radiation but also enhance their immune-escaping ability via CD47-mediated anti-phagocytosis CD47 transcription is regulated via HER2–NF-κB axis leading to the enhancement of both receptors on the cell surface HER2-promoted intrinsic proliferation is synergized with the CD47-initiated extrinsic anti-phagocytosis; a dual blockade of these two receptors may eliminate the radioresistant breast cancer cells in breast cancer radiotherapy to further enhance the synergistic tumor inhibition by RT and immunotherapy in addition to further elucidating radiation-associated tumor immunogenicity radiation-inducible immunosuppressive factors especially on the radioresistant cancer cells This study provides the evidence revealing that two receptors with different biological functions are coordinately contributing to the aggressive phenotype of radioresistant BC cells The intrinsic growth potential by HER2 is conjugated with CD47-mediated extrinsic anti-phagocytosis demonstrating a need of an integrated therapeutic approach to target multiple factors to eliminate resistant cancer cells in the combined modality of RT with immunotherapy implicating a possibility that radiation-induced immunosuppressive factors may compromise the anti-tumor immune regulation induced by radiation-associated tumor immunogenicity CD47 expression demonstrated in the radiation-surviving HER2-expressing breast cancer cells supports the concept that both anti- and pro-tumor immune factors can be enhanced by tumor cells treated by radiotherapy Multiple factors with varied cellular functions such as HER2 and CD47 are associated with the tumor acquired resistance a strategy targeting multiple membrane receptors should be considered in the combined therapy of RT and immunotherapy for recurrent and metastatic tumors this study demonstrates that CD47 and HER2 functioning respectively in extrinsic immunosuppression and intrinsic proliferation can coordinate contributing to the aggressive behavior of radioresistant BC cells Cancer cells with HER2-promoted proliferation may be equipped with an additional survival advantage due to CD47-mediated anti-phagocytosis and vice versa leading to an immunosuppressive tumor microenvironment and a lack of treatment response for the treatment of recurrent tumors expressing HER2 a dual blockage of CD47 and HER2 may lead to the synergetic tumor inhibition by radiotherapy Mouse triple-negative breast cancer 4T1 cells were maintained in DMEM medium with 10% FBS Human monocyte THP-1 were cultured in ATCC-formulated RPMI-1640 medium supplemented with 10% FBS and 2-mercaptoethanol to a final concentration of 0.05 mM Mouse Mφ RAW 264.7 cells were cultured in DMEM medium with 10% FBS following with the ATCC culture method All cell lines were tested negative mycoplasma contamination with MycoSensor PCR Assay kit (Agilent Technologies CD47 promoter-controlled luciferase vector was constructed by cloning the human CD47 promoter region (−1554 nt) into pGL2-basic plasmid from KpnI/Hind III sites The deletion of the putative NF-κB-binding sites (TGGAAGCT-764-757) was performed using a quick mutation kit (Stratagene The primer sequences used: 5 ′-GTGGTCGGGTACCTGCCCGCTCGCCCCTCGCGGGCTCTGCG-3′ (sense) and 5 ′-CGCAGAGCCCGCGAGGGGCGAGCGGGCAGGTACCCGACCAC-3′ (antisense) pGL2-NF-κB-luc plasmid was constructed with the 3 NF-κB-binding sites: GTGGGTTCCC IMD-0354 (Catalog # I3159) and TNF-α (Catalog # T0157) were purchased from Sigma The lentiCRISPR v2 vector was purchased from the Addgene plasmid repository (Catalog # 52961) Herceptin was obtained from the UC Davis Comprehensive Cancer Center Pharmacy as left-over medicine (Genentech Lapatinib (Catalog # S1028) was purchased from Selleckchem and western blot was purchased from Santa Cruz (Catalog # sc-12730) Anti-CD47-FITC for flow cytometry was purchased from BD Biosciences (Catalog # 556045) Anti-human CD47 (B6H12) antibody for phagocytosis assay was extracted from B6H12.2 hybridoma (ATCC® HB-9771™) Anti-mouse CD47 antibody for in vivo tumor inhibition was extracted from MIAP301 hybridoma provided by Dr William Frazier (Washington University School of Medicine) Anti-CD11b antibody for IHC staining was purchased from Invitrogen (Catalog # MA5-17857) Mouse monoclonal anti-α-tubulin antibody for western blot was purchased from Sigma-Aldrich (Catalog # T6074) Mouse monoclonal anti-β-actin antibody for western blot was purchased from Sigma-Aldrich (Catalog # A5441) Anti-HER2/ERBB2 (Catalog # 29D8) antibody for IHC staining and western blot was purchased from Cell Signaling Technology (Catalog # 2165) Anti-HER2-APC antibody for flow cytometry analysis was purchased from BD Biosciences (Catalog # 340554) Proteins from cells or tumor tissues were extracted in RIPA lysis buffer (Pierce) supplemented with protease and phosphatase inhibitor cocktail (Cell Signaling) Protein concentration was determined using the BCA assay (Pierce) Lysates were then denatured and samples containing 30 μg proteins were subjected to electrophoresis in 10% SDS-poly-acrylamide gel followed by transfer to polyvinylidene difluoride membranes (Bio-Rad) the membrane was exposed to the primary antibody and incubated at 4 °C overnight Blots were visualized by labeling with HRP-coupled secondary antibodies (Sigma-Aldrich) and incubation with Amersham ECL western blotting detection reagent (Catalog # RPN2106) Blots were developed on a Konica SRX101A developer and quantified with ImageJ Collected cells were rinsed with PBS containing 0.5% BSA in PBS and the cell pellets were incubated with fluorescence-labeled primary antibodies at 37 °C for 30 min followed by washing three times with 0.5% BSA/PBS All antibodies were titrated for optimizing the condition before applying to the experiment Flow cytometry analysis was performed using the FACS Canto II cytometer (BD) and subsequent analysis was performed using FlowJo (Tree Star The gating strategies were based on FSC and SSC properties and were set-up for positive cell populations in FITC Fresh frozen HER2 positive and negative breast cancer tissues were provided by the UC Davis Comprehensive Cancer Center Biorepository (IRB # 283665 and IRB # 218204) funded by the UC Davis Comprehensive Cancer Center Support Grant (CCSG) awarded by the National Cancer Institute (NCI P30CA093373) with all patient information blocked except the diagnostic results Additional human breast cancer pathological samples including the unstained 4-µm-thick sections of formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded (FFPE) paired primary breast cancer and recurrent breast cancers were obtained from the department of pathology Ohio State University with research IRB approval (#2002H0089) intense in more than 10% of the invasive tumor cells) reflex testing was performed using in situ hybridization (ISH) In detecting CD47 expression of in vivo irradiated tumors treated mouse tumors were removed and fixed in 4% paraformaldehyde in PBS for 24 h The specimens were dehydrated with series ethanol (70% and 100%) for 48 h before embedded in the paraffin solution (Polysciences) Cells were seeded on round coverslips and grown to 60–80% confluence and permeabilization with 0.1% Triton X-100 in PBS The cells were then incubated in a blocking solution for 15 min before incubation with the primary antibody overnight at 4 °C with 1:250 dilutions Cells were incubated with TR- or FITC-conjugated secondary antibodies diluted 1:1000 in the blocking solution for 1 h at room temperature in the dark and analyzed with confocal microscopy CD47 and HER2 together with other RAAPs in the radioresistant BC cells were identified by western blots or by immunoprecipitation of membrane proteins purified from RD-BCSC cells and the eluted fractions were analyzed via LC/MS The resulted membrane RAAPs were clustered with a number of proteins and protein functional categories Four Oligos were designed corresponding to the human sgRNAs were synthesized and cloned into lentiCRISPR v2 vector following the Zhang Lab GeCKO pooled library amplification protocol To minimize the possibility of non-specific targeting three sgRNA oligos of each targeting gene were synthesized and tested The sgRNA with the best knockout efficiency determined by western blotting was chosen for subsequent experiments The sgRNA sequences were used for human and mouse cells as follows: The lentiviral particles were generated using 293T cells following the protocol from Addgene the isolated BCSC sphere cells or MCF7/C6 cells were trypsinized into single cells and plated 1 2.5 × 105 cells/0.5 ml per well in the 12-well plates 1 ml of virus-containing supernatant with 8 ng polybrene was added to the cells followed by incubation for 6 h 0.5 ml additional regular medium containing 10% heat-inactivated FBS was added and further cultured for overnight The infection medium was replaced with 2 ml fresh medium with 10% FBS and cultured for 72 h Cells were passaged to 60 mm tissue culture dishes and selected by culturing in 0.3 µg/ml Puromysin for 1 week and the knockout of the targeted gene was verified by immunoblotting Cells were transfected with pGL2-basic-CD47 or pGL2-basic-CD47-ΔNF-κB or pGL2-NF-κB luciferase reporters and luciferase activity was measured by Luminometer (Promega For normalization of the reporter transfection efficiency the total protein concentration of lysates was measured with the BCA Protein Assay kit (Pierce Cells were cross-linked with formaldehyde (1% final) for 10 min pre-cleared with protein G conjugated agarose beads and incubated with anti-p65 the complex was washed in a sequential manner with low and high salt immune complex wash buffers (0 20 mM Tris-HCl pH 8.1 plus 150 mM NaCl for low salt and 500 mM NaCl for high salt buffers) followed by TE buffer (twice) The DNA-transcription factor interaction was reversed following the addition of NaCl and incubation at 65 °C overnight DNA fragments were purified by phenol/chloroform extraction and ethanol precipitation DNAs were purified and used for PCR with primers specific for the gene promoter region encompassing NF-κB-binding sites The PCR amplification of the IκB promoter region (1134/902) was also included as positive The primers for NF-κB-binding site in the IκB promoter were: Hybridoma for monoclonal mouse anti-human CD47 antibody (B6H12.2) Monoclonal rat anti-mouse CD47 IgG2a antibody (MIAP301) and hybridoma were obtained from Dr Both hybridoma cell lines were maintained in IMDM medium with 20% FBS Antibodies were purified from hybridoma supernatant using protein G Resin from GenScript (Catalog # L00209) following manufacture standard procedures Samples were then further concentrated 10–20-fold using Microsep centrifugal devices from Pall Life Sciences Concentrations of purified IgG were determined by measuring the absorbance at OD280 About 0.8 × 106 cells/ml of RAW 264.5 cells or 1 × 106 THP1 cells were seeded onto a 6-well plate After 24 h of incubation RAW 264.7 cells were activated by treating with 0.1 μg/ml of lipopolysaccharide (LPS) for 24 h Monocyte THP1 cells were differentiation by Phorbol 12-myristate 13-acetate (PMA) (40 nM) for 48 h Activated macrophages were stained with Dio at final concertation 40 nM in a medium for 20 min followed by rinsing three times with medium Cancer cells were labeled with 1 μM DDAO (5 mM stock solution in DMSO stored at −20 °C) in PBS at 37 °C for 15 min and washed with PBS containing 1% FBS DDAO-labeled target cells (1 × 106) were added to DIO-stained Mφs and incubated in a final volume of 2 ml at 37 °C for 2 h Mφs and target cells were harvested with three times EDTA-PBS wash followed by 0.25% trypsinization Phagocytosis was assessed by evaluating the dual-labeled cells (DIO+/DDAO+) which represents phagocytized breast cancer cells by mature Mφs Clonogenic survival assay was performed following radiation with or without treatment (Lapatinib 10 μM for 72 h; anti-CD47 antibody 10 µg/ml overnight) The treated cells were cultured for 10–14 days and colonies were fixed Colonies containing more than 50 cells were counted as surviving clones and normalized to the plating efficiency of each sham-treated tumor cell line Gap-filling capacity was measured with 1 × 106 cells grown in each of 6-well plates to 100% confluence followed by 24 h cell starvation Then the gap was created by scraping the dish diagonally with a sterile pipette tip The cells were either left untreated or treated with 10 µg/ml of IgG or anti-CD47 antibody during the duration of the experiment The filling capacity was monitored for 72 h and representative images were taken at day 0 (day of scraping) and day 3 Cells were sieved with 40 µm cell strainers (Catalog # 352340 Corning) and single-cell suspensions were seeded into low-attachment 60-mm Petri dishes at a density of 1000 cells/ml The cells were grown in serum-free mammary epithelial basal medium (MEBM) supplemented with B27 (Catalog # 17504-044 and 4 µg/ml heparin (Catalog # 80603-686 EMD MILLIPORE) Cells were cultured for 10 days and tumorspheres were counted under light microscopy BD Biosciences) were diluted in coating buffer: 0.01 M Tris (pH 8.0) 0.7% NaCl to the final concentration of 200–300 µg/ml About 100 µl were loaded into the upper chamber of 24-well transwell (Catalog # 3422 Costar) and incubated at 37 °C for gelling about 1 h Carefully remove the remaining coating buffer from the permeable support membrane without disturbing the layer and then add cells (2.5 × 104/ml) The lower chamber was filled with 800 μl of MEM media containing 5 μg/ml fibronectin (Catalog # SC-29011 The transwell with differently treated cells was incubated for 48 h and stained with Diff-Quick Stain kit (Catalog # K7128 the Fab fragment was separated from undigested IgG and the Fc region with the Protein A Spin Column from the Fab Fragmentation Kit The SpinOUT GT-600 desalting columns were supplied to ensure the initial antibody sample to be the optimal condition for Fab fragmentation and the purified anti-mouse CD47 IgG was collected for the in vivo mouse tumor treatment For in vivo test of tumor inhibition efficacy by radiation with deficient CD47 and HER2 status 5 × 105 4T1/C2 cells with CRISPR-knockout of CD47 (CD47−/−) HER2 (HER2−/−) or double (CD47−/−/HER2−/−) were implanted into the mammary fat pads of BALB/c (n = 6 per group) Tumor growth was assessed by measuring the tumor volume every 2 days starting day 7 till the tumor volumes reached the limitation To assess the radiosensitivity of tumors with different status of CD47 and HER2 local tumor radiation was delivered with 5 Gy to each tumor at day 9 and tumor growth was measured every other day till control tumors reached the maximal limitation Eight weeks old immune-competent (BALB/c) female mice (Charles River Laboratories USA) were injected with 1 × 105 mouse breast 4T1 cells into the 4th mammary glands Fifty microliters PBS containing 100 μg of control IgG or anti-CD47 F (ab′) fragments were injected into the tumor site (day 1) or into the tumor tissues (day 15) and repeated every other day until the end of experiments the animals bearing 4T1 tumors were randomly divided into various treatment groups and a control group (5–10 mice per group) Tumor local radiation started when tumor volume reaches 200 mm3 with FIR (5 Gy/day/tumor for four fractions using micro-beam IR source; total dose = 20 Gy) combined with three times tumor injections of anti-CD47 F (ab′) The radiosensitivity of the in vivo irradiated tumors with the presence or absence of anti-CD47 F (ab′) was evaluated by measuring tumor volume at the end of experiments The animals were euthanized when the tumors were ~1400 mm3 or when the animals seemed to be uncomfortable even when the tumor was smaller than 1400 mm3 to comply with UCD IACUC regulations for use of vertebrate animal in research The animal use and care protocol of in vivo radiotherapy was approved by the Institutional Animal Use and Care Committee of the University of California Davis (IACUC 15315) For in vivo tests of tumor inhibition with dual antibodies to CD47 and HER2 in the presence or absence of radiotherapy eight weeks old immune-competent (BALB/c) female mice (Charles River Laboratories mice were randomly divided into four groups (6 mice per group) or Herceptin (5 mg/kg) were injected into tumor tissues 4 h before local radiotherapy (5 Gy per day for 2 days) Injections were performed and tumor sizes were monitored every other day till the end of experiments Mice were euthanized when the tumors were ~1400 mm3 or when the animals seemed to be uncomfortable even when the tumor was smaller than 1400 mm3 to comply with UCD IACUC regulations for use of vertebrate animal in research GFP-expressing mouse breast cancer 4T1 cells were implanted into 4th mammary fat pads of BALB/c mice and treatment was started when tumors achieved about 200 mm3 by tumor injection of 50 µl PBS containing 100 μg of control IgG Herceptin or both of antibodies every other day for three times Tumor local RT was delivered on days 10 and 11 with 5 Gy/day/tumor for two fractions and experiments were ended 2 days after the termination of antibody treatments Tumors were extracted and FFPE sections were prepared for immunofluorescence staining to follow the standard procedure: the slides were deparaffinized and rehydrated and antigens were retrieved for 40 min in a citrate buffer (pH 6.1) at 95 °C slides were socked in de-autofluorescence solution (0.5 M CuSO4 The primary antibody incubation was done at 4 °C overnight: anti-GFP (1:100; Dako) anti-CD11b (1:100; Millipore); After washing slides were incubated with 1:250 diluted fluorescent conjugated secondary antibodies (Rhodamine for CD11b Alexa Fluor 488 for GFP) at RT for 1 h and then mounted with Vectashield Antifade solution containing DAPI (Vector Laboratories Macrophage-mediated phagocytosis was detected with fluorescent microscopy using Axiovision software (Zeiss Germany) and microphotographs were quantified by ImageJ All of the experimental data obtained from in vitro cellular studies and animal tests are presented as mean ± SE analyzed using the two-tailed Student t-test for two groups or ANOVA for multiple groups The statistical significance of Kaplan–Meier survival curves was assessed with a Mann–Whitney test The number of independent experiments and the replicates were indicated in the figure legends P-values < 0.05 were considered to be significant and are indicated by asterisks as follows: *P < 0.05 Further information on research design is available in the Nature Research Reporting Summary linked to this article The data that support the findings of this study are within the Article, Supplementary Information or available from the corresponding author upon reasonable request The value of adjuvant radiotherapy on survival and recurrence in triple-negative breast cancer: a systematic review and meta-analysis of 5507 patients Frontiers in radiotherapy for early-stage invasive breast cancer Breast cancer: post-mastectomy radiotherapy reduces recurrence and mortality Early Breast Cancer Trialists’ Collaborative Effect of radiotherapy after breast-conserving surgery on 10-year recurrence and 15-year breast cancer death: meta-analysis of individual patient data for 10,801 women in 17 randomised trials miR-139-5p modulates radiotherapy resistance in breast cancer by repressing multiple gene networks of DNA repair and ROS defense Interferon-stimulated genes are involved in cross-resistance to radiotherapy in tamoxifen-resistant breast cancer Incorporating radiation oncology into immunotherapy: proceedings from the ASTRO-SITC-NCI immunotherapy workshop Radiation-Induced chromosomal aberrations and immunotherapy: micronuclei Radiotherapy and immunotherapy: a beneficial liaison Radiation induction of immediate early genes: effectors of the radiation-stress response Opportunities and challenges of radiotherapy for treating cancer Immunotherapy and stereotactic ablative radiotherapy (ISABR): a curative approach Intercellular communication of tumor cells and immune cells after exposure to different ionizing radiation qualities The intersection of radiotherapy and immunotherapy: mechanisms and clinical implications Hematopoietic stem cell transplantation in immunocompetent hosts without radiation or chemotherapy CD47 signaling pathways controlling cellular differentiation and responses to stress The CD47-SIRPalpha signaling axis as an innate immune checkpoint in cancer Integrin-associated protein (CD47) and its ligands The CD47-signal regulatory protein alpha (SIRPa) interaction is a therapeutic target for human solid tumors Antibody therapy targeting the CD47 protein is effective in a model of aggressive metastatic leiomyosarcoma SIRPalpha-CD47 immune checkpoint blockade in anticancer therapy CD47 blockade triggers T cell-mediated destruction of immunogenic tumors first-in-class phase I trial of the anti-CD47 antibody Hu5F9-G4 in patients with advanced cancers A function-blocking CD47 antibody suppresses stem cell and EGF signaling in triple-negative breast cancer HER2-associated radioresistance of breast cancer stem cells isolated from HER2-negative breast cancer cells Effect of lapatinib on the outgrowth of metastatic breast cancer cells to the brain Novel mechanism of lapatinib resistance in HER2-positive breast tumor cells: activation of AXL Expression of ErbB2 enhances radiation-induced NF-kappaB activation HER2 Amplification in Tumors Activates PI3K/Akt Signaling Independent of HER3 NF-kappaB-mediated HER2 overexpression in radiation-adaptive resistance HER2 recruits AKT1 to disrupt STING signalling and suppress antiviral defence and antitumour immunity CD47 blockade augmentation of trastuzumab antitumor efficacy dependent on antibody-dependent cellular phagocytosis Targeting tumor-infiltrating macrophages to combat cancer Anti-CD47 antibody synergizes with rituximab to promote phagocytosis and eradicate non-Hodgkin lymphoma Dendritic cells but not macrophages sense tumor mitochondrial DNA for cross-priming through signal regulatory protein alpha signaling Tumor-intrinsic CD47 signal regulates glycolysis and promotes colorectal cancer cell growth and metastasis Radiation therapy and anti-tumor immunity: exposing immunogenic mutations to the immune system and acquired resistance to cancer immunotherapy Immunologic correlates of the abscopal effect in a patient with melanoma gamma-Radiation promotes immunological recognition of cancer cells through increased expression of cancer-testis antigens in vitro and in vivo Radiation and dual checkpoint blockade activate non-redundant immune mechanisms in cancer Differential DNA methylation analysis of breast cancer reveals the impact of immune signaling in radiation therapy Optimizing cancer treatments to induce an acute immune response: radiation Abscopal effects Combining radiotherapy and cancer immunotherapy: a paradigm shift An abscopal response to radiation and ipilimumab in a patient with metastatic non-small cell lung cancer NF-kappaB functions as a molecular link between tumor cells and Th1/Tc1 T cells in the tumor microenvironment to exert radiation-mediated tumor suppression The role of CUX1 in antagonizing NF-kappaB signaling in TAMs The NF-kappaB pathway and cancer stem cells CD47 in the tumor microenvironment limits cooperation between antitumor T-cell immunity and radiotherapy CD47 receptor globally regulates metabolic pathways that control resistance to ionizing radiation A CD47-associated super-enhancer links pro-inflammatory signalling to CD47 upregulation in breast cancer Radioprotection in normal tissue and delayed tumor growth by blockade of CD47 signaling Endoplasmic reticulum stress protein GRP78 modulates lipid metabolism to control drug sensitivity and antitumor immunity in breast cancer Simultaneous blocking of CD47 and PD-L1 increases innate and adaptive cancer immune responses and cytokine release Blocking antibodies targeting the CD39/CD73 immunosuppressive pathway unleash immune responses in combination cancer therapies Integrin CD11b activation drives anti-tumor innate immunity CD47-signal regulatory protein-alpha (SIRPalpha) interactions form a barrier for antibody-mediated tumor cell destruction The therapeutic effect of anti-HER2/neu antibody depends on both innate and adaptive immunity Radiation-induced loss of cell surface CD47 enhances immune-mediated clearance of human papillomavirus-positive cancer The abscopal effect in malignant lymphoma and its relationship to lymphocyte circulation Local radiotherapy and granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor to generate abscopal responses in patients with metastatic solid tumours: a proof-of-principle trial Recommendations for human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 testing in breast cancer: American Society of Clinical Oncology/College of American Pathologists clinical practice guideline update ALDH1 is a marker of normal and malignant human mammary stem cells and a predictor of poor clinical outcome ROR-gamma drives androgen receptor expression and represents a therapeutic target in castration-resistant prostate cancer Monokine production following in vitro stimulation of the THP-1 human monocytic cell line with pertussis vaccine components Preparation of F(ab’)2 mu fragments from rat IgM monoclonal antibodies and their application to the enzyme immunoassay of mouse interleukin-6 Download references Irmgard Feldman for sharing human breast cancer specimens William Frazier for kindly providing anti-mouse CD47 MIAP301 hybridoma Qian Chen for the assistance of in vivo macrophage phagocytosis Julian Perks for conduction of radiation with in vivo mouse breast tumor model This work was supported by NIH RO1 CA213830 (J.J.L.) and CA224900 (H.-W.C.) University of California Davis Cancer Center Cancer Immunology Pilot Grant Support and University of California Davis NCI-designated Comprehensive Cancer Center supported by the CCSG Grant awarded by the National Cancer Institute (NIH NCI P30CA093373) These authors contributed equally: Demet Candas-Green Kaiser Permanente Medical Center Vallejo and Vacaville Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Medicine NCI-Designated Comprehensive Cancer Center Department of Radiation and Cellular Oncology and the Ludwig Center for Metastasis Research Chemoattractant Receptor and Signal Section characterized the radioresistant breast cancer cells and in vivo irradiated tumors performed animal tests on radiation combined antibody blockade of CD47 and HER2 guided the study of clinical samples of breast cancer patients contributed to the pathological studies on the clinical samples guided the studies on tumor tests of antibody dual inhibition on CD47 and HER2 and phagocytotic analysis The authors declare no competing interests Peer review information Nature Communications thanks the anonymous reviewer(s) for their contribution to the peer review of this work Publisher’s note Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations Download citation DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-020-18245-7 Anyone you share the following link with will be able to read this content: a shareable link is not currently available for this article Sign up for the Nature Briefing: Cancer newsletter — what matters in cancer research SearchCaroline Candas earns hard-fought podium finish at Road AmericaLIAM REDFORDAug 12 20244 min readCaroline Candas secured her tenth podium finish of the season at Road America finishing third in race one to maintain her second place in the Porsche Sprint Challenge North America standings showcasing her racecraft despite the challenges of a new track to the French racer Photo credits: RAFA Racing ClubCaroline Candas consolidated her second position in the Porsche Sprint Challenge North America standings by securing a tenth podium finish of the season Driving at Road America for the first time Candas maximised her results in a challenging weekend which saw her finish race one in third before taking the checkered flag fourth in the Cayman Pro/Am class in race two Caroline was able to develop her racecraft in close-fought battles as she secured another large haul of championship points Candas claimed her first ever victory in Porsche Sprint Challenge North America last time out at Watkins Glen and was aiming to continue this excellent form Road America provided a different challenge with the track featuring the longest lap of the year with a large number of high-speed corners and tricky braking zones Caroline aimed to get up to speed quickly and put her simulator time to good use in the opening practice sessions of the weekend Due to her commitments racing in Porsche Endurance Challenge North America Candas had to split driving time with new teammate Cameron Lawrence and therefore needed to ensure the car setup suited both drivers It was a productive two days of running for the young French driver who continued to learn the circuit and improve her times ahead of qualifying Qualifying on Saturday morning was held in some of the coolest conditions of the season and therefore tyre warmup would be an additional challenge for the drivers she set the overall fastest final sector of any driver and underlined her speed in this part of the track Candas had to manage traffic during her run and with a red flag being displayed for an incident involving Bill Fenech Caroline’s best time placed her fifth overall fourth in Cayman Pro/Am and therefore she was looking to show her overtaking skills in the first race of the weekend Photo credits: RAFA Racing ClubCandas lined up fifth on the grid for the opening race of the weekend and made an excellent start to immediately move ahead of the Cayman Masters machine of Alain Scalzo Caroline was applying pressure to the leading group of drivers as the safety car was deployed for a multi-car incident at The Kink it was a lengthy safety car period with the race resuming with around half of the thirty-five minute duration remaining Candas was looking to make a move from the outset and was running directly behind F1 Academy race winner Chloe Chambers By applying significant pressure to Chambers into Canada Corner Candas forced her rival into a mistake and was able to complete the overtake for third position Although she was unable to pull out a sizeable margin on her rival the RAFA Racing Team by JDX driver was showing her speed in sector three and set the overall best time through this portion of the track on lap eight another overall fastest final sector saw her begin to close in on second place driver Loni Unser As the race entered the final five minutes Chambers began to mount a late attack on Candas with her first sector speed significantly faster than those ahead of her Candas defended her position well and following a late spin for Patrick Dempsey the safety car was deployed and the race finished at a reduced pace with Caroline continuing her podium streak with a third-place finish Candas lined up fourth on the grid for the second race of the weekend and made a good initial launch challenging Loni Unser for third position through the opening turns As Chloe Chambers and Unser fought for second position this allowed a number of the Cayman Masters drivers to close in on Candas through the middle sector Caroline ran wide and put all four wheels onto the grass fortunately saving the car superbly to avoid any major damage and keep the car out of the wall Although dropping to seventh position overall Candas was now aiming to make up for lost time The RAFA Racing Team by JDX driver lost a little momentum following this off-track moment and this allowed Michael Clark to move ahead on lap two before Candas overtook Alain Scalzo on lap three Now trying to catch the Cayman Masters machine of William Peluchiwski Candas was pushing hard to bridge the deficit Although not quite able to achieve the speed of the top-3 drivers Caroline was protecting her fourth position from Cayman Pro/Am driver Chris Hutter who was now directly behind Hutter spun out of fifth position in class and this relieved immediate pressure with the safety car deployed following this single-car incident Racing resumed with a little over five minutes remaining and Candas was able to pass Clark on the restart Her progress was then halted by a further full course yellow period with Caroline taking the checkered flag fifth overall Candas showed her determination to maximise her championship points across a challenging weekend at Road America A podium finish in race one was the result of a superb drive in which she was able to run in the leading group of drivers and defend smart from Chloe Chambers Candas strengthened her excellent second position in the championship standings and still remains in mathematical contention for the title heading into the final round of the championship The Porsche Sprint Challenge North America drivers will return for one last double-header on the weekend of 28th/29th September as they visit Sonoma Raceway Candaş Şişman is one of the founders of Nohlab which produces interdisciplinary experiences around art he has been lecturing on the relationship between sound and visuals at various universities he has received the Prix ARS Electronica Computer Animation/Film/VFX Honorable Mention award and the Special Jury Award in the Art category of the Japanese Media Arts Festival He has participated in many major festivals and exhibitions such as the Venice Architecture Biennial ©2024 - Istanbul Foundation for Culture and Arts (İKSV) �You Canadians are too fucking polite!� It became a catchphrase �I really hated this story,� and everyone applauded because we had transcended our Canadianess." ��That book won the Crawford Award immediately after its emergence and then the Tiptree Award and the Canadian Aurora Award for best novel (The Canadian understatement thing.) It got some wonderful reviews but I was continually surprised and delighted." The ancient city-state of Tevanne is ruled by four merchant houses who have mastery of a powerful form of magic known as scriving: the ability to effect change through the control and manipulation of objects a young girl scraping a precarious living in the teeming city has a special ability that is both an asset and a curse: when she touches an object she instantly comprehends its fundamental nature and recalls its history She has to keep her body covered at all times to protect herself from sensory overload but her ability helps in her profession as a thief; when she is hired to carry out a heist from a fortified warehouse her success and its ramifications threaten to transform society What starts as a run-around chase caper soon deepens into a compelling treatise on power and its misuse His career began in the mid-1990s with bizarre biotech extravaganzas; since then he has written cyberpunk-inspired novels and a steampunk trilogy set in an alternative Edwardian England is the moving account of a soldier sent home from the battlefields of the first world war with what we’d now call post-traumatic stress disorder Dispatched to an experimental rehabilitation hospital in rural Wiltshire Tommy has a series of increasingly strange encounters with fellow patients The inhabitants of what appears to be a parallel world promise refuge – though it’s an offer with strings attached This is the story of a young man teetering on the brink of breakdown and an examination of the tragic impact of conflict on an individual and those around him It could be read either as a parable of mental trauma or as an offbeat parallel worlds fantasy Another novel that mixes murder mystery with the fantastical, this time in a SF setting, is SJ Morden’s One Way (Gollancz convicted of the killing of his son’s drug-dealer is offered an alternative to life imprisonment Kittridge and seven other ex-cons are shipped out to Mars by the shady Xenosystems Operations Their remit is to help set up what will be humankind’s first Martian settlement Morden portrays Kittridge as a sympathetic and is excellent at conveying the technical detail of establishing a colony on Mars as Kittridge comes to understand his employers’ cynical cost-cutting measures and the convict workers are killed one by one It paints a convincing picture of the lethal Martian environment as well as the growing terror of being incarcerated in a deadly prison with no way out Canadian Candas Jane Dorsey’s third collection Dorsey tackles staple genre themes such as first contact post-apocalyptic survival and virtual reality but brings a literary sensibility to her SF ideas observing and reporting on the fraught nuances of human relationships with the eye of a poet She’s equally adept at SF and contemporary fantasy combining edgy stories of streetwise cyberpunk hackers or VR detectives trawling the digital realm for victims of abuse with tales about what happens when Mother Teresa comes to stay in the suburbs and how the poet laureate helps people whose lives have lost their meaning Standouts include “(Learning About) Machine Sex” in which a computer programmer takes revenge on abusive bosses and lovers and the wonderful fantasy “The Food of My People” about the relationship between a little girl and her elderly neighbour exploring how jigsaws are used to heal the sick Eric Brown’s latest novel is Buying Time (Solaris) SearchPECNA: Caroline Candas secures maiden podium finish Therese Lahlouh inside the top-10 at SonomaLIAM REDFORDOct 2 20246 min readThe third round of the Porsche Endurance Challenge North America brought notable results for both female drivers in the race at Sonoma – with Caroline Candas finishing second in the Cayman class narrowly missing out on victory after a race-long battle and Therese Lahlouh securing a top-10 after a strong first stint Photo credits: RAFA Racing ClubCaroline Candas enjoyed her best race in Porsche Endurance Challenge North America to date by standing on the podium in the Cayman class at Sonoma Candas drove solo during the one-hour race and after narrowly missing out on pole position she applied pressure to teammate Ian Porter throughout the race Taking the checkered flag less than half a second behind Porter on the road it was an excellent result for the young French driver Therese Lahlouh and teammate Nik Romano ran as high as fourth overall before late-race contact saw the JDX Racing pair finish in tenth position The penultimate round of Porsche Endurance Challenge North America took place at Sonoma Raceway and was the final one-hour contest ahead of the six-hour flagship event at Circuit of the Americas in November JDX Racing duo Therese Lahlouh and Nik Romano have enjoyed a breakthrough season so far having led laps in both previous races in the GT3 Cup class the pair travelled to Europe to gain valuable experience racing in the inaugural Michelin 992 Endurance Cup event which took place at Spa-Francorchamps Lahlouh and Romano were now searching for a victory after stepping onto the podium in the most recent event French driver Caroline Candas returned after a sizeable incident on lap one of the Porsche Endurance Challenge North America contest at Road America A start line incident ahead of her left Candas nowhere to go and fortunately she was able to walk away unharmed Candas drove this round solo and would therefore benefit from additional track time Candas was joined in the Cayman class by Anna Cecchi who was set to drive alongside Greg Cecchi for their Porsche Sprint Challenge North America debut the pair also drove in the Porsche Sprint Challenge North America West event at Sonoma before teaming up for the one-hour endurance race The three crews were looking to fight towards the front of their respective classes with on-track action getting underway on Wednesday for Lahlouh and Romano along with Cecchi while Candas turned her first laps on Thursday The trio of drivers were all showing encouraging performance and looked set to challenge for top positions as qualifying got underway on Sunday morning Photo credits: Colin McCarthyGT3 CupQualifying for Porsche Endurance Challenge North America saw the grid set by the aggregate times of both drivers in the case of a two-driver crew or the two fastest times set by a single driver lineup Both Lahlouh and Romano did a nice job in qualifying and were able to set the eighth fastest time overall Lahlouh drove in the first stint for JDX Racing with Romano finishing the race as the team utilised the same driver order which resulted in a runner-up finish at Road America Therese made an excellent start and gained two positions on lap one to move into sixth her fast start was under investigation and Lahlouh was subsequently issued with a ten second penalty for a start line violation the JDX Racing duo would be required to wait an extra ten seconds during their mandatory pit stop Lahlouh settled in well and was running extremely competitive lap times which regularly matched those set in her two Porsche Sprint Challenge North America contests Although she was coming under attack from Competition Motorsports driver Luke French Lahlouh was defending her position well without losing too much time a spin for Josh Conley saw Lahlouh move into the top-5 while she continued to resist the challenge posed by French an exceptional final sector saw Therese come within half a tenth of a second of setting the overall best sector time of the race so far Lahlouh caught a number of the slower Cayman cars and this posed an extra challenge with the speed differential between the two classes at Sonoma minimal Lahlouh was able to move into fourth position within the GT3 Cup class at the pit window opened and although French had now found a way past the JDX Racing team were still in a strong position due to their driver lineup consisting of two bronze graded drivers Lahlouh brought her car to the attention of her crew and was able to hand over to Nik Romano while also serving the ten second time penalty Romano ran in a strong fourth position with his initial pace extremely strong Silver graded driver Trenton Estep was now behind and the MDK Motorsports driver was slowly catching the JDX Racing machine After holding off Estep for a number of laps contact was made between the drivers and this dropped Romano down to 12th position in the GT3 Cup class Romano was looking to recover from this setback and finish inside the top-10 and his cause was aided by a black flag shown to the BR Racing car of Tom Dyer This promoted Romano to 11th position and into the closing stages of the race he was able to use his speed to close up to a group of drivers fighting for eighth position Romano made a nice move on Ruckus Racing driver Scott Blind to move his JDX Racing machine into 10th position at the checkered flag Photo credits: Colin McCarthyCaymanPrior to qualifying getting underway an unfortunate incident in an earlier Porsche Sprint Challenge North America West race forced Anna and Greg Cecchi to withdraw from the Porsche Endurance Challenge North America contest Candas was looking to start the day on the front foot and push for a strong starting position her fastest two lap times would set her grid position and with an excellent late-session improvement Candas was able to qualify in second position She was less than a tenth of a second behind teammate Ian Porter on aggregate times and her quickest lap was only three tenths away from that of pace-setter Patrick Long Candas lined up from second position on the Cayman class grid and was looking ahead to her longest race of her career to date aboard the Porsche Cayman GT4 RS Clubsport Candas would need to learn to manage the tyres and an increased fuel load for the first time this season under racing conditions The RAFA Racing Team by JDX pair made a clean start at the front of the field with Porter holding the lead and Candas settling into second position Porter edged out his lead in the early stages with the margin growing to a little over three seconds Candas had opened out a sizeable advantage behind and this allowed her to focus forward and build up her lap times consistently Candas was now faster than Porter and as the drivers managed the faster GT3 Cup traffic she was able to use her prior experience of traffic management to reduce the lead margin the gap between Porter and Candas remained at just a couple of seconds and with both drivers pitting at the first available opportunity it would be a straight fight for the victory A fast stop from both RAFA Racing Team by JDX crews saw the drivers leave in close proximity however Candas’ pit stop time was four tenths of a second under the minimum delta she was handed a post-race time penalty of just over four seconds with the time difference multiplied by a factor of ten Candas remained in contention for the on-track race victory and after setting a personal best time on lap 15 including the quickest final sector of any driver Candas was now less than a second behind her teammate and managing the lapped traffic better in order to lose less time by fighting with the cars from a different class a further issue for Porter in lapped traffic saw Caroline close to within a couple of car lengths and within striking distance of mounting a late-race challenge Candas continued to apply the pressure to her teammate and took the checkered flag less than half a second behind Porter with his final margin of victory a little under five seconds it was an excellent drive from Candas in her first solo one-hour event where she displayed excellent traffic management skills Candas should be encouraged by her performance at Sonoma in which she enjoyed a thrilling race-long battle with Porter Missing out on pole position by such a small margin also underlined her improvement over one lap together with her consistent race pace which often matched that of the Pro drivers Lahlouh also showed excellent speed in her opening stint in the GT3 Cup class and she was unfortunate that contact in Romano’s stint took away a certain top-5 finish for the JDX Racing crew One round remains in the inaugural Porsche Endurance Challenge North America season with the flagship six-hour event set to take place at Circuit of the Americas on the weekend of November 23rd/24th SearchCaroline Candas: “It was the best day of my life”LIAM REDFORDDec 7 20236 min read“It was the best day of my life to be in the car and to drive COTA" - From touring car experience in France to winning her first shootout in the States at her first GT4 outing: discover more about the new RAFA Racing Club driver and ambassador Photo credits: RAFA Racing Club / Motorsport WomanDriven The three perfect words to describe Caroline Candas as she chases her motorsport dreams Caroline described the feelings of rolling out of the garage and onto the track at Circuit of the Americas as the best day of her life Just one day on from this incredible experience Candas was crowned winner of the inaugural RAFA Racing Club shootout and secured herself a fully funded drive in Porsche Sprint Challenge North America Caroline took another step closer to realising her motorsport ambition Caroline’s motorsport journey began with a family passion although being involved in racing itself was new to the Candas family as she explained “My family are not from a racing background It was just me and my brother in go-karts and I saw him and therefore I wanted to race too” Like the vast majority of upcoming drivers Caroline began her career in karting before switching to cars at the start of the 2022 season Behind every driver is a unique identity and personality which can be expressed via their helmet Caroline is no different and commented that “My helmet hasn’t changed since I was first able to design it for karting and my colours are yellow and blue The star represents my [karting] championship in France in 2020 I also have yellow gloves which is my lucky colour” Photo credits: SRO / Patrick Hecq PhotographyFor Caroline and her father Patrice one event stands above all in terms of history and prestige especially of the 24 Hours of Le Mans and he first attended the race in 1973 It is my biggest dream and also my target to race at Le Mans” The Circuit de la Sarthe now holds even greater significance for Candas as she described that her daily commute to university incorporates parts of the legendary track “Now I live in Le Mans and I drive along the roads every day when going to university and it is crazy to imagine that I see it every day and one day I want to race there” There is undoubtedly no greater motivation to a racing driver than to receive a daily reminder of the most prestigious race in the world and Candas has firmly set her sights on achieving her dream coming out on top in the RAFA Racing Club shootout was a significant step in her career and one which has also changed her mindset during the winter with her priorities shifting from a predominant focus on seeking sponsorship to preparing herself effectively for the challenges to come Caroline explained “Now I have to train myself for next season and my target is to make the best season possible so I’m training in the gym and on the simulator." As the least experienced driver in GT4 machinery entering the shootout Caroline knew it would be a significant challenge and therefore learning quickly would be the key to success Candas worked closely with her assigned coach for the week and she described building a positive relationship with the 2019 GT4 European Series Silver Cup champion Photo by: @consblanco / RAFA Racing ClubReflecting on their partnership Caroline said “I took every piece of advice that he gave me and therefore we won the shootout as a team He gave me a lot of help and therefore my win is also his win From the first day in the simulator until the last day of the shootout I was very lucky to have him with me and he knew that I didn’t know the car or the track so I had to practice and learn quickly With Caroline having no experience of COTA the time spent with Udell was vital in preparation for the on-track element of the shootout Caroline’s enthusiasm shone through as she explained “It was the best day of my life to be in the car and to drive COTA I thought about my job of driving the car and what I had to do in that moment." "I knew I had to concentrate and rely on my simulator practice then afterwards I realised that I had driven at COTA and I was like okay I knew I had to take the advice of my coach and do my best It was a completely different car to what I had driven before and I had a lot to learn” “I knew I would have to work hard because I had little experience but I am here for that The other girls knew the track and similar cars it was just about improvement during the week and to do my best and I think it worked out well.” Photo credits: RAFA Racing Club / Motorsport WomanThe RAFA Racing Club shootout provided a unique experience for the drivers to spend a week in each other’s company while fiercely battling for the overall prize This dynamic was something Candas enjoyed and she noted that “It was very cool to learn about the other girls and their experiences since we are from different backgrounds and everyone has their own experiences to share I’m very grateful to learn from the other girls and it was a really great group Everyone was kind and it was very cool to have my journey with them and I learnt something from every girl at the shootout” the crowning moment of the week came as Caroline was announced the winner of the shootout Emotions were high as years of hard work and sacrifice by Caroline and her family had paid dividends the call she made to her parents upon receiving the news was a significant moment “It was a completely crazy experience as it was 4am in France and I called my parents and I said okay you have to wake up because I have something to say and then I’m waiting for my dad to wake up and I was like quickly come and then I announced that I was the winner and it was crazy." Caroline credited the RAFA Racing Club organisation as a whole for being extremely supportive and welcoming throughout the process she said “I was very grateful to meet all of the people from RAFA Racing Club It is not just Rafa Martinez but the whole team so I’m grateful to meet them and it was a really good week Photo by: @consblanco / RAFA Racing ClubNow that the dust has settled on an unforgettable week stateside Caroline’s attention is now firmly focused on 2024 Candas said: “I want to do my best to be competitive and it’s true that I want to win and I will work towards that with my coach and the people who are supporting me I have already watched some races from last season especially from Sebring being the first round as well as some onboards which are useful in learning the tracks away from the simulator” every round of the championship will feature a totally new circuit and Caroline will need all of her skills to get up to speed as fast as possible Commenting on the track she is most looking forward to visiting Watkins Glen but every single track I’m looking forward to driving I did look at the calendar before the shootout as I’m going to the shootout with a goal to be competitive and to win” Candas will tackle the formidable Sebring International Raceway in March to open her Porsche Sprint Challenge North America season Caroline aims to treat the occasion similarly to her TC France races “I take it just as the same as if it was a race in France I will just concentrate on my job and practice on the simulator I don’t put pressure on myself as I want to do my best with the same targets I will work with my coach and take his advice but also it’s Sebring and it’s a dream to drive at this track as I’ve watched IMSA race there and it’s an American dream to race there” Photo credits: RAFA Racing Club / Motorsport WomanCaroline will be part of a three-car team and will be joined by fellow female driver Paige Morales who will be making her competitive racing debut in 2024 I’m very pleased to drive with her next year and I’m excited to be part of the championship with her” the third member of the team will be another rookie racing driver Porter is a highly successful online gamer and was recently presented with the Lifetime Achievement Award by the Esports Hall of Fame Caroline’s story is one of perseverance and is a perfect example to other female drivers looking to achieve their dreams it is only fitting for Candas to have the final word and her advice to those aiming to follow in her footsteps is simple: SearchCaroline Candas crowned winner of the inaugural RAFA Racing ShootoutLIAM REDFORDNov 20 20235 min readRAFA Racing Club’s championing of female talent will allow young French racer Caroline Candas to enter next year's Porsche Sprint Challenge North America following her victory in the exclusive RAFA Racing Club Driver Shootout Photo credits: Caroline Candas / Rafa Racing ClubThe story of the underdog has always been a captivating feature of motorsport and Caroline Candas epitomises this mantra. Arriving at the RAFA Racing Shootout in Texas as the only candidate with no competitive race experience of rear-wheel-drive machinery Caroline came out on top against some of the best young female drivers in the world Her prize is one of the most exciting on offer stateside a fully-funded seat in Porsche Sprint Challenge North America a rapidly developing single-make championship in America Caroline’s only circuit racing experience came behind the wheel of a TCA-Light specification Peugeot 208 Now she was ready to embark on her greatest challenge yet Competing in a high-pressure environment on an unfamiliar track with a significant performance difference to anything she had raced before Candas had one week to impress world-renown judges and change her career RAFA Racing Club has taken the motorsport world by storm and with founder Rafa Martinez developing his skills as a racing driver in McLaren Trophy Europe the shootout served as the next step on his quest to uncover a racing superstar Rafa Racing Club launched the first driver selection aimed at female racing drivers: nine selected young female racers travelled to Rafa Racing Club Headquarters in Houston with Caroline emerging as a sensational winner The experience of being part of the RAFA Racing Shootout was a surprise to Caroline; despite GT4 being a completely different style of racing to what she had experienced to date the potential shown by Candas led to the belief shown in her being selected Channelling her tenacity and determination the faith shown in Caroline was repaid as she defied the odds to come out on top against drivers with past experiences in formula cars and GT3 machinery among others Photo credits: SRO / Patrick Hecq PhotographyRafa’s championing of female talent allows drivers such as Caroline the opportunity to realise their dreams without the financial worries which are an inevitable feature of modern motorsport despite finishing third in the multi-class FFSA TC Series this season Candas was unable to compete in every race due to a lack of funding Her ability to maximise her performances saw Caroline claim a stunning victory at Val de Vienne on her way to a podium tally which reached double figures the shootout would serve as a totally new experience for Caroline who travelled halfway across the world in order to realise her dreams Candas and her competitors faced an extremely tough five-day assessment with their on-track and off-track abilities tested to the limit in a once in a lifetime opportunity After a first day of sim and media work at the state-of-the-art Houston HQ the drivers were prepared for their first on-track action with a seat fitting and a shakedown at the RAFA Racing Club facility Caroline and her eight competitors were given the chance to learn from world-class coaches of the likes of former GP2 Series driver and European Le Mans Series champion Jon Lancaster as well as Porsche Carrera Cup North America racer Tom Sargent As the top level of endurance racing in America IMSA was also represented with both Cameron Lawrence and Alec Udell joining the team Female representation was also present with Indycar team owner and one of the leading figures for women in motorsport in North America Beth Paretta offering her expert opinion Rafa also enlisted the help of his 2023 McLaren Trophy Europe teammate and RAFA Racing Club ambassador Jem Hepworth who assisted the drivers with a range of activities Caroline’s adaptability is undoubtedly one factor which set her apart from her rivals and this trait has been apparent throughout her circuit racing career to date Candas was still yet to make her circuit racing debut which highlights the significant rise taken by the twenty-one-year-old Frenchwoman she was the only driver competing in the shootout who did not have competitive rear-wheel-drive racing experience in 2023 Photo credits: SRO / Jules BenichouThe difference in driving style required from front-wheel-drive to rear-wheel-drive machinery cannot be understated with differences in throttle control and breaking input just the tip of the iceberg Caroline would have to learn fast and put aside the experience of her rivals and focus on her own development Candas was incredibly motivated to rise to the challenge and this enabled her to impress the coaches and judges alike Although her performances in the fitness and media aspects of the shootout should not be understated it was the time spent in the simulator which laid the foundations for her success Caroline had never raced at Circuit of the Americas and therefore building a strong working relationship with the coaches enabled her to develop at a fast pace Equally important were the shakedown laps at Rafa Racing Club HQ as Candas got behind the wheel of the Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 for the first time learning both the systems and mechanics of her new machine however nothing could fully prepare her for the challenge which lay ahead a competitive shootout at the formidable Circuit of the Americas Circuit of the Americas is one of the most demanding racetracks in the world and has been the home of Formula 1 in the US since 2012 The state-of-the-art facility in Texas tests every element of a driver’s skillset with a fast and flowing opening sector leading to a lengthy straight accompanied by challenging braking zones the circuit features lap times exceeding two minutes for Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 machines and this would add to the challenge for Caroline as she would need to learn the track in record-quick time in order to be competitive Learning braking zones and turn-in points would only scratch the surface of the challenges Caroline would face with the characteristics of the Yokohama tyres vastly different to anything she had previously driven extracting lap time in both qualifying and race trim would be a step into the unknown and would require remarkable skill and adaptability Impressing the judges with every aspect of her performance Caroline overcame the odds to be crowned the inaugural Rafa Racing Shootout winner and claim a fully-funded place on the Porsche Sprint Challenge North America grid Caroline’s development will continue in 2024 as she embarks on her biggest challenge yet a full-season program with events at seven iconic venues stateside Competing in the Cayman class for Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 RS Clubsport machines competition will be fierce but Candas will believe she can fight for top honours from the outset The season begins on the weekend of March 2nd/3rd at the iconic Sebring International Raceway before Caroline will race alongside NTT IndyCar Series at Barber Motorsport Park Round three will bring some familiarity for Candas with the drivers tackling COTA before trips to Virginia International Raceway Road America and Sonoma complete the schedule The #RaceAsFamilyAlways mantra was in effect as Caroline was announced as the shootout winner with her fellow competitors quick to offer their congratulations The shootout served as an unforgettable opportunity to the nine drivers and will inspire them to continue chasing their goals Candas faced immense challenges throughout the week and despite lacking the experience both in terms of the characteristics of car and track Candas will now live the American dream and line up on the Porsche Sprint Challenge North America grid with her story serving to inspire fellow female drivers who are looking to overcome the odds and forge a career in motorsport double podium for Caroline Candas and Paige Morales at NOLALIAM REDFORDFeb 19 20247 min readRAFA Racing Club’s trio of female drivers enjoyed a dominant performance at the SCCA Super Tour event at NOLA: Jem Hepworth claimed a pair of victories in a sensational battle with Caroline Candas - who made her Stateside debut with a pole and a fastest lap - and Paige Morales Photo credits: RAFA Racing ClubRAFA Racing Club’s trio of female drivers began their competitive season with a dominant display in the Hoosier Racing Tire SCCA Super Tour event at NOLA Motorsports Park Jem Hepworth claimed a pair of victories in the GTX class with one pole position and one fastest lap to her name Hepworth was involved in a sensational battle for the victory in race two with polesitter Caroline Candas who was making her stateside debut Candas also claimed fastest lap in race one in what was a brilliant first outing driving for RAFA Racing Club Paige Morales also enjoyed an excellent weekend on her racing debut stepping onto the podium in both races while making significant improvements in changeable conditions All three drivers entered the weekend aiming to bank competitive track time ahead of their 2024 campaigns with RAFA Racing Club After a superb 2023 season racing alongside RAFA Racing Club founder Rafael Martinez Jem Hepworth will step up from McLaren Trophy Europe where the duo finished as championship runners-up to compete in the GT4 European Series alongside Cameron Lawrence Hepworth arrived at NOLA with good experience of the McLaren 570S and therefore provided a benchmark for both Candas and Morales who would race the car for the first time Candas and Morales will be racing in Porsche Sprint Challenge North America this season with both drivers embarking on their first campaign stateside these races at NOLA were given greater significance as they were her first career races altogether with the motorsport rookie taking huge strides in a small space of time After sensationally winning the RAFA Racing Club shootout in November Candas has been working with the team to prepare for the season opener at Sebring in just two weeks’ time this weekend was first time she had ever driven the McLaren 570S a GT4 specification car with different characteristics to that of the Porsche Cayman GT4 Clubsport The Hoosier Racing Tire SCCA Super Tour features a wide diversity of machines with the RAFA Racing Club drivers competing in Class GTX within Group 6 the variance across the 29 car grid would see machines such as the Lamborghini Huracan GT3 competing alongside classic Ford Mustangs traffic management would be vital in the pair of races at an unfamiliar circuit to the drivers Photo credits: RAFA Racing ClubTrack conditions added to the challenge for the RAFA Racing Club trio with Friday’s test sessions held in extremely wet conditions valuable experience was gained and the importance of this should not be underestimated Despite her limited wet-weather experience Paige Morales banked crucial track time and finished the day third in class Heading into Saturday’s opening qualifying session the track was damp with some small puddles remaining the track dried quickly which led to consistent lap time improvements Negotiating traffic therefore gained added importance with areas away from the racing line proving more treacherous Hepworth and Candas traded fastest times with the former claiming GTX pole position by just over a second from Candas in second Morales showed great maturity in light of her experience with her final sector pace especially competitive This saw the racing rookie qualify third in GTX seventh in the overall classification and one tenth faster than Rafael Martinez in his McLaren Artura GT4 The opening race of the weekend saw conditions change once again with drivers experiencing the first dry running of the meeting This was a particular challenge for Candas and Morales whose first dry laps at NOLA in the McLaren 570S GT4 would come in full racing conditions Jem Hepworth made a fantastic start and held her lead with a confident opening lap in which she shadowed the overall race leader despite her power disadvantage Candas did a great job to stay out of trouble as she brought her tyres up to temperature while Morales remained solidly within the podium positions in GTX Hepworth’s lead over Candas was up to four seconds however the young French driver was now in sight of her RAFA Racing Club teammate following a smart overtake on the GT2 class Chevrolet Corvette of Michael Quattlebaum Hepworth and Candas traded fastest sectors while Morales had settled down in amongst some close midfield battles which saw her develop her race craft Lap five saw Hepworth and Candas both negotiate a plethora of lapped traffic with the tight and technical nature of NOLA Motorsports Park testing their skills Morales had risen into the top-10 of the overall classification and was making sizeable improvements as she gained confidence in dry conditions At the twenty-five-minute race reached its conclusion Hepworth was able to stretch her gap out front to claim GTX class victory ahead of Candas in second place who claimed an impressive fastest lap on her stateside debut by two tenths of a second Morales rounded out a historic all-female class podium with another personal best time coming on lap ten to complete an excellent debut race in the McLaren 570S GT4 Photo credits: RAFA Racing ClubGrid positions for race two would be determined from the driver’s fastest lap time from either qualifying one qualifying two or the quickest race lap from Saturday’s opener With dry conditions for second qualifying on Sunday all three drivers were looking to improve on their best lap from race one to secure the best starting position Clear track was at a premium despite the trio positioning their cars well in the opening stages Candas and Morales were all quick to dip under their fastest race lap from the previous day underlining their progress in the short session It was Candas who secured GTX class pole with a 1:45.346 just less than a second faster than Saturday’s benchmark sixth tenths of a second faster than her quickest race one lap it was Morales who found the largest time improvement with her lap of a 1:49.497 just short of two seconds quicker than her previous best time at NOLA and this ensured a RAFA Racing Club 1-2-3 GTX sweep once again Dry conditions remained for the final race of the weekend with the RAFA Racing Club trio all making good starts It was Candas who displayed the most aggression as she valiantly fought off the Ford Mustang of Barry Boes in an attempt to put a car between herself and Hepworth before Boes used his power advantage to move past was competing like a veteran to build up her confidence on cold tyres and held off her nearest class rivals to remain in third gaining back one of the two overall positions she had lost on the opening lap by lap two Lap three saw Candas and Hepworth involved in a sensational side-by-side battle for the GTX lead with both drivers displaying superb race craft It was Hepworth who initially came out on top but was unable to make her escape as Candas remained within a second of her teammate before the introduction of lapped traffic allowed Candas to close in and weigh up her best overtaking opportunities Candas did just that and despite Hepworth’s best defensive efforts the French racer pulled off a spectacular overtake to claim the lead seconds before the safety car was deployed Paige’s strong lap times during the first half of the race saw her remain on the overall lead lap before successfully negotiating her first ever safety car restart This was made trickier by lapped cars falling between herself and her nearest rivals nonetheless Morales held her overall position well Lapped traffic also impacted the battle between Candas and Hepworth with Caroline being trapped behind a slower vehicle in the opening corners which allowed Jem to make a fantastic overtake round the outside to re-take the GTX lead Hepworth and Candas remained nose-to-tail and both drivers were showing immense commitment to make their advantage count The gap between first and second consistently remained less than a second with the final lap providing yet more excitement Coming upon lapped traffic and a yellow flag zone Candas almost drew level with her rival but despite her best efforts was unable to make a move with Hepworth resisting the pressure extremely well to claim her second victory of the weekend with fastest lap in the process Photo credits: RAFA Racing ClubCandas took the checkered flag second for another superb runner-up result after leading a sizeable portion of the race Morales yet again rounded-out the GTX class podium with a composed drive which saw the rookie collect two trophies on her racing debut All three drivers can leave NOLA feeling extremely proud of their performances in what was a flawless season opener for RAFA Racing Club Sweeping the GTX class podium underlined both the speed and consistency of the trio who will be embarking on exciting 2024 programmes in the coming months Candas and Morales will be the first to return to competitive action with the opening round of Porsche Sprint Challenge North America taking place at the fabled Sebring International Raceway in less than two weeks’ time Hepworth will have to wait a little longer before her debut in the GT4 European Series but she will be eager to gain extra track time before the curtain-raiser at Circuit Paul Ricard on the weekend of 6th/7th April The page you are looking for was not found Here are some links to help you find creative ideas in the big city Celebrating creativity and promoting a positive culture by spotlighting the best sides of humanity—from the lighthearted and fun to the thought-provoking and enlightening It’s been nearly a year since the Edmonton Police got their new armoured vehicle hung up on an ornamental crab apple tree stump in Candas Dorsey’s yard after an incident with an intruder We checked in with Dorsey to find out about the aftermath of this now infamous incident “Let’s just say some bad decisions were made and no one has ever come back and talked to us,” said Dorsey I would be using this as an example of what not to do.” picture of EPS armoured vehicle hung up on a stump Candas Dorsey in her backyard in September Dorsey is a writer who lives in the community of Boyle Street behind the city’s roadway maintenance central yard 2021 an intruder broke into Dorsey’s unoccupied basement Dorsey’s partner thought he might have seen a gun Because of the possibility of a gun her house and the street quickly filled up with armed police the house was surrounded and the police helicopter was on a tight loop around the property who had broken into an unoccupied basement suite that didn’t have any access to Dorsey’s house Police broke the windows into the basement and exhorted the intruder to surrender over a loudspeaker Dorsey says she was very grateful for the assistance from the police—at first “It's reassuring when you think your house has a person with a gun in it to know there are people at the other end of a 911 call who are prepared to come and deal with this problem About halfway through the siege Dorsey and her partner were escorted out at which point they handed the key to the back door to the cops This key would have given them access to the back door and to the suite which was occupied by the intruder A few hours later the intruder eventually gave himself up without incident and thankfully without a gun But by the time Dorsey came around to the back of her house she noticed a problem but now a massive armoured vehicle was hung up on a stump in her backyard and it was leaking transmission fluid onto the snow trees and bushes had been either sawed down or knocked including a mature pear tree after she was escorted out of her house the police had decided to breach the back door to the occupied suite—even though Dorsey had just given them the key to the door That’s what they brought the armoured vehicle in for Ultimately the armoured vehicle had to be towed out of Dorsey’s backyard By the time it was removed it had spilled so much transmission fluid that Dorsey’s yard was thoroughly contaminated She says that not only did she have to replace the destroyed fence Now nearly a year later she’s still dealing with the aftermath of the incident Dorsey estimates the cost to fix her backyard to be between $22,000 and $25,000 “It’s about 10 months on and it’s just starting to look like a backyard I did all this work just to get the same yard,” said Dorsey back in September She has had to put considerable time in as a project manager dealing with the various contractors and with no fence she has dealt with a lot of theft from her yard A freedom of information request shows that the damage to the armoured vehicle was relatively minor: some welding needed to be done to the right rear bumper and a new auxiliary transmission cooler was installed Since we spoke in September Candas has been busily getting her little orchard of a backyard back in shape before the snow arrived with a white mulberry tree a couple of blackcurrant bushes and a black raspberry bush While the goal was to have the fence in before it got cold unfortunately that didn’t work out and the contractor will be putting up a temporary construction fence over the winter While Dorsey has had to sink a lot of time into managing the project she’s had a lot of help from her neighbors to get it back to what it was There have been three separate work bees to help plant new trees and bushes “It’s been really wonderful the way people have rallied around and helped,” said Dorsey “After all of this there’s a song going through my head The law fought the stump and the stump won.”  When I had first written that Nazlı Ilıcak is at Ali Fuat Yılmazer’s disposal who worked as a subordinate to Yılmazer and did Yılmazer’s PR in the Doğan Group was given the duty of enmeshing Nazlı Ilıcak and Nazlı Ilıcak fell into this trap quite easily Işık was a covered parallel agent that did whatever Ali Fuat Yılmazer told him to do not because of his sympathy towards the Gülen-led group Yılmazer was helping Candaş Tolga to become more intimate with Acun Ilıcalı and Ali Ağaoğlu The intense intelligence stream about Acun and Ağaoğlu came about thanks to Candaş Candaş’s role in Ali Ağaoğlu’s and Abdullah Bayraktar’s arrest is quite substantial This will also be revealed during the investigation process The parallel structure was thinking about an operation also on Acun and they were using Candaş for this purpose When a cosmic ambassador visited Acun at Acun Media in Levent at midnight and explained him the situation Candaş was functional for the parallel structure and Yılmazer Think about it: Candaş was also close to Nedim Şener Nedim had written a laudatory preface to Candaş’s book who was forming plans on arresting Nedim Şener because of his service for the Gülen-led group Candaş Tolga is still working in the channel of the parallel organization with a high salary When Aydın Doğan had been warned by some top-rank people in the state since he was caught from a very sensitive spot Rıfat Ababay said that if Candaş were dismissed The parallel structure had imprisoned Ababay by impregnating him to Candaş this pregnancy will cause Ababay great damage in the near future Yılmazer was a clever person and had seen the personal hatred of Ilıcak towards Erdoğan in 2011 He knew that Miss Nazlı could be easily manipulated Counterinsurgency General Sabri Yirmibeşoğlu and then Susurluk Police Chef İbrahim Şahin had used Nazlı Ilıcak as a hitman for their dirty works Nazlı Ilıcak is a person who can go mad enough to ruin her own family and should be analyzed by psychiatrists I allege that her son Mehmet Ali Ilıcak will agree with my final sentence Nazlı Ilıcak is moving on the path to destroying the life of her grandchild most of Ilıcak’s articles were being dictated by Yılmazer she was directly reading Yılmazer’s black propaganda messages During the parallel structure investigation all the fact/truth will be revealed and juridically will be proved to be a member of an organization Yılmazer was working at the Ankara Police Academy He stayed in Istanbul with fake medical reports and virtually continued to administer the Vatan Security Hüseyin Çapkın was the Istanbul Chief of Police; however Ali Fuat Yılmazer was the real boss of the Istanbul Police force the actual boss of the Istanbul Police force and many other State Academies was Fethullah Gülen Ali Fuat Yılmazer wasn’t a Gülen-led group member; rather he was the group itself All those dirty and formidable duties were being organized by Yılmazer Yılmazer wasn’t one of the standard Gülen-led group members like Bülent Korucu and Erhan Başyurt who was different from other parallel members who takes initiative from mindless parallel members that only know how to take orders had high-level caliper and conspiracy skills and who is completely loyal to Gülen Yılmazer was against the arrests of Ahmet Şık and İlhan Cihaner He was saying that these two calipers will not be persuasive and will not do any good to the Gülen-led group he was against the arresting project of Gülen when Gülen confirmed the arrests of Şık and Cihaner These arresting culprits had been organized by Yılmazer Yılmazer was losing his temper every time he heard Nedim Şener’s name Nedim Şener caught Yılmazer very tightly in the area with which he was most scared by discovering Yılmazer’s and the Gülen-led group’s share in the Dink murder has put his signature under a great journalism achievement The organization of the Hrant Dink murder was the most disgusting task of the Gülen-led group which was required by the Gülen-led group to start the Ergenekon investigation Some ex-TAF (Turkish Armed Forces) gangsters like Veli Küçük and Kemal Kerinçsiz were so hostile against Dink that it was natural for these two names and the old-TAF to appear as usual suspects Yılmazer was the actual organizer in this murder operation Ramazan Akyürek was hierarchically more senior than Yılmazer Gülen always said that Yılmazer’s IQ was 10 times greater than Akyürek’s he was an operational man that was directly connected to Gülen and his lead hitman was Nazlı Ilıcak The BIST name and logo are protected under the "Protected Trademark Certificate" and cannot be used or altered without permission.All rights to the information disclosed under the BIST name are entirely owned by BIST and cannot be republished Market data is provided by iDealdata Financial Technologies Inc