Atlantic Merchandise Now Available Online

Fans of the Cooper Tires Presents Atlantic Championship Powered by Mazda are now able to purchase merchandise to show their support of the series with the opening of an online store last week.

The store can be found at http://www.barkerstores.com/atlanticracing/Welcome.aspx or by clicking the merchandise link from the front page of the Atlantic Championship website. Items currently being offered are hats, t-shirts, sweatshirts and jackets carrying the series logo. The online store was the brainchild of Cooper Tire Director of Motorsports, Chris Pantani.

“The new online store provides a great opportunity for the fans to show their support of the Atlantic Championship," Pantani said. “It’s great to see the fans have the ability to buy Atlantic Series merchandise, like the limited edition 2009 series hat that the teams and drivers wear."

The merchandise is being manufactured by Barker Specialty Company in Cheshire, Conn., and is being sold exclusively through the online store. All of the merchandise carries the Atlantic Championship logo, and Atlantic Championship teams also have the option of adding their logo to the right sleeve of the track jacket.

The 12-race 2009 Cooper Tires Presents The Atlantic Championship Powered by Mazda gets underway at Sebring International Raceway on Friday, March 20 as part of the Mobil 1 12 Hours of Sebring presented by Fresh From Florida weekend.

The Atlantic Championship is the longest-running open-wheel driver development series in North America and celebrated its 35th Anniversary season in 2008, with Finnish rookie Markus Niemela taking the series championship in the final race of the season. With a $1 million champion’s prize and a total of $3 million in prize money up for grabs, the 2009 Atlantic Championship offers one of the most lucrative prize packages in North American open-wheel racing.