Driving in the Grand American Daytona Prototype class for the first time in the Rolex 24 At Daytona this season didn't scare Chris Bingham - he's a two-time Rolex Sports Car Series GTS class champion. Helping start CB Motorsports and launch the No. 15 DLGL Software Pontiac Riley wasn't a challenge either - it was just another business venture.

Bingham, of Bellevue, Wash., is used to running things. In the Pacific Northwest, Bingham's family is involved in broadcasting, insurance, commercial real estate, auto dealerships and a limousine service. Now he's running a Pontiac Riley with co-drivers Hugo and Jacques Guenette in North America's premier sports car racing series.

"It's a whole different crowd," said Bingham, comparing the Daytona Prototype class of today to the series during his GTS title years of 2001 and 2002. "There's a lot of the same preparation, but the races are much more competitive and the cars are a lot faster. You've got to come out here with a whole different level of professionalism."

Maybe competition is what Bingham was after. Logging 11 poles, 11 victories and 14 podium finishes in back-to-back GTS class championship seasons, Bingham could always be seen at the front of the pack. In 2005, he's seen both ups and downs in the brand new No. 15 machine.

"We've made our mistakes," admitted Bingham. "But we've seemed to overcome them to get some good finishes."

The No. 15 Pontiac endured an early-season engine change - from Lexus to Pontiac - and has returned to post back-to-back top-10 finishes. With a seventh-place finish in the Phoenix 250 two races ago and a fourth-place result in the Crown Royal 250 last weekend, people are starting to notice what Bingham has always seen.

"We feel like we've got a great package with the Pontiac Riley," said Bingham. "We're looking to build our program and take it to the next level."

A mid-season engine-change and early finishes to be forgotten are things Bingham views as easy to overcome. A 2003 recreational watercraft accident nearly left Bingham without his main passion in life - his family.

"As far as my career is going, racing is a big part of my life - but not the biggest," said Bingham. "That's my family."

When asked what he's learned from the incident that put his racing career on hold for more than a year, Bingham said: "I've learned to spend more time with my family."

His family, after all, is the reason that Bingham is into racing. His father helped him develop a passion for racing early in his life, and despite all of the other Bingham endeavors, racing will always be close to Chris.

"If I can't drive, I want to be around the sport for a while," said Bingham. "I won't be a driver forever, so whether it's as an owner, crew chief or anything else, I just want to be involved."

Bingham started racing in Grand American in its inaugural year, running in the SR class in 2000. Six years and two championships later, Bingham finds himself trying to turn his winning ways of the past into future Daytona Prototype glory.

"We've got some very good people on board with us for next year," said Bingham. "We love the direction that we're going."

A happy family. Successful family business ventures. A racing past that includes nearly a dozen trips to the top step of the podium. It seems that everything Chris Bingham touches turns into gold.

"Hopefully, we're going to be here for awhile," said Bingham.