In the closest finish in the history of the Rolex 24 at Daytona, the No. 58 Brumos Racing Porsche Riley and drivers David Donohue, Darren Law, Buddy Rice and Antonio Garcia captured the 47th anniversary of the twice-around-the clock challenge on Sunday afternoon at Daytona International Speedway. The final hours of the twice-around-the-clock marathon came down to an epic four-way battle between the No. 58 and 59 Brumos Racing Porsche Rileys, the No. 10 SunTrust Racing Ford Dallara and the No. 01 Chip Ganassi Racing Lexus Riley – a team that has captured the past three Rolex 24s. 
The margin of victory was a miniscule 0.167 seconds. This margin is particularly incredible considering the race lasted for 24 hours, 26.465 seconds. During the highly contested battle, there were 51 lead changes among 53 drivers and 9 cars.

The final hour started with a caution that bunched up the field one last time for a sprint to the end. In most 24-hour races, such a flag would not have much of an impact. However, this time what it meant was there would be 4 cars with a shot at winning the Rolex 24. The simple fact that in a 24 hour race you even have 4 cars that are still on the same lap is a testament to what the Grand Am series has accomplished. For decades, Rolex has delivered the greatest professional watches in the world that have set the performance marks for endurance and reliability. Doesn’t it make perfect sense that the ultimate watch company would sponsor what turned out to be the greatest and most challenging race of the racing year?

Professional car racing has been linked for decades to Paul Newman and the Rolex Cosmograph Daytona. The legendary actor passed away in 2008, and his dedication to the sport of racing will be remembered. At the Rolex 24, Patrick Dempsey and his Dempsey team succeeded in carrying forward the Newman legacy. Unlike the year before when they failed to finish, the Dempsey team finished a respectable 35 out of 49 teams.

In terms of the quality of the race, it is amazing that the Brumos team was able to hold off the well-funded Ganassi team, which had won the Rolex 24 for four straight years. As Terrible Tim wrote in the Sporting News, “The Rolex 24 had history and heritage. You could see the history playing out right in front of you. You cold feel the heritage this little team had and the status they aspired to achieve. You could feel the drama unfold lap after lap better than an NCIS episode. You had to love this little team holding off what could be the largest wallet in sports car racing. You had to love the fact that the whole scene centered on a heritage the sport holds so dearly and was so happy to display for the world.

David Donohue, the leader of the winning team, joins his late father Mark as the third father-son combination to win the overall Rolex 24. He beamed during his post-race interview, “I’m certainly very, very proud of my father and his accomplishments and what he’s done,” Donohue said. “Just coincidentally we happened to nail it on the 40th anniversary of him winning.” Once again, Rolex shows why it is the very best watch in the world by sponsoring the very best competitors and performers!

On Jake Ehrlich’s recent podcast, interviewing NASA astronaut Dr. Leroy Chiao, Dr. Chiao mentioned that he had seen a Rolex GMT Master featured on an old Star Trek episode. One of the most highly decorated and accomplished astronauts alive today; Dr. Chiao is a Rolex enthusiast and proudly wears a Rolex GMT Master II. It makes perfect sense that he would recognize the watch while viewing an episode of Star Trek, a very popular show with astronauts since its original inception. Using Dr. Chiao’s comment as a guide Jake Ehrlich discovered the episode, which displays the Rolex GMT Master prominently on the wrist of the character Gary Seven. At first appearing to be a villain, Gary Seven turns out to be a hero in the end.

The Star Trek episode that featured the Rolex GMT Master is named Assignment Earth (number 55). The last show (Episode 26) from the second season; it originally aired March 29, 1968. The episode was also a television pilot for a Star Trek spin-off Gene Roddenberry hoped to launch based around the character of Gary Seven. The episode begins when Gary Seven, who is attempting to beam to earth, is instead beamed onto the Enterprise transport deck by mistake. From his introduction, the Rolex GMT Master appears prominently on Gary Seven’s wrist.

Played by the actor Robert Lansing, Gary Seven informs Captain Kirk that he has come from an invisible planet to save Earth from nuclear destruction in 1968. Not knowing what to do, and doubting his story, Kirk imprisons Gary Seven in a holding cell. Gary escapes using a pen-shaped weapon; the camera zooming in on his hands and offering a close-up of his Rolex GMT Master with a Pepsi bezel. In order to discover the truth Kirk and Spock travel back in time in pursuit of Gary Seven.

Through a series of action sequences, Kirk and Spock chase Gary Seven around New York City. The pursuit ends at NASA’s Cape Canaveral, in Florida, where an Apollo rocket is being launched with a test nuclear warhead aboard. Gary Seven sneaks onto the launch pad and manipulates the Saturn rocket to avoid certain catastrophe. Like all Star Trek episodes, everything works out in the end.

It is intriguing to note that the young Teri Garr played Ms. Roberta Lincoln, Gary Seven’s somewhat bewildered secretary and a source of comic relief. However, the Gary Seven pilot was never picked up and the character with his Rolex GMT Master was never seen again. Most likely, he would have been like James Bond in outer space with a prominent collection of Rolex watches. Unfortunately, we will never know what the brilliant Gene Roddenberry had up his proverbial sleeve. As Spock says at the end of the episode, “May you live long and prosper.” Or, as he should have said: “May you live long and prosper with a Rolex watch on your wrist!”

Just as President Barack Obama was sworn in as the new President of the United States, Yo-Yo Ma played his cello wearing a Stainless Steel Rolex Datejust on his wrist. Performing with Itzhak Perlman, Gabriela Montero and Anthony McGill, Yo-Yo Ma performed a beautiful and spiritually compelling new composition named “Air & Simple Gifts,” which classical composer John Williams wrote for the event.  Yo-Yo Ma has endorsed Rolex watches for several years, and he takes part in the Rolex Mentor and Protégé Arts Initiative. As described on the Timecafe website, “Rolex is endorsed publicly by several individuals who embody ‘the constant pursuit of perfection.’ Musical greats such as Yo-Yo Ma . . . Rolex’s ambassadors come from all realms, demonstrating the versatility and timelessness of the Rolex image.”

The inauguration performance did create a little controversy afterwards when it became known that the music the audience, both live and on television, actually heard a version of song that had been recorded by the stellar quartet earlier in the week. The Los Angeles Times reported online: “They’re calling it the great musical cover-up, news that Yo-Yo Ma and Itzhak Perlman and the rest of their Inauguration Day ensemble pre-recorded their music for fear that cold temperatures would force their instruments out of tune. The renowned musicians did play live — but only those closest could hear it, and that probably didn’t include President Obama, First Lady Michelle Obama or their daughters, Malia and Sasha. The Ticket has to say, they did sound marvelous.” It was 28 degrees at 12:00 pm when the quartet began their performance. In such extreme conditions, instruments consistently fall out of tune. Yo-Yo Ma was prepared for the weather though, wearing a Rolex Datejust that he knew would run perfectly despite the bitter cold.

Ultimately, whether you heard the live or the recorded version of the composition, the legendary quartet led by Yo-Yo Ma rhapsodized together, symbolizing the great hope for the future that the new administration represents. The remarkably intimate interlude opened with a sober, almost melancholy theme, as if to recall the many challenges facing the country. That gave way to a familiar melody, first intoned by the clarinet - the gently uplifting Shaker hymn, “Simple Gifts,” used so indelibly by Aaron Copland in his 1944 ballet score Appalachian Spring. Once again, with a Rolex Datejust on his wrist and the greatest musicians by his side, Yo-Yo Ma represented the very best of artistic achievement before the eyes of the world.

On the second season of Donald Trump’s celebrity apprentice, set in Manhattan, the winner is expected to receive a Rolex watch as a prize as well as a cash donation to the charity of their choice. Vying for the title of Trump’s “Best Business Brain,” the celebrities include retired NBA player Dennis Rodman, comedian Andrew Dice Clay, television host Melissa Rivers and many more. Since Rolex watches have been a symbol of entrepreneurial success for over a century, it makes sense that Trump’s Celebrity Apprentice should have a Rolex watch on their wrist.

It is an even more likely choice when Trump’s long and positive history with Rolex watches is considered. A collector of luxury wristwatches, Donald Trump’s hotels have also sponsored a multitude of Rolex sporting events and benefits. At the end of 2008, the Rolex Awards Reception was held at Donald Trump’s Mar-A-Lago country club in Palm Beach, Florida. Trump was on hand with Peter Nicholson of Rolex USA to award the LPGA Rolex Player of the Year award to Lorena Ochoa of Mexico. Ochoa has won the award for three straight years and represents the very best in women’s golf. Each year she has been presented with a Rolex timepiece and has started quite a collection herself. Rolex has had a relationship with the LPGA since 1980 and sponsors both Ochoa and Annika Sorenstram, an eight time Rolex player of the year. As a successful entrepreneur, Donald Trump always opens his hotels and resorts to Rolex sponsored events, knowing well that with Rolex there is a guarantee of quality & success.

Trump’s relationship with Rolex extends beyond mere benefactor. According to Business Week; “When he puts his name on bottled water, vodka, or a business suit, it sells. Trump buildings get a premium. People clamor to hear his speeches, for which he gets as much as $1.5 million a pop. They buy his books. They even still watch his reality TV show, with 9.1 million viewers tuning into the Jan. 7 premiere.” It makes sense for Rolex to ally with a brand as powerful as Donald Trump. And Trump’s loyalty to Rolex is no doubt due to the superior status that Rolex watches represent.

So it seems that nothing but a Rolex would suit the winner of Celebrity Apprentice. But what kind of Rolex is right for the winner? Whether the winning celebrity is male or female, there are Rolex watches ideally suited to symbolize success for either sex. If the winner is a man, the Rolex Day Date Super President in 18k gold with a black dial and diamond lugs would be a remarkable watch for a remarkable achievement. If the celebrity happens to be female, the White Gold Rolex President with a custom silver diamond dial set in 18k white gold would perfectly represent victory. However, if any of the celebrity contestants are to win, they have to avoid hearing Donald Trump’s catch phrase: “You’re Fired!” For the celebrity who survives this gauntlet of pressure and shame, a Rolex watch would be the ideal finishing touch to their triumph.

Actress & Rolex enthusiast Jennifer Garner along with husband, actor Ben Affleck, welcomed a beautiful little girl named Seraphina Rose into the world at the beginning of the New Year. Joining big sister Violet, age 3, in the Garner-Affleck household; Seraphina was named after an order of angels in the Hebrew Bible known as the seraph or seraphim. Perceived in later Jewish imagery as a class of celestial beings with human form, the seraph evolved into the highest rank of Christian angels.

The parents did not reveal their personal reasons for selecting Seraphina, but the name has come into style in recent years. “It kind of follows from Angelina, which has gotten super popular because of Angelina Jolie, as a spiritual, heavenly name,” says Pamela Redmond Satran, who runs nameberry.com, “Ben and Jen really put Violet on the map,” Satran says. “They transformed it from what people saw as a dowdy, old lady name to a really cute, modern choice.” Serafina (alternate spelling) is also a Marvel Comics villain who first appeared in an X-Men story line in 2006. Although, it is unlikely that mom and dad considered the Marvel villain as inspiration; Garner and Affleck have played Elektra and Daredevil respectively, two Marvel Comics characters, on the big screen.

For years, Jennifer Garner has been known as a true Rolex enthusiast, seen publicly wearing a multitude of Rolex styles. Garner has favored the versatility of the two-toned Ladies Datejust with a blue dial and a fluted bezel, and the classic opulence of the Ladies Rolex President in yellow gold. With the arrival of their second child, will Ben Affleck treat his beautiful wife to the quintessential indulgence of a new Rolex? In the past, while dating Jennifer Lopez, “Affleck dropped $50,000 on a Rolex for his beloved and another for her mother” according to People Magazine. Today, as a husband and father, it seems that Affleck’s taste has moved from trendy flash to long term commitment and more refined luxury. Even the names of his children reflect a profound respect for history and sophistication.

The perfect gift for Jennifer Garner is one that complements her elegant taste and pledges continued happiness with Affleck and their children. Nothing but the most enduring timepiece would be suitable for Garner and so the Ladies Rolex Super President in lustrous 18k yellow gold with custom diamond lugs is the ideal choice. Such a beautiful watch is nothing less than remarkable, and perfectly reflects qualities that are embodied in the names of Garner and Affleck’s daughters. Ideally suited for an angel in human form, only Rolex could produce a watch that is so classic and so symbolic of Jennifer Garner and the values that are conveyed in every aspect of her life.