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Pretty in Pink
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Yes, that is indeed track operator Clay Campbell helping to paint the infamous Martinsville Speedway curbs pink to promote awareness of breast cancer at this weekend's NASCAR events at the beautiful Virginia paperclip shaped venue. The photo is on the Speedway web site.
Those curbs are pretty unusual for a racetrack (is there another track in Cup with curbs? ) and have often played into the outcome of Martinsville races. I guarantee there'll be at least one hopeful this weekend who knocks his toe-in out during a curb encounter.
One of my fondest memories at Martinsville is of the 1972 Old Dominion 500 when Richard Petty somehow kept his PLYMOUTH (that's right, Legend... it was still a Plymouth ) off that curb enroute to winning the race. Bobby Allison was driving the Richard Howard-owned, Junior Johnson-prepared #12 Coke Machine Chevy Monte Carlo that day and led 432 of the 500 laps. My friends and I watched in amazement, however, as the "King," who led 64 laps that day, kept his nose just to the inside of the left rear wheel of Bobby's car for what seemed like a million laps, hugging that Martinsville curb, but never touching it. Sitting in our favorite seats in turn 1, we could see what Richard was doing in the closing stages. He kept tapping Bobby's car in the left rear wheelwell, until near the end, Bobby's left rear tire was cut down and Richard drove to the win with Bobby second, the only two cars on the lead lap. It was one of the greatest displays of side by side racing I have ever had the privilege to watch in person. Much of it is actually documented in the Jeff Bridges film Last American Hero , later retitled Hard Charger , a loose retelling of the Junior Johnson story. Twentieth-Century Fox had a cameraman just to our right in the grass where the Martinsville stands then ended before turn two and he got great shots of Petty and Allison side by side during one of their famous feud years. Appropriately, David Pearson in the Wood Brothers Mercury from nearby Stuart finished third, two laps down, and led the other 4 laps not led by Petty and Allison.
There hasn't been a lot of pink to be seen at Martinsville since the beautiful pink azaleas in the green grassy areas behind the turns ( interspersed with boxwoods) planted by the track's late founder, Clay Earles had to removed for seating expansion.
As the month of October - Breast Cancer Awareness Month - concludes, I am proud of the efforts made by numerous tracks, drivers, car owners, sponsors, and crew members to use the pink color to promote awareness.
The first time I ever heard of the Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure and the color pink to promote breast cancer awareness was in the 90s when Dale Jarrett was driving the Robert Yates Ford. The late Marti Rompf (a wonderful person) called me from the Dearborn offices of Campbell and Co., the agency that handled all Ford racing public relations to see if the Richmond track could participate in a function at Byrd Park they were bringing Dale and a showcar in for.
It really hit home in 2001 when my wife was diagnosed with breast cancer, resulting in a mastectomy and breast reconstruction. 10 years cancer free in August, our family applauds the efforts of all the folks who have pinked up the month of October.
updated by @dave-fulton: 12/05/16 04:02:07PM
A Treasure That Must Be Shared - Ray Evernham's Gift
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Charlotte Observer sports columnist Tom Sorensen gives us apeek at Ray Evernham the man. I remember years ago reading of Ray's young child needing medical treatment. Hard to believe that child is now 20 years old. We hear and read so much negative stuff about the "heros of the sport" that it is always nice to see the other side of the coin. I'm really glad Tom shared this.
A treasure that must be shared
Thursday, Oct. 27, 2011
Tom Sorensen
Tom Sorensen has been a columnist at The Observer for 20 years and has been at the paper for 25, writing about nearly every sport in the Carolinas.
When Ray J Evernham was 1, he was diagnosed with leukemia.
This was 19 years ago. Ray J's father, Ray Evernham, racing Ray Evernham, perhaps the greatest NASCAR crew chief of all time, wasn't famous then. He wasn't established. He was so new to Hendrick Motorsports, his insurance and benefits had yet to begin.
Evernham's then-wife, Mary was still living in New Jersey, where Evernham grew up. He had moved to Charlotte to try to further his racing career.
Ray J, who is now 20 and cancer free, was treated in New York at Memorial Sloane-Kettering Cancer Center, and Mary and Evernham and other family members stayed walking distance from the hospital at the Ronald McDonald House.
Mary stayed three weeks. Evernham flew up probably 10 times.
"I don't know what we would have done without it," Evernham says Tuesday night over a burrito and a beer. "We didn't know New York, and we couldn't afford $200 or $250 a night for a hotel room."
Evernham can now, which is why on Tuesday, he and his wife, Erin, donated $1 million to the Ronald McDonald House on 1613 E. Morehead St. in Charlotte.
Ronald McDonald House gave Evernham and family more than shelter. They received support, encouragement and the realization that they weren't alone. Other families were going through their own terrifying experiences. Everybody provided a cheering section for everybody else.
Along with a check for Ronald McDonald House, Evernham and Erin threw a Halloween party and bought costumes and candy for the kids and staff.
Evernham doesn't strike me as terribly emotional, at least not publicly. But when he talks about his experience in New York, he pauses, and all the details come back.
I congratulate him for his donation, and tap his glass with mine.
Evernham doesn't want to make too much of it. All we have, he says, is time, talent and treasure. He says he has little time and less talent.
Treasure he has. But what good is it if you don't share? He wants to share.
Read more: http://www.charlotteobserver.com/2011/10/27/2725439/a-treasure-that-must-be-shared.html#storylink=misearch#ixzz1bzBZ2KrS
updated by @dave-fulton: 12/05/16 04:02:07PM
A few weeks ago I found that my Daughter had a box of 8MM film that my Uncle Tom had taken in the early 50s.
Stock Car Racing History
Thanks again, Jim. It was in 1958 that Saturday Evening Post named Johnson County's Percy Flowers "King of the Moonshiners." Wilkes County had nothing on the Johnson County, NCbunch. Here's a video about Percy and Eastern, NC moonshine.
Mr. Percy's Run from D.L. Anderson on Vimeo .
A few weeks ago I found that my Daughter had a box of 8MM film that my Uncle Tom had taken in the early 50s.
Stock Car Racing History
Thanks for the update. Percy Flowers was puportedly the biggest bootlegger in the country. I remember the old LOOK Magazine doing a feature piece on him. Jim was that track close to Smithfield, Kenly....?
A few weeks ago I found that my Daughter had a box of 8MM film that my Uncle Tom had taken in the early 50s.
Stock Car Racing History
Jim, this is just great stuff that your daughter has found. I know you will treasure it. You really had ole #20 "steaming" on the dirt! Do you have any idea where the track was that this was taken? Loved seeing the early 60s Darlington stuff, also... especially Linda V on the Pure Oil"Miss Firebird" float and that #8 Joe Weatherly / Bud Moore Pontiac and the long gone Darlington pagoda. Thanks so much for sharing this with RR. It is our privilege to get to see something like this from days gone by with an actual member on the track.
A few weeks ago I found that my Daughter had a box of 8MM film that my Uncle Tom had taken in the early 50s.
Stock Car Racing History
Can't wait tosee this Jim. What a find! I am excited for both you and us.
Todd Berrier Teams with Bobby Labonte for 2012 at JTG Daugherty
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In the 60s I watched Todd's uncle, Max Berrier (Ed Berrier's dad), drive his #12 NASCAR Modified Coupe on Friday nights at Richmond's Southside Speedway.
Todd Berrier Teams with Bobby Labonte for 2012 at JTG Daugherty
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I missed this announcement Sunday at Talladega ( the Redskins/Panthers was much better than the Talladega Two-Step for me) and if it's already been discussed, my apologies.
JTG Daugherty Racing Announces 2012 Plans
Sunday morning JTG Daugherty Racing owners Tad and Jodi Geschickter and Brad Daugherty announced their NASCAR Sprint Cup Series plans for the 2012 season at a press conference at Talladega Superspeedway.
Driving for JTG Daugherty Racing again next season will be 2000 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series champion Bobby Labonte.
I like the plan that this team has in place and if you look at the choices Ive made throughout my career, you can tell that I have always enjoyed the challenge of building up a team, Labonte said. We have some people with proven success coming to work with us and we plan to capitalize on that along with the technical resources of Toyota. Weve had some limited success this year and we are focused on improving and continuing to build our program. I am looking forward to a successful 2012.
In addition to Labonte signing for next season, Todd Berrier has been named as crew chief and general manager of the JTG Daugherty Racing operation. Berrier spent nearly two decades as a crew chief at Richard Childress Racing and led his team into the Chase for the Sprint Cup four times. Along the way, he won several races. Notable wins as crew chief, include the 2007 Daytona 500 at Daytona International Speedway and the 2003 Brickyard 400 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway with driver Kevin Harvick.
Todd Berrier is a winner, pure and simple, stated Brad Daugherty. He is innovative, an effective communicator, great with race cars and knows how to use the resources available to him to optimize performance. We are confident that he is the right individual to lead our race team into the future.
Im looking forward to this new opportunity with JTG Daugherty Racing and working with Bobby. said Berrier, who mentioned he has 10 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series wins as a crew chief, not counting non-points races he has won.
Frank Kerr, who has performed crew chief duties for JTG Daugherty Racing during the last four seasons will take on a new role as shop foreman.
Most people do not realize how much of a teams success is based on the preparation that goes on at the shop, said Tad Geschickter. We appreciate Frankies dedication and know that without his efforts we would not be standing here today. He will do a great job ensuring that our processes and preparation at the shop are flawless.
Toyota and TRD USA (Toyota Racing Development) will continue to support the No. 47 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series entry as the team returns to the Harrisburg, N.C. race shop for their base of race operations.
Toyota has been a great partner to us in both the NASCAR Nationwide Series and Sprint Cup Series, stated Tad Geschickter. They provide tremendous resources through TRDs chassis engineering group in Salisbury, N.C. and we intend to fully utilize the tools that they provide to improve our performance as we move forward in 2012 and beyond.
Laerte Zatta, formerly of TRD, will be the teams director of engineering.
Laerte helped build the infrastructure and tools at TRDs Salisbury facility and has had tremendous success in making the Toyota teams he has assisted become winners, Jodi Geschickter said. He also has a wealth of knowledge with electronic fuel injection (EFI) from his days in open wheel racing. We are fortunate to have Laerte come on board and help us maximize our use of the resources that TRD will provide to make our team more successful.
In addition to the personnel and structural changes in store for 2012, JTG Daugherty Racing continues to stay ahead of the industry on sponsorship procurement and retention.
Tad Geschickter explained, NASCAR continues to be a great property to help brands connect with consumers in a meaningful way. The economy continues to change and the way shoppers make their purchase decisions continues to evolve. We spend more time than any other team studying these trends. We believe that our sponsorship model is the way of the future for brands that want to fully leverage NASCAR to address business opportunities and create a measurable return on investment. Many of the sponsorships that we are announcing today are multi-year agreements and we will have several new sponsorships to announce in the coming months. I think this is proof that the JTG Daugherty Racing model works and should be considered as sponsors come into the sport for years to come.
The team will continue to focus on shopper mega trends to provide co-sponsorship marketing platforms and innovative promotion tools that allow brands to promote together. The approach maximizes share of voice and controls costs for sponsors -- essentially providing a turnkey way for brands to connect the dots between exposure on the race track, promotional activity at retailers, and increased sales.
For instance, the Racing Season is Grilling Season platform is based on the insight that people are vacationing at home more than ever before, and that grilling out at home or at the tailgate with family and friends is a great way to relax. Its with great pleasure that JTG Daugherty Racing announces that the Kingsford Charcoal will return for its fifteenth season with the team.
Further complimenting the platform, Bushs Beans will return for its 10th season with the team. Also, returning is Kimberly-Clark Corporation whose SCOTT Paper Products seeks to become the paper product of choice for the tailgate. Rounding out the shopper BBQ solution will be Hidden Valley, KC Masterpiece Barbeque Sauces & marinades, and Glad bags and wraps.
The Take Care of Your Crew platform is based on the concern for the rising cost of healthcare and the fact that shoppers are seeking to make healthier choices to take care of their families. Clorox bleach and bleach-based cleaning and disinfecting products will be the cornerstone of the promotion. Co-sponsoring is Kimberly-Clark whose brands provide people with essentials for a better life by adding convenience to daily routines with some of the worlds most recognized products.
Fans are more conscious than ever about protecting their investment in the automobile. The Take Care of Your Car platform will allow JTG Daugherty Racing to introduce their successful shopper marketing programs to the automotive aftermarket retailers across the country. Further, Reese Towpower and Highland products will be the flagship brands for this sponsorship theme.
JTG Daugherty Racing looks forward to the 2012 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series season.
In closing, we anticipate a successful program in 2012 and look forward to next season, Tad Geschickter said.
updated by @dave-fulton: 12/05/16 04:02:07PM