Testing SpeedwayMedia.com

Tag: Armed Forces Foundation

  • Surprising and Not Surprising: Sonoma Toyota/Save Mart 350

    Surprising and Not Surprising: Sonoma Toyota/Save Mart 350

    With plenty of wine and whining on and off the track, here is what was surprising and not surprising in the 26th Annual Toyota/Save Mart 350 at Sonoma Raceway.

    Surprising: The winner of the race, his first ever at Sonoma and his second of the season, effectively locking him into the Chase, seemed surprisingly star-struck in Victory Lane.

    “It means a lot to me,” Carl Edwards, driver of the No. 99 Aflac Ford for Roush Fenway Racing, said. “And then the real special part to me was to stand in Victory Lane at Sonoma and have Jeff Gordon come and give me a handshake as the second place finisher means a lot.”

    “I grew up watching Jeff Gordon and specifically watching how he drove this racetrack and all the successes he had here, so I mean, that’s really super,” Edwards continued. “It definitely meant a lot to have Jeff Gordon in my mirror.”

    “It’s something I’ll never forget.”

    With his victory, Edwards kept the consecutive new winner streak alive at Sonoma, being the eighth consecutive first time winner on that road course.

    Not Surprising: As Edwards paid tribute to him, Jeff Gordon seemed to get a kick out of it, which he could afford to do after posting a runner up finish to Edwards, as well as maintaining the point standing lead.

    “I’m starting to hear that a lot more,” Gordon, driver of the No. 24 Panasonic Chevrolet, said of Edwards comments about watching him race in his growing up years. “I hear things like he was born when I won my first championship or watching me as a kid.”

    “You know what, I love racing here,” Gordon continued. “I love being competitive, leading the points and having a shot winning races 22 years into my Cup career.”

    “We’re having fun.”

    Gordon scored his 14th career top-5 finish at Sonoma and his 12th top-10 finish for the season. He is now 20 spots ahead of six-time champ and teammate Jimmie Johnson in the point standings.

    Surprising: While Dale Earnhardt Jr.’s aggressiveness certainly played a role in this third place finish, he also credited his own road course education for helping to achieve his first ever top-10 finish at Sonoma.

    “This is a real technical track where the corners are lined up one after the other, and if you make a mistake in Turn 2, you really don’t clean it up until Turn 4,” the driver of the No. 88 Kelley Blue Book Chevrolet said. “So everything sort of has to line up and that takes a certain mentality and a certain understanding of road course racing that guys like myself don’t have coming from late models and oval tracks and stuff like that.”

    “You have to go to school,” Junior continued. “You have to study. You have to listen to people. You have to run as many laps as you can at practices and tests and stuff like that to adapt and understand. We were fast all weekend and just kind of put it together.”

    “Aside from holding a trophy, this is like a win for us.”

    Not Surprising: Kevin Harvick took to the California stage and starred yet again in his own version of ‘Groundhog Day’. On Lap 72, the driver of the No. 4 Outback / Budweiser Folds of Honor Chevrolet entered his pit stall in the fourth position and promptly lost spots after another miscommunication with his over-the-wall team.

    “We basically sat on the jack for about three seconds waiting on fuel and we didn’t need to,’’ Rodney Childers, Harvick’s crew chief said. “Bad, bad miscommunication or decision on some of the pit crew member’s part.’’

    After that bad pit stop, Harvick restarted further back in the field and then was collected in an accident to finish 20th.

    “All in all, we got to get it together,’’ Childers said. “The pit crew has worked really hard to get their pit stops better. We got that better and now we’re doing stuff like we did to take us out of the win.”

    “Everybody keeps saying that the pit crew is messing up,” Childers continued. “The pit crew is not actually messing up. We had a great pit stop, and we just sit there on the jack, waiting for the gas man to say it was full.”

    “If we wouldn’t have sat there and waited, we would have beat (Jeff Gordon) off pit road and he almost won the race,’’ Childers said. “We had a way, way, way better car than (Gordon) did.’’

    Surprising:  Austin Dillon, not Kyle Larson, was the highest finishing rookie of the race. Dillon, in his iconic No. 3 Dow Chevrolet, finished 17th while Larson, in his No. 42 Target Chevrolet, finished well behind in the 28th spot.

    With that finish, Larson slipped from eighth to tenth in the point standings and Dillon also slipped one notch from 17th to 18th in points.

    Not Surprising: Although Marcos Ambrose, known for his road course prowess, did not have the best of days, he echoed what many in the Ford camp were definitely thinking.

    “I’ll take eighth,” Ambrose said after crossing the finish line in his No. 9 DeWalt Ford. “We came here with a strategy because we had the fastest car for a couple of laps, but it would fade away really bad. We came with a really soft package and I was hanging onto it all day, too.”

    “We’re gonna keep working at this place to try and make ourselves better, but congratulations to Carl,” Ambrose continued. “He did a great job in the race and it’s great to see Ford back in Victory Lane.”

    Surprising: Clint Bowyer was the highest finishing Toyota and he had to make an incredible comeback after a flat tire and on-track incident with Jamie McMurray to finish in the tenth position in his No. 15 5-Hour Energy Toyota.

    We had a fast 5-hour ENERGY Camry this weekend,” Bowyer said. “We got ourselves in position and had a flat. It was going down and I was all over the place.”

    “Jamie (McMurray) just kind of finished me up and got me out of the way, I guess,” Bowyer continued. “Bad luck, man.”

    “The way our season has been, we’ve been the lap closer here lately and if they keep bringing cars like that to the race track, we’ll be just fine.”

    Not Surprising:   With her IndyCar experience, especially on the road courses, it was no surprise that Danica Patrick not only had a decent day at Sonoma but also scored her personal best with an 18th place finish.

    “I think we kind of salvaged something there,” the driver of the No. 10 GoDaddy Chevrolet said. “It would be good for a couple laps and then would just go away. We got lucky getting the Lucky Dog and then just pitted a couple of times for fresh tires and fuel and wound up 18th.”

    “It’s not the best day, but I think we keep improving.”

    It was Patrick’s best road course finish in the Sprint Cup as she bettered a 29th-place finish last year at Sonoma and a 20th-place result at Watkins Glen (N.Y.) International.

    Surprising: Even Kasey Kahne, the only Hendrick driver who has struggled this season, got into the act at Sonoma, finishing sixth and ensuring that all Hendrick Motorsports drivers were in the top-10 when the checkered flag flew. And he did so in spite of some contact mid-race with Casey Mears.

    The driver of the No. 5 Great Clips Chevrolet even finished higher than Jimmie Johnson, who came in seventh after starting 22nd in his Lowe’s Chevrolet.

    Not Surprising: With NASCAR’s close association with those in uniform, it was not surprising that the sport paused to honor its five year association with the Armed Forces Foundation, particularly the Troops to the Track program, a year-round recreational group therapy program that honors service men and women, veterans and military families at races throughout the country.

    “Troops to the Track presented by Bank of America showcases NASCAR’s commitment to our nation’s military and we are proud of our joint effort the past five years to serve the military,” Patricia Driscoll, President of the Armed Forces Foundation, said. “Here at the Armed Forces Foundation, we constantly strive to ‘serve those who serve,’ and with the support from NASCAR and Bank of America, we will be able to provide more opportunities for service members and their families around the country to get away from the stresses of injuries and deployments while enjoying the patriotism of the NASCAR community.”

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

  • Kurt Busch, Patricia Driscoll and Brandon Igdalsky Announce Troops to Table Poker Event

    Kurt Busch, Patricia Driscoll and Brandon Igdalsky Announce Troops to Table Poker Event

    Brandon Igdalsky, President/CEO of Pocono Raceway, along with NASCAR driver Kurt Busch, Armed Forces Foundation President Patricia Driscoll, and Lorene King, Executive Director of the NASCAR Foundation, announced this morning that the Third Annual Pocono Celebrity Charity Poker Showdown will be held this year on Thursday, July 31st at Mohegan Sun prior to the track’s August race.

    “The last two years, we have hosted the celebrity poker tournament at Mohegan Sun and it’s been a tremendous success,” Igdalsky said. “We’ve always done it for this race but this year we decided to do it prior to our August event with Kurt and Patricia and their Foundation to build this into a bigger and more impressive event than it already is.”

    “They have done a tremendous job of raising big funds and they are going to help us take it to the next level,” Igdalsky continued. “It’s not a big donation to come out and enjoy it. Donations to play start at $250 for your seat to play and VIP meet and greet prior and $150 if you just want to come and be a spectator and take part in the VIP. A $100 donation reserves a seat in the poker tournament and a $50 donation allows for fans to attend the event as spectators. The top-finishing fan will receive a choice between two exciting prizes – a VIP Race Experience at Pocono Raceway or a VIP Stay and Play Experience at Mohegan Sun.”

    “It’s a nice evening and we’re going to make this a kick ass event.”

    All proceeds from this year’s event will benefit both the NASCAR Foundation and the Armed Forces Foundation.

    “We’ve partnered together with the Armed Forces Foundation’s Annual Education Initiative, Operation Caring Classroom,” Lorene King, Executive Director of the NASCAR Foundation said. “This program increases awareness, appreciation and support among children in the military. It impacts 40,000 children across the country in 100 schools.”

    “We’re really honored to be a part of this,” Patricia Driscoll, President of the Armed Forces Foundation said. “We have hundreds of thousands of kids participating in our program. Our families suffer too when it comes to post traumatic stress syndrome.”

    “We’re really excited to partner with the NASCAR Foundation to make our program grow even bigger.”

    NASCAR champion Kurt Busch, one of the drivers who has participated in the past poker competitions, acknowledged that the competition is fierce, even if the cause is charitable.

    “Greg Biffle, he likes to flash around his experience,” Busch said. “But he’s vulnerable in certain areas. I can see the certain cards he likes to play.”

    “The young kids who come in, you don’t know if you’re good at it or not, but they come in and their chip count starts stacking up,” Busch continued. “You have to watch out for those young guys because they can count cards quicker than us old guys. It’s just a lot of fun to watch the sponsors, individuals and then a large group that come to make the donation and be involved in the fun.”

    “It’s also a matter of bragging rights as well for how many celebrities you can take down,” Busch continued. “Mike Helton has come, John Darby and a lot of the NASCAR top officials and we will also have the Truck Series guys to come and participate.”

    “And it’s a competition so all the guys that are up on it trying to advance to the final table are into it,” Busch said. “Mohegan Sun does a phenomenal job to keep it on time. The VIP meet and greet beforehand is very relaxed and effective for the sponsors involved. It’s just a matter of building it up and that’s my job to go and recruit more of the celebrity players. It’s a lot of fun to just sit down, play poker and go at it.”

    “I know I’ll be up on the wheel and on the table.”

    Both Busch and Driscoll spoke passionately that the best part of the whole poker playing evening, however, was that wounded warriors and veterans attended the event, rubbing shoulders with drivers and other celebrities as part of their therapeutic healing process.

    “It’s a lot of fun too with our veterans that come out,” Busch said. “You will see our wounded guys jumping in and playing and it gives them a chance to get into an environment that is relaxed and safe. We’re all doing it for a good cause and it’s for them. We see the smile on their faces and they are energized to be engaged in the tournament.”

    “We will have a lot of veterans at the event. That’s what it’s about,” Driscoll said, echoing Busch’s comments. “We try to bring a lot of guys with PTSD. I don’t want to announce it, but we do. It’s part of our therapy that we have with NASCAR that we bring them to the track. It’s important for them to experience everyday life experiences and to feel special.”

    “To sit there and to talk instead of being shut in at home is really important,” Driscoll continued. “So, we’ll have veterans at the table. They might not announce themselves but I promise they will be there.”

    While both Busch and Driscoll have been dedicated to bringing troops to the race track every week, Busch, as he left the media center to prepare for NASCAR’s first practice at Pocono Raceway, gave the event a new tag line.

    “Instead of troops to the track, it’s troops to the table.”

    For more information on the troops to the table event, visit www.nascar.com/foundation.

  • NASCAR BTS: Furniture Row Racing Team Members Reflect on their Service for Veteran’s Day

    NASCAR BTS: Furniture Row Racing Team Members Reflect on their Service for Veteran’s Day

    While NASCAR is indeed patriotic and wounded warriors and troops are often brought to the track, there are veterans in the midst of the sport that not only service their race teams but have also provided distinguished service to their country.

    In celebration of Veteran’s Day, this week’s NASCAR Behind the Scenes focuses on two veterans on the Furniture Row Racing team, Chuck Lemay, who served in the Navy, and Charlie Krauch who served in the Army.

    “I am the Director of Transportation for Furniture Row Racing,” Charlie Krauch said. “My main focus is to make sure the truck drivers get to the race tracks, unload and load the trucks every week, get the cars ready to go, make sure that they leave on time for the race, testing and going back and forth to North Carolina to the wind tunnel.”

    “I was in the United States Army from 1971 to 1973,” Krauch continued. “I was in Vietnam in 1971 and 1972.”

    “I’m not a rah-rah veteran type of guy,” Krauch said. “I think that goes back to my days in the service when it was not a very popular occupation to be in.”

    “I very seldom tell people that I was in Vietnam and to this day as well just because of the way things were back then,” Krauch continued. “Today, I’m thankful that people are recognizing those in the military.”

    “They need to be recognized and I’m really happy that they are,” Krauch said. “I know how it was on the other hand.”

    “You have to understand that these are basically kids in the service right now, with probably the average age of around 18 or 19 years old,” Krauch continued. “You take them from coming out of high school to putting them in the service and sending them overseas and having them see and do what they need to do over there, it’s pretty traumatic I would think.”

    “I know it was for me and I would think it would be the same way for them.”

    “When I’m having a bad day, I sometimes think about the time that I spent in the military and reflect back on that,” Krauch said. “And I realize that things could be a lot worse like it was back then.”

    “I sometimes use that as a focus for myself to bring myself up a little bit every now and then.”

    “For me, Veteran’s Day is not about me,” Krauch continued. “It’s about the guys and gals who are serving now and those who are coming back from whatever conflicts they are coming back from.”

    “They are the ones that need to have the focus of Veteran’s Day,” Krauch said. “I also think about the older veterans that we are losing every day, like the World War II guys.”

    “I think there is a big role for them as well,” Krauch continued. “I think the focus needs to be on the troops we have now more so than in the past.”

    “They are the ones that are doing it now and they really need to be the focus.”

    Krauch’s colleague Chuck Lemay, hauler driver for the No. 78 team, agreed with that assessment as he reflected on his own service in light of Veteran’s Day.

    “I was in the United States Navy from January of 1975 through January of 1978,” Lemay said. “I signed up for a two years overseas program and I was stationed in Sasebo, Japan.”

    “I was in kind of a related situation to what I do know as I was a quartermaster, which dealt with navigation,” Lemay continued. “I was on the USS White Plains, named after White Plains, New York.”

    “When we were at sea, we kept the ship’s position with our charts and celestial navigation by the stars all the way up to the latest technology that just came out,” Lemay said. “But nothing is more precise than the stars you know, like the days of Galileo.”

    “My ship was a supply ship so we would pull alongside other ships,” Lemay continued. “We would steam alongside the other ships and transport goods across on wire cables.”

    “So, I’ve kind of come full circle you know, because now I’m steering the hauler, or ‘Raven’ as I call her,” Lemay said. “She is a real pretty truck and I steer her down that highway now.”

    “Veteran’s Day, the older I get, the more I appreciate it,” Lemay said. “My father was in the Battle of the Bulge and he was a POW in World War II.”

    “He has since passed, but he was my hero,” Lemay continued. “My brother was in Vietnam and he was a machine gunner on the helicopter.”

    “So, here I was the baby of the family so I thought that I should do that too,” Lemay said. “They sold me on that commercial, ‘Join the Navy, and See the World.’

    “I thought I needed a little discipline in my life so I joined up with the Navy,” Lemay continued. “And it was the best three years of my life.”

    “And I met my lovely wife when I was in the Navy and we are still married today 36 years later.”

    Both Lemay and Krauch will be working on Veteran’s Day, even after their team scored a fifth place finish at Phoenix International Raceway. The two team members will be getting ready for the final race of 2014 as they prepare for their longest trip of the season, from Denver, Colorado where the team is based, to Homestead-Miami Speedway.

    “We have our biggest trip of the year coming up next week,” Lemay said. “Almost 40 hours to get that hauler from Colorado to Homestead.”

    “We’ll get back to Denver after Phoenix and then the other two drivers will flip the truck around and then we will come in Tuesday morning and take off,” Lemay continued. “Looking at world through a windshield, like the country song says, that’s what we are doing.”

    Both Lemay and Krauch will, however, take a moment to look at the flags flying in the shop, reflecting all branches of the service as they celebrate Veteran’s Day.

    “I think that’s really super to have the flags in the shop,” Lemay said. “History shows that we’ve never really treated our veterans really well.”

    “World War II, they had the big parade and the picture of the sailor kissing the girl in New York,” Lemay continued. “But after that, the Korean and Vietnam veterans didn’t really get anything.”

    “It is really nice to see this turn around lately and showing these guys respect,” Lemay said. “So, to see those flags flying in the shop, every day they catch my eye,” Lemay said. “I was part of that.”

    “It makes you feel proud.”

    Lemay and Krauch also expressed pride in working for their driver Kurt Busch, who has been so active with the Armed Forces Foundation, focusing on those veterans with hidden war wounds, such as post-traumatic stress disorder and traumatic brain injury.

    “I want to first thank all veterans past, present and future for their bravery and sacrifices in preserving our freedom,” said Furniture Row Racing driver Kurt Busch. “I urge American citizens to make an extra effort on Veterans Day to thank those who served.”

    In addition to Krauch and Lemay, the No. 78 team has five other veterans who have served their country, including David ‘Bugzee’ Hicks (Navy), Andy Morgan (Army), John Parks (Marines), Craig Phillips (Air Force) and Barney Visser (Army).

    “It’s pretty special to have seven team members who are veterans, including our team owner Barney Visser,” Busch said. “I am very proud of them, as I am of all of our veterans.”

    Perhaps Lemay summed it up best as he reflected on his own service and the service of others, sharing how he recognized Veteran’s Day at Phoenix International Raceway this past weekend.

    “I just did celebrate Veteran’s Day a little bit ago,” Lemay said from the track. “A bunch of Marines came by and I just shook their hands.”

    “Everyone should shake the hands of anyone in the service, especially on Veteran’s Day.”

  • Kevin Harvick Closes Out Strange Coca Cola 600 With Second Season Win

    Kevin Harvick Closes Out Strange Coca Cola 600 With Second Season Win

    From surviving two red flags, one for a bizarre camera cable snap that injured cars on the track as well as some fans in the stands, to the second red flag for a Talladega-style pile up, Kevin Harvick survived it all to live up to his moniker as the ‘Closer’, going to Victory Lane for the second time this season.

    “Well first off, I want to say I hope everybody is okay from that cable,” the driver of the No. 29 RCR Budweiser Folds of Honor Chevrolet said. “That was quite a weird incident there.”

    “Second, I want to just say thank you to all the guys at Richard Childress Racing,” Harvick continued. “To win at Charlotte is something that we had to overcome for a long time.”

    Harvick credited his victory to some old fashioned pit road tire strategy, a great restart against Kasey Kahne, and getting out in front in clean air.

    “Clean air was really big,” Harvick said. “Obviously with him (Kahne) being on old tires, we knew that the restart was going to be important to be able to get that clear track.”

    “And it paid off.”

    One of the most disappointed drivers no doubt was Kasey Kahne, who after battling flu-like symptoms prior to the race and having such a strong car, still could not hold off Harvick for the win. Instead the driver of the No. 5 Time Warner Cable Chevrolet for Rick Hendrick Motorsports finished second yet again.

    “Yeah, we ran second to Matt (Kenseth) at Vegas, second to Matt (Kenseth) again at Kansas and now second to Kevin (Harvick) here,” Kahne said. “We were the fastest car in all three of those.”

    “We just didn’t win any of them,” Kahne continued. “I feel good about where we are and the team is doing an awesome job.”

    “We just need to finish it off.”

    There is no doubt that the third place finisher Kurt Busch felt a real kinship with the warriors that he supports through the Armed Forces Foundation. The driver of the No. 78 Furniture Row Racing/Sealy Chevrolet battled the cable hitting the car incident, a dead battery and keeping track position throughout the night to score the top-five finish.

    “I’m still shell shocked,” Busch said. “We picked up the lead and then the battery went dead.”

    “I don’t know what to think of that,” Busch continued. “We battled back.”

    “The guys changed it as fast as they could and we got third,” Busch said. “We had a good car.”

    “You’ve got to be perfect to win these things and I was close.”

    While Chevrolet dominated the first three positions, Denny Hamlin in his No. 11 FedEx Office Toyota and Joey Logano in his No. 22 Pennzoil Shell Ford, rounded out the remainder of the top five in the finishing order for the 54th annual Coca Cola 600.

    “We need solid runs like this,” Hamlin said as he continues to recover from his back injury. “I feel good.”

    “We didn’t have a winning car, but we had a fourth to sixth-place car and that’s where we ended up.”

    While Hamlin was feeling good, fifth place finisher Logano was tired but pleased, especially with his team and crew.

    “It was a long race,” Logano said. “Starting from 31st with the Shell/Pennzoil Ford, we had our work cut out for us, especially at a track that is so hard to pass.”

    “That was a long race, a really long race, but I think my guys did an awesome job coming from 31st up to fifth,” Logano continued. “I’m super proud of them.”

    The weirdest part of the race, and for many the scariest, was the network broadcast camera cable breaking, strewing wiring on the track and into the stands. The most damaged car on the track was the No. 18 M&M Red-White-Blue M-Prove America Toyota of Kyle Busch.

    AT least ten fans were also injured in the stands, seven treated and released at the track and three sent to hospitals for further evaluation and treatment as needed.

    “I didn’t see anything,” Busch said. “I just heard a big thunk on the right-front tire and thought the tire blew out.”

    “That’s how hard it felt,” Busch continued. “I felt it like, ‘Whoa’, that’s weird.”

    “Maybe now we can get rid of that thing.”

    The second major incident occurred later in the race but also resulted in a red flag. Drivers affected in the Talladega-like wreck included Jeff Gordon, Aric Almirola, Ricky Stenhouse Jr., and Bobby Labonte.

    “I got under Mark (Martin) and I was down next to the grass and he clipped me in the right rear corner panel,” Aric Almirola, driver of the No. 43 US Air Force Ford, said. “It kind of stinks.”

    “I got squeezed in there trying to run the thing three-wide,” Mark Martin, driver of the Aaron’s Dream Machine Toyota, said. “And there wasn’t quite room there.”

    “We were racing three-wide and that’s what’s going to happen,” Jeff Gordon, driver of the No. 24 Drive to End Hunger Chevrolet, said. “We were going for the Lucky Dog and had to be real aggressive.”

    “I hate we were back there,” Gordon continued. “We had an awesome Drive to End Hunger Chevrolet.”

    Almirola, Martin and Gordon finished 33rd, 34th and 35th respectively.

    In spite of a battery issue, a spin late in the race, and a 22nd place finish, five-time champ Jimmie Johnson maintained his points lead, in fact 32 points ahead of Carl Edwards.

    “Yeah, we were like a fifth place car,” Johnson said. “But then we got pulled around in Turns 3 and 4 and spun.”

    “We did have some issues with the charging system of the car with batteries dying and things like that throughout the race, which added more excitement for us,” Johnson continued. “It was a long night with a lot of issues.”

    “All that did some damage to the car and that really affected our finish from that point.”

    The NASCAR Sprint Cup Series will leave home and head next to compete at the Monster Mile in Delaware.

     

  • Ray Evernham Puts Boots On For Wounded Warriors

    Ray Evernham Puts Boots On For Wounded Warriors

    [media-credit name=”Gary Buchanan” align=”alignright” width=”212″][/media-credit]Ray Evernham, ESPN analyst for NASCAR, owner of East Lincoln Speedway, and two-time Daytona 500 champ as crew chief for Jeff Gordon, was on a mission at Dover International Speedway this weekend.

    Evernham was putting his boots on as part of the Boot Campaign to raise awareness and funds for wounded warriors and troops as they return home.

    “I was walking into the Charlotte Motor Speedway for the race when we were there in May and saw a young soldier named Johnny ‘Joey’ Jones,” Evernham said

    “The guy was fantastically ripped and looked like the model soldier.”

    “He was missing both of his legs,” Evernham continued. “He was wearing a T-shirt that said, ‘Ask Me About My Boots.’

    “I walked up to him and asked him about his boots and he told me about a campaign to try to get interest in buying boots to close the gap of the American society and those fighting the wars right now by raising money by selling these boots for things like prosthetics and other needs,” Evernham said. “When they come home, they’re kind of forgotten about.”

    “I was so moved by speaking to this young man that I set up a meeting to find out more about it,” Evernham continued. “And I was honored to meet another young man who was a decorated war hero call Sean Parnell, who wrote a book entitled ‘Outlaw Platoon.’

    “It’s an incredible book,” Evernham said. “I’ve been through challenging times in my life but there were times reading that book that I had to put it down because it was so emotional.”

    “What our warriors are doing over there and making sacrifices overseas so that doesn’t come to our shores is amazing,” Evernham continued. “And when they come home, we really need to support them.”

    “So, I’m honored to be part of this program and I’m getting my boots on to help support this program,” Evernham said. “The services are unbelievably needed for the guys and gals coming home.”

    “This is not just a news story,” Evernham continued. “These are young people who have made huge sacrifices and they need our help.”

    The Boot Campaign is a 501(c) 3 non-profit military appreciation and veteran awareness campaign based in Texas. The charity was started in 2009 by a group of women who call themselves ‘Boot Girls’.

    “Those of us, we call ourselves ‘Boot Girls’, and on behalf of the ‘Boot Girls’ we are so invigorated by the support and passion for giving back to the troops,” Meghan McDermott, marketing director of the Boot Campaign, said. “Ray has answered the call and joins Kasey Kahne and a list of other celebrities such as ‘The Rock’ Johnson, the Oak Ridge Boys, Troy Aikman and Dolly Parton among others.”

    “Without their support, we couldn’t reach the public,” McDermott continued. “Our motto is ‘When They Come Back, We Give Back.’

    The Boot Campaign supports a variety of programs, including urgent family assistance and supports two charity partners, the Armed Forces Foundation and the Marine Recovery Fund. The charity also provides housing for injured and homeless veterans through partnering with the Military Warriors Support Foundation.

    One of the most unique programs of the Boot Campaign is the partnership with Wounded Wear, providing free clothing and clothing modifications for wounded warriors with prosthetics or other medical devices.

    The Boot Campaign not only supports the troops themselves, but also the families of the fallen through two programs, Bratpack 11 and Special Ops Survivors. Bratpack 11, designed by 14 year old Boot Girl Kenzie, helps grant wishes and dreams of children whose parents have been killed in service. Special Ops Survivors is the sole organization helping surviving spouses of the Navy, Army, Air Force and Marine Corps Special Operations personnel killed in service since September 11th, 2001.

    “There are currently 1.4 million Americans, less than 1% of our population, that serve our country,” McDermott said. “Just like them, we can lace up our boots as a simple sign of support and walking a mile in their shoes.”

    “Our goal is simply to have 1.4 million Americans in a pair of boots to represent those who represent their country,” McDermott continued. “By year’s end, we will have raised close to $2 million for our program to do everything from mortgage free housing to wellness retreats to adaptive clothing for prosthetics.”

    “We actually also support our survivors, spouses and their families, because they cannot be forgotten,” McDermott said. “Ray’s official boot photo will be featured nationally on Bootcampaign.com starting Monday, October 1st.”

    For more information, visit www.BootCampaign.com.

  • Kurt Busch Continues Campaign for Military Families with Special Chicagoland Raffle

    Kurt Busch Continues Campaign for Military Families with Special Chicagoland Raffle

    [media-credit name=”Gary Buchanan” align=”alignright” width=”210″][/media-credit]While Kurt Busch may have had a rough time at Michigan International Speedway last weekend, the driver of the No. 51 Phoenix Racing Chevrolet knows that a bad race does not compare to some of the hardships endured by those serving our country and their families.

    Because of that commitment, Kurt Busch is continuing his campaign to help the military and their family members through his partnership with the Armed Forces Foundation, this time with a new fundraising raffle.

    “With the purchase of a $10 raffle ticket, you and three of your buddies could win a trip to Chicagoland Speedway for the September 15th and 16th race weekend,” Busch said. “Whether you’re a race fan or not, this weekend will be an experience that you will never forget.”

    “You are going to get a weekend in a luxury coach, complete with food, beverages and entertainment – nothing is spared and this trip has you covered from the moment you arrive until you leave,” Busch continued.

    “If you’re not from Chicago, it’s not a problem,” Busch said. “The AFF will provide you with Southwest Airline tickets to get to Chicago.”

    “It really is a unique way to experience a race weekend.”

    The raffle is being done in partnership with Star Coach Race Tours and includes infield tickets to all Chicagoland races (Cup and Nationwide), food, luxury accommodations and a meet and greet with Kurt Busch.

    The best part, according to Busch is that all of the proceeds benefit the Armed Forces Foundation (AFF), a charity near and dear to his heart. AFF is a nonprofit organization offering vital assistance to active-duty and retired personnel, National Guard, Reserve and military families.

    One of the families that has been helped by AFF was Dina Gittings, mother of US Army Reserve SGT Anatoly Ulentsov, who was critically injured while in service.

    “As many other civilians I have learned about the US Armed Forces Foundation (AFF) in the very traumatic times of a personal tragedy,” Ms. Gittings said. “On March 31st, I arrived from New York City to Brooke Army Medical Center (BAMC) on short notice to attend to my only son who had been critically injured.”

    “On my arrival, I knew no one in my son’s unit and was absolutely unaware about support organizations which could provide any help until I was directed to the AFF by one of my son’s superiors at the unit,” Gittings continued.

    “During my 12-day stay by my son’s side until he had finally succumbed to his injury and AFF helped me financially by taken the burden of an expensive air fare and the funeral arrangements which otherwise would be very difficult for me to afford,” Gittings said. “AFF made the best possible efforts to help me in the times of tragedy and need and did it with much dignity and love.”

    AFF also provides financial assistance to military families in need and the charity raffle will benefit this program area as well.

    An example of a family that was helped through the financial assistance program was the Bayley family, who simply needed a little extra to meet their car payment at a most traumatic time in their lives.

    “We have experienced what we believe was the worst year of our lives,” Mrs. Bayley said. “My 26 year old son suffered a spinal cord injury while in service, is now a quadriplegic, and will be so the rest of his life and we also had to deal with 9 year old daughter’s brain tumor.”

    “We depleted our savings and had to seek financial assistance,” Bayley continued. “The break from our car payments, which were a month behind, was wonderful.”

    One final AFF program that will benefit from this raffle is the ‘Troops to the Track Program.’ This special opportunity is provided for troops to attend race weekend events and to interact with NASCAR drivers, such as Busch and his fellow competitors.

    Recently, SGT Stephen Wayne Jackel, Jr., US Army Combat Engineer, participated in a ‘Troops to the Track’ event.

    “This was a trip to remember,” Jackel said. “I met several individuals who changed my life for the better.”

    “From Kurt Busch to all of the drivers of NASCAR that gave us wounded warriors a standing ovation, they have given me the confidence to overcome the adversities I faced after being hit by an Improvised Explosive Device in Afghanistan.”

    “AFF has touched so many lives through their dedication to mend our wounds,” Jackel continued. “They have a special place in my heart.”

    To help AFF and its many programs for those who serve and to participate in the AFF Chicagoland raffle, visit . The raffle closes after the Bristol race this weekend.

  • Kurt Busch Races On Angel’s Wings in Memory of Fallen Soldier

    Kurt Busch Races On Angel’s Wings in Memory of Fallen Soldier

    [media-credit name=”Gary Buchanan” align=”alignright” width=”222″][/media-credit]This weekend at New Hampshire Motor Speedway, Kurt Busch is not just driving on Goodyear tires. He is also piloting the No. 51 Phoenix Construction Services Chevrolet for Phoenix Racing on angel’s wings, in memory of fallen soldier Joseph Altmann.

    “My husband Joseph, Staff Sergeant U.S. Army, was a combat medic,” Nikki Altmann said. “He did six years of service and, while in Afghanistan this year, enlisted for another four years.”

    “We got married in February 2011 and he deployed in April,” Altmann continued. “And on Christmas day of 2011 is when he was killed in Afghanistan.”

    Nikki Altmann’s journey had just begun as a widow of a service member killed in action. And for her it became one of the loneliest journeys of her life, that is until she learned of the Armed Forces Foundation program to honor fallen soldiers.

    “We flew to Dover Air Force Base to welcome him home,” Altmann said. “The funeral happened and he was buried in Wisconsin, which is where he was from.”

    “It was really shocking, especially because you don’t expect it,” Altmann continued. “You read about it but you never think it can happen to you.”

    “It’s been a crazy road,” Altmann said. “And then Armed Forces Foundation sent out a tweet about honoring a fallen soldier.”

    “One of my dear friends responded and asked to submit Joe’s name,” Altmann continued. “We didn’t think we would be chosen, but last week I got a call that Joe had been selected.”

    “My family got on the phone looking up flights to get here,” Altmann, who is from Texas, said. “It was so worth it. I cried all morning when I saw the car. It’s such an honor to remember Joe in this way.”

    [media-credit name=”Joseph Altmann with wife Nikki – Photo Credit: Nikki Altmann” align=”alignright” width=”214″][/media-credit]Altmann said she has been amazed not only by the support from the Armed Forces Foundation but also the support she has felt at the track, especially from the No. 51 race team.

    “It’s amazing what the Armed Forces Foundation does,” Altmann said. “I’m so glad that we got to come and do this because this is a fun way to remember someone.”

    “My husband was that kind of person,” Altmann continued. “He was a NASCAR fan.”

    “He didn’t have a favorite driver because he liked all of them,” Altmann said. “He thought they were all cool and that the sport was fascinating to watch these cars go at these speeds.”

    “My dad’s a big fan as well so I grew up around it,” Altmann continued. “A lot of Joe’s buddies watch NASCAR and follow Kurt on Twitter.”

    “ So, why not send a message in a way that’s fun, informative and gets so much attention,” Altmann said. “It’s wonderful.”

    “It really has helped me heal.”

    [media-credit name=”Patricia Driscoll, President and Executive Director of the Armed Forces Foundation.” align=”alignright” width=”227″][/media-credit]Healing for families who have lost loved ones due to military service, as well as helping wounded warriors and bringing troops to the NASCAR track is what the Armed Forces Foundation is all about. AFF is also on a mission to call attention to the dangers of PTSD (Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder) as well as addressing the high suicide rate among soldiers and veterans.

    “We run the Troops to the Track with NASCAR, so we bring troops here every week,” Patricia Driscoll, President and Executive Director of the Armed Forces Foundation, said. “We want to remind people that there are wounded service members everywhere throughout the country.”

    “There are service members who are suffering from PTSD, as well as family members who have lost loved ones because of their military service,” Driscoll continued. “This is really important to us.”

    “Our Foundation is very involved with PTSD and traumatic brain injuries,” Driscoll said. “When a service member is wounded, the families drop everything so they really do need help. Our Foundation takes care of mortgages and car payments so that families don’t have to worry.”

    “The suicide rate in the military is alarming,” Driscoll continued. “We had 155 active duty service members take their lives in 154 days.”

    “Time magazine recently put out an article that said we are losing one service member a day and every 90 minutes, a veteran is taking his life,” Driscoll said. “None of those numbers are acceptable.”

    “I think this is why this push is so important to both Kurt and I,” Driscoll continued. “We try to get people to understand what PTSD is all about and what depression is all about. You cannot wait to get help and we are doing everything we can to try to help.”

    Driscoll admitted that the combination of AFF, NASCAR and bringing troops to the track is a perfect one.

    “NASCAR has always been a very patriotic sport,” Driscoll said. “I was brought in by the Aaron’s Corporation at Talladega to be the grand marshal because of our work and after that I thought, I have missed the most patriotic sport I’ve ever seen in my life.”

    “It just blows my mind how patriotic the sport is and I realized this is where we need to be involved,” Driscoll continued. “To have over 100,000 people show up is a great place to spread our message.”

    Because of their commitment to the military and NASCAR, both Driscoll and Altmann shared their disappointment in the news that the U.S. Army was pulling out of their NASCAR sponsorship next year.

    “It’s sad to see the Army is pulling out,” Altmann said. “It’s heartbreaking.”

    “But for Kurt and them to stand up and say even though the Army is leaving, we’re going to step up is amazing,” Altmann continued. “He is showing me that I’m not alone.”

    “I think they bowed down to the media pressure,” Driscoll said of the Army retreat from the sport. “I think it was ridiculous.”

    “This is the group they recruited from and this is the group that is really patriotic,” Driscoll continued. “So, why would you not want to be there?”

    “I think the exposure they get in NASCAR they cannot get anywhere else.”

    But for this one race weekend at New Hampshire Motor Speedway, the NASCAR exposure was simply about paying tribute to one U.S. Army Staff Sergeant and helping his widow and family remember him in one of the most unique ways possible.

    “I am so honored by this,” Altmann said. “We’re here not to promote anything but to honor someone in a really fun way.”

    “Joe’s personality was like this,” Altmann continued. “He was a fun person.”

    “To be able to see the Kurt’s car in the garage and on the track, I just said, ‘Come on Joe, carry him on your wings.”

    “Let him get to that Victory Lane.”