Eric of IN
New member
Tribute to freedom opportunity for collectors By Van Cox
Traditionally, May festival of speed in Charlotte presents race fans with some of the most unique collecting opportunities of the season. This year is certainly no exception. One of the biggest and farthest-reaching NASCAR-themed special promotions ever will be the centerpiece for this week's Coca-Cola 600 extravaganza at Lowe's Motor Speedway-and it's one that will be of special interest to collectors. For the first time ever, all five branches of the U. S. Armed Forces have come together to target NASCAR fans in support of their recruiting efforts through a special project. The theme for the highly-anticipated promotion is "Tribute to Freedom in the Millennium." Action Performance Companies, Inc., Jay Howard Events, Inc., five NASCAR Winston Cup drivers and their respective sponsors developed the program, which features race cars specially painted with military service branch themes. Here's a quick look at the pairings: Army: Mike Skinner No. 31 Richard Childress Racing/Lowe's Home Improvement Warehouse Chevrolet Monte Carlo Navy: Bobby Hamilton No. 4 Morgan-McClure Motorsports/KODAK MAX Film Chevrolet Monte Carlo Marines: Ricky Rudd No. 28 Robert Yates Racing/Texaco/Havoline Ford Taurus Air Force: Dale Jarrett No. 88 Robert Yates Racing/Ford Quality Care Service/ Ford Credit Taurus Coast Guard: Jerry Nadeau No. 25 Hendrick Motorsports/MichaelHoligan.com Chevrolet Monte Carlo To commemorate this landmark event, Action Performance has developed a full line of collectible die-cast replicas of the cars, in addition to apparel items and other related merchandise and memorabilia. "Action Performance is proud to bring such an impressive group of champion drivers, teams and sponsors together to help support recruitment for our nation's Armed Forces," said Fred Wagenhals, Action Performance chairman, president and CEO. "I think NASCAR is a perfect opportunity for the Armed Forces to increase awareness and get recruitment messages out there to large numbers of people whose level of patriotism is as strong as their passion for auto racing. And to go along with this project, Action has put together a very exciting collectibles program that race fans are sure to enjoy."
The Tribute to Freedom in the Millennium program was unveiled amid much fanfare at Atlanta Motor Speedway during the days leading up to March's Cracker Barrel Old Country Store 500. The theme will be further celebrated during festivities prior to Lowe's Motor Speedway's fabled 600-mile contest. As one might expect, the Tribute to Freedom in the Millennium promotion has generated a tremendous amount of interest among fans and participants alike-and the collectibles aspect of the program represents a large part of that interest. "Tribute to Freedom in the Millennium is going to afford plenty of collecting opportunities in the form of die-cast from Action and Hasbro, as well as apparel and other items," said Bill Seaborn, director of marketing for Robert Yates Racing. "This program appeals to a broad cross section of collectors. You'll have people who collect the whole set of cars, as well as those who only collect their favorite driver. And you'll have your traditional racing collectors, as well as folks who have a special affinity to a certain branch of the armed forces." A portion of the proceeds from the overall Tribute to Freedom in the Millennium program will be donated to the Speedway Children's Charities Foundation, the official children's charity of NASCAR. Retired U. S. Air Force Major General Thomas M. Sadler, executive director of the Foundation, was instrumental in coordinating the Tribute to Freedom in the Millennium project. "Across all of the Armed Services, recruitment is extremely important for sustaining the numbers of people who are trained to serve and protect our great nation," said General Sadler. "Action Performance brought the drivers, race teams and corporate sponsors together, and I proudly served as their military liaison. This program is a way for NASCAR fans to respectfully pay tribute to military veterans and the men and women on active duty, and to root for the best team of all time - the United States Military Service Corps."
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Couldn't find the initial article, this one was in the "collectables" portion of the web-site, so is understanably biased towards the merchandise.
Eric
------------------
Formerly Puddle Pirate.
Teach a kid to shoot.
It annoys the antis.
Traditionally, May festival of speed in Charlotte presents race fans with some of the most unique collecting opportunities of the season. This year is certainly no exception. One of the biggest and farthest-reaching NASCAR-themed special promotions ever will be the centerpiece for this week's Coca-Cola 600 extravaganza at Lowe's Motor Speedway-and it's one that will be of special interest to collectors. For the first time ever, all five branches of the U. S. Armed Forces have come together to target NASCAR fans in support of their recruiting efforts through a special project. The theme for the highly-anticipated promotion is "Tribute to Freedom in the Millennium." Action Performance Companies, Inc., Jay Howard Events, Inc., five NASCAR Winston Cup drivers and their respective sponsors developed the program, which features race cars specially painted with military service branch themes. Here's a quick look at the pairings: Army: Mike Skinner No. 31 Richard Childress Racing/Lowe's Home Improvement Warehouse Chevrolet Monte Carlo Navy: Bobby Hamilton No. 4 Morgan-McClure Motorsports/KODAK MAX Film Chevrolet Monte Carlo Marines: Ricky Rudd No. 28 Robert Yates Racing/Texaco/Havoline Ford Taurus Air Force: Dale Jarrett No. 88 Robert Yates Racing/Ford Quality Care Service/ Ford Credit Taurus Coast Guard: Jerry Nadeau No. 25 Hendrick Motorsports/MichaelHoligan.com Chevrolet Monte Carlo To commemorate this landmark event, Action Performance has developed a full line of collectible die-cast replicas of the cars, in addition to apparel items and other related merchandise and memorabilia. "Action Performance is proud to bring such an impressive group of champion drivers, teams and sponsors together to help support recruitment for our nation's Armed Forces," said Fred Wagenhals, Action Performance chairman, president and CEO. "I think NASCAR is a perfect opportunity for the Armed Forces to increase awareness and get recruitment messages out there to large numbers of people whose level of patriotism is as strong as their passion for auto racing. And to go along with this project, Action has put together a very exciting collectibles program that race fans are sure to enjoy."
The Tribute to Freedom in the Millennium program was unveiled amid much fanfare at Atlanta Motor Speedway during the days leading up to March's Cracker Barrel Old Country Store 500. The theme will be further celebrated during festivities prior to Lowe's Motor Speedway's fabled 600-mile contest. As one might expect, the Tribute to Freedom in the Millennium promotion has generated a tremendous amount of interest among fans and participants alike-and the collectibles aspect of the program represents a large part of that interest. "Tribute to Freedom in the Millennium is going to afford plenty of collecting opportunities in the form of die-cast from Action and Hasbro, as well as apparel and other items," said Bill Seaborn, director of marketing for Robert Yates Racing. "This program appeals to a broad cross section of collectors. You'll have people who collect the whole set of cars, as well as those who only collect their favorite driver. And you'll have your traditional racing collectors, as well as folks who have a special affinity to a certain branch of the armed forces." A portion of the proceeds from the overall Tribute to Freedom in the Millennium program will be donated to the Speedway Children's Charities Foundation, the official children's charity of NASCAR. Retired U. S. Air Force Major General Thomas M. Sadler, executive director of the Foundation, was instrumental in coordinating the Tribute to Freedom in the Millennium project. "Across all of the Armed Services, recruitment is extremely important for sustaining the numbers of people who are trained to serve and protect our great nation," said General Sadler. "Action Performance brought the drivers, race teams and corporate sponsors together, and I proudly served as their military liaison. This program is a way for NASCAR fans to respectfully pay tribute to military veterans and the men and women on active duty, and to root for the best team of all time - the United States Military Service Corps."
-----------------------------------------------
Couldn't find the initial article, this one was in the "collectables" portion of the web-site, so is understanably biased towards the merchandise.
Eric
------------------
Formerly Puddle Pirate.
Teach a kid to shoot.
It annoys the antis.