Dr. Jerry Petty Among Honorees At Track Services Event
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (January 8, 2013) – From Homestead to Las Vegas, a bevy of NASCAR awards have been given out in the past two months. And this past weekend, a few more accolades were distributed to a number of industry personnel who are integral to every NASCAR race weekend.
These individuals perfect their craft behind the scenes, and earlier this week, NASCAR recognized industry leaders in track services, safety and security at the annual NASCAR Track Services Summit held in Concord, N.C.
Several awards were handed out to honorees who displayed excellence in their respective fields during the 2012 NASCAR race season. The highlight of the awards presentation was the recognition of the Jim Bockoven Track Services Lifetime Achievement Award to Dr. Jerry Petty of Charlotte Motor Speedway and Carolinas Medical Center. Petty was recognized for his pioneering efforts in the field of track safety and for his decades of service to the motorsports community.
Daytona International Speedway won the Track Services Teamwork Award for their interdisciplinary cooperation between fire, EMS, cleanup, track services and engineering crews to contain the large blaze that ensued after a jet dryer was involved in an on-track incident during a caution period during the Daytona 500.
Other medical personnel recognized for their teamwork was the Infield Care Center at Kansas Speedway. Medical director Dr. Dennis Allin and Nursing Director Rick Blevins, both from Kansas University Medical Center, led a group that was given the Teamwork Award by the NASCAR Medical Liaison Department.
Other award winners included:
TRACK SERVICES MISSION AWARD … Ruben Rayneri, Homestead-Miami Speedway
TRACK SERVICES INNOVATION AWARD … Robert Garland, Darlington Raceway
EXCELLENCE IN TRACK SERVICES AWARD … Jay Donnay, Homestead-Miami Speedway
NASCAR SECURITY AWARD FOR EXCELLENCE … Tyler Clement, Iowa Speedway
NASCAR SECURITY AWARD FOR EXCELLENCE … Billie Hodges, Talladega Superspeedway
NASCAR SECURITY AWARD FOR EXCELLENCE … Dawn Klister, Road America
NASCAR MEDICAL LIAISON AWARDS
(Nursing Director Award) … Shelby Lash, Homestead-Miami Speedway
(Above and Beyond Award) … Michelle Robertson, New Hampshire Motor Speedway
The annual NASCAR Summit serves as the only annual meeting for representatives from the facilities hosting NASCAR events. The summit addresses topics related to operations, large-event/venue security, access control, risk management, training, fire suppression, extrication and emergency medical services.
Over the course of the three-day Summit, employees and volunteers come together to share experiences and gain additional knowledge regarding their roles in operations, fire and safety, medical, security and other fields at their respective tracks.
NASCAR welcomed representatives from all tracks that host the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, NASCAR Nationwide Series, NASCAR Camping World Truck Series and GRAND-AM Road Racing as well as NASCAR Home Tracks that host developmental series events.
About NASCAR
The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, Inc. (NASCAR) is the sanctioning body for one of North America’s premier sports. NASCAR races are broadcast in more than 175 countries and in 25 languages. In the U.S., races are broadcast on FOX, TNT, ABC/ESPN/ESPN2, SPEED, Motor Racing Network Radio, Performance Racing Network and Sirius XM Radio. NASCAR fans are among the most brand-loyal in all of sports, and as a result more Fortune 500 companies participate in NASCAR than any other sport. NASCAR consists of three national series (the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, NASCAR Nationwide Series, and NASCAR Camping World Truck Series), four regional series, and one local grassroots series, as well as three international series. Also part of NASCAR is GRAND-AM Road Racing and the American Le Mans Series, known for competition on road courses with multiple classes of cars. NASCAR sanctions more than 1,200 races at 100 tracks in more than 30 U.S. states, Canada, Mexico and Europe. Based in Daytona Beach, Fla., NASCAR has offices in eight cities across North America. The next NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race will be the Shootout at Daytona on Feb. 16 on FOX. For more information and a complete schedule, visit www.nascar.com. Follow NASCAR on www.facebook.com/NASCAR or on Twitter: @NASCAR.
