When Brian Vickers hits the track for the race on Sunday, he won’t just be racing for a good finish – he’ll be raising awareness about blood clots. Vickers will be driving a special No. 55 TREATMYCLOT.com/Aaron’s Dream Machine Toyota in the Auto Club 500 this weekend.
“For me, I think the biggest message to get out there is if you have something wrong, go see the doctor,” Vickers said on Friday at Auto Club Speedway. “Since the first time I’ve had an incident, I’ve worked hard to raise awareness about clotting. Not only is it an under-diagnosed issue, it’s a unknown issue to a lot of people. It can affect anyone – whether you’re young, old, in shape or not – and a lot of people in this industry. I know I’ve had a lot of officials, crew members, truck drivers come to me and tell me my story.
“To the opportunity to partner with TREATMYCLOT.com and Janssen Pharmaceuticals – it’s crazy to think my story will help some people – to have the full story online, for people to see that and raise awareness – it’s a good thing. I encourage people to check out TREATMYCLOT.com and learn about it.
“The biggest thing – if you think you have a problem, go see a doctor.”
Vickers has missed some races over the course of his career due to blood clots, beginning in 2011.
“I did what a lot of people do – I ignored the early signs and symptoms till it was too late,” Vickers commented. “I was finally forced to go to the hospital and I was – it pretty much got to the point where it was hard to breathe. I told the doctor, ‘Well, I’ve got to be at the track on Friday at Dover for practice. I can miss practice – but I have to there for Sunday’. He goes, ‘I don’t think you have any idea what you’re dealing with’.”
Vickers went through the healing process – which took six months with medicine and monitoring his blood and diet. Vickers was able to get back into a car last year, running part-time for Michael Waltrip Racing.
“I felt like it was the right move and it was a risk to come back and for even MWR to put me in a part-time car (last year),” he commented. “It felt so good to get that team to victory lane and I can’t thank the team enough for that opportunity.”
Of course, there was a small setback last fall when Vickers got another clot in his right calf.
“I did exactly what I was supposed to do this time and am doing exactly what I’m telling people now – I didn’t ignore the signs and symptoms,” he said. “As soon as I suspected I had something wrong – some slight swelling and redness – I immediately called the doctor. He said it was probably nothing but that I should get it checked out. I had been wearing a boot to stabilize my ankle, which can sometimes cause a clot. I took it off and I had some pain, some swelling and some redness. So it was very minor; you could almost miss it.”
Vickers went to the doctor and they did an ultrasound and sure enough, another clot.
“Needless to say, it was very frustrating because of the first time after going through the once ,” he commented. “This time, we caught it early because I did go to the doctor and didn’t ignore the signs and symptoms. This time I got different medicine, didn’t have the dietary restrictions or blood monitoring.”
That treatment took three months, but Vickers was able to clear things up in time for the Daytona 500 and so far has ran each of the four races this season. Vickers hasn’t had the results he has wanted, so perhaps a change in the wave could come this weekend.
Janssen Pharmaceuticals Incorporated, which runs TREATMYCLOT.com, also announced this weekend a partnership with NASCAR to spread awareness about blood clots.
“It’s a life threatening condition that effects over 9000 Americans each year,” Gregg Ruppersberger, the Group Product Director for Janssen Pharmaceuticals Incorporated said. “It can affect you, me and young drivers so that’s why it’s important to talk about. Unfortunately, a lot of fans aren’t aware of the risk factor and what to do if they get a clot.”
NASCAR’s Chief Sales Officer Jim O’ Connell said that he is pleased with how Janssen Pharmaceuticals has come into the sport in an “integrated, authentic” way versus other partners that they’ve had in the past.
“We know from history that you can reach a lot of fans through being involved in the sport,” O’Connell added.
As part of the promotions that Janassen is doing, they will hold the title rights for Saturday’s Nationwide Series race at Auto Club Speedway – the TREATMYCLOT.com 300.
“I think that’s one of the things that special in this sport is the way that it connects with fans and creates a community,” Auto Club Speedway President Gillian Zucker commented. “This is a sponsor that is creating awareness and saving lives, and we’re very appreciative of it.”
