NASCAR BTS: Pit Stops for Poverty Fasting for Childhood Hunger
While NASCAR nation’s thoughts are in Daytona today and tomorrow for 2014 preseason testing, behind the scenes back at the Richard Childress Racing shop, something even more unique than cars on the track is happening.
Pit Stops for Poverty, an organization founded by RCR pit crew team members, is staging a twenty-four hour fast, going without food to end the childhood hunger problem in North Carolina.
“We are having our first-ever pit crew food fast,” Ray Wright, founder of Pit Stops for Poverty and rear tire carrier for the No. 27 Richard Childress Racing team, said. “We are camping out in the RCR Museum parking lot as one big unit, including all six teams and all six pit crews, starting at 5:00 PM on Thursday, January 9th to 5:00 PM on Friday, January 10th.”
“We’re going to endure a 24 hour food fast to align ourselves with the hungry in our state,” Wright said. “We’re going to use it as a way to raise donations for Second Harvest Food Bank.”
Wright and his RCR pit crew brethren realize that they are picking one of the coldest times of the year to do their fast. But this hardy group is not going to let that deter them from their mission.
“I think the low is going to get down to about 32 degrees Thursday night,” Wright said. “But the guys are pretty excited about it.”
“We’re bringing out tents and fire pits and the whole deal.”
While Wright welcomes any family, friends and fans to come by and support them, either with encouragement or food donations, he is focused primarily on raising money for the Food Bank.
“We would love to have folks come by with food but we really want to raise money,” Wright said. “For one dollar donated to the Food Bank, they can provide seven small nutritious meals for these kids.”
“People who want to support our cause can go to www.pitstopsforpoverty.com,” Wright continued. “They can click donate and do what we need them to do.”
So, how did this whole effort begin that has led tire carriers, changers and gas men to camp out in the cold and go without food to call attention to childhood hunger?
“Truthfully and honestly, this started in a Bible study a couple of years ago,” Wright said. “People don’t want to hear preaching.”
“They want to see our Christianity,” Wright continued. “And so we need to help people and we need to be a light for people who are not so fortunate.”
“We found out that we live in the worst state in regards to childhood hunger,” Wright said. “One in every four children in North Carolina are food insecure.”
“We have over 154,000 kids in the 18 counties that Second Harvest Food Bank feeds,” Wright continued. “With our reach in NASCAR, we thought we could try different ways to raise money for the Food Bank that needs a source of support.”
“And that’s how this whole thing started,” Wright said. “And so, from starting in June, we’ve raised over $50,000 for Second Harvest so far.”
In addition to the food fast, Pit Stops for Poverty raises money for the Second Harvest Food Bank in other unique ways.
“We have Twitter and Facebook auctions, track sales, an RCR Men of Pit Road calendar and we sell crew shirts through a little mini-store on the website,” Wright said. “One of the more unique ways that we get money is from our drivers.”
“Drivers donate a certain amount of money for every spot their pit crew gains on pit road,” Wright continued. “Other drivers donate for twelve second or thirteen second stops.”
“That’s been a really cool source of donations,” Wright said. “In 2013, we had 100% participation for the drivers.”
In April of this year, Pit Stops for Poverty will hold its first golf tournament at Sapona Ridge County Club in Lexington, North Carolina. The group will also sponsor a Chase to End Childhood Hunger, with donations during the ten Chase races in honor of fans’ favorite drivers competing for the championship.
To celebrate the end of the year, the pit crew members are planning a Pit Stops for Poverty Fest where they will make their ‘big’ donation to Second Harvest Food Bank. The event will include driver appearances, live pit stops, and an autograph session from Dale Earnhardt Sr.’s pit crew, the ‘Flying Aces.’
The other very unique aspect of Pit Stops for Poverty is that they are not a 501 (c) 3 nonprofit. Instead they link directly to the Food Bank so that every penny, nickel, dime, quarter and dollar goes to those in need.
“When you click on our website to donate, a link comes up for Second Harvest Food Bank and they are the nonprofit,” Wright said. “All we do is funnel money directly to Second Harvest Food Bank.”
So, what really motivates these pit crew members as they attempt to change tires and gas cars in addition to doing good?
“Our goal is just to move North Carolina out from the bottom as far as childhood hunger,” Wright said. “Eventually we want to reach the whole United States.”
“Nobody in our country, especially no kid, should be hungry,” Wright said. “No kid should have to leave school Friday and have to get a back pack of food to get through the weekend.”
“With as much abundance as America has, that is ridiculous,” Wright said. “We want to put a dent in this problem.”
“That’s our only goal and any way we can do it, we want to do it.”
Rheem to sponsor James Buescher’s Nationwide Series Ride
Rheem Manufacturing Company today announced that it will serve as primary sponsor for RAB Racing’s No. 99 Toyota, in which James Buescher will drive for the full 2014 NASCAR Nationwide Series schedule.
“The Rheem family of quality brands is proud to continue our support of James Buescher by realigning our sponsorship for the 2014 season,” said JR Jones, Rheem President and CEO. “In the past year, James has exemplified the core values of Rheem which are reliable, quality performance with a commitment to leadership and continuous improvement. We trust that James will continue to drive our message of quality, innovation and consistently reliable performance as he competes full time in the NASCAR Nationwide Series.”
Rheem sponsored Buescher last season in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series for a number of races.
“We look forward to working with Robby Benton and his entire RAB Racing organization as they strive to deliver the same professional and quality results that Rheem is known for worldwide,” Jones continued. “We can’t wait to see James in the famed red and black Rheem machine competing for the 2014 NASCAR Nationwide Series championship.”
Buescher announced last month that he would be leaving Turner-Scott Motorsports to race for RAB Racing in 2014. Buescher drove the No. 31 Turner-Scott Motorsports truck the last couple of seasons, winning a championship in 2011.
“I’m really excited that I can continue my relationship with Rheem,” said Buescher. “Rheem is a very high quality global company with highly respected brands and innovative technologies. I love that I can represent them both on and off the race track. I was fortunate enough to give them a taste of victory last season, and I hope that I can follow that up by delivering many more wins and possibly a championship.”
As announced before by RAB Racing, Chris Rice will crew chief the effort after working with Alex Bowman last season.
“Everyone at RAB Racing is honored to have James come on board to drive our No. 99 Toyota Camry,” RAB Racing owner Robby Benton said last month. “James has a tremendous amount of talent and experience, and we feel like he will take our program to the next level. I’m looking forward to what will likely be a very special season, not only for our team, but all of our partners as well. This is a great addition to the Toyota family, and I’m proud James saw the strength in our team to further his career.”
Daytona 500 Testing: What should we expect?
NASCAR’s off-season will be briefly interrupted, Thursday, as teams are set to begin testing for the 56th annual Daytona 500, which is set for Feb. 23 at Daytona International Speedway.
The off-season was also interrupted in early December as teams ran sprint races, testing modifications made to the Gen-6 car. However, these modifications will not be used at the opening race, but the following weekend, at Phoenix.
This leaves some fans to wonder, what will be any different from the racing we saw last season at Daytona? That is a point that is leaving many fans with a sour taste in their mouths, including Zak Thompson, a prominent up-and-coming racer, who was not very pleased with the product last season.
“There was no passing,” he stated. “There should have been more testing conducted with the Gen-6 car. NASCAR didn’t put in the adequate amount of time to develop and test the car, as they should have.”
Many fans agree with Thompson’s statement. Most of the ideas that have been given the green light in recent years sound great on paper. But that is not good enough. As a sport and a business, NASCAR has to think about the fans. What do they think? I want everyone reading this article to do a simple assignment: watch some old races.
What do I mean by old races? I’m talking about pre-COT era races. Therefore, the 2002 Daytona 500 compared to the most recent 500 event. Compare and contrast what you see between those two races. I will let you know right now, you will notice a big difference and it is not even the racing. It is the attendance.
The stands were full of fans. There were multiple teams, not just Hendrick Motorsports and Joe Gibbs Racing, making headlines on the race track. Given, the economy was in a much better state. However, the steps NASCAR has taken to improve the attendance have not been beneficial. To benefit from the current state of the economy, NASCAR must abide by what the “market” is demanding. Therefore, NASCAR needs to lower ticket prices, as well as encouraging teams to innovate and pursue better ways to make their cars go fast!
Remember the 90s? We all remember the 90s. What about the sound that came out of the engine of the No. 4, driven by Sterling Marlin? That car had a very distinct sound to it. That was the sound of innovation. The No.4 team, owned by Larry McClure at the time, was such a dominant force at the restrictor plate races. Who was the last driver to score back-to-back Daytona 500 victories? Well, that was Sterling Marlin. It was all because that team had great chemistry and a package that was very difficult to beat. We can bring that back. It takes a whole group of people to spread the message. Without fans, there would be no NASCAR.
Therefore, the fans need to speak. As for the testing, I am not really sure where my emotions are. I am certainly excited to see the cars back on the race track. As for the racing, I do not know what to really say. I have not seen anything, particularly with the tests done at Charlotte, that would make me think otherwise. Besides, like I said, those changes will not matter at Daytona, anyway. On the other hand, testing is an opportunity to make some changes.
With that being said, please do not take everything I say the wrong way. I am actually quite optimistic about the 2014 racing season. It isn’t wrong, however, to ask questions. So, I encourage all of you to ask questions. If there is something that concerns you, contact a NASCAR executive and speak your mind. The more people that speak out could make a huge difference. Who knows? What you say tomorrow, could impact NASCAR at some point in the future. Do not think short term. How can my idea impact NASCAR in the future? Think in a very positive way. Those ideas could soon become a reality.
