From a press release issued by California Speedway:
RACE FOR RELIEF EFFORTS LED BY OVERWHELMING FAN SUPPORT
Ticket holders donated price of ticket to disaster relief efforts – totaling close to $100,000
FONTANA, Calif. (December 16, 2003) — California Speedway and the American Red Cross today announced the “Race for Relief” monetary donation total of $143,284.29 to the Southern California Fire Disaster Relief fund, which is being administered by the American Red Cross.
“On behalf of all the people we serve, staff and volunteers of the American Red Cross, we would like to thank California Speedway for the support and commitment to the community,” Sandy Silva, Inland Valley Chapter CEO of the American Red Cross, said. “The speedway should be commended for helping the fire victims rebuild and get back on their feet.”
The largest of the monetary donations, $93,462.50, came from California Speedway ticket holders who donated the cost of their Champ Car weekend tickets to the disaster relief efforts following its cancellation. Close to 500 ticket holders responded with ticket totals averaging at $200, with some as high as $900.
“The real victory here lies in the hearts and hands of our ticket holders who gave unselfishly to the disaster relief efforts,” California Speedway President Bill Miller said. “The outpouring of generosity from so many people made this community effort a very humbling experience.”
With wildfires raging in the nearby mountains, and throughout Southern California, California Speedway turned to relief mode to help those affected by the fires. On November 1st and 2nd, California Speedway opened its facilities to raise funds and act as a drop-off site for much needed items for fire victims.
“I would like to express the Board’s and my appreciation to all those who contributed to this relief effort, in particular the ticketholders of California Speedway,” said Paul Biane, second district supervisor for the County of San Bernardino. “For this relief effort, the ticketholders turned their love of racing into tangible gifts that were most needed in our communities after the Grand Prix and Old Fires.”
The outpouring of support kicked off on Wednesday at the SpeedFreaks Party at Dave & Busters. The SpeedFreaks, Kenny Sargent, Crash Gladys, Lugg Nuttz and Statt Mann, host parties to kick-off the speedway’s events, however with the King Taco 500 canceled, the crew conducted an auction to jump start the “Race for Relief” effort. Motorsport professionals from across the country over-nighted autographed items with short notice for the auction.
The next event was the two-day “Race for Relief” donation site at the speedway where people could donate money, food and clothing. The two-day donation total surpassed $20,000 from the community and speedway partners. Included in the two-day total were donations from California Speedway ($5,000), Penske Automotive Group ($5,000) and Kawasaki Road Racing employee and company match ($2,400).
KFRG radio station was on-site during the two day event and played a key roll in the promotion of the relief efforts in the days leading up to “Race for Relief.” As well, more than five truckloads of clothing, diapers, toys, toiletries and houseware items were collected and donated to area shelters and the Salvation Army. With food donations from Americrown, the speedway’s on-site food and beverage company, and several CART Champ Car teams, a 24-ft. Penske truckload of food, enough to serve 3,000 meals, was distributed to 11 shelters with the help of Inland Harvest.
As if all of this wasn’t enough, Gatorade, Gate City Distributors and Red Bull donated beverages to the firefighters. Bottled juices, waters, sports and energy drinks in excess of 1,500 cases were distributed to fire base camps to refresh those fighting the blazes.
Other miscellaneous donations included Dewalt Tools (two pallets of power tools), Michigan International Speedway (clothing and 400 die-cast cars) and Lucas Oil Products (linens, books, hairbrushes and a $250 Target giftcard). Monetary donations were also received from Bridgestone ($10,000), CARA Charities ($1,000), Indy Racing League ($10,000) and Searing Industries ($1,000).
