Photo courtesy of Eldora Speedway
As I had blogged earlier, Tony Stewart had an open invitation to the winner of the Indianapolis 500 to race in the Gillette Fusion ProGlide Prelude to the Dream on June 9th at Eldora Speedway. Now that Dario Franchitti has won the Indianapolis 500 this past Sunday, there is a car and a crew waiting for him at Eldora Speedway – that is, if he wants to run.
THE RECAP (incase you missed it earlier)
The Gillette Fusion ProGlide Prelude to the Dream is an all-star race featuring more than 25 world renowned drivers as they battle for dirt supremacy while piloting a 2,300-pound dirt Late Model stock cars capable of putting out more than 800 horsepower on Eldora’s half-mile clay oval with proceeds from the telecast supporting four of the nation’s top children’s hospitals:
· Riley Hospital for Children in Indianapolis
· Cincinnati Children’s
· Levine Children’s Hospital in Charlotte, N.C.
· St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital in Memphis, Tenn.
The sixth annual event will be headlined by the Gillette Young Guns: Clint Bowyer, Kasey Kahne, Kyle Busch, Denny Hamlin, Carl Edwards and Joey Logano. All will join two-time NASCAR Sprint Cup Series champion Tony Stewart and many others, including fellow Sprint Cup champions Jimmie Johnson, Jeff Gordon, Matt Kenseth, Bobby Labonte and Bill Elliott.
And don’t forget that this year’s Gillette Fusion ProGlide Prelude to the Dream is a team event. Franchitti has his choice of which team he would like to join. There will still be an individual race winner, but there will now be a race within the race, with the field broken up into four teams, each representing a children’s hospital:
· Team Riley: Bowyer (captain), Ryan Newman, J. Gordon, A.J. Allmendinger, Kenny Wallace and Ron Capps.
· Team Cincinnati: Kahne (captain), Logano, Stewart, Labonte, Elliott and Cruz Pedregon.
· Team Levine: Busch (captain), Johnson, Kenseth, David Reutimann, Dave Blaney, Marcos Ambrose and Pastrana.
· Team St. Jude: Hamlin (captain), Edwards, Robby Gordon, Ken Schrader, Aric Almirola, Ricky Carmichael and Ray Evernham.
Each hospital will receive a donation, with the payout breakdown as follows:
· Winning team receives 45 percent of net money raised.
· Second-place team receives 25 percent of net money raised.
· Third- and fourth-place teams each receive 15 percent of net money raised.
The lowest team score wins, and only the top-five drivers from each team will be scored. For example, if Team Riley has finishes of first, fourth, seventh, 11th and 18th, respectively, from its top-five drivers, its score will be 41. In the event of a tie, the sixth driver will be scored.
Drivers from all types of disciplines, some with lots of dirt track experience and others with hardly any, will participate in hot laps, qualifying, heat races and a 30-lap feature, all of which will be televised live on HBO Pay-Per-View June 9th at 7 p.m. EDT (4 p.m. PDT) with an immediate replay. HBO Pay-Per-View’s racing telecast has a suggested retail price of $24.95.
IF YOU’RE GOING:
Schedule of Events
WEDNESDAY – JUNE 9
Will Call Windows open: 7:30 am (main gate)
Handicap Parking opens (must show permit and ID): 8:00 am
Main Gate (frontstretch) Opens: 8:00 am
Hillside Markings (Chairs ONLY) may begin: 8:00 am
Turn One South Gate Camping: (by reservation only – $60) 8:30 am
Showers Open: 9:00 am – 2:00 pm
Trade Expo: 10:00 am – 6:00 pm
Race 2 Taste event (in multi-purpose building) 11:00 am – 5:00 pm
On Track activity begins: 6:20 pm
Prelude activities begin: (HBO PPV broadcast also begins) 7:00 pm
(Wednesday notes: No General Pit Pass sales / Grass Hillside is for chairs only)
General Information
• The Gillette Fusion ProGlide Prelude to the Dream is a charity event that the drivers have graciously donated their time to participate. Eldora Speedway wishes to respect their time and space – there will be no formal autograph sessions secheduled.
• Hillside & General Admission Markings for the Prelude to the Dream may begin WEDNESDAY morning – June 9 at 8:00 am, when gates open (must present General Admission ticket for entry).
• Coolers up to 14” are permitted. No glass bottles.
• The Golf Cart Permit station will be near the Middle Gate (Turn 4). Hours of operation will be posted. All Golf Carts will be reqiured to be registered and must display an Eldora Speedway 2010 Golf Cart Permit. NO Golf Carts are permitted in the main parking lot. Golf Cart parking is outside of the Turn 4 gate.
• A fully staffed First Aid Station is located near the Middle Gate (Turn 4). Hours of operation will be posted.
