Fourth generation drag racer, Andrew Charlet from Thornton, Colorado will be hitting the ‘track’ in style, as he brings his “Freight Train” tribute car to compete at the 2010 Cub Scouts of America “Pine Wood Derby”.
 
For the seven-year old Cub Scout of Pack 233 from Stellar Elementary School and his father, Competitionplus.com columnist Tim Charlet, the ‘Freight Train’ provides them an opportunity to introduce the history of drag racing to fellow members of the Cub Scout Pack.

“When I was a cub scout, my father and I used the pinewood derby as an opportunity to work together to make a really cool car and to introduce the sport we loved to the members of Pack 774 in Southern California,” noted Tim Charlet. “When my son Andrew became a scout earlier this year, our objective was the same. So we called ‘Grandpa Don’ and asked him if he could fabricate us an awesome car. We chose the ‘Freight Train’ because of its rich history and we hope the car runs well.”

There were several Freight Trains over the years, all twin-engines, and (after a brief period in 1959) all twin-supercharged which were operated and owned by John Peters.  They raced in three decades, made over 1700 passes in 24 states, including Hawaii, at the hands of 13 drivers including Peters and legendary ’shoes’ Floyd Lippincott Jr. (Bob Maravus) and Walt Rhoades.

The car, an AA/Gas Dragster competed primarily in the Top Gas category in the 1960’s and early 1970’s and captured the 1963 NHRA Winternationals Top Eliminator championship with Peters behind the wheel. The ‘Freight Train’ also became the first Gas Dragster to break the six second zone in 1971 with Walt Rhoades as the driver. During one era it was nearly a half second faster than the rest of the field. It was the best known dragster in the country for many years. 

The pine wood car was fabricated by Andrew’s grandfather, Don Charlet Jr., himself a former Modified Eliminator class champion at the 1968 Popular Hot Rodding Championships. And Andrew is looking forward to talk to his friends about drag racing. The car itself is not “legal” for Pine Wood Derby competition, but will be making exhibition passes at this year’s ‘derby’. Andrew’s competition derby car is a close resemblance to a Dodge bodied Funny Car with this seasons new Valvoline/MTS colors in tribute to his favorite race car driver, DSR Funny Car driver “Fast” Jack Beckman.

“I can’t wait to show the other cub scouts this cool race car,” said Andrew. “Whether we win or not does not matter. We are just going to do our best and have fun. That’s what cub scouts do.”

Las Vegas, Nev. – Brian Thiel and the Speedway Children’s Charities Top Alcohol Funny Car will be racing on Sunday during final eliminations of the NHRA Las Vegas Nationals held on “The Strip” at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. Thiel barely cracked the top 16-car field on his final qualifying attempt of the event and will take on the number one qualifier Johnny Lombardo Jr. in the first round tomorrow.

“We are relieved and happy just to make this tough field,” noted Thiel, the hard working rice farmer from Pleasant Grove, Calif. “Our car has not been running very well this weekend, but we have some good data to tune our car with for tomorrow. We’ll defiantly be the underdogs tomorrow, but I think we have a good chance to win a round for the Speedway Children’s Charities tomorrow.

Thiel entered the final qualify session in the 13th qualified spot. Near perfect racing conditions for the final session allowed 24 of the best TAFC competitors in the nation to improve on their previous efforts. By the time he crossed the finish line, Thiel’s 5.741 second elapsed time was just barely good enough to claim the final spot. He was very pleased just to make the show. “Our goal for this race was to race on Sunday. It didn’t matter how we did it, we just wanted to show this great looking car to all the fans who will be here for final eliminations. I am proud of the boys on this team for the hard work they have done this weekend. We have a tough draw against Lombardo and (his crew chief Bob) Devore. We’ll give them all we got tomorrow.”

Making a difference in a child’s life is the focus of Speedway Children’s Charities. SCC strives to do this in collaboration with the non-profit organizations it supports nationwide. Individually, SCC’s local chapters identify the needs of children in their communities and award grants to organizations that address them. Last December, the Las Vegas Chapter of Speedway Children’s Charities granted $314,000 to 67 local children’s causes during its annual grant distribution ceremony. The charity also raised over $16,000 dollars at the Cards for Kids Poker fund raiser this past Wednesday night at the Cannery Casino and Hotel. To learn more about the Speedway Children’s Charities, please visit their website at http://www.speedwaycharities.org

Thiel and his Speedway Children’s Charities Funny Car will hit the track on Sunday morning for first round of eliminations. You can follow the Thiel Motorsports team with up to the minute race results posted on http://www.crxpromotions.com and http://www.dragracecentral.com.

CRX Promotions COMMUNICATIONS

PR CONTACT: TIM CHARLET -
Photo credits: Roger Richards at competitionplus.com

Speedway Children’s Charities kids Introduced to Drag Racing

Las Vegas, Nev. – A group of 25 children whom the Speedway Children’s Charities supports annually through grants were welcomed by Thiel Motorsports and CRX Promotions to the power of NHRA Drag Racing yesterday at “The Strip” at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. The event was held in conjunction with the sponsorship of Thiel’s Top Alcohol Funny Car which is flying the colors of S.C.C. at this year’s NHRA Las Vegas Nationals.

The group began their day with a stroll though the pit area of LVMS, where they met Ed “The Outlaw” Jones, who entertains drag racing fans across the county with his exhibition Jelly Belly sponsored stagecoach wheel stander. They also talked with A/Fuel Dragster driver Johnny Ahten, who is a firefighter in Southern California during the week. The kids then met 18-year old Pro Stock Motorcycle rider Katie Sullivan. “I loved meeting these kids yesterday,” noted the college freshman at California State University in Chico, Calif. “One of the hidden values of our sport is the ability for us drivers to meet and talk with all the fans in our pit area. The smiles on these kids faces absolutely made my day.”

The kids then proceeded to the Thiel Motorsports pit area, where TAFC drivers Brian Thiel and Kenny Buzdas hosted a question and answer period and gave out t-shirt pins and other goodies to all the kids. “Man, this was a cool deal,” said Thiel. “When we asked to run the S.C.C. colors I hoped it would be a successful deal, but when those kids came to our pit area and talked with us it made all the effort worth it.”

The kids then took in their first taste of NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing as they sat in the grandstands at LVMS and watched Sullivan and the other professional category racers attempt to qualify for Sunday’s eliminations. One of the kids, an 8-year old boy named Jared was very impressed with the cars. “These cars were so loud and fast,” he said. “Mr. Thiel said they were gonna be fast, but they were really fast.”

Speedway Children’s Charities new director, Rachel Commeford was overwhelmed with this event. “I have been told drag racers were great people but what these drivers and crew members have done for us is really impressive,” she said. “On behalf of everybody at S.C.C. we would like to thank Mr. Thiel and the CRX Promotions team for everything. We hope this is the beginning of a beautiful friendship.”

For more information about the Speedway Children’s Charity, please visit their website @ http://www.speedwaycharities.org

 Flying the colors of Speedway Children’s Charities this weekend, Thiel believes his 2002 Chevy Camaro Funny Car will not only make the tough 16-car field, but be a threat to take home the “Wally” in NHRA’s tough Division 7 NHRA Top Alcohol Funny Car classification. “This car has been thundering recently,” noted Thiel. “At the D-7 race in Bakersfield it was one of the fastest cars out there and this new motor we have is producing some great numbers.”

 Thiel enters this weekend’s race being tuned by his friend and team mate Division 6 NHRA champion Brian Hough. Hough and Thiel both feel the conditions in Vegas will produce some stellar elapsed times. “The air in Vegas this time of year will be ripe for the pickings”, Thiel stated. “I wouldn’t be surprised to see a few 5.50’s out of these cars this weekend. The car has been running great to half track recently and if we can fix our blower issues, the Speedway Children’s Charities Camaro we will be a threat this weekend.”

 Making a difference in a child’s life is the focus of Speedway Children’s Charities. SCC strives to do this in collaboration with the non-profit organizations it supports nationwide. Individually, SCC’s local chapters identify the needs of children in their communities and award grants to organizations that address them. Last December, the Las Vegas Chapter of Speedway Children’s Charities granted $314,000 to 67 local children’s causes during its annual grant distribution ceremony. The charity also raised over $16,000 dollars at the Cards for Kids Poker fund raiser this past Wednesday night at the Cannery Casino and Hotel.

 Thiel’s team will have three attempts to crack the tough 16-car fields beginning on Friday at 11:00 am. The team will host over 20 children who were helped by the Speedway Children’s Charities foundation in 2009 at 2:30pm on Friday afternoon. For more information about S.C.C. please visit their website at http://www.speedwaycharities.org

 You can keep up to date with instant race results on http://www.dragracecentral.com

THIEL MOTORSPORTS, LLC. COMMUNICATIONS
PR CONTACT: TIM CHARLET - Phone: 303-249-5933

The body of Thiel’s 2002 Chevrolet Camaro Funny Car will feature a specially designed paint scheme created by graphic artist Eddie Hollon as a part of a historic promotion to raise awareness for Bruton Smith’s SMI Corporations’ charity. The event marks the first time a race car in drag racing has competed on track flying the colors of the Speedway Children’s Charity.

Making a difference in a child’s life is the focus of Speedway Children’s Charities. SCC strives to do this in collaboration with the non-profit organizations it supports nationwide. Individually, SCC’s local chapters identify the needs of children in their communities and award grants to organizations that address them. Last December, the Las Vegas Chapter of Speedway Children’s Charities granted $314,000 to 67 local children’s causes during its annual grant distribution ceremony.

For Thiel, a rice farmer by trade from Pleasant Grove, Calif., the decision to support this organization came down to a simple thought. “It’s all about the kids,” noted Thiel. “When I found out how many children this foundation has helped out over the years, I had to be involved. We hope everybody who see’s this car will find it in their heart to support them too. It’s a real honor to be apart of this deal and I’m all in.”

The car will make its public debut at the S.C.C.’s Sixth Annual Cards for Kids Texas Hold’em Poker Tournament poker tournament to be held Wednesday October 28th, 2009 at the Cannery Hotel and Casino. NHRA drivers Brandon Bernstein, Cory McClenathan, Gary Densham, Shawn Langdon, Morgan Lucas, “Fast Jack” Beckman, Greg Anderson, Jason Line and many more will be on hand for an evening of high stakes and bragging rights.

Fans will have the opportunity to see how long they can outplay and outlast their favorite NHRA drivers at this annual charity event. Entry fee (buy-in) is $250 and players will receive $1,000 in tournament chips. Players also will receive complimentary hors d’oeuvres and drinks throughout the evening.

For entries and information, please contact Rachel Commeford at Speedway Children’s Charities’ Las Vegas office at (702) 632-8242 or Email Rachel Directly.

For more information about the Speedway Children’s Charity, please visit their website @ http://www.speedwaycharities.org