Knoxville Nationals – Final Thoughts

This year’s Knoxville Nationals was a story of extremes:  extreme weather, extreme driving action and extremely generous hearts!

The weather was just one of several hurdles everyone in attendance had to overcome:  Extremely high heat indexes, downpours and radars that showed extreme threat, even when it did not materialize. We prevailed!

Saturday night’s racing action was some of the most amazing racing action I have seen in a long time.  It is only fitting that such talent be shown at it’s fullest during the Knoxville Nationals!  For those of you that couldn’t attend in person, you have GOT to see this.  It will be on the SPEED channel on 8/28.  Check for your local time. It is worth sitting the DVR – REALLY!

Because of Friday’s rain, we had to cancel most of our autograph sessions on Friday.  When the racing action was move to Saturday, we had to cancel most of those too.  This is very unfortunate because the autograph session was the single-biggest fundraiser for the foundation at Knoxville.

Fortunately Wayne Johnson was able to still stop by. Wayne, a local favorite in Knoxville, suffered a broken ankle during a race on the west coast about a month ago.  He is healing, but the break is bad enough that he won’t be able to “get back to work” until next February.  We appreciate Wayne taking time out hang out with us and talk to so many of his fans about his healing progress.

The extreme weather certainly hampered our fundraising. Around $4,000 was raised, well below the goal.  Half of that was raised on Saturday. Whew!

Highlights from the 2010 Knoxville Nationals for the Steve King Foundation:

1.  “Give a Donation, Get an Autograph” sessions – we had so many drivers generously share their time.  This was our single biggest avenue for fund raising during the Nationals. Thank you to the drivers and the fans for bearing bizarre weather to help us out!

2.  The silliness of Sprint Car Silly Bandz® – nearly 5000 sprint-car shaped silly bans were purchased.  The kids (big and little) went nuts for them!

3.  $3 t-shirts. Turns out moving our closeout price on t-shirts to $3 was a HIT!  For the most part fans thought it was a misprint and inquired about the price.  We would answer by telling them that if they wanted to pay more we would gladly accept a donation.  Most happily did!

4.  Fans! -  I know you hear it all the time but I can’t talk about Knoxville without repeating it.  Racing is just one big family!  It is wonderful to see the same fans year after year.  We so appreciate the Grandpa “Grumpy” who brings his grandsons and stops by each year. There is Bonnie from Nebraska and the generous couple from Minnesota.  I don’t know many other names but do know hundreds of faces – all with generous hearts.  It is great to see them each year and hear their latest racing stories. Some still have stories about Steve – each one warms my heart!

5. The Racing Action! – Yeah! I know it shouldn’t be last because that is why we are all in Knoxville.  Working the booth does not allow the opportunity to see the races, but the ones I did see were great!  Kraig Kinser and Jason Meyers battling back from qualifying night heat race mishap; Craig Dollansky having the run of his life both Saturday afternoon and evening; and then there was the battle for the checkered flag and $150,000!  I have been going to races since I was a toddler and I cannot remember seeing anything like it. WOW!  It is impossible to have come to Knoxville this year as a fan and leave anyway but other than to say, “I HAVE to go back next year!”

A few shout outs before I close up this year’s edition of Knoxville National blogs:

• Mom, Linda and Tammy for braving the elements each day to man the booth.  Let’s do it again next year!
• Kristy Finley for doing an awesome job of coordinating drivers for the autograph sessions, getting the merchandise ordered and making sure I had what I needed when I left!
• Lois Ritter – the most amazing nail artist I know – Thanks so much for your support in Osky and Knoxville (not to mention being a life saver with your fan!!!). The foundation logo looks awesome on the sunglasses!
• Kevin, Susan, Landon and Jordon for being the best host we have ever had!  My kids already miss you guys!
• Heather for joining us Saturday to provide some needed relief!
• The crew at the Knoxville Raceway, especially Brian and Grant, for their help on all sorts of issues!
• Park for allowing us to use his empty rental house and finding a different spot for the RV.
• Dave Lunstra for allowing 3 total strangers to borrow your truck and haul a trailer to Osky and back! 
• Terry and Lori McCarl for allowing us to set up at Osky!
• Davey and Todd for all the RV help!
• Meredith and Lauren for keeping the tweets going!
• Van for being Tammy’s taxi!

If I missed you, it is not on purpose….know from the bottom of my heart how much we appreciate the help!

See ya next year!
Danette

Day Three – Rain!

With yesterday’s theme being all about beating the heat, today was another weather battle. This time it was rain and more rain and more rain.  It came in spurts – sometimes a slow drizzle; others a downpour. Sometimes we gained false hope by a break in the clouds.  In the end the entire day can be summarized by simply saying “Mother Nature Won”.

We had high hopes for “Give a Donation, Get an Autograph” sessions scheduled for today.  Jac Hausenschild, Shane Carson and Joey Saldana had volunteered to help the foundation out.  Jac’s session is the only one we got in and we battled rain even then.

This morning I had the honor of attending the celebration to honor the life of Tyson Perez.  Ty was kil led in amethanol accident about a month ago near Seattle. Ty was serving a Travis Riliat’s crew chief.  Travis is in a burn center in Seattle and making grand strides forward on a long road to recovery.  Ty is from Australia and many of those in attendance were his racing buddies from down under. The “celebration” as it was termed, as a nice tribute to Ty.  He will be missed by many. 

At the same time this morning, Mom attended the Racers vs. “City Celebrities” softball game.  The committee in Knoxville who organizes the game each year had selected the foundation as the recipient of the proceeds. We are honored!  They committee had worked hard on some great auction items!  They also had a home run derby.  The Knoxville Raceway flagman switched jobs and served as the announcer for this tough game.  Some racers are also golfers, others do know how to play a little ball – but most…well…most are best when strapped in, helmet on and their foot all the way down on the gas pedal. I think it would be best for the honor of all drivers to not share the score!

 If all goes well, we will get two days of racing in tomorrow.  We are all looking forward to a safe, fun day.

Day Two – Big Names support the Foundation

Wow!  Day two at the Knoxville Nationals. And I thought Day One was hot! Day two was all about survival. They told us the heat index was well over 110 degrees where our booth was. I believe them! While overall count was down the die-hard fans came out to see their favorite drivers and support the foundation.

A GREAT BIG thank you to the drivers that came out for the “Give a Donation, Get an Autograph”. We are so apprecitive of our Thursday signers: Shane Stewart, Brian Brown, Jason Sides, Lucas Wolfe, Brad Doty, Doug Wolfgang, Dave Blaney, Tony Bruce, Jr. and Erin Crocker Evernham for spending an hour with us throughout the afternoon. The fans came by in droves and would put money in the donation jars then ask for an autograph card or to take a photo with their favorite driver.

It was fun being on the other side – listening to the conversations between drivers and fans but also hearing the chit chat amongst drivers. We typically had two at a time. Current drivers would tell stories, discuss setups, mull over which tire was going to run best and what gear to run for time trials. Our retired drivers told great stories – on each other and themselves. There was a lot of laughter!

It is impressive for me to see drivers dig into their own pockets to pull out cash and donate to the foundation themselves. They, better than anyone, know what we are about and how the funds are raised and put to use.

It is also funto see so many Steve King shirts come through the area. I can’t help but smile when I see each one. I now recognize by face most of his die-hard fans and am inspired by their stories and continued support.

The racing action was spectacular Thursday night with Slammin’ Sammy beating them all to the line in a green, white, yellow, green, checkered finish!

Tomorrow – more of the same with autograph sessions but also a chance of rain!

Knoxville – Day 1 and no rain!

Wednesday was hot, hot, hot and oh so humid. The big news of the day – almost equal to the racing news – was the fact that it was NOT supposed to rain. Good news: Mother Nature held true to the forecast! Today was primarily about set up. Each event is a little different so we have to look inside the Steve King Foundation trailer and pull out a variety of different things to work in the space we are allotted. This year took a bit extra creative thought – or at least it felt like that based on the lack of sleep these days!

The elementary school age kids are going nuts over the sprint-car Silly Bandz. The kids crack me up. They sheepishly approach the booth scanning for the packages and their eyes light up when they find them! Wow, these are a hit! As far as we know, we are the only game in town, making it a perfect awareness builder for the foundation.

My son wanted to watch qualifying tonight. His father had to take him. I am still not up for Wednesday nights. I did try for a little bit but  kept finding my eyes wandering to turn three. I have been to other races here at Knoxville but this was first time trying to go for the Wednesday night qualifying. I guess this is part of the healing process and wherever I am on the grief spectrum means I am not ready for this. Gotta say my favorite part was the Budweiser Clydesdale Horses taking a lap around the track!  I can honestly say that is something I had never seen at the races before!

Big day planned on Thursday – We hope to be covered up with people in the afternoon giving donations to get autographs! Our line up for Thursday – Saturday is spectacular!  Special thanks to Kristy Finley for being a phone warrior to get busy drivers on the phone and work out all the details.

Don’t forget that besides the website, you can follow the foundation on facebook (http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#!/pages/Steve-King-Foundation/148436396701?ref=ts) or on twitter. Our twitter handle is @SteveKingFdn.

Stay tuned for more from hot Knoxville!

– Danette

Arriving in Knoxville

It’s that time of year again – it’s Knoxville Time!

We are just pulling into Knoxville as I write this. Excitement is certainly all around. I arrive with sadness on my heart. I love Knoxville as do nearly all drivers, crews and fans. I do find some comfort in the fact that Steve’s last ride was at his favorite place. He lived for Knoxville. And, just like the teams this year and teams before him – all planning, all races – everything is designed to be at a peak when arriving in Knoxville. All roads do lead to Knoxville. So I arrive with sadness and with excitement!

If you are here – stop by the booth and say “Hi”. Many drivers are giving generously of their time to support the foundation this year. It is an honor to have them join us to raise funds for families in need. I am very hopefully that our “Give a Donation, Get an Autograph” sessions will have fans lining up to see their favorite drivers. We will start Thursday’s session off with this year’s 360 Nationals Champ, and a good friend, Shane Stewart! World of Outlaw (WoO) series contenders Joey Saldana and Jason Meyers will also join us during our time in Knoxville as will Brad Doty. (Steve would get a kick out of this!) Steve would also be excited that his mentor – the driver he most wanted to be like – Doug Wolfgang – will be joining us as well. Even Jac Haudenschild, who got tangled up with Steve in Dodge City during Steve’s last WoO race will be coming!

We have so many in need right now and, thankfully, we have many willing to help!

The inventory of the t-shirts with the racing prayer on the back has been replenished. Those have been a huge hit.

Our new item is Sprint car shaped silly bands. Come get silly with us. It is all for a good cause!

One more thing – we could really use some help here! The City of Knoxville puts on a softball game each year that many drivers and fans participate in. Those of you who know me know that softball is not my thing so come help us out! The proceeds will be going to the foundation!

My son and I just listened to the NASCAR theme song from a few years ago and so to borrow a line from it and DW – “Let’s go racin’ boys!” Hope to see you in Knoxville!

– Danette

Steve King Day Recap and Fun Run

We are excited to announce we raised $6,600 during the Steve King events held in Jetmore, KS over Memorial Day weekend! $2,000 of the funds raised was specifically for Jesse Hockett’s family and $4,600 was raised for the Steve King Fund.

So many people to thank…

The parade was amazing thanks to Heather and Michelle. Thanks to Julia, Yvonne, Carla, Karen and Madison who helped sell merchandise. Crystal, Ashley, Elizabeth and Brook were awesome at working their way through the stands selling 50/50 and t-shirt raffle tickets. Thanks to the Jetmore ladies who raised $500 from the auction of their beautiful quilt. Thanks to the volunteers who opened the museum so the fans could learn about the history of Jetmore and see Steve’s memorabilia.

We appreciate the drivers who brought their cars to the courthouse and hung out with the fans. Thanks to Scott and Scottie at Racin’ Boys for allowing me to fill airtime and for helping us spread the word about the foundation.

Thanks to everyone who made the annual Steve King Day festivities a huge success! We appreciate the fans that support what we are doing for the racing community and in our hometown community. If you missed out on the remote control races you definitely want to be part of the action next year! We are already looking forward to next year.

We continue to pray for Jesse’s family and the Kinser family as Dana heals. As we pray for these families we are reminded that we cannot help them without your support.

This Sunday celebrate with Dad and join the 4th Annual Steve King Foundation Motorcycle “Fun Run” on Sunday morning. The ride starts and ends at 81 Speedway. Registration begins at 10:30 am and the ride leaves at 11:30 am. A night of racing action begins at 7:00 pm but get dad there early and treat him to a rib dinner for Father’s Day. Only $10 and all proceeds go to the foundation! Hop on your bike and let’s ride! See ya’ll in Wichita!

You can visit our website or find us on facebook to stay updated on what’s happening.

Danette

Steve King Day and Steve King Memorial Race

Join us this weekend for “Steve King Day” and two nights of ASCS action during the Steve King Memorial race in Jetmore, Kansas. The festivities will deliver something for everyone – from a quilt and car show, parade and golf tournament, to chapel service on Sunday morning. You can view the “Steve King Day” events and purchase race tickets in advance.

The monies raised this weekend will go towards the Steve King Fund. The fund was established for residents of our family’s home county, Hodgeman County Kansas. Funds are utilized to help students with living expenses while attending college and for families in need whether from health-related issues or, other difficult times, like as was the case a few years ago, the effects of tornados.

Donations will also be accepted for the foundation. The foundation has provided assistance to 6 families since the beginning of the season in response to 2 deaths and 4 injuries. We continue to help racing families heal with your support. One way you can support us is by purchasing our merchandise. We’ve just added hats and a new t-shirt design to our store. The hats come in 3 styles and 3 colors and t-shirts are available for men, women and children. The front of the shirt has Steve’s last three car designs; the back includes an adaptation of the Racer’s Prayer. Steve had a copy of the Racer’s Prayer taped to his dash when he died. I don’t believe it was this exact version but I know it was close. We thought it would be a nice way to remember him and raise funds at the same time.

We hope to see you this weekend!

Danette

The green flag has dropped

Wow! The offseason seemed to go by fast this year. Or was it that banquets, event planning and working on merchandise eliminated the down time all together? Yes, the green flag has dropped on the 2010 racing season. We pray that this will be a safe year for dirt track drivers. We look forward to a season of celebrations and hopefully – no tragedies.

We currently have seven events planned and continue to look for more ways to support our racing community. If you would like to host or organize a fundraising event please contact us. We are also always looking for volunteers (hint, hint!) to help at our events.

New t-shirts are now available!  Check them out here.  The front has Steve’s last three car designs, the back includes an adaptation of the Racer’s Prayer. Steve had a copy of the Racer’s Prayer taped to his dash when he died. I don’t believe it was this exact version but I know it was close. We thought it would be a nice way to remember him and raise funds for the foundation at the same time.

Besides the foundation events there is also a Steve King Sportsmanship Award. It was award by NCRA. This year’s very deserving winner was announced at NCRA’s banquet in February. Steve Cranston of Ness City received the award. Steve, first a fan, then a crew member, then a driver and now an owner, has been around the dirt tracks of Midwest for years and everyone who knows him knows he has a great love of the sport.  Congratulations Steve!

Outside of the foundation, the family has also established a Steve King Fund for residents of our home county, Hodgeman County Kansas. The fund is utilized to help students with living expenses while attending college and for families in need whether from health-related issues or, other difficult times, like as was the case a few years ago, the effects of tornados. Monies raised during the upcoming Steve King Memorial Race at Jetmore on May 29-30 will go to this fund. Come join us for these two days of ASCS racing. Make plans to come to Jetmore early on the 29th and be a part of the “Steve King Day” festivities in town. There is something for everyone from a quilt and car show to a golf tournament.  Our friend, Tony Bruce, Jr. is promoting the race, get information and order tickets here.

 And, mark your calendar for the Motorcyle Fun Run on June 20 in Park City, Kansas. This is a great event each year with a ton of fun both during the ride and at the races.

 Everyone – thanks for your support. Let’s have a good racing season!

 Danette

For many of us the race season has started to wind down. Our family is running the NCRA circuit and the one race left will determine who gets to take home the big trophy. Many other circuits are similar. Shortly after Halloween, the dirt track racing season will come to a close and everyone will start thinking about next year.

But before we hang up our race gear for the year, the foundation has one more fundraising event. One more push to put additional dollars in the coffers to help those who need it. Josh Howard, Greg Thywalt, Cletus Ricke and Tadd Holliman still need our support.

Help us help them and others facing their same situation by springing into action. How? You ask…. Let me count the ways!

1. Hit the course! Join us for some serious golfing fun at Buffalo Creek Golf Club  in Rockwall, Texas, on Oct. 15. This a prelude to the Winter Nationals held at Devil’s Bowl Speedway. Yes, you will get to see a few seriously good golfers (you might even be able to pick up some tips from Gary Wright or Brian Brown) but, for the most part we are all out there having a good time.

Even if you are not racing at Devil’s Bowl that weekend, think about coming a day early and joining us. You never know, you might be the lucky chap who hits a hole-in-one and takes a new roller home to start the season with next year!

2. Start your Christmas Shopping now! Good news, the foundation is hosting its first ever “End of Season” sale! Pick up great Steve King Foundation merchandise at rock bottom prices. No, this won’t be an annual event, so take advantage of it now!

3. Donate in someone’s honor! If you are like me you have folks on your Christmas list that are just impossible to shop for. Never fear – we have the answer this year. Simply make a donation in their honor and send us an e-mail stating that you have done this. Be sure to include their name and mailing address, and we will mail them a card from the foundation telling them how great you think they are. It’s easy – you make the donation and we handle everything else!

We so appreciate the support we get from the racing community – drivers, crew members and fans – especially the fans.
Thank you for helping us help race families heal.

Knoxville Nationals Recap

Wow!  We have just completed the foundation’s 3^rd trip to the Knoxville Nationals.  Unfortunately, with it, we also take a moment to realize that it was three short years ago that Steve raced right on into Heaven.  We miss him but are thankful for how the racing community has kept us in their embrace.

 Our race week started off with the Casey’s General Store Ultimate Challenge USAC race in Oskaloosa.  Terry McCarl and his wife, Lori put on this event.  They did a great job and the racing action was superb.  Thanks to a great announcing team, I don’t think anyone at the race went home wondering what the Steve King Foundation was!  The fans’ generosity was wonderful as we raised just over $500.  Thank you Terry and Lori for welcoming us to the Osky Challenge and helping us spread the word.

Next stop: the 49^th Annual Knoxville Nationals, where we set up just under the main grandstand in a great location. (Thanks Brian and Grant!)

This year we tried a little bit different format. Many drivers graciously offered to come by the booth to sign autographs and accept donations.  This was quite successful as we often had lines of fans waiting to get an autograph from Billy Alley, Joey Saldana, Shane Stewart, Daryn Pittman, Terry McCarl, Tony Brucer, Jr., Jason Meyers, Tim Shaffer and Jason Johnson.  Shane Carson and Doug Wolfgang also each spent an hour at the booth signing autographs, answering fans’ questions and telling great stories.  This format worked well and we hope to repeat it again next year.

Merchandise sales were down, which was the same for many vendors this year.  The good news is that we were able to raise awareness of the foundation, and hopefully this will lead to more online donations. (We also got some great ideas from fans on what we may want to offer as merchandise in the future.)

Without a doubt, the most rewarding part of the trip was getting the pleasure of talking to several families who had received assistance from the foundation.  All were extremely grateful for the help they had received from the racing community. It is the fans that make that happen; the foundation is merely the conduit.

I’d like to also give a great big special thank you to the following individuals who worked tirelessly…no, really way beyond that, to help make this all come together.  Kristy Finely was a bull dog on the phones to get the driver’s scheduled for autographs – the scheduling was no easy feat.  Tammy Shearer of Atlanta, GA, and Michele Crabill and Heather Mihm of Jetmore helped work the booth in Knoxville and were awesome.  We couldn’t have done it without you!  Besides a sack of wet clothes from Saturday night’s downpour, we also took home some great t-shirts and a ton of memories.  Matthew and Mitchell – I don’t think we can tear down without you.  Thank you for all of your support and help!  We are already looking forward to next year.

Oh, one more thing:  Several folks have asked if Steve’s exhibit is still in the Sprint Car Museum in Knoxville. The exhibit, which includes his blue ethanol fire suit, shoes and one of the ethanol caps he wore now greets visitors as they enter the main part of the museum.  Along side it is information on the foundation.  The memorial marker installed in 2007 by friends near the pit gate in turn four is also in place. We added some orange flowers and a Kansas sunflower to it as we remembered our friend and brother.