Fueling Your Dreams Makes An Impactful Impression In The Atlanta Area

The Fueling Your Dreams Tour stop in Atlanta was a resounding success. Through the enthusiastic participation from community parents, students, and opinion leaders, the impact of our efforts was very well received. The tour made three stops in the market that included a visit to Stonewall Tell Elementary, Langston Hughes High, and an Opinion Leader reception. At Stonewall Tell, the PTSA organized a Back To School Bash centered on STEM Initiatives. This event was open to Stonewall Tell Elementary students and parents, as well as the students and parents from the surrounding schools in their district. The energy of the participants at the Back To School Bash was electric. The organizers put together a well run event that allowed participants to freely experience all the assets there, which also allowed some parents to engage our staff and Edwin Walker (NASCAR) in conversation about the sport and opportunities within the sport that were relevant to them and their children. Hosted in a semi-private room of the restaurant, 2 Urban Licks, the Opinion Leaders event proved to be successful in sharing information with an engaged audience of professionals from various areas of industry. Dawn Harris and Edwin Walker presented the merits of the diversity initiatives currently enacted by NASCAR, as well as opened a line of communication to receive feedback from the participants in attendance. Many of the participants at the Opinion Leaders event enthusiastically attended their first live NASCAR race during the Nationwide Series event that following weekend. The last stop in the Atlanta market was at Langston Hughes High School. Our efforts at Langston Hughes served two purposes; entertainment and educational. The efforts were split between two separate sessions: while one group would experience the simulator and Toyota show car assets, another group participated in an informative discussion with Edwin Walker (NASCAR) and Ade Herbert (Rev Racing) about the opportunities available to them upon the start of their collegiate careers.

Rev Racing Celebrating 10 Year Anniversary with NASCAR Technical Institute at Greenville-Pickens Speedway

CONCORD, NC (August 30, 2012) Rev Racing’s K&N Pro Series East team will celebrate Labor Day Monday by saluting NASCAR Technical Institute’s 10 year anniversary at Greenville-Pickens Speedway. Featuring NASCAR Tech’s 10th anniversary celebration logo on the No. 2 Toyota Camry of Ryan Gifford in Monday’s Kevin Whitaker Chevrolet 140, General Manager, Derik Crotts said that this team is proud to support this valuable partner of Rev Racing. “Since 2011 NASCAR Technical Institute has been an integral part of Rev Racing’s success,” said Crotts. “Not only by producing top performing engines for our NASCAR K&N Pro Series East teams, but also supplying us with knowledgeable graduates who play key roles as members of our race team.” One decade ago, NASCAR Technical Institute — a branch of Universal Technical Institute — became the first exclusive educational partner of NASCAR. The 146,000-square-foot training facility located in Mooresville, N.C., opened in July 2002 as the first technical school of its kind to combine automotive training and a NASCAR-approved technologies curriculum into one program. The campus has received many awards including the 2010 NASCAR Diversity Affairs Award and 2010 Motorsports Industry Award from the North Carolina Motorsports Association. Since 2011, NASCAR Tech students have built engines for NASCAR Drive for Diversity and Rev Racing, producing a total of seven NASCAR K&N Pro Series East victories in 22 races. “We are fortunate to have such exceptional partnerships with NASCAR and teams like Rev Racing that offer our graduates opportunities to wake up every day and work in industries that they love and are passionate about,” said Jennifer Waber-Bergeron, campus president for NASCAR Technical Institute. Trying to make this team’s partner proud, Ryan Gifford, driver of the No. 2 Universal Technical Institute/NASCAR Technical Institute Toyota Camry, said that he hopes to feature this celebratory design in victory lane on Monday. “My team has been working hard this season and I believe this design might be just the good luck charm that we need for a strong finish in the Kevin Whitaker Chevrolet 140,” said Gifford. Gifford will join his Rev Racing teammates, Bryan Ortiz, Kyle Larson, and Jorge Arteaga in Monday’s, NASCAR K&N Pro Series East, Kevin Whitaker Chevrolet 140 at Greenville-Pickens Speedway. Media opportunities are available with all four drivers. The 10th Anniversary NASCAR Technical Institute logo will be featured on a Rev Racing NASCAR K&N Pro Series East Toyota Camry throughout the remainder of the 2012 season.

Vote For Mackena in Toyota Racing’s “Race For Awareness” T-Shirt Design Campaign

Concord, NC (August 24, 2012) Toyota Racing NASCAR drivers’ wives, girlfriends, sisters and moms have put their fashion expertise to work. As our own “Fashion Stars.”, they have designed T-shirts to help raise money for breast cancer awareness, and the one with the most votes wins. Rev Racing’s own, Mackena Bell, submitted a design which you can vote on here: http://www.toyotaracing.com/racing-for-awareness/shirts.html?TS5-Mackena-Bell When asked about her inspiration to participate in the campaign, Bell stated, “Since I started racing, I have always used the slogan ‘Don’t Stop Believing.’ A favorite Journey song of mine growing up, I have always ‘Believed’ that a female can make it in the world of NASCAR. Coincidently, having the last name BELL and being a third generation driver with the race number 11, the word came together for me perfectly. I even have it tattooed on my wrist, ‘Be11eve’! So when I was asked to help design a shirt, there was no question in my mind what my ‘word’ would be. And when the breast cancer ribbon created the perfect ‘L’, I knew it was meant to be!” Remember to Vote!

Top-10 Finish For Dylan Smith In 2012 Summer Shootout Series Finale at Charlotte Motor Speedway

CONCORD, NC (August 24, 2012) Rev Racing’s Dylan Smith capped off his first season in the Jack in the Box Summer Shootout Series, at Charlotte Motor Speedway, with a top-10 finish in the NOS Energy Legend Car Semi-Pro feature as well as a top-10 finish in the overall point standings on Tuesday night at Charlotte Motor Speedway. After receiving damage to the left front side of his legendary No. 34 during the opening heat race, Smith was forced to start the 20-lap feature race at the back of the field. Proving that the Max Siegel, Inc., Toyota and Langley Speedway No. 34 was one of the strongest in the 18 car field, Smith was able to move into the top-10 by the midpoint of this race. Continuing to push his way through the field, Smith was running in the top five before receiving a tap, causing the No. 34 to fall back to 10th with only eight laps remaining. Not letting this stop him, Smith drove back into the top-10 where he finished his final race of the season in ninth, leading to a top-10 finish in the Semi-Pro Division point standings. “We had a great car tonight,” said Smith. “We had some of the fastest practice times of the season on Monday night and this car just continued to improve thanks to my hard working crew chief, Ryan Salomon. I hope to compete with the same hard working team again next season.”

NASCAR Most Popular Driver Voting Begins Online – Fans Vote For Favorite Drivers In K&N Pro Series East

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (Aug. 17, 2012) – For the fifth consecutive year, fans can vote online for the Most Popular Driver of the Year Award in the NASCAR K&N Pro Series East (Twitter hashtag: #KNEast). The link to the 2012 NASCAR K&N Pro Series East Most Popular Driver ballot will be hosted on www.nascarhometracks.com. Fans may vote once per day and are encouraged to vote throughout the season. Voting continues through Nov. 18. Last year, Chase Elliott was voted by the fans as the Most Popular Driver in the NASCAR K&N Pro Series East. Voting for all regional touring series will be available on www.nascarhometracks.com. The winner will be honored at the NASCAR Night of Champions Awards on Saturday, Dec. 8 at the Charlotte Convention Center’s Crown Ballroom in the NASCAR Hall of Fame.

Pair of top-10’s In Twin 50’s

CONCORD, NC (August 14, 2012) Rev Racing’s NASCAR Whelen All-American Series drivers, Trey Gibson and Mackena Bell, continued a successful run in the twin 50-lap feature races at Hickory Motor Speedway on Saturday. Dodging rain drops throughout the day, Gibson and Bell were able to battle a slick race track for two top-10 starting positions in the first of the two 50-lap races. After the wave of the green flag, Gibson, driver of the No. 2 Lithium Pros Toyota Camry, was able to push his way to third. While teammate, Bell continued to battle an ill handling car without losing her eighth place starting position. Competing against a tight field, Gibson and Bell continued to hold their positions throughout this race, resulting in a third place finish for Gibson with Bell following in eighth. The second race of the night was plagued with issues for both Gibson and Bell. After fourth and seventh place starting positions, Bell was the first to experience a problem after blowing a left rear tire on lap two. After a quick trip to the pits for repairs to her No. 4 Toyota Racing Development Camry, Bell returned to the track without losing a lap. After several adjustments were made prior to the second race, Gibson also began to have trouble holding onto his No. 2 Camry when exiting off the corners, causing him to fall back to the fifth position after only 10 laps of this 50 lap race. Finding some grip in the final laps, Gibson battled back to fourth where he would remain until the final 10 laps. Unable to keep the throttle down on his No. 2 Lithium Pros Toyota Camry, Gibson fell back to sixth where he would cross the finish, with Bell following in seventh. “Despite dealing with some handling issues, it was a decent night with two top-10’s” said Gibson. “I am thankful to this team for their hard work tonight as well as my supportive sponsors. We will be back this weekend looking for a much stronger run.” “We made a lot of changes to the No. 4 Toyota Racing Development Camry on Saturday, which had me struggling a bit in the first race” said Bell. “Fortunately, I was back up to speed in the second race, but was forced to fight back due to a flat tire. So proud of my guys for working so hard and can’t wait to gain some ground this weekend.” Both drivers will have an opportunity to battle for the win in this Saturday night’s feature Advance Auto NASCAR Whelen All-American Series race, at Hickory Motor Speedway.

Exciting Double Duty Weekend for Rev Racing

CONCORD, NC (Aug 6, 2012) Taking the term road warriors to heart, Rev Racing ran in both the NASCAR K&N Pro Series East and West Pork Be Inspired 150, in Newton, IA, on Friday night and then traveled to Hickory, NC for a Saturday race in the NASCAR Whelen All-American Series. All this hard work leading to a top five finish in both races. Friday night’s Pork 150, at Iowa Speedway, started with Kyle Larson, driver of the No. 6 L&M Ethanol Maintenance Contracting Toyota Camry, rolling off in fifth with his teammate, Bryan Ortiz, close behind in his No. 4 Toyota/Toyota Racing Development Camry, in eighth. Rounding out the 36 car field were Rev Racing drivers Ryan Gifford in 16th and Jorge Arteaga in 24th. On lap 15, smoke began to appear from the rear of Gifford’s No. 2 Universal Technical Institute/NASCAR Technical Institute Toyota Camry. By lap 17, Gifford would have to take his car to the garage for engine repairs and would not return until lap 70. At the halfway break, on lap 75, Larson would lead the Rev Racing team of drivers in the fourth position overall, followed by Ortiz in 12th, Arteaga in 20th and Gifford in 35th. “The first half of the race I kind of just rode around searching for different lines that might help me in the second half,” said Larson. Larson found that his car ran best on the high groove and moved his L&M Ethanol Maintenance Contracting Camry into the lead on lap 132. On lap 135, a multi-car wreck in turn two would bring out a red flag situation and set the stage for an exciting finish. Before the restart, knowing there were only 15 cars on the lead lap and that he was running 14th, Ortiz brought his Camry in for a quick adjustment. “We had a great car in practice but I just couldn’t get it to handle during the race,” said Ortiz. “We tried everything but nothing seemed to work. It was a tough night but we’ll be ready for Greenville.” Teammate, Arteaga would be the only Rev Racing driver to benefit from the red flag by being the recipient of the “lucky dog” and finding himself on the lead lap, in 15th position, during the restart. “It was a very complicated first half of this race,” said Arteaga. “The team did a great job of making adjustments at the break and we were really good in the second half. I am happy with the results.” When the race restarted, Larson was hoping everyone fighting for position might bring out another caution. “My car would start to fall off after five or six laps, so I knew it was going to be tough to remain in front for so many laps,” added Larson. “ I was hoping there might be another caution but it didn’t go that way.” Corey LaJoie would pull ahead of Larson on lap 141 and take the win. Larson would come home in second and moved up to second in the NASCAR K&N Pro Series East point’s race, just 20 points out of first, with four races remaining. “While I would have liked to claim the win in the Pork Be Inspired 150, second isn’t bad at all when you consider all the bad luck we had at Columbus,” said Larson. Arteaga would claim the second best finish of the Rev Racing drivers in 11th position. Ortiz would finish the night in 14th position but only finds himself one point out of the top five in series standings. After a tough night, Gifford would bring home a 33rd place finish. It was well after midnight before the team finished the NASCAR post-race technical inspection at Iowa. After which the Rev Racing team would quickly load up their equipment and head to the airport for early morning flights back to North Carolina. There they would link up with their NASCAR Whelen All-American Series equipment, which was ready and waiting at Hickory Motor Speedway. Running on caffeine and adrenaline, the team arrived just in time for the first practice session. Drivers, Trey Gibson and Mackena Bell quickly showed that they were more than ready to race with both posting fast times and looking forward to qualifying. However, rain showers canceled the late model qualifying efforts and track points standings would determine the starting positions. After missing several races at this track, while supporting their teammates at previous K&N events, Gibson would line up fifth with Bell in ninth. On lap 6, Gibson and his No. 2 Lithium Pros Toyota Camry, would be involved in an incident going into turn two. While he was able to avoid any damage, NASCAR Officials would rule that Gibson intentionally turned the car in front of him sending Gibson to the rear of the 12 car field. “We haven’t been able to race for several weeks, so we were a little rusty at first,” said Gibson. “Fortunately, I had a great car, and it didn’t take us long to get back into the groove. I didn’t try to turn the 11, he just slowed in front of me and it was all I could do to keep from running over him and ruining both of our cars. Luckily, neither one of us had any damage. It was simply a racing incident.” Gibson would drive his car back through the field and would quickly be back in the fifth position. While gaining on the third and fourth place cars, Gibson remained in the fifth position when the checkered flag flew on lap 50. “It’s not the finish we wanted or expected but it was good to be back racing,” said Gibson. “I’m so proud of everything this entire organization did to get me and Mackena back here to race. This took a lot of effort on the part of everyone and shows how committed they are to seeing us succeed.” Bell, who started the night in ninth in her No.4 Toyota Racing Development Camry, would move up as high as seventh but would end the race in the same position she started. “We practiced and had everything set up to run the high groove,” said Bell. “ The rain cooled the track and meant that line just wasn’t there. So, even though the No. 4 Toyota Racing Development Camry car was fast, the handling just wasn’t what I needed to move up. It was fun to be back in the seat after so many weeks off though.” Rev Racing’s NASCAR Whelen All-American Series drivers will be back in action at Hickory Motor Speedway for the Twin-50’s on Saturday, August 11, with the NASCAR K&N Pro Series East drivers making their return to the track at Greenville-Pickens Speedway, in Greenville, SC, on Monday, September 3.

Rev Racing Ready For Return to Iowa Speedway

CONCORD, NC (August 2, 2012) After a rough night at Columbus Motor Speedway, Rev Racing is ready to show that they have what it takes to be competitive in their return visit to Iowa Speedway Friday night for the Pork Be Inspired 150 NASCAR K&N Pro Series East-West combination race. Following up on his top-10 finish earlier this season, title contender, Kyle Larson said that he is looking forward to returning to this .875-mile, banked asphalt oval. “We were quick at this track in the last combination race,” said Larson. “Although we lost some ground in the NASCAR K&N Pro Series East points battle in Columbus, I believe that this team has worked hard to bounce back and get the No. 6 L&M Ethanol Maintenance Contracting Camry ready for competition.” Continuing on his strong run at Columbus Motor Speedway, current Rookie of the Year points leader and teammate, Bryan Ortiz is geared up for another strong run at Iowa Speedway. “My No. 4 Toyota/ Toyota Racing Development Camry was strong here earlier this season until a late race incident caused me to fall out of the top five,” said Ortiz. “Fortunately, we have continued to gain ground this season and I feel very positive about Friday night’s race.” Larson and Ortiz will join their NASCAR K&N Pro Series East teammates, Ryan Gifford and Jorge Arteaga in the lineup for the Pork Be Inspired 150 on Friday night, August 3.

Endurance Pays Off for Rev Racing’s Dylan Smith In Summer Shootout Series

CONCORD, NC (August 1, 2012) Enduring every challenge in his way, Rev Racing’s Dylan Smith brought home a sixth place finish in the Jack in the Box Summer Shootout Series, NOS Energy Legend Car Semi-Pro feature, on Tuesday night at Charlotte Motor Speedway. After losing control of his legendary No. 34 in the heat race, Smith lined up for the feature race in the 19th position. Enduring the next challenge of the night, Smith was involved in a five car pile up on lap six of this 13 lap race. Returning to the track in the 20th position, Smith continued to weave his way through the 24 car field before being spun again on lap 11. Proving that he had one of the best cars in the field, Smith continued to persevere and broke into the top-10 with just one lap remaining in this caution filled race. With the wave of the final green flag, Smith was able to drive his Max Siegel, Inc.,Toyota and Langley Speedway legendary No. 34 into the 6th position where he would cross the finishing stripe. “This team worked hard on this No.34 and I knew that it would be good. In fact, it was great!” exclaimed Smith. “I think my team proved it after this challenging race.” Smith will return to the track next Tuesday night for Round 8 of the Jack in the Box Summer Shootout Series at Charlotte Motor Speedway.