News
Clint Bowyer and Carl Edwards to Compete in Support of Victory Junction
09.28.2009
SPRINT® STATELINE CHALLENGE SPARKS ON-TRACK
RIVALRY BETWEEN HOMETOWN FAVORITES
Clint Bowyer and Carl Edwards to Compete in Support of Victory Junction Camp
HUNTERSVILLE, N.C. ― SEPT. 26, 2009 ― Sprint today announced it will partner with NASCAR Sprint Cup Series™ drivers Clint Bowyer (Emporia, KS) and Carl Edwards (Columbia, MO) as they battle for home-turf bragging rights at Kansas Speedway in the Price Chopper 400 on Sunday, October 4, in the Sprint Stateline Challenge.
The Sprint Stateline Challenge, Bowyer and Edwards’ private race within a race, will determine what driver’s name dons a $100,000 check to the Victory Junction Camp (VJC), presented by Sprint. An additional $25,000 will be presented by Sprint on behalf of the runner-up. All proceeds from the Sprint Stateline Challenge will help fund construction efforts for the new Kansas City VJC location.
"We're thrilled to have both Clint Bowyer and Carl Edwards participate in the Sprint Stateline Challenge benefiting VJC locally, here in Kansas," said Steve Gaffney, director of sports and entertainment marketing for Sprint. "Sprint is proud of our ongoing relationship with VJC because of the incredible impact the organization has with the youth of America. Sprint employees now have added incentive to support Clint and Carl next weekend, but ultimately know that no matter what happens at Kansas Speedway, VJC will come out as the true winner."
With a contribution to VJC on the line, sparks are sure to fly between the two hometown favorites. Both Bowyer and Edwards are frequent volunteers of VJC, a camp which has provided a medically-sound camping environment for more than 10,000 seriously-ill children ages six to 16.
“We are thrilled to have Sprint’s ongoing support for our efforts to offer medically-safe, life-changing experiences to kids with chronic illnesses who live throughout the Midwest,” said Mike Lepore, president of Victory Junction Camp. “Our thanks also go out to Clint and Carl for their longstanding and consistent support of VJC.”
Heading into the Price Chopper 400, both drivers hold impressive track records at the 1.5-mile oval. Bowyer currently sits 15th in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series point standings, and while out of the Chase, Bowyer’s average finish at Kansas Speedway stands a competitive fourth-highest among active Sprint Cup Series drivers.
“I love racing at Kansas Speedway,” Bowyer said. “I’ve been pretty fortunate to have run well there over the last few years. Winning there would be incredible. I think every driver would like to win the Daytona 500 because of how big that race is and all the prestige that’s behind it, but a win at Kansas, for me, would be right up there, almost on the same level.”
Coming off last year’s career-best second-place finish at Kansas Speedway’s NASCAR Sprint Cup Series event, Edwards is hungry for his first Sprint Cup Series win at his home track. His one win at Kansas Speedway came in the 2004 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race.
“A win at Kansas Speedway, my home track, would be a huge victory for me,” Edwards said. “I used to drive by it on Interstate 70 and dream about racing there. That first Truck win in 2004 was one of the highlights of my racing career. Kansas is special because of the fans and the location being so close to home.”
Since Victory Junction Camp’s 2004 opening, Sprint continues to support VJC as one of the original Founding Sponsors. On May 13, VJC hosted a ceremonial groundbreaking celebrating the beginning stages of construction for the second VJC in Kansas City, KS. Contributions from the Sprint Stateline Challenge will help fund the future Midwest VJC location.
About Victory Junction
Victory Junction is a year-round camping environment for children, ages six to 16, with chronic medical conditions or serious illnesses. Founded by Kyle and Pattie Petty in honor of their son Adam, the camp is located in Randleman, N.C. with a second location opening soon in Kansas City, Kan. Victory Junction offers programs for 24 disease groups and maintains strong relationships with 29 partner hospitals. Victory Junction’s mission is to provide life-changing camping experiences that are exciting, fun and empowering, in a safe and medically-sound environment. As a not-for-profit organization, the camp operates solely through the support of generous donors to provide this experience at no charge to children and their families. For more information, visit www.victoryjunction.org.
About Sprint Nextel
Sprint Nextel offers a comprehensive range of wireless and wireline communications services bringing the freedom of mobility to consumers, businesses and government users. Sprint Nextel is widely recognized for developing, engineering and deploying innovative technologies, including two wireless networks serving almost 49 million customers at the end of the second quarter of 2009; industry-leading mobile data services; instant national and international push-to-talk capabilities; and a global Tier 1 Internet backbone. The company’s customer-focused strategy has led to improved first call resolution and customer care satisfaction scores. For more information, visit www.sprint.com.
