August 30, 2009
By Kim Roberson
Kim Roberson
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If you are a NASCAR fan, then you know just how loyal your fellow fans can be. They are willing to support their driver, regardless of the circumstances, and proudly wear their team colors on their chests, backs, heads, arms and even feet.
But this weekend, the fans of one driver will be doing something no other fan base has done before: they are allowing him to drive.
Fan favorite and general funnyman Kenny Wallace drives the #28 U.S. Border Patrol Chevrolet in the NASCAR Nationwide series. However, this weekend, the teams are racing outside of U.S. borders, thus causing an issue with sponsorship.
Herman (or Herm the Worm, or the Hermanator), as he is called by friends and family alike, made note of this problem on his Facebook page a few months back, and asked the fans for leads on any potential sponsors that could help cover the team for one race north of the border. Without sponsorship, it was going to be difficult for the team to make the race at le Cirque Gilles Villeneuve.
When nothing panned out, someone suggested “How about we pay for the car?” and an idea was born.
Numbers were crunched, and it was decided if enough people pitched in $20, Jay Robinson Racing would be able to cover the cost of racing this weekend in Montreal. In exchange for their donation, those who pitched in would have their name put on the car, and would receive an autographed photo of Wallace standing with the car after the race.
About a month ago, Wallace announced via Facebook and KennyWallace.com that the goal had been met. 5,000 fans offered their support, and $100,000 was raised.
Wallace, who has never been known for his lack of words, was virtually speechless. “I couldn’t be more thankful or more humbled” he said.
Photo Stefano Facchin
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Keeping the theme of this being the “Fans Car”, he posted videos discussing the progress of the project, including walking around the car and talking to crew members as they placed the fan decals on the hood, rear deck lid, and TV panel. On the left side of the car, near the front tire, is a special seal containing the names of those who are not alive to see the car and support the driver, but were fans of Kenny and had family members that wanted to donate in their memory.
The 5,000 names represent people from 49 states (excluding Hawaii), Canada, India, Germany and the United Kingdom, and come from all walks of life (Wallace’s family is on there, including his parents, brothers, wife, and daughters, as well as several well known members of the NASCAR media, and fellow drivers Patrick Carpentier, Dale Earnhardt Junior, and Jimmie Johnson).
Pictures of the decals were put up on Kennywallace.com and Facebook, and fans hunted for their names. My friend Bobbie sent me the following e-mail upon locating her name: “Open link, Scroll down to New Hood 1** under the first big picture, When that opens put cursor on it and click once and it will automatically get bigger, Go to the very far right top of names and you'll see the name "Helen Monaco", Count down 9 lines to "Doris Nash Sanders" and go in 6 names. Now say "Cool!!!" or "Bitchin'!!!" Whoo Hoo!” In the first 24 hours that the decals were on the web, more than 17,000 people downloaded them to look for their names, or the names of friends and family.
As an added bonus, Kenny drew eight names from the list of those who added their name to the car and said they would be at the race, and those fans get to be down on pit road with Kenny and the car pre-race.
On Wednesday evening, Kenny posted the following on his Facebook page: “This is it! In the morning we fly to Montreal Canada…I want to say Thank You to my car owner Jay Robinson for rallying the Team for this Awesome Adventure! Our team feels good about "THE FANS" Support! What would it be like to see the stands empty! No one to witness our Success or Failure or Drama. You "THE FANS” witness our journey every week on the track…I have been lucky in life and I am Humbled. Thank You!”
Shockwave said they would design the car for Wallace, and Wallace told them he only had one pre-requisite (besides the names)…the car had to incorporate at least one of the following colors: red, yellow, orange, or blue. Red and yellow because his brother Rusty ran those colors back in his ASA days, and orange and blue because those were the colors his dad raced. In the end, Shockwave designed a red and yellow car with “Thank You Fans! The Hermanator” on the hood, silhouettes of cheering fans around the base, and, of course, the 5,000 names.
Team owner Jay Robinson says because of the fans generosity, the 28 team will be able to continue their efforts to get into the top 10 before the end of the season. “We have to offer our own special thanks to Kenny and the fans for putting the No. 28 Chevy in a great position (to) be fully prepared with a car capable of competing for the win.”
So the next time you wonder if a driver on the track really cares about his fans, or if the fans have the ability to impact their favorite driver with their support, just take a look at the smiling face of Kenny Wallace, and take a look at his car this weekend. Without the love and support of his fans, neither would be at the track, and the fact that the fans made their participation possible this weekend is the best kind of support a driver can ask for.
The thoughts and ideas expressed by this writer or any other writer on Insider Racing News, are not necessarily the views of the staff and/or management of IRN.
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