Virginia native Dr. Ralph Stanley will serve as Grand Marshal of the upcoming Food City 250 at Bristol Motor Speedway on Friday, August 24, 2007.
Food City officials selected Stanley in part because of his strong ties to the region. "We are excited and honored to have such a well known community leader representing our company for the Food City 250. He is a tremendous asset to our area and I'm extremely proud to have him as our guest," commented Steven C. Smith, Food City president and chief executive officer.
Dr. Stanley was born in Dickenson County, Virginia, where he still resides today. After 55 years in the business, he is perhaps the best known banjo picker and tenor singer in all of bluegrass music. As a recording artist, he has performed on more than 170 albums, tapes and CDs. He's also written many songs by himself and with his brother, the late Carter Stanley.
Ralph has played throughout the United States and abroad, including several tours of Japan. In addition to the many honors he has received as a bluegrass musician, he is also a member of the Grand Ole Opry. He and his wife Jimmi Stanley are the proud parents of two daughters, Lisa and Tonya and one son, Ralph II.
This year marks the 15th anniversary of the Food City 250. Food City is Bristol Motor Speedway's longest running sponsor and the second longest in NASCAR motorsports. The company recently signed a contract extension with the speedway to take their sponsorship through 2010. This also marks the 20th anniversary of Food City's highly popular Food City Family Race Night events held annually each August in Sevierville, TN and Bristol, VA/TN. The Race Night events have contributed over $500,000 to numerous non-profit organizations.Headquartered in Abingdon, Virginia, K-VA-T Food Stores operates 94 retail food outlets throughout the tri-state regions of Southeast Kentucky, Southwest Virginia and Northeast Tennessee.
