Three very lucky fans get to experience Bristol Motor Speedway as few have Friday, Aug. 21, thanks to Ford's "Go To Bristol" ride-along promotion.
At the conclusion of qualifying for the Sharpie 500 Friday, Marty Sadler (Pineville, Ky.), Tiffany Hibbitts (Jonesborough, Tenn.) and Gerry Smith (Sod, W.Va.) will get to take a hot lap around the World's Fastest Half-Mile with Greg Biffle, Jamie McMurray and Bobby Labonte.
The ride-along promotion randomly pairs the three winners with one of the Ford drivers. The hot laps will be taken in a Richard Petty Driving Experience two-seater car and will be timed. The winners were selected from thousands of entrants at 38 dealerships in Northeast Tennessee, Southeastern Kentucky and West Virginia during a regional Ford dealers' contest.
The fan with the fastest hot lap will earn a grand prize that consists of usage of an on-site RV at BMS for the Sharpie 500 race weekend, an invitation to the NASCAR Sprint Cup drivers' meeting, the opportunity to participate in driver introductions Saturday prior to the start of the Sharpie 500, a unique award for winning the "pole," and the ability to upgrade their tickets to suite seats for the weekend.
All three contest winners receive two tickets to the Food City 250 Nationwide Series race Friday night and the sold-out Sharpie 500 Saturday evening, as well as pit passes, a personal driving suit and a parking pass.
Ten fans were chosen from the entries to wave the green flag during qualifying for the Sharpie 500 on Friday. They are Barbara Cook (Mullens, W.Va.), Tricia Mummey (Union, Ky.), Shawn Bennett (Richmond, Ky.), Gary Nedbalski (Olmsted Twp., Ohio), James Lee (Kingsport, Tenn.), Kristi Cochran (Friendsville, Tenn.), Kelly Curry (Proctorville, Ohio), Mark Grant (Lexington, Ky.), Jeff Tackett (New Boston, Ohio) and Debbie Teter (Monteville, W.Va.)
While the Sharpie 500 is sold out, tickets are still available for the Food City 250, starting at $45. They may be purchased at www.bristoltix.com or by calling the BMS ticket office at (423) 274-7865.
