Published: January 29, 2008 11:40 pm            

de la BASTIDE: Pettys give hope to ill children

They are planning a second Victory Junction Gang Camp

After Adam Petty died in 2000 following a crash at New Hampshire International Speedway during a practice session, his parents turned their grief into inspiration for thousands of children.

The idea for the Victory Junction Gang Camp came from Adam Petty. Following his tragic death his parents Kyle and Patti decided to make their son’s dream a reality and started talks with Paul Newman’s Hole in the Wall gang.

Kyle and Patti along with Richard and Linda Petty started the process that would become the Victory Junction Gang Camp which eventually opened in 2004 in Randleman, N.C., on property donated by “The King,” legendary NASCAR star Richard, who is Kyle’s father and Adam’s grandfather.

The support of the racing community toward construction of the North Carolina facility with donations from Kurt Busch, Jimmie Johnson, Jeff Gordon, Dale Earnhardt Jr., Lowe’s and Home Depot to name a few. One of the biggest contributors is Tony Stewart who has donated funds from his foundation and donated all the proceeds from the pay-per-view telecast of “The Dream” last year.

The camp has served more than 7,000 children between the ages of 5 and 17 free of charge. The camp serves children affected by 24 diseases and allows them to experience a camp like atmosphere including swimming, horseback riding, boating, a game room and computer lab.

Because of the overwhelming demand, Kyle and Patti Petty are making plans to open a second camp in the near future in the Kansas City area to serve children from the Midwest and West.

I can remember back in 1998 when Adam Petty made his first start with the American Speed Association at Peach State Speedway in Georgia. There were broad smiles across the faces of Kyle and grandfather Richard that night.

The Petty family attended as many ASA races as was possible. They never looked for the spotlight and were happy to mingle with the throngs of people gathered in the pit area before and after a race.

Adam Petty had a million dollar smile and didn’t come to ASA with a chip on his shoulder. He was friendly to all the other ASA competitors and officials and was there to learn his craft.

He won his first ASA race later that summer at the high-banked I-70 Speedway in Missouri, coming from two laps down to claim the victory. I can remember him calling Kyle from victory lane to share the good news that night. I can also remember him seated on the front straight wall signing autographs for at least an hour after the race.

The Petty family could have retreated into a shell and kept the memory of Adam to themselves. Instead the family has taken the memory of their son and turned it into hope for thousands of children and their parents.

Donations can be made by sending a check to: Victory Junction Gang Camp, 4500 Adam Petty Way, Randleman, N.C.

In other racing news

Car owner Chip Ganassi’s team for the third consecutive year captured the Rolex 24 hour race at Daytona International Speedway. Scott Pruett, Juan Pablo Montoya and Dario Franchitti were three of the drivers competing in the car.

This year’s Rolex 24 was the most competitive in the history of the endurance race with a record number of lead changes. There were still five Daytona Prototypes on the lead lap late in the race before mechanical problems resulted in a multiple lap victory for the Ganassi team.

The Daytona Prototype team that include Tonis Kazemets finished 24th after a brake rotor exploded after 65 laps while Justin Bell was at the wheel. Kokomo resident Jill Savage does the public relations work for Kazemets. Kazemets drove the first shift for the team and had advanced from the 19th starting spot to seventh when Bell took over the driving duties.

• Michigan’s Sean Murphy captured the 100-lap ASA Late Model feature on Sunday at USA International Speedway in Florida with Ohio driver Kris Stump finishing second. Ryan Lawler won the 200-lap super late model race, Kyle Busch finished fifth and David Stremme came home 18th in the race.

Ken de la Bastide may be reached at ken.delabastide@kokomotribune.com or (765) 454 -8580.

        

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