Ethanol Powered NASCAR in Spotlight at FPS 2011
Posted: September 6, 2011
There were quite a few race cars mixed in with the tractors and combines this year at the 2011 Farm Progress Show.
NASCAR team owner and former racer Richard Childress, pictured here with National Corn Growers Association vice president Garry Niemeyer of Illinois and Growth Energy CEO Tom Buis, was at FPS to talk about the partnership between the racing series and American Ethanol.
The agriculture connection is what made Richard want to be a part of the American Ethanol NASCAR partnership when the series started using a 15% ethanol blend this year, since he is a farmer himself. “I’m a huge supporter of everything we do in America, from our farmers to our military,” he said. “This country has to quit depending on so much foreign energy and resources. We gotta do better.”
He says that NASCAR has had no problems making the transition to 15% ethanol fuel and next year they will go to fuel injection. “The fuel injection and the American Ethanol is really going to work out great,” Richard says.
Listen to my interview with Richard here. Richard Childress and American Ethanol
Meanwhile, over at the Illinois Corn Growers exhibit, the Illinois Family Farmers NASCAR Nationwide Series driver Kenny Wallace was signing autographs and doing interviews. Kenny was blown away by the Farm Progress Show. “This is like our Daytona 500! I’ve never seen anything like it,” he said in an interview with Chuck Zimmerman.
Kenny is proud to be the Family Farmer American Ethanol spokesperson. “Farmers make me feel good,” he said. “Hundreds of farmers notice me, stop me or they come by booth 250 and they say thank you so much for putting up for us and that really humbles me,” he added.
The next big race for Kenny will be Chicagoland on September 17.
Listen to Chuck’s interview with Kenny here. NASCAR driver Kenny Wallace
2011 Farm Progress Show Photo Album
» American Ethanol Announces 2012 NASCAR Plans Corn Commentary Said,
January 23, 2012 @ 2:16 pm
[...] Wallace has already been a strong promoter of corn growers and ethanol during the 2011 NASCAR season. “I not only talk about American Ethanol, I truly believe in it,” Wallace said. “I’ve been to the farms, I’ve met the families, I’ve been to the ethanol plants, and I’ve been in the hallways of the U.S. Senate in Washington, D.C., in support of it.” (Listen to a prior interviews with both Wallace and Richard Childress from Farm Progress Show.) [...]