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Kids’ Takeovers at Race Tracks Highlight Three-Week Campaign
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (July 23, 2018) – Back-to-school can officially wait. For the next three weeks, the NASCAR® industry is bringing summertime racing fun to kids and families with the return of Kids Drive NASCAR, the sport announced Monday.
Beginning this weekend at Iowa Speedway and Pocono Raceway and culminating Aug. 12 at Michigan International Speedway, children attending NASCAR national series races will take over certain race event responsibilities usually reserved for adults.
NASCAR and participating tracks – which also include Watkins Glen International and Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course – will host children as honorary pit crew members, green-flag wavers, media reporters and national anthem singers, among other roles.
Families looking to get their kids in on the racing action can take advantage of free tickets for children 12 and under for all NASCAR Xfinity Series™ and NASCAR Camping World Truck Series™ race events, as well as discounted youth tickets to Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series™ events. Youth ticket information is available at NASCAR.com/kidstix.
“NASCAR is a sport for the entire family and there’s no better way to celebrate the summer together than at a NASCAR race track,” said Pete Jung, NASCAR vice president, brand marketing. “Kids Drive NASCAR is all about the next generation of fans and creating a NASCAR experience for kids and their families that they’ll never forget.”
NASCAR’s social media channels will share Kids Drive NASCAR content throughout the three weeks, including Kids vs. Driver Challenges where young fans go head-to-head with some of the sport’s top drivers. The videos will also be available to view on AccelerationNation.com.
Fans are encouraged to share pictures and videos of their families and children enjoying NASCAR races using #KidsDriveNASCAR.
Kids Drive NASCAR is part of the sport’s broader efforts to engage kids at the track, online and in the classroom. The NASCAR Acceleration Nation app is the first digital experience created just for kids featuring racing-themed games, activities and fun ways to learn more about NASCAR.
The app can be downloaded for free at the App Store and Google Play. In partnership with Scholastic, NASCAR also developed the industry’s first Science, Technology, Engineering & Math (STEM) in-school education program.
Last month, NASCAR announced the eNASCAR Ignite Series, the first youth esports racing series created to attract and identify young talent. The 12-week season, now underway, is hosted on iRacing and participants ages 13 to 16 can register on NASCAR.com/iRacing.
The Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series returns to Pocono Raceway for the Gander Outdoors 400 on Sunday, July 29 at 2:30 p.m. ET on NBCSN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio (channel 90) and MRN, with additional coverage on NASCAR.com.
A double-header on Saturday, July 28 begins with the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race at Pocono Raceway (1 p.m. ET; FS1, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio, and MRN) followed by the NASCAR Xfinity Series race at Iowa Speedway (5 p.m. ET; NBCSN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio and MRN).
Tickets to NASCAR national series events are available at NASCAR.com/tickets.