GILBERT RAMIREZ OF ODESSA, TEXAS, SELECTED AS SATURDAY'S NAPA AUTO PARTS HONORARY CREW MEMBER AT NHRA FALL NATIONALS
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<br><font color="Navy">"I was completely psyched and pumped up over this opportunity," said Ramirez.</font>
<P>ENNIS, Texas (Sept. 20, 2008) – Gilbert Ramirez, 30, from Odessa, Texas, was selected as the 20th NAPA AUTO PARTS Honorary Crew Member of the 2008 NHRA POWERade Drag Racing Series, and the first of two to earn the honor at the 23rd annual NHRA Fall Nationals at the Texas Motorplex, south of Dallas.
Due to the large number of NAPA AUTO PARTS stores in the Dallas area, this is the first time all season that two honorary crew members will be named at one event. The winner today was selected from an independently-owned store and Sunday's winner will be from a company-owned store.
Ramirez, a purchasing manager at Kelly Grimsley Auto Group in Odessa, is attending his first drag race today, accompanied by his wife Rosie. "I was completely psyched and pumped up over this opportunity," said Ramirez. "I had no idea what to expect. I've never won anything before and this was my first drag race and I was just thrilled to be here. I found out that I had won two weeks ago and I didn't believe the hype until we started receiving all the promotional information and the confirmations. My wife and I have been married five years and we've never been on a vacation together, so this was very exciting. I'm glad that I get to enjoy this with my wife. We had to drive about 350 miles to get here, but it has all been worth the effort."
As part of his crew-member duties, Ramirez escorted the NAPA AUTO PARTS Dodge Charger R/T Funny Car to the staging lanes in the team's Dodge Durango tow vehicle for the first round of qualifying today and also helped retrieve the car at the end of the track following driver Ron Capps' run. Ramirez had the chance to meet and speak with the entire NAPA AUTO PARTS Dodge Charger R/T Funny Car crew and received a NAPA team jersey. He also experienced an up-close-and-personal view of the NAPA crew as the team worked on the car and enjoyed a private tour of the team transporter and pit area. Ramirez was a special guest in the NAPA hospitality area throughout the day.
John Biernacki, wholesale manager for NAPA AUTO PARTS in the Dallas market, which includes 155 NAPA AUTO CARE Centers and 130 NAPA AUTO PARTS stores, explained how today's NAPA Honorary Crew Member was selected: "We did a promotion through all of our NAPA AUTO CARE Centers." he said. "We had two brackets, one for the company-owned stores and one for the independent NAPA customers. We started out with the top 16 in sales over a four-month period beginning in June and worked all the way down to the top two before we decided a winner. It's been a great promotion."
NAPA AUTO PARTS distribution centers at each NHRA event during the season have different criteria for choosing the persons who are potential NAPA AUTO PARTS Honorary Crew Members.
<p style="width:300px;float:left;font-weight:bold;padding-right:0px;">
<img src="http://www.nitromater.com/gallery/files/5/IMG_10761.jpg" alt="IMG_10761" />
<br><font color="Navy">"I was completely psyched and pumped up over this opportunity," said Ramirez.</font>
<P>ENNIS, Texas (Sept. 20, 2008) – Gilbert Ramirez, 30, from Odessa, Texas, was selected as the 20th NAPA AUTO PARTS Honorary Crew Member of the 2008 NHRA POWERade Drag Racing Series, and the first of two to earn the honor at the 23rd annual NHRA Fall Nationals at the Texas Motorplex, south of Dallas.
Due to the large number of NAPA AUTO PARTS stores in the Dallas area, this is the first time all season that two honorary crew members will be named at one event. The winner today was selected from an independently-owned store and Sunday's winner will be from a company-owned store.
Ramirez, a purchasing manager at Kelly Grimsley Auto Group in Odessa, is attending his first drag race today, accompanied by his wife Rosie. "I was completely psyched and pumped up over this opportunity," said Ramirez. "I had no idea what to expect. I've never won anything before and this was my first drag race and I was just thrilled to be here. I found out that I had won two weeks ago and I didn't believe the hype until we started receiving all the promotional information and the confirmations. My wife and I have been married five years and we've never been on a vacation together, so this was very exciting. I'm glad that I get to enjoy this with my wife. We had to drive about 350 miles to get here, but it has all been worth the effort."
As part of his crew-member duties, Ramirez escorted the NAPA AUTO PARTS Dodge Charger R/T Funny Car to the staging lanes in the team's Dodge Durango tow vehicle for the first round of qualifying today and also helped retrieve the car at the end of the track following driver Ron Capps' run. Ramirez had the chance to meet and speak with the entire NAPA AUTO PARTS Dodge Charger R/T Funny Car crew and received a NAPA team jersey. He also experienced an up-close-and-personal view of the NAPA crew as the team worked on the car and enjoyed a private tour of the team transporter and pit area. Ramirez was a special guest in the NAPA hospitality area throughout the day.
John Biernacki, wholesale manager for NAPA AUTO PARTS in the Dallas market, which includes 155 NAPA AUTO CARE Centers and 130 NAPA AUTO PARTS stores, explained how today's NAPA Honorary Crew Member was selected: "We did a promotion through all of our NAPA AUTO CARE Centers." he said. "We had two brackets, one for the company-owned stores and one for the independent NAPA customers. We started out with the top 16 in sales over a four-month period beginning in June and worked all the way down to the top two before we decided a winner. It's been a great promotion."
NAPA AUTO PARTS distribution centers at each NHRA event during the season have different criteria for choosing the persons who are potential NAPA AUTO PARTS Honorary Crew Members.
