Schatz Family to be Honored on October 7th at Knoxville Nationals Wall of Champions
Thursday, September 7, 2006
2006 Knoxville Nationals-winning driver Donny Schatz and car owners Danny and Diane Schatz will be honored on Saturday, October 7, at 2:30 p.m. in a public ceremony at the Knoxville Nationals Wall of Champions on the Marion County Fairgrounds. The proud North Dakotans will be interviewed by Knoxville Raceway and Speed Channel announcer Tony Bokhoven, and they will be available for photo opportunities with their new championship wall plaque. The brick wall, honoring the sport of sprint car racing’s driver and owner national champions since 1961, is a joint project of the Knoxville Raceway and the National Sprint Car Hall of Fame & Museum, and was initiated by the Eddie Leavitt Memorial Fund in 2004.
According to museum director Tom Schmeh, “Donny’s victory this year at the SuperClean Knoxville Nationals was one of the more popular ones in recent memory, as sprint car fans in Knoxville and around the country realize just how much the Schatz family has contributed to the sport for so long. From Danny’s International Motor Contest Association (IMCA) driving days, to sponsoring National Sprint Car Hall of Famer Don Mack’s cars, to Donny winning the 1996 WISSOTA ‘360’ championship, to competing ultra-successfully on an international level and leading the World of Outlaws (WoO) point standings, and now winning the Knoxville Nationals, this family has more than paid its dues. So we’re very excited about honoring them and their many accomplishments, especially their $140,000 Knoxville National Championship victory, when they return to town on Saturday, October 7. Hopefully we’ll have a bright sunny day so they can bask in the warmth of the limelight for just a little bit before they go back to racing their Shaver-powered ParkerStores - Bellerud Trucking - Petro Travel Center - Blue Beacon Truck Wash-sponsored number 15 J&J sprinter that night on Knoxville’s legendary half-mile dirt track.”
The recognition ceremony and photo opportunity is free and open to the general public from 2:30 until 3 p.m. on Saturday, October 7. Parking for the ceremony will be in the National Sprint Car Museum lot, which is handicap accessible. The celebration will occur during the World of Outlaws (WoO) final visit to the Knoxville Raceway in 2006, which is being sponsored jointly by Budweiser and Mediacom. Knoxville's regular '360' division will also be in competition that evening.
The non-profit National Sprint Car Hall of Fame & Museum Foundation will be hosting its quarterly board of directors meeting earlier in the day on October 7, and then bestowing its final 2005 North American Sprint Car Poll awards later that evening to individuals such as J.V. Brotherton of Brodix, Doug Auld of Sprint Car & Midget magazine, Ralph “Cappy” Capitani of Knoxville Raceway, Chuck Merrill of Maxim Chassis, and Brian and Jeannie Butler of ButlerBuilt Seats.
Those seeking more information on the Knoxville Nationals Wall of Champions ceremony are urged to visit the track’s web site at www.knoxvilleraceway.com or the museum’s web-site at www.sprintcarhof.com.
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