July 22, 2007
By Kim Roberson

Kim Roberson

I had the pleasure of calling in late to work this week...all for the sake of charity. Not just the fact that going into work late is charitable for me (any time out of the office is a treat), but what I did to be late supported a charity I have become a huge fan of since I became a NASCAR fan four years ago: the Victory Junction Gang Camp.

The Chick-Fil-A, Kyle petty Charity Ride, came through Virginia on Tuesday and it was close enough to me for the first time that I decided to go check it out for myself. I arrived at the Sheetz gas station in Boyce, VA just after 8:30 that morning, and found the parking lot already packed with fans hoping to do the same thing I was. I ended up parking off on the side, in the grass, and trekked over to the convenience store and grabbed a healthy breakfast of Diet Dr. Pepper and a nutrigrain bar.

As I walked around, I noted I was the only one dressed for "city" work...my blouse and skirt seemed a bit more formal than much of the racing gear everyone around me was wearing.

I was jealous.

Not long after I arrived, a Kyle Petty charity ride pick up truck hauling a trailer arrived and opened shop. Inside were t-shirts and ball caps and jackets...a mini souvenir hauler for the ride. Very blatantly posted was the fact that all proceeds from items sold went to the camp. A line quickly formed, and we were told that the riders would be arriving with sharpies in hand, and would be looking to sign the official ride goodies when they arrived. I purchased a baseball cap, t-shirt, and had an official ride pin thrown in for good measure...all for $45. You can't get that kind of deal at the track, and well worth every penny.

Kyle Petty Meets With Press * Photo Kim Roberson

I put the t-shirt in my car, but placed the cap on my head and went over to stand with the other fans to wait. I encountered an older couple...the husband was not afraid to tell me that he was 65 years old and a big fan of the King. In all his years of being a fan, he had been to many races, but had never met his racing idol in person. This day was a dream come true, and he pulled out a picture of himself taken in May of 2006 next to a car from the Richard Petty driving experience. He planned to have the King sign that picture...and he was going to "put it in my truck and drive around with it so I could show folks I met the King". I think he asked his wife at least half a dozen times if the camera was ready so she could snap a picture when he actually met the King. I couldn't help but smile at how giddy he was.

The riders arrived around 10, and they were a force to be seen. The only time I have seen more motorcycles in one place was when I went to watch Rolling Thunder a few years ago. Sheetz had closed off their pumps and the bikes pulled in and tanked up with amazing speed. once they had their gas, the riders parked their bikes, climbed off, and headed in to get drinks, cool off, and socialize.

Sure enough, the King appeared, trademark hat on head, Sharpie in hand, and made his way down the long line of race fans that were kept at bay by red tape. The King signed, smiled, posed for pictures, and answered questions. Over on the other side of the crowd, his son Kyle Petty, started to sign as well, and then was pulled off to do media interviews. He then returned to the line, signed some more, then just before he reached me, he was pulled off for some photo ops. After the pictures were taken, he came right back to where he had left off and signed some more.

Most of the 250 people who pay money to ride with the Pettys are just like you and me. They aren't famous, just people with big hearts who like to ride motorcycles. Sure, Steve Park and Harry Gant and Burney Lamar and his wife Nikki Taylor and former NFL running back Herschel Walker were on hand to smile and sign; but as I walked, I noticed that just about everyone I passed was just an average "Joe" who was on the bike ride of a lifetime with a bunch of folks who loved to ride the back of their Harley or Victory or Indian or Honda and enjoy the countryside. All for one reason: to raise money for the Victory Junction Gang Camp.

All for the sake of a bunch of children who have found their lives interrupted by illness.

There is a lot that I love about NASCAR, but what fans and riders alike do for this camp, started out of the tragedy of the Petty family. One man handed Pattie Petty a trading card that was easily a decade old, and had a picture of Pattie, Kyle, Montgomery Lee and Austin on it. "I remember that picture!" Pattie said as she looked at the card. "Adam refused to be in it because we were wearing those shirts and he hated that shirt!" The irony of the family portrait minus Adam was not lost on those who were nearby, but Pattie smiled at the memory. She showed it to Montgomery Lee (whom she called Gummie) and the younger Petty let out a laugh. "Oh lord, look at Austin!" she chuckled. There was no sadness in the memory, just laughs.

The charity ride began long before Adam was killed, but it continues to help raise money for his legacy. The Victory Junction Gang Camp was his dream. His parents took their grief and made it into a reality. That reality brought a couple of hundred strangers together at a gas station at the intersection of two country roads, and for just under an hour, they mingled and mixed, fans and drivers, and enjoyed the opportunity to be out on a sunny Tuesday morning sharing their love of a sport, a family, and a cause.

The thoughts and ideas expressed by this writer or any other writer on Insider Racing News, are not necessarily the views of the staff and/or management of IRN.