|
Thursday
night in Indianapolis,
NASCAR Sprint Cup driver
Jamie McMurray was a
taxi driver, as he
participated in his
primary sponsor’s
program called The Crown
Royal “Safe Rides Home”
designated-driver
program. The cabs were
decorated in Crown Royal
colors and the No. 26
was painted on the
sides. Of course the car
make was Ford Fusion in
case you were wondering.
The only thing lacking
from the taxis was a
loud exhaust, staggered
tires and a crew chief
(Do me a favor and don’t
send me e-mails telling
me all the things that
are different between
the taxi and McMurray’s
race car).
“I really enjoy being a
part of the ‘Safe Rides
Home’ program each
year. When passengers
open the taxi door and
see me behind the wheel
they usually look very
surprised,” said
McMurray. “Some think
I’ll speed off down the
street, but once they
arrive home safely they
always thank Crown Royal
for the entire
experience.”
This marks the fourth
year that this program
took to the streets of
Indianapolis prior to
the NASCAR Sprint Cup
Series race weekend.
During that span, the
“Safe Rides Home”
program has provided
residents with hundreds
of free rides totaling
more than approximately
4,500 miles, 225 gallons
of gas and $10,000 in
taxi fees. Throughout
the years, Indianapolis
residents and bar owners
have commended Crown
Royal for offering this
service.
Now there were some
rules associated with
this program but it
still seems like a
pretty decent deal. If
you live within 20 miles
of the area the ride is
free. In order to
participate in the
program you had to be 21
years old. This
certainly makes sense.
Since NASCAR has allowed
‘hard liquor’ to be
sponsors one thing has
been very clear, and
that is encouraging
responsibility. Crown
Royal and the other
sponsors have this theme
prominently displayed on
all of their souvenirs
and by sponsoring this
program it is evident
that they are putting
their money where their
mouth is. In this day
and age of alcohol
awareness, the legal and
social ramifications of
alcohol abuse the
sponsors must continue
to get this message out.
You can
contact Ed at
coombse@speedwaymedia.com
The opinions expressed
on this site are not necessarily those of the publisher. All
comments other than website related problems need to be directed to
the author. Copyright 2000-2008 SpeedwayMedia.com.
More by
this author:
|
