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The fans are making their voices heard. NASCAR is listening. And experts in the field of social media now rank NASCAR No. 1. When NASCAR formed a Fan Council for fan input and advice on important topics related to the sport, the last thing anyone expected was an award – let alone two awards. But in recent weeks, this unique “advisory board” of the sport’s most avid fans has earned national acclaim by winning the Forrester Groundswell Award in the Business-to-Consumer Listening category and the Vision Critical 2009 Panel of the Year Award.

“The outside attention is flattering, but we’re most happy about the inflow of smart and passionate input from a group of our most dedicated fans,” said Brian France, chairman and CEO of NASCAR. “NASCAR fans are known to be vocal about the sport they love. They want to be heard, and we want to hear them. The NASCAR Fan Council is turning out to be an extremely valuable platform that enables NASCAR to consider fan feedback in key decisions about the direction of the sport.”

NASCAR introduced the NASCAR Fan Council in 2008 to gain a better understanding of its fan base. In 2009, regular consultations with the council, an online community of 12,000 avid NASCAR fans, resulted in two important changes to the sport:

Double File Restarts, Shootout Style: When fan sentiment ran high for a new restart format – in which the leaders line up side-by-side following cautions to restart the race – NASCAR picked up the comments, validated and initiated a new double-file restart rule, to overwhelmingly positive reviews.

Earlier and consistent TV start times: When fans voiced their opinions about event start times, NASCAR listened and quantified sentiment, resulting in earlier and more uniform start times for NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races in 2010.
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The inaugural F1 ROCKS™ event will take place at the 2009 FORMULA 1 SINGTEL SINGAPORE GRAND PRIX later this year, with a star-studded music line-up headlined by global superstars the Black Eyed Peas and Beyonce. ‘F1 ROCKS™ Singapore with LG’ will span three days of the night-time race weekend, from September 24-26.

F1 ROCKS™ fuses the world’s most popular annual sporting series with the most iconic music stars to create an unrivalled experience for Formula One and music fans alike. At the core of F1 ROCKS™ is a series of spectacular multi-artist live music events from glamorous Formula One race locations around the world, of which Singapore will be the first.

Other artists confirmed for the concerts in Singapore’s Fort Canning Park are ZZ Top, Simple Minds, N*E*R*D and Chinese pop legend Jacky Cheung. Along with the two headliners, they have sold over 245 million records worldwide between them. The show will also feature guest appearances from top Formula One drivers and celebrities.

F1 ROCKS™ is set to be a global sensation and will be broadcast worldwide across a potential 188 Formula One territories. Two TV programmes will be produced from ‘F1 ROCKS™ Singapore with LG’; the first will be an hour-long entertainment show, giving viewers unrivalled access into the glamorous world of Formula One racing with A-List celebrity interviews, TV stunts, unique performances and aspirational and lifestyle features. The second will be a high-octane music special showcasing the best live music performances and interviews.

The full line-up for Singapore (other artists to be announced):
Thursday September 24 - Jacky Cheung, Da Mouth and Sodagreen
Friday September 25 - ZZ Top, Simple Minds and N*E*R*D
Saturday September 26 - Beyonce and Black Eyed Peas

Tickets go on sale on August 5 at www.f1rocks.com

Mobil 1, the world’s leading synthetic motor oil, is offering motorsports fans a chance to have 30 seconds of fame. The “Show Your Mobil 1” challenge invites racing fans to show the world how they feel about Mobil 1 and NASCAR by creating a commercial expressing the strong connection between NASCAR and the official motor oil of the motorsport. The winner gets to see his or her commercial on national television during a NASCAR event, and finalists speed away with hefty prizes as well.

Anyone with a video camera and a bit of creativity is encouraged to enter and take a shot at seeing their idea on television. There’s plenty to compete for – the grand-prize winner will be awarded a viewing party to celebrate the airing of the commercial, as well as an all-expenses-paid trip to a 2010 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race.

This contest is divided into two stages: the video uploading period and the voting period.

Stage 1:

* Beginning July 15, consumers can find out more information about the contest, including the rules and eligibility requirements, by visiting www.ShowYourMobil1.com. This site will offer video assets that are available to use and will also include a sample video.
* Between Aug. 1 – 31, applicants may upload their 30-second videos. To upload a video, a person must register on the site and agree to the terms of use. Once complete, the contestant will receive e-mail confirmation.
* During Sept. 1 – 13, a panel of judges will review eligible submissions and will select five finalists. All finalists will win a $1,000 Mobil 1-branded gift card.

Stage 2:

* From Sept. 14 – Nov. 15, voting begins on the five finalists’ video spots. Anyone who registers is able to vote. Consumers are encouraged to return daily to vote and, as a result, daily prize giveaways will be offered. Prizes will be awarded in a random drawing at the end of each day. There are five different daily prizes, which include $500 gift cards, stadium kits (backpack cooler and stadium seat), captain’s chairs, spectator cooler chairs, and auto deluxe kits (jumper cables, air gauge, emergency kit). Each person can only vote once a day.
* The video spot with the most consumer votes at the end of the contest wins. The grand-prize winner’s video will air on national television during a NASCAR event in 2010. The “Show Your Mobil 1” champion will also receive a trip for two to a NASCAR-sanctioned event in 2010, a flat-screen TV, and a viewing party catered for 15 friends to watch the spot air live. The winner will be announced in late November.

The 2009 NASCAR season marks the seventh consecutive year in which Mobil 1 is the Official Motor Oil of NASCAR, and the Mobil brand of lubricant products are the Official Lubricants of NASCAR.

Aston Martin, along with Nissan and Ferrari has opened its first dedicated merchandising outlet at the Nurburgring circuit. Located at the circuit’s “Grand Ring Boulevard”, the outlet measures 240 square meters in size and houses the entire Aston Martin Collection, including fashion items for men, ladies and children, accessories, luggage, luxury gifts and more.

Just like other auto brand stores, the Aston Martin Store Nurburgring also sells Aston Martin’s model cars made by Minichamps from Germany. The store opens daily from 10.00 am till 5.00 pm. Dr Ulrich Bez, Aston Martin Chief Executive said: “This great race track, that is so rich in history, is the perfect testing ground for our new cars and home to the Aston Martin Test Centre. It has also been the stage of numerous racing achievements in the past years, with our new V12 Vantage just being the most recent class winner at the 37th Nurburgring 24 Hours race 2009.”

“During every visit to the Nurburgring we have experienced tremendous support from fans who have shown a great affection for our brand. We hope that the opening of the Aston Martin store here at the Nurburgring will offer these supporters of our company a chance to get a little closer to the brand,” he added.

The best part of a crappy economy? Auto sports series recognizing this fact and offering up killer deals for fans to keep those butts in the seats! Catch the NHRA superstars in action at Bristol Dragway - for LESS than you might think:

NHRA fans in both Bristol and Charlotte now have the chance of a lifetime as Bristol Dragway and zMAX dragway have teamed up to off an amazing ticket package for $199. With the package, fans will get three-day tickets to the NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals at Bristol Dragway, May 15-17 as well as four-day tickets to the NHRA Nationals, Sept. 17-20 at zMAX Dragway in Charlotte. On top of the opportunity to attend two of the biggest races on the Full Throttle Drag Racing Series circuit, fans purchasing four tickets will be able to take laps at both Bristol Motor Speedway and Lowe’s Motor Speedway during each NHRA event weekend. And the first 100 fans to purchase the package will receive a free die-cast Funny Car. To purchase tickets for this special package, call Bristol Dragway at (423) 989-6900 or online at bristoldragway.com.

The best part about this “economic downturn” is that many tracks in the NASCAR circuit are seeing the benefit to lowering ticket prices and fan packages. Talladega already dropped ticket prices and rates for some of their tour packages earlier this year, and now they’ve taken it a step further, dropping their daily infield wristband prices 40%. Getting to Talladega just keeps getting easier and easier!

Race fans that want to experience the infield at Talladega Superspeedway will be able to do so at a 40% discount over previous years. The regularly priced $70 Sunday infield admissions have been reduced to $40 for the Aaron’s 499 on April 26th.

This is just one way that Talladega Superspeedway will be celebrating its 40th anniversary in 2009!

Now I think this is really awesome - what a way to get the fans a little more involved in Rally America racing than to offer a cool (well, literally - it’s in SNOW!) photo contest of the 2009 Season winter races? You can check out the entries and this year’s winners by visiting www.rally-america.com.

The Sno*Drift Rally always provides a beautiful backdrop for photographers to take amazing pictures of rally cars speeding through snow and occasionally blowing up a snow bank. This year, a number of fans participated in the Sno*Drift photo contest and captured a great set of photographs highlighting the best of the rally.

A judging panel took the top rated pictures voted by rally fans, and selected the best three from the grouping. Thank you to all who participated in the contest and thank you to Subiesport magazine, Drivingsports TV, and the Rally America Store for the prizes!

Straight from the legendary photo files of NHRA and National DRAGSTER, the National Hot Rod Association presents NHRA Drag Racing Photo Greats Volume 1: Wild Rides, the second in a collection of specialty books aimed at the NHRA Drag Racing fan.

NHRA fans can order the book, the first in a series of NHRA Drag Racing Photo Greats, exclusively online through Lulu.com, a leading online seller of print-on-demand books. The price is $22.95 plus shipping. A portion of the proceeds will benefit NHRA in the Community charities.

The first book produced by NHRA Publications, a biography of late NHRA founder Wally Parks, zoomed right into the top 25 of Lulu’s biography sellers and into the top 800 of the tens of thousands of books for sale at the popular site.

To order your copy of NHRA Drag Racing Photo Greats Volume 1: Wild Rides in softcover or Wally Parks: Hot Rodding’s Hero in softcover or new hardcover, visit NHRA’s Lulu.com storefront at www.NHRA.com/books. Lulu.com accepts online orders only. Phone or mail order is not available.

While there might be a lot to complain about in NASCAR these days, the fans - the true fans, the ones that have had the bug since they were sitting in diapers eating Moon Pies and drinking RC Cola out of their bottles - deserve a lot of respect. They stick with the series - and with their drivers and teams - through thick and thin. Here’s to the fans!

We really have a LOT to be thankful for in the 2008 season. No matter what racing series is your favorite, a lot of awesome things happened this year. Records were broken - a few were smashed - and a lot of new drivers came into the picture and changed the landscape of racing forever.

Sure, there were also a lot of changes too - and some of them hard to take. For some teams, the 2009 season will be a re-building year - for others, it’s a year of hope for change and 2nd chances. Despite all the ups and downs, the 2008 season was very successful for drivers, teams, fans and series producers alike. Gone are the by-gone fans who got into racing because it was “trendy” so yes, there will continue to be adjustments in the coming season. Hopefully that means a drop in ticket prices, more availability for “true” fans and more events and perks for season ticket holders.

So make your list - there’s a LOT to be thankful for and even MORE to look forward to in 2009!