Driving home education’s importance

Heather Rawlyk

Saturday, April 3, 2004 | 6:56 a.m.

Over the last couple of days, local schools teamed up with one of the fastest-growing sports -- and hobbies -- in the nation to emphasize the importance of education and to try to help students find careers.

Hundreds of Las Vegas Valley high school and college students turned out in the drizzling rain Friday morning to participate in Career Education Day at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway, presented by the National Hot Rod Association and the U.S. Army.

Top Fuel driver Tony "The Sarge" Shumacher, who was in town for the fifth annual NHRA SummitRacing.com Nationals this weekend, was featured as a keynote speaker for the students.

Off the track, Schumacher takes part in the NHRA Youth and Education Services program, which the NHRA refers to as the YES program. It is motorsports' first and only full-time initiative assisting educators and students track a course to best help young adults meet their long-term career goals, according to spokesman Matt Minella.

"The program gives an introduction to motorsports while connecting drag racing's scientific, mathematical and social concepts to classroom subject matter," Minella said.

And Schumacher said, "It's exciting for me knowing that these kids will learn and benefit from our experiences and advice. Students participating in the YES program will understand that drag racing is not only a sport, but a launching pad for a multitude of careers."

With the support of the Army, this year's program drew more than 600 Las Vegas students to participate in the event Friday morning at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway. A smaller version of the event had taken place Thursday at Eldorado High School.

"We had confirmations from all of the schools prior to the event, and we were looking at over 1,000 students," said Andy Slate, event spokesman and account executive for Relay Sponsorship and Event Marketing. "Several schools didn't show up because of the rain. It's disappointing, but we still had a lot of students out here."

The rain prevented the afternoon of racing that so many of the students had been looking forward to, but the students did take their seats under several U.S. Army tents to listen to speakers as they discussed several career opportunities tied in with drag racing and the Army.

NHRA officials explained to students that there were several jobs in the racing industry, including public relations, broadcasting and marketing.

"A lot of people think that if you're not a racer then the only other job is to be a mechanic," said Slate. "But that's not true. We explain the different jobs to the students to broaden their options of careers in racing."

Chuck Huettinger, a sponsor relations manager who has worked with the team before, described the team aspect that goes on during a race, which relates to the theme "An Army of One."

"Individual soldiers work together to achieve one goal," he said.

Army Sgt. Ron Evans, a recruiter and racing mechanic, also talked about his military experience and how he has gotten to experience different things and visit places worldwide.

Evans explained that working as a mechanic for the Army allowed him to develop skills so when he left the Army he could work for a racing team or any other company he wanted.

"If you're not planning to go to college, what better place to get skills than the Army," he said.

The NHRA and U.S. Army started the YES program in 2001, Slate said.

The program is presented in conjunction with the 23 NHRA SummitRacing.com races nationwide.

"The program goes hand-in-hand with the races," Slate said. "The students come out in the morning before the races begin and listen to speakers. Then, they are free to stay and watch the races through the afternoon."

The YES program develops track-site and classroom programs for students K-12, said Minella.

While the rain kept students from seeing it in action, they were still provided an up-close look at Schumacher's U.S. Army-sponsored Top Fuel dragster and Army Hummer.

Students said they were amazed at the 25-foot, 6,000-horsepower Top Fuel dragster, capable of reaching 333 miles per hour.

"The dragster is so long that it needs another vehicle, a Hummer H2, just to bring it to the starting line," Slate explained.