Columnist Brian Hilderbrand: Busch lends hand in LV

Tuesday, March 2, 2004 | 9:34 a.m.

Brian Hilderbrand covers motor sports for the Las Vegas Sun. His motor sports notebook appears Friday. He can be reached at bh@lasvegassun.com or (702) 259-4089.

Kurt Busch moved from Las Vegas to North Carolina to pursue his NASCAR Nextel Cup career, but he isn't severing all of his ties to his hometown.

Busch, a Durango High graduate, announced Monday that he would join the local affiliate of a charitable organization that rebuilds and revitalizes low-income homes in the Las Vegas area.

Busch will serve on the local advisory board of the Rebuilding Together with Christmas in April Southern Nevada. Rebuilding Together, the nation's largest home revitalization and remodeling organization, renovates more than 8,000 homes and community centers nationwide each year.

"I've seen firsthand the faces of some of the people helped by Rebuilding Together, and spent time with some of those who volunteer their time and talents to support the organization's efforts," Busch said.

"There's so much work to be done in Las Vegas and throughout the country and I want to do my part to ensure low-income homeowners have warm, safe and dry places to live. By working with the Las Vegas affiliate, I can give back to the home community that's given me so much through the years."

The Las Vegas affiliate was founded in 1993 and has rehabilitated 850 homes during the past 10 years, including 306 homes last year. Busch was introduced to the program through Irwin Industrial Tool Company, a co-primary sponsor of his No. 97 Ford. Busch's car will sport the blue-and-yellow Irwin Tools paint scheme for Sunday's UAW-DaimlerChrysler 400 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

Rusty Wallace will sport a "Great Moments in Miller Racing" paint scheme this weekend on his No. 2 Penske Racing Miller Lite Dodge. The new graphics are being run in conjunction with a Miller Brewing Company promotion that honors Wallace and two-time NHRA Top Fuel champion Larry Dixon with a series of commemorative Miller Lite cans. ...

Joe Nemechek's No. 01 MB2 Motorsports Chevrolet will carry primary sponsorship from USG Sheetrock this weekend. Nemechek's usual primary sponsor, the U.S. Army, will be an associate sponsor on the car during the Las Vegas weekend.

For $150, fans can take a three-lap qualifying-style run with a RPDE instructor. A portion of the proceeds will go to the local chapter of Speedway Children's Charities.

The rides will be offered from 4-10 p.m. Saturday. Reservations can be made by calling 1-800-BE-PETTY or by visiting www.1800bepetty.com.