Flint, MI (Wednesday, March 3, 2021) - For the last two years, Racing for Miracles has held a charity event at Shepard’s Indoor Speedway in Owosso, MI. The event has been witness to fans and racers forming teams to compete in the facility’s go-karts and raise money for the Hurley Children’s Hospital of Flint, MI and raise awareness for the Children’s Miracle Network. However, due to the global pandemic and COVID-19 restrictions, the event has now been switched to a virtual format for this year.
The brainchild of the local racing charity are husband and wife duo, Sarah and Scott Quaal. Their involvement comes from a personal attachment to the Hurley Children’s Hospital facility. Sarah, who is a local nurse herself, acts as a coordinator with Hurley for the event.
“Hurley and their staff saved my brother’s life when he had seizures as a child,” Sarah said. “We felt it fitting to help them and the children there.”
Adding more information about the event, Sarah continued, “Since 2018, the racing community has raised $10,600 for the Hurley children. This year with the in-person event being cancelled we don’t want to forget about the Hurley kids. The money raised by Racing for Miracles goes to the Child Life Music Program throughout the pediatric unit. The music therapy not only lifts the spirits of the patients, but provides healing, and that is music to our ears.”
Utilizing the iRacing platform, competitors who submit a $20 entry fee via Paypal or Venmo to Sarah can compete in a 100 lap feature at the virtual New Smyrna Speedway that will pay $50 to the fast qualifier and $150 to the winner.
The event is coming up this Saturday, March 6th.
Mark Welch, the owner of Race1.us is hosting the event.
“I was happy to be a part of the 2020 race as both a t-shirt sponsor and a competitor. It only made sense to join forces for the virtual installment,” commented Welch.
The race will be broadcast live on Turn 3 Racing Network and will get started with practice at 7 p.m. with Qualifying to follow at 7:45. The top twenty qualifiers will be locked into the show with heat races and a last chance qualifier to be determined based on the number of entries. The 100 lap feature is scheduled to get the green at 8:30. All information on the race can be found on the Racing for Miracles event page and in the Discord channel.
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Story - Chuck Darling
Photo - Race 1