Racing for the Kids at the All Children's Hospital!

The Sunday after Sebring, I attended the 4th Annual Patrick Long Pro-Am Kart Race to benefit All Children’s Hospital held at the Andersen RacePark in Palmetto, FL. So how did I get interested in this event? I heard of the event a couple of years ago, but I sort of put the idea on the back burner until January of this year. I was honored and shocked, when I received an email from the co-chairman of the event asking me to attend and write an article on the karting day. I was then put in touch with folks at All Children’s Hospital Foundation, and the rest is history.

While many International Motor Sports Association (IMSA) professional race car drivers were scheduled to appear, I researched the Foundation, received impressive amounts of details regarding the event, and chatted with the hard working people doing the event organization and was impressed with their level of commitment and knew I had to check it out for myself.

The first thing which impressed me was the number of drivers willing to volunteer their time on the Sunday after a long grueling 12 hour race at Sebring, FL. The karting event takes place at the Andersen Race Park approximately 1-1/2 hours from Sebring International Raceway. After watching a 12 hour race, all I wanted to do was sleep, so I can’t imagine how tired the drivers were. However, they were still willing to donate their time and needless to say, I have a new respect for all the drivers who participated in this event.

What did this event mean to the drivers who donated their time, racing items for auction, and also money? I asked the following drivers why they are volunteering for this event:

Patrick Lindsey, Driver #73 Park Place Motorsports Porsche 911, GTD class, TUDOR racing series: “Even though I am slower than rust in a go kart, I can’t wait to join in on the fun this Sunday at Kart4Kids. To be part of such a worthy cause and to watch as all the participants share in the fun of competition is very rewarding. This event has gained popularity and I’m excited to help push for another record breaking contribution!”

Trent Hindman, Driver #46 Fall-Line Motorsports BMW M3, GS class, Continental Tire SportsCar Challenge Series: “I was fortunate enough to be a part of Kart4kids event last year and it was an absolute blast and I'm very excited to be a part of it yet again! Not very often are you able to go wheel to wheel with guys like Patrick Long, Justin Wilson, Jordan Taylor, and plenty of other top US based drivers while raising money for a great cause such, as the All Children’s Hospital. Last year was great with the amount of funds raised and hopefully we’ll be able to continue the trend and set new records for the event in 2015!”

Martin Plowman, Driver #16 BAR1 Motorsports ORECA FLM09, Prototype Challenge (PC) class, TUDOR Racing series: “Raising money for kids charities and karting are two of my favorite things, so taking part in Patrick's Kart4Kids Pro-Am is one of my favorite events of the year. It's a great cause, plus it's a good excuse to have a lot of fun too!”

Shane Lewis, Driver of anything: “I get the chance to add awareness and help raise money to such an amazing Children's hospital. Add that to a fun day of kart racing with fellow divers, supported and fans, how could you spend a better day?”

Katherine Legge, Driver # 0 DeltaWing Prototype Class, TUDOR racing series: "It's great to be able to do something to help kids, that's the most important thing. To be able to raise money for the children's hospital and to do it in Dan Wheldon's name means a lot to all of us. And on its own, this is such an enjoyable event, Patrick has done a great job. All the drivers that come over from the 12-hour race have a good time, and after such a long weekend at Sebring, it's great to have something fun to do but also something that's really worthwhile. I had so much fun last year, I wouldn't miss it!"

The event has grown in attendance and participation over the years, however most important is the much needed funds for All Children’s Hospital. The first year the event raised $6,700, second year $14,000, third year $50,000 with this year topping the donate mark at $65,000!

While many people may allow their name to be attached to an event, I personally have never seen a “celebrity” work so hard with so much heart for a full day benefit. I have seen Patrick Long race for years and said hello when passing in the paddock, but honestly, never really knew much about him. On Sunday March 22, Patrick Long turned into my hero. Patrick Long greeted everyone, helped with comic relief at auction time, at one point I found him filling up the coolers with more water bottles. If it had to be done on Sunday, Patrick was willing to do it. When I spoke with the other drivers who gave up their day after racing at Sebring to do this event, the common response was, “Patrick asked me and that’s all I needed.”

The kart race itself was not to be believed. The drivers lined up “LeMans” style to run to their karts, starting with both feet still on the grassy side of the track grid. And many drivers were called out over this “toes over” violation! There was bumping, yelling, and yes…passing under yellow. While it was tough to know who was really leading, the scoring all changed when teams were allowed to buy laps up to the lead lap, for $100 a lap. After the checkered flag, and all was sorted out… Team Norman placed 3rd, Team Lewis placed 2nd with Team Taylor taking the top honors!

A big thank you goes out to the volunteers from All Children’s Hospital including Taylor Traviesa, Sylvia Ameen, Meghan Rodriguez, and Jordan Rothwell. Additional thank you’s to the Kart4Kids friends William Reilly, Andersen RacePark who hosted the event, and many others who donated event shirts, items for auction, and especially the band! Also, a special thank you to the person who started the whole kart rolling, David Bassett, who donated his mustache to All Children’s!

For more information, please check out the below websites and plan to join me in attending next year. The event has always been held the Sunday following Sebring at Andersen RacePark.

All Children’s Hospital is located in St. Petersburg, Florida www.allkids.org

The Karting event page kart4kids.com

Andersen RacePark www.andersenracepark.com/Home.aspx

#Kart4Kids #Charity #AllChildrensHospital #VickiesTracksideReport