ROCKSTAR ENERGY DRINK CREW MAKES EMOTIONAL VISIT TO NYC FIREHOUSE
BROWNSBURG, Ind. (June 30, 2008) - Before the Englishtown, N.J., NHRA SuperNationals two weekends ago, members of the Rockstar Energy Drink Dodge Funny Car team made a random and emotional visit to a New York City firehouse and found a drag-racing fan among the firefighters.
Tim Waterman, Clarence Huizenga, Michael and Angela Lance and Ashley Yost (granddaughter of DSR crew chief Ed McCulloch) were enjoying the sights in New York City before the Englishtown event.
"We were just walking around the city," said Tim Waterman, whose responsibilities are the body and fuel on the car that Jerry Toliver drives in the NHRA POWERade Drag Racing Series. "I'm a volunteer firefighter at home, and Clarence used to do that. And we just thought we'd visit some of the firehouses. And we stopped at Rescue One (at 43rd St. between 10th and 11th Avenues) and we found out that one of the firefighters there works with the folks at the Bristol and Las Vegas tracks every once in a while on the NASCAR side. And he just welcomed us in and gave us a tour and talked to us about the guys that they lost during 9/11 and asked if we could put some stickers on the car and wear some hats in Englishtown.
"We saw him standing outside of the firehouse and we just started talking to him and we went from there. He told us he's been a drag-racing fan for the longest time, so he was excited that we were there to visit him.
"It was awesome. They welcomed us in like they knew us. It was definitely emotional for all of us when he started talking about 9/11, how many friends he lost and the guys from that station that they lost. We gladly put their decals on the window of the car for the Englishtown race."
"It was really an eye-opening experience for us to go to the firehouse and have them let us come in," said Huizenga, who is the assistant on clutch and tires. "They just pretty much opened the doors to us. It was kind of emotional for me because I had a buddy who died fire fighting. Not on 9/11, but it kind of brought stuff back home. We all loved the experience."
"It was a very special experience," said Lance, in charge of superchargers for the Rockstar Energy Drink team. "I had never been to a firehouse before. But just going there and seeing all the 9/11 remembrances and just seeing the camaraderie those guys have was very emotional for me. It's just like you see on TV. They're all having dinner together and it's pretty moving going through all of it. It was just a neat deal."
