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Parma Heights, Ohio (20 January 2012) – NHRA and the Quarter Mile Foundation has released additional information regarding Don Garlits 80th Birthday Charity “Rat Roast” to be held Saturday, February 11, 2012 the Vineyard Ballroom at the Sheraton Inn – Fairplex in Pomona, Calif.

The gala, which will be a highlight of the 52d Annual O’Reilly Auto Parts NHRA Winternationals, presented by Sure Start Batteries, the opening race weekend of the NHRA’s 2012 schedule.

Schedule
Reception (Cash bar) – 6 PM
Dinner – 7 PM
Roast program – 8 PM.

AUCTION: The event features both a silent and live auction of one-of-a-kind drag racing memorabilia. Smaller items will be in a silent auction, while larger items will be auctioned live by Bob Frey, who will be the night’s master of ceremonies. All items will be displayed during the reception, with silent auction bids placed at that time.

“Isky” joins panel!
Additionally, performance industry icon, and early Garlits sponsor, Ed Iskenderian has been added to the panel to put some “rub” on “Big Daddy.” “Isky” recognized Garlits’s performance and outspoken notoriety as highly useful during the “Cam Wars” advertising campaigns of the late 1950s and early 1960s, and made full use of Iskenderian Cams in Garlits’s wins as a major marketing weapon.
The Don Garlits 80th Birthday Charity “Rat Roast” is presented by the National Hot Rod Association to benefit the Quarter Mile Foundation.

TICKET INFORMATION: VIP Tables or persons paying by check, contact: Rachelle Litwin at NHRA at rlitwin@nhra.com or by calling (626) 250-2269; individual tickets can be purchased directly online at NHRA.com: https://tix.extremetix.com/Online/?siteID=2729&cartID=6d442b58-3b11-480d-90c3-333f503bd075&SalesRef=NHRATIX (secure link)

PHOTO CREDITS: NHRA

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GLENDORA, Calif. (Jan. 13, 2012) — Drag racing’s biggest birthday party is about to happen….and it will be BIG!

The greatest driver in NHRA history is celebrating his 80th birthday. And to mark the occasion, a special Don Garlits 80th birthday “Rat Roast” charity event will be held Saturday evening, Feb. 11 at the Sheraton Fairplex, during the weekend of the 52nd annual O’Reilly Auto Parts NHRA Winternationals presented by Super Start Batteries, Feb. 9-12 at historic Auto Club Raceway at Pomona.

The “Rat Roast” is being presented by NHRA, with proceeds to benefit the Quarter Mile Foundation, whose mission is to collect and archive the history of the sport of drag racing and related aspects of the high performance aftermarket. The Quarter Mile Foundation focuses on capturing the first person, oral histories of the greatest pioneers and legends of the sport.
“There is a need to preserve and archive the history of drag racing through video and the Quarter Mile Foundation has been working diligently the last eighteen months to put these pioneers on video,” said Traci Hrudka, chairman of the Quarter Mile Foundation. “Proceeds raised will further the production of the PROJECT 1320 documentary centering around the history of the sport as told in the words of the pioneers.”

The “Rat Roast” charity is sure to be a “can’t miss” event as the scheduled participants reads like a “Who’s Who” of drag racing’s past. Those scheduled to roast the legendary Garlits include Art Chrisman, Sid Waterman, “TV” Tommy Ivo, Ed Pink, Don “The Snake” Prudhomme, Carl Schiefer and Dave McClelland. The lineup of roasters is sure to bring out some never-heard stories and accounts of the early days of drag racing as well as many of “Big Daddy’s” most famous exploits.

The event will be held at the Sheraton Fairplex, on the Los Angeles County Fairgrounds, home to the O’Reilly Auto Parts NHRA Winternationals and include silent and live auctions including one-of-a-kind memorabilia items. Individual tickets for the Don Garlits 80th birthday “Rat Roast” are $80, with a limited number of 10-people VIP tables available for $2,500. To buy tables to the event, contact Rachelle Litwin at NHRA at rlitwin@nhra.com or call (626) 250-2269. For individual tickets, go to www.NHRATIX.com and click on the O’Reilly Auto Parts NHRA Winterationals ticket page and scroll down to the Special Don Garlits 80th birthday “Rat Roast” charity event.

The Quarter Mile Foundation is recognized as a 501(c) (3) not-for-profit educational charity organization and was formed in March, 2010. In that time, the foundation has captured Over 100 interviews and 120 hours of the sports pioneers on video telling the stories of drag racing’s humble beginnings and the creation of what is today one of the largest motorsports in the world.

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Parma Heights, Ohio (December 23, 2011) – Shortly after 2:00 PM on Saturday, December 3, Donald Costic’s phone rang. On the other end of the line was Mary Mondello, wife of the late Joe Mondello, who drew Costic’s name as the winner of the Quarter Mile Foundation’s Mondello “Vintage Rat” Raffle Engine at the World Products booth at the Performance Racing Industry Show.

Costic, of Cleveland, Ohio, is a local drag racer that races a 10-second 1962 Chevy Biscayne on the drag strips of northeast Ohio and western Pennsylvania, with his brother Rick.

Costic recalls the day he bought the winning ticket in early June at the “Gasser Reunion” weekend at Thompson (Ohio) Raceway Park. “We had a bad luck day with the race car. We blew the engine, and we were done for the weekend. One of my friends kept pestering me to take a chance, and I am really happy now that I listened to him!

“I was surprised when I got the call from Mrs. Mondello. However, with a one in 3500 chance, I felt I had a reasonable opportunity to win. My brother and I will most likely put the engine in our Biscayne. It appears the engine was built to be a race engine, so that’s probably where it will go.

“It’s a real honor to have this engine from Joe, who is considered such a true legend among racers and engine builders.”

Mary Mondello said, “The raffle drawing was somewhat of a bittersweet moment. It certainly brought all of the emotions rushing back, but we at the Mondello Technical Center who completed the task for Joe, are very pleased to know how much Mr. Costic appreciates this engine.

“I am very pleased we could provide this fund-raising effort for the Quarter Mile Foundation. The real unsung heroes were the companies who supplied the parts and pieces to make the whole deal happen, along with the guys in the shop.

“It was a true labor of love.”