The event was the culmination of a unique Team Chevy contest immediately following the drop of the checkered flag at the ’09 NASCAR Sprint Cup season finale. In celebration of Jimmie’s fourth consecutive NASCAR Sprint Cup championship, race fans were invited to personally congratulate Jimmie on the Team Chevy Facebook page with their own wishes of kudos and praise for his unprecedented achievement. Fans also entered the sweepstakes for a once-in-a-lifetime chance to personally hand-deliver all the messages face-to-face to the champ and his crew.
A life-long NASCAR fan, Richard and three friends were the guests of Team Chevy at a celebratory team luncheon at the Hendrick Motorsports complex, where he presented Jimmie with a bigger-than-life congratulatory card. Loaded with “Congratulations Jimmie” messages by 2,458 Team Chevy Facebook fans, the mammoth two-sided accordion-style card measured eight feet tall and 20 feet long!
“To get this huge card from all the Team Chevy fans is a great honor,” said Jimmie. “I was absolutely amazed at the size of it and the number of people who took the time to send a personal note to our No. 48 Lowe’s Chevy team. There are people from all over the country on the card.
“Thanks to Chevrolet for the promotion and the opportunity to be in touch with the fans and enjoy the support they give us. It was fun to meet Richard and his friends. Our fans are the best fans in the world and I always enjoy the opportunity to talk to them and share their enthusiasm for our team and our sport.
Jeff Chew, Marketing Manager of Chevy Racing also expressed praise to the fans. “We are thrilled with the number of NASCAR fans who used the Team Chevy Facebook page to congratulate Jimmie and the No. 48 crew. It was a great sweepstakes that increased our Facebook followers by more than 22,000 fans in just a few weeks. It is my pleasure on behalf of Team Chevy to congratulate Richard on winning the contest.”
Richard and his guests were treated to a behind the scenes tour of the entire Hendrick Motorsports shop as part of the winner’s package.
“I was a member of the Team Chevy page on Facebook and saw that you could send a congratulation note to Jimmie Johnson so I filled it out and sent it,” said Richard. “I didn’t realize it was a contest. I just wanted to say congratulations. I am a huge NASCAR fan, but I pull for all of Hendrick Motorsports because it is not just one team and one driver, it’s the whole organization.
“You don’t realize what the race teams have to do. You just go to the races and think they just show up at the track and race. But man, they are down here working all the time. Not only the stuff on the cars, but they have to do commercials for their sponsors and all the other things you don’t see at the race track.
“It was just awesome. Jimmie stood there and talked to us for about 15 minutes. He asked us questions and talked to us like any other guy would. Jimmie is just so down to earth. Meeting Jimmie, being able to see behind the scenes at Hendrick Motorsports, it was just like, WOW.”
Watch the Team Chevy Facebook page for more exciting contests and promotions.
- GM Racing Communications, Press Release