Notes & Quotes: INDYCAR Grand Prix at The Glen

Texas Floods: As of this writing, the homes of A.J. Foyt, his family and his crew have not been damaged by Hurricane Harvey with the exception of one crew member who did sustain some flooding. Both teams prepped the ABC Supply Chevrolets in the Foyt Racing facility in Speedway, Ind. this week which had been previously planned due to the northern swing in the schedule. Foyt and his son Larry could not get to their homes in Texas so they spent the week in Indianapolis prior to leaving for Watkins Glen.

Raising Awareness: AJ Foyt Racing and INDYCAR have combined efforts to engage the racing community in the relief effort for the victims of Hurricane Harvey. Starting Saturday, t-shirts with a logo featuring the hashtag #Race4Houston emblazoned on the state of Texas will be sold at Watkins Glen International in the Official INDYCAR Merchandise Tent. Drivers Carlos Munoz and Conor Daly will be signing merchandise at the tent from 1:15-1:45 on Saturday. The t-shirts can also be purchased online here.

The net proceeds will benefit the Hurricane Harvey Relief Fund which was established by Houston’s Mayor Turner in response to the many citizens and companies asking how they can help. The fund is being administered through the Greater Houston Community Foundation. Direct donations can also be made on the GHCF.org website.

To further raise awareness of the charity, AJ Foyt Racing is producing decals featuring the #Race4Houston logo which will be carried on their ABC Supply Chevrolets for the final two races of the season. Smaller decals will be made available to the Verizon IndyCar Series teams who wish to participate in the awareness campaign.

“We’re very appreciative of INDYCAR joining in with us to help our fellow Texans,” said Team President Larry Foyt. “The racing community truly is a family and when they get behind a cause, they can do great things. The devastation in southeast Texas is beyond comprehension but letting race fans know where they can donate money will help raise the much needed funds for those who have been hit so hard.”

A.J. Foyt on Hurricane Harvey: “It’s absolutely terrible what’s going on in Texas. I’m 82 years old and in my whole lifetime, I’ve never seen anything like this. I remember Hurricane Carla was bad but nothing like this. I just can’t believe the water is still so high. I’ve been very lucky because I had very little damage. So far none of my homes have gotten under water and I thank God for that. I just feel sorry for all the poor people who weren’t as fortunate. A lot of people are in a lot of trouble, and too many lives were lost. But Texas will come back from this. It’s going to take a long time and a lot of money, but we will rebuild. Texans are tough.”

Larry Foyt on Hurricane Harvey: “It’s been tough for all of us. It’s been stressful watching the images on television and all of us with our families at home. We had planned to come here anyway because of racing in St. Louis and then going onto Watkins Glen, so we all planned to work out of here. There was just no way for us to return home because the airports were closed. Thankfully, the majority of our guys had no damage and the families are fine. We did have one Houston shop-based person who has a little water in his home but he was home because he doesn’t travel so he was there to deal with it. We were very fortunate unlike many others. It’s been amazing to watch Texas show her true spirit as first responders, friends and neighbors have been risking their own lives to save others. My thoughts and prayers are with all my fellow Texans.”

In last week’s race at Gateway Motorsports Park, outside of St. Louis, Mo., Conor Daly (No. 4) finished fifth and Carlos Munoz (no. 14) finished ninth in the Bommarito Automotive Group 500. Following are their thoughts on the upcoming IndyCar Grand Prix at the Glen.

Carlos Munoz on Watkins Glen International: “Watkins Glen has become one of my favorite tracks even though I raced there for the first time last year. It should be really interesting after another weekend where we finished in the top-10 [in St. Louis]. I think the Chevrolet package is going to be really good at the Glen. We have to continue to progress and finish the season on a high level. Our goal is to keep digging to get more top-10 finishes."

Conor Daly on Watkins Glen International: “Obviously coming off St Louis we all are feeling good and I’m just excited to get back to work. Watkins Glen is one of the best tracks on the schedule and it provides some incredible speeds and racing action. The aim for the weekend is just to continue developing our car setup and finding speed one tenth of a second (or more!) at a time. Hopefully we can find ourselves in the top 5 again by the end of the weekend.”

Past Performance: Carlos Munoz and Conor Daly raced at Watkins Glen International for the first time in 2016. Munoz started 16th and finished 11th while Daly started 17th and finished fourth. The Foyt team’s best finish is second with Darren Manning in 2008.

ABC Supply national account J&B Installations, Inc., with its headquarters in Skaneateles Falls, N.Y., will be featured on Carlos Munoz’s No. 14 ABC Supply Chevrolet. Guests will receive the VIP treatment this weekend along with a Meet and Greet with Munoz.

L&W Supply, a subsidiary of ABC Supply, selected national account Gypsum Systems Interiors, headquartered in Farmington, N.Y., to be featured on Conor Daly’s No. 4 ABC Supply Chevrolet. Guests will receive the VIP treatment this weekend along with a Meet and Greet with Daly.

ABC Supply celebrates its 35th anniversary this year. The company was founded in 1982 by Ken and Diane Hendricks with just three stores. The company now has over 700 stores and topped $7 billion in sales in 2016. ABC Supply began sponsoring the AJ Foyt Racing team with the 2005 Indianapolis 500. The company has leveraged its involvement by entertaining over 84,000 associates and customers over the past 12 racing seasons. The company will entertain over 300 guests this weekend.

A.J. Foyt’s iconic career is honored in an extraordinary exhibit at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Museum. A.J. Foyt: A Legendary Exhibition presented by ABC Supply Co., Inc. runs through October 31. With additional support from Alfe Heat Treating and Chevrolet, the exhibit features nearly three dozen race cars that Foyt drove plus rare memorabilia from his personal collection.

The IndyCar Grand Prix at the Glen will be televised live on NBC Sports Network Sunday, September 3rd, starting at 1:00 pm EDT. The race will be broadcast live on Sirius XM radio on the following channels: Sirius 212, XM 209, and SXM 970.