PMRA/Q32 Sponsor Updates

Eastern Canada’s PMRA and Quick 32 Series continues to receive valued support for 2011…

NGK Returns –World leader in spark plugs to support both Series for 2011 season

One of the world leaders in spark plugs and related items is returning to both the Pro Modified Racing Association and the Quick 32 Sportsman Series in support of these two popular drag racing series.
 
“We are grateful for the involvement of NGK Spark Plugs,” said Bruce Mehlenbacher, Director of Operations for both the Quick 32 Sportsman Series and the PMRA. “They produce an excellent product, and are renown for their commitment to auto racing.”
 
NGK not only provides technical support for both race series, it also provides sponsorship for several PMRA and Quick 32 Sportsman Series teams.
 
Started in Japan in 1936, NGK has established itself not only as a major supplier of new automobile spark plugs, oxygen sensors and ignition wire sets, they are also a leader in motorsports around the globe. Along with its involvement in drag racing, NGK manufactures product for Formula One, NASCAR, and the Indy Racing League. The company has 15 manufacturing facilities around the world, including three in North America.
 
As one of the dominate companies in its field, NGK continues to work with racing sanctions and teams throughout the world of motorsport to develop state-of-the-art products for competition, including hands-on assistance with the PMRA, the Quick 32 Sportsman Series and their teams.
 
“Our involvement with both the PMRA and the Quick 32 Sportsman Series and their teams has been beneficial,” noted Sukhneet Mavi, Technical Service Coordinator with NGK Spark Plugs Canada Limited. “Both series have been good testimony to our products.”
 
“With its extensive and significant achievements in racing, we are proud to have NGK Spark Plugs as a part of our series,” said Mehlenbacher. “Their reputation is the best, and we are pleased they have returned for another season.”
 
Official Uniform Supplier Grows 
 
As the Quick 32 Sportsman Series and the Pro Modified Racing Association grow, so too does Big City Sportswear, www.bigcitysportswear.com, the preferred uniform and official merchandise supplier of both drag race series.
 
“We wanted to get involved with a company that was willing to work and develop with the series, and Big City Sportswear not only met but exceeded our expectations,” noted Bruce Mehlenbacher, Director of Operations for the PMRA and the Quick 32 Sportsman Series. “We got together with Big City Sportswear from the inception of this project, and are very pleased with the product provided to our series.”
 
Not only does Big City Sportswear provide uniforms for the officials of the racing series, a line of official series merchandise is available to the race fans at all PMRA and Quick 32 Sportsman Series race events.
 
Although relatively new, Big City Sportswear has established itself as one of the top names in sports-related apparel. It will be expanding its present 10,000-square foot facility in Rochester to a stand-alone, 15,000-square foot building early in 2011.
 
“We’re moving in the spring,” explained Big City Sportswear’s Joe Gizzi. “We’re going to a larger facility to better serve our customers.”
 
To date, most of Big City Sportswear’s work has been with sporting teams at the high school and college level, along with other sporting organizations, but its involvement with the PMRA and Quick 32 Sportsman Series has been its first foray into the motorsports world.
 
“We are proud of our work with the two series,” added Gizzi, a former drag racer who campaigned a Chevelle in the Rochester area. “The logos and embroidery worked out very well, and everyone is pleased with the results.”
 
Big City Sportswear provides a wide range of apparel for the PMRA and the Quick 32 Sportsman Series, including hats, shirts, hoodies, and coats, all manufactured in its state-of-the-art facility, which includes fully automated screen printing, a heat transfer machine, and a 54-inch Roland digital cutter/printer.
 
Big City Sportswear is a retailer of quality clothing lines such as Carhartt, Columbia, and Dickies.
 
“We are a stand-alone facility,” Gizzi noted. “We are serious about our work. We take it to the next level.
 
“We’re here to make sure the customer gets exactly what they want,” he continued. “People come to us with no idea what they want, and we work with them at all stages to develop a package for them that is a perfect fit.”
 
About the Pro Modified Racing Association (PMRA):
 
The Pro Modified Racing Association, www.PMRA.ca, was organized late in 2004, and the first race event was held in May of 2005. In 2011, the PMRA will provide the best in Pro Modified racing for its seventh consecutive season. 
 
Since its inception, the PMRA has grown in stature and popularity, and is one of the top Pro Mod series in North America, holding premier events throughout the race season to the delight of a solid race fan following.
 
The PMRA is a self-governing organization with input from its teams, and adheres to the technical and safety rules as outlined by the International Hot Rod Association (IHRA) and the National Hot Rod Association (NHRA). 
 
Cars in the PMRA are the ultimate hot rods. Pro Modified cars are one of drag racing’s most exciting and colorful classes, offering a diverse group of race cars with 2,500-horsepower-plus engines in supercharged, nitrous-powered, or turbocharged format.
 
With appealing and colorful classic body styles sitting on top of the most modern mechanical and safety equipment, constructors are permitted, within established rules and parameters, to modify and enhance the cars in both appearance and performance. The cars are fuelled by gasoline or methanol, propelling them down the quarter-mile in low six-second times at over 240 miles per hour, and several PMRA competitors have made the trip down the quarter mile in less than six seconds. The PMRA provides drag race fans the opportunity to see, hear, and experience the popular Pro Modifieds, known as “the world’s fastest door slammers”.
 
Several of the PMRA events are run in conjunction with the Quick 32 Sportsman Series presented by NAPA Auto Parts, www.Quick32.ca, offering fans a great show of drag racing.
 
About the Quick 32 Sportsman Series presented by NAPA Auto Parts:
Early in 2009 the Quick 32 Sportsman Series presented by NAPA Auto Parts, www.Quick32.ca, was instituted as an alternative for high-horsepower Sportsman-class teams to compete on a regular basis, and will begin its third season in 2011.
 
The Series is comprised of 32-car qualified fields of the 16 quickest open wheeled cars (Top Dragster) and the 16 quickest door cars (Top Sportsman), and presents the best in ET-style, dial-in drag racing, competing on a Sportsman ladder. After eliminations in both classes, the final Top Dragster entry and the final Top Sportsman entry pair off to determine the event Champion.
 
Competitors in this exciting Series must comply with the IHRA Top Dragster and Top Sportsman Safety rules and regulations, and the maximum dial-in will be 7.95 seconds for the quarter-mile.
 
The Series provides $3000 to win for each event and $5000 for the annual Championship Point Award Series Champion, payouts very popular with competitors and will provide large fields of race cars.
 
The Quick 32 Sportsman Series is committed in providing a professional atmosphere for its teams. It also provides solid media and logistic support, ensuring itself as one of the most popular drag race series running Top Sportsman and Top Dragster race cars.
 
The Quick 32 Sportsman Series presented by NAPA Auto Parts competes several times with the Pro Modified Racing Association (PMRA), www.PMRA.ca, as well as selected special events, offering fans a great show of drag racing.
 
For more information, please contact:
 
Bruce F. Mehlenbacher
Director of Operations
Telephone: (905) 772-1800 Ext. #22
Cellular: (905) 517-5345
 
Tim Miller
Media Director
Telephone: (905) 870-1456
E-mail: Tim@PMRA.ca