Craven returns 'home' for charity event

By MIKE LANGE, Correspondent

GREENVILLE — Why would anyone leave Florida in late January for a weekend of sub-freezing temperatures in Maine?

If you're NASCAR Winston Cup driver Ricky Craven, it's all for charity and a chance to come "home" for the weekend.

The driver of the PPI Motorsports Tide Pontiac will lead an estimated 450 participants in his sixth annual snowmobile ride Saturday, starting at Greenville High School.

With a good base of snow on the trails in the Moosehead Lake region and five years of successful rides in the past, anticipation is high for this year's event.

The route will be approximately the same as last year, although riders will be returning on the same path instead of riding back on the south side of Wilson Pond, according to event volunteer Wayne Shaw.

"We're going to Katahdin Iron (KI) Works by way of Scammon Road, Blue Ridge and Hedge Hog Gate," he said. "At KI, we're going to take a coffee break and give Ricky a chance to say hello to everyone. It worked out very well last year."

Five charities receive donations from the event: the Marrow Foundation, the international leader in the facilitation of unrelated marrow and blood stem cell transplantation; Children's Miracle Network, an international non-profit organization dedicated to helping 170 children's hospitals throughout North America; the Make-A-Wish Foundation, which grants the wishes of children with life-threatening illnesses; the Travis Roy Foundation, which helps with care and research for victims of paralysis; and Give Kids the World, a charity that allows children with life-threatening illnesses and their families to stay in a special village and enjoy the many central Florida theme parks and attractions.

"The response to the ride has been unbelievable from the beginning," said Craven between test runs at Daytona International Speedway. "The volunteers who donate their time and the people we've met over the years are just fabulous.

"I think Mainers are the most generous and caring people in the world," added Craven. "I may live in North Carolina most of the time because of what I do for a living, but we all consider Moosehead Lake our real home. We spent 17 days there in December just being a family."

Craven and his wife have owned a home and a small shopping mall in Greenville for about seven years.

The Travis Roy Foundation has a special significance to Craven because of his long friendship with Roy, who was paralyzed after an on-ice accident in the first few moments of his initial college hockey game. Travis Roy and his father, Lee, were on Craven's race team when the Maine driver competed on the American-Canadian Tour in the 1980s.

Craven's mother, Nancy, also said the response so far has been overwhelming.

"I have a feeling that we're going to set a new record for donations. We're really grateful to the people in Greenville, especially volunteers like Wayne (Shaw) and Ginger, the town employees, the school district —everyone," she said.

Major sponsors for this year's 60-mile snowmobile ride are Tide Racing, VIP Discount Auto Parts, Arctic Cat, Ricky Craven Motorsports North and New Hampshire International Speedway.

Last year the ride raised more than $114,000 in donations; and in the five-year history of the charity ride, Craven and his friends have donated more than $380,000 to these organizations. In addition, Craven and his wife donated $10,000 to the C.A. Dean Memorial Hospital Capital Campaign last year.

"Another thing I've noticed about this ride is that you see the same people coming back year after year, but many are bringing new people with them," said Craven. "I'm really looking forward to the 25th. Hey, from 19 miles-an-hour down here to 60 miles-an-hour up there? No problem," he laughed.

Saturday's events start at 7:30 a.m. with a breakfast at the school cafeteria. The ride begins at 9 a.m. and riders start returning for lunch around noon. An autograph session, drawings for door prizes and presentations to the representatives of the five charities take place afterwards.

More information can be obtained by contacting Ricky Craven Motorsports North at 338-0700 or log on to www.rcmnorth.com.

-January 23, 2003-