Imagine pulling up outside of school in this

nascar-ride-to-school-2For Daniel Bolen, riding the bus will never be the same.

Not after the middle schooler was dropped off at school last week by NASCAR driver Scott Lagasse Jr. in his No. 8 Boy Scouts of America Chevy.

Daniel, wearing a racing helmet that’s his to keep, strapped in as Lagasse zipped through the streets of Maitland, Fla., with a police escort on both sides.

When the car squealed to a halt in front of Orangewood Christian School and Daniel climbed out, it’s hard to guess which jaws dropped farther — Daniel’s classmates or the moms and dads in the carpool lane.

Dozens of Daniel’s 7th- and 8th-grade classmates surrounded the car as Lagasse posed for photos and signed autographs.

But the real star was Daniel, chosen by the Central Florida Council for his community service efforts in building an inner-city memorial to children who had lost their lives to violent crimes. Nice job, Daniel! 

 

The BSA No. 8 car at Daytona

Saturday’s Drive4COPD 300 NASCAR Nationwide, the first event of the season for the BSA NASCAR team, didn’t go as well as hoped for Lagasse and Team SLR. The BSA car finished second-to-last after a crash on Lap 7.

Let’s cross our fingers for a better result in the team’s next scheduled race, March 9 in Las Vegas.

Who’s paying for all this?

In past blog posts about BSA Racing, some commenters intimated that the Boy Scouts of America was investing heaps of its own money to support these cars. That’s not true. In fact, the program is a royalty-free arrangement, meaning that thanks to the generous support of Dale Coyne Racing, IndyCar, and Scott Lagasse Racing, there’s no cash investment from the BSA for either racing team.

Instead, in return for the support from those three groups, the BSA lists them as national sponsors in its promotional materials — that’s it. It’s the kind of relationship where everyone sees the checkered flag.


About Bryan Wendell 3282 Articles
Bryan Wendell, an Eagle Scout, is the founder of Bryan on Scouting and a contributing writer.