CONNEAUT —
Conneaut’s lakefront will be the first stop for dozens of drivers involved in an eight-day road rally/scavenger hunt aimed at raising awareness for missing children.
Participants in the 2012 Fireball Run Northern Exposure will come to Township Park on Sunday for a perch lunch and their first chance to earn points in the 2,000-mile motoring event, said Wendy DuBey, Conneaut Area Chamber of Commerce executive director. People are encouraged to come to the park, welcome the drivers and then stay to examine some of their exotic machines.
Those same vehicles — ranging from a Lamborghini, DeLorean and Ferrari to a semi-truck and ambulance — will be cruising city streets as their occupants try to complete assigned missions. Behind the wheel will be several celebrities, including top women athletes.
“This is a once-in-a-lifetime event, and we hope the community will show their support,” DuBey said.
The Fireball run is an annual rally that meshes driving with fun contests along the route. This year’s version starts Sunday morning in Independence, and Township Park is the participants’ first designated stop. The finish line is Bangor, Me.
While in town, the teams will be treated to a perch lunch and given their first “mission.” The task is under wraps, but it will involve a hunt for an item unique to Conneaut, DuBey said. The town’s popular D-Day re-enactment will also be a factor, as the crews will meet a handful of GIs and “Gen. Dwight D. Eisenhower” at the park’s beach.
The teams won’t linger, DuBey said. Although the event isn’t a race, and speeding results in point penalties, the drivers will want to get back on the road as soon as possible. It’s believed the vehicles will start arriving around 11:15 a.m. and could depart soon after lunch.
The event is designed to promote the Race to Recover America’s Missing Children, and each of the crews will be promoting a child from their region. At Conneaut, posters of the children will be affixed to their parked vehicles and also placed on a big board to be erected at the park, DuBey said. To date, some 38 kids have been located through the Fireball Run program.
The entire rally will be featured on streaming video and Internet webisodes, and DuBey is counting on the city and its lakefront to get plenty of good exposure and publicity.
People are also needed to welcome the drivers as they approach the park. It’s believed the bulk of the teams will arrive via Interstate 90, then use Main and Mill streets to reach the park, DuBey said. For a closer look, sponsorship tickets that includes lunch with the teams are available for $50 at the chamber office at Main and Washington streets
Team members include elected officials, billionaires, business leaders and celebrities, including shuttle astronaut Jon McBride, artist Laurence Gartel and professional athletes Shea Holbrook (Grand Prix motor sports), Tarah Mikacich (wakeboard champion), Kelly Kaminski (rodeo), Tina Stull (drag racer) and Tina Scheer (lumberjack), according to a press release.
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