|
| Tickets on sale for Charity Bus Race/Demolition Derby at New Smyrna Speedway | A fun-filled evening of racing and wrecking will be on tap next week, and all for a good cause. Tickets are on sale now for a popular annual fundraiser that features the smash-n-crash thrills of a demolition derby and area sheriffs battling for bragging rights in a thrilling, 15-lap school bus race. Now in its fifth year, the annual Battle of the Badges is set to go on Saturday, Oct. 14 at the New Smyrna Speedway. Proceeds from the event benefit the Florida Sheriffs Youth Ranches. “We’re extremely pleased at the way the community has gotten behind this event,” said Volusia County Sheriff Ben Johnson, who launched the charity fundraiser with the inaugural celebrity school bus race in 2002. “The event seems to get bigger and better every year. The Battle of the Badges is a fun and exciting way to support the Youth Ranches and ensure the continued availability of programs that serve the needs of vulnerable children throughout the state.”
This year’s fundraiser will feature its signature event, a 15-lap school bus race around the speedway’s ½-mile asphalt oval. Sheriff Johnson will take to the track along with other scheduled drivers, including Daytona Beach Police Chief Mike Chitwood, Seminole County Sheriff Don Eslinger, Flagler County Sheriff Don Fleming, Osceola County Sheriff Bob Hansell, Bay County Sheriff Frank McKeithen, Lake County Sheriff Chris Daniels and retired Lake County Sheriff Noel Griffin. Also on tap are two demolition derbies, a high-energy stunt show and a demonstration by the Volusia County Sheriff’s Office’s bomb squad, K-9 team and motorcycle unit. Free school bus rides around the track also will be offered to kids of all ages.
Since its inception, the annual event has raised more than $100,000 for the Youth Ranches. A charitable, non-profit corporation, Florida Sheriffs Youth Ranches provides a wide assortment of community-based residential care, family counseling, camping programs and foster care to neglected, abused and at-risk children throughout Florida. The statewide program includes a network of four residential child-care campuses and two youth camps for underprivileged children. Tickets for next Saturday’s event are $10 in advance and $15 at the gate. Kids under 12 are free. The gates will open at 6 p.m., with the racing scheduled to get under way at 7:30 p.m. Advance tickets are available at Sheriff’s Office locations in DeLand, Deltona, DeBary, Holly Hill and New Smyrna Beach. Tickets also are available at the Southeast Volusia Chamber of Commerce, New Smyrna Beach Visitors Center and the Flagler County Sheriff’s Office.
Have an opinion on
this story? Post a message on
our Message Board! or Email KARNACto send a letter to the editor!
|
