Feb. 21, 2011 (MILWAUKEE) – Entering its
fourth year, the OPTIMA Ultimate Street Car
Invitational, and everything that goes with
it, has become one of the most
highly-anticipated and widely-covered events
in the automotive performance world.
Participants get an automatic invite to
feature their car at the SEMA Show, compete
in the event and gain their 15 minutes of
fame through hundreds of print and online
articles, and the one-hour TV special filmed
around the event. OPTIMA Batteries, the
performance aftermarket company behind this
event, is announcing the first round of
events that will serve as qualifiers for the
2011 Street Car Invitational, where
participants in regional events can race
their way to Nevada for this
once-in-a-lifetime experience.
The OPTIMA Invitational planning committee
hopes these regional qualifying events will
increase diversity among vehicles, drivers
and enthusiast segments. These qualifiers
will also help uncover talented vehicle
builders and owners with the hottest street
machines in the country for this year’s
fourth annual OPTIMA Invitational. OPTIMA
plans to hold at least 12 qualifying events
in 2011 and the first seven, announced
today, include:
- Run to the Coast: February 26-27, 2011
- Run to the Shore: April 1-3, 2011
- Run to Music City: May 28-29, 2011
- Motor State Challenge: June 17-19, 2011
- Heidts Performance Car Challenge –
Midwest: July 15-17, 2011
- Holley LSFest II: September 9-11, 2011
- Run Through the Hills: September 23-25,
2011
“The OPTIMA Invitational is to exhibit not
only the vehicle performance and styling,
but also the enthusiast dedication and
passion within the aftermarket performance
automotive industry,” says Cam Douglass,
director of product development and
marketing for OPTIMA Batteries. “The
regional qualifiers are carefully chosen to
ensure each represents the spirit of the
event and will certainly widen the playing
field for 2011.”
Each regional qualifying event demonstrates
a format similar to the OPTIMA Ultimate
Street Car Invitational of which there is an
autocross; road course; braking and
acceleration; style and design competition
and road rally. Enthusiasts planning to
attend these OUSCI qualifiers can look for
various points of integration including the
OUSCI regional qualifier logo and onsite
signage at each event.
The 2010 regional qualifying events yielded
many strong Invitational competitors from
all over the world including Paul-Avrid
“Polly” Blytt of Norway with his ’86 Pontiac
TransAm, who won the Unlimited Division in
the 2010 Silver State Classic Challenge open
road race, with an average speed of just
over 183 mph. Brian Finch of Nashville
emerged victorious at several of last year’s
regional events with his ’72 Camaro and Rob
McGreggor from San Bernardino, California,
won the Good Guys event in Fort Worth,
Texas, with his '55 F-100 Pick-up, just to
name a few.
For more information on the qualifying
events, the OPTIMA Ultimate Street Car
Invitational and ways to get involved as a
participant, volunteer or sponsor, please
visit www.optimainvitational.com.
About OPTIMA® Batteries OPTIMA YellowTop,
RedTop and BlueTop batteries are available
through leading battery distributors
throughout the globe. Consumers should look
for the unique colored top and six-pack
design for which OPTIMA is known throughout
the world. For the nearest retailer,
consumers can also call 1-888-8OPTIMA
(1-888-867-8462) or visit
www.optimabatteries.com. OPTIMA batteries
are manufactured by Johnson Controls, Inc.
Johnson Controls (NYSE: JCI - News) is the
global leader that brings ingenuity to the
places where people live, work and travel.
By integrating technologies, products and
services, we create smart environments that
redefine the relationships between people
and their surroundings. Our team of 140,000
employees creates a more comfortable, safe
and sustainable world through our products
and services for more than 200 million
vehicles, 12 million homes and one million
commercial buildings. Our commitment to
sustainability drives our environmental
stewardship, good corporate citizenship in
our workplaces and communities, and the
products and services we provide to
customers. For additional information,
please visit http://www.johnsoncontrols.com.
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