Clarksville, TN – The 2011 Chevrolet Fireball Run Adventurally Southern Excursion made their scheduled stop in Clarksville, Tennessee, Thursday afternoon, and left out early on Friday morning on the final leg of their 2500 mile journey. The 2011 Chevrolet Fireball Run Adventurally began on September 24th on Florida’s Space Coast and concludes today in the Mississippi Gulf Coast. The 2011 locations included Melbourne and Jacksonville FL, Savannah, Atlanta and Peachtree City GA, Charleston, SC, Knoxville, Crossville and Clarksville TN, Scottsville, KY, Anniston AL, and Gulfport MS.
Participants this year included NASCAR legend Geoff Bodine, NASA Shuttle Astronaut Winston Scott, Actor/Activist Kevyn Major Howard along with 40 other teams driving everything from Bentley’s and Camaro’s. Of special note was the 9/11 Pentagon Car which commemorates the 9/11 attack on the Pentagon, it is inscribed with the names of the people who died on Flight 77; and the Officer Down car which honors the officers who swore to protect and serve, and did so even at the cost of their lives. Also participating was the DeLorean “Time Car” from Back to the Future, Transformers Bumblebee, and one of the police cars used in the Andy Griffith TV series.
The Fireball Run was filmed in 1080p HD video for theatrical release, which will debut on October 20th at the Orlando Film Festival.
In Clarksville, Tennessee crowds gathered on Public Square in Historic Downtown Clarksville to wait for their arrival, as the 46 teams visited significant locations throughout the city to complete a series of challenges prior to arriving at the finish line.
The Drivers made a stop at Beachaven Winery, where received instructions telling them what missions they had to accomplish in town, there the drivers were split into two groups.
The first group was sent to Clarksville’s Civil War site Fort Defiance, where they had to fire black powder muskets; from there that group was then sent to the Roxy Regional Theatre where the teams had to sing Sheryl Crow’s Grammy-award winning song All I Wanna Do which as filmed using the historic theatre as a backdrop.
The second group was sent to the beautiful Riverwalk that borders the Cumberland River, and the L&N Train Station where they had to get a photo with a local man who was dressed as a Davy Jones from the band the Monkees, in reference to their 1966 song Last Train to Clarksville which the residents of this city have claimed for their own.
The two groups then joined back up at the Customs House Museum where they had to undertake multiple missions exploring the rich history of our area.
Then the groups headed to public square for their final missions.
Some had to get photos of Greg Schlanger’s iconic Eternal Flame which has finally been re-lit after a long shutdown reportedly as a result of mechanical problems; another group had to get photos of the WWII Monument; while the third had to get photos at the fountain on Strawberry Alley.
Then it was time to check in, and visit for a time with area residents where as part of their mission, teams distributed fliers for missing children along with souvenir team trading cards. The fliers serve an important purpose which is to raise awareness of the Race to Recover America’s Missing Children. Each team are assigned a missing child from their hometown region. That image and likeness of that child is placed on the team’s vehicle. They are given 1,000 posters to distribute from one side of America to the other to aid in the recovery of America’s missing children. To date the Fireball Run has aided in the recovery of 37 missing children. “It’s not because we find them,” said Sanchez. “it’s because of all of the great folks from the media that descend on this event.”
The teams brought bags and bags of food to donate to Project F.U.E.L. an amazing Clarksville charity that helps to feed low income school age children on weekends and holidays. Over twelve hundred Clarksville-Montgomery County school children leave school on Friday, and many won’t have a solid meal again until they return to school where they benefit from USDA’s National School Breakfast and Lunch Programs. Project F.U.E.L. is the life’s mission of Denise Skidmore who was on hand to personally thank the teams for their donations.
The Rally’s visit to Clarksville drew people from across the country. People came into town from as far away as Georgia to visit with the participants.
“This was an excellent opportunity to welcome people into the community who really wanted to make a difference in the lives of our local children as well as children across the country,” said Clarksville-Montgomery County Convention and Visitors Bureau Director Theresa Harrington. “It also gave us the chance to promote the assets of our community to a new audience that we might not have reached in the past.”
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