Racing Insurance
Soldiers can fix need for speed at Buck Baker Driving School 090717
PHOTO CAPTION: Driving the No. 8 U.S. Army car, Mark Martin holds off Jeff Gordon (24) in the first Gatorade 125 Mile Qualifying Race for the 2008 Daytona 500 at Daytona International Speedway. As a youngster, Gordon, a four-time NASCAR Sprint Cup Series champion, attended Buck Baker Driving School. Soldiers and Army Morale, Welfare and Recreation patrons can receive a discount to attend the school through the ITT/ITR offices. (Photo by Tim Hipps, FMWRC Public Affairs)
Soldiers can fix need for speed at Buck Baker Driving School 090717
By Tim Hipps
FMWRC Public Affairs
ALEXANDRIA, Va. – Army ITT/ITR offices are offering Soldiers a discount to fulfill their dreams of climbing behind the wheel of a stock car and zipping around a NASCAR track at the Buck Baker Driving School.
Soldiers and MWR-authorized patrons can push the pedal to the metal at Lowe’s Motor Speedway in Concord, N.C., Atlanta Motor Speedway in Hampton, Ga., North Carolina Speedway in Rockingham, Darlington “Too Tough To Tame” Raceway in South Carolina, or around the .533-mile bowl of Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway, home of “racin’ the way it ought’a be!”
The 23-stop tour began July 11 at Lowe’s Motor Speedway and concludes Dec. 12 in Darlington. Most of the classes begin at 8 a.m., with a handful of under-the-lights opportunities available at Lowe’s and one at Bristol on Oct. 24.
Depending on the level of instruction purchased, students can ride with an experienced driver, drive with an experienced co-pilot, or get turned loose for the drive of their life.
Student drivers have been clocked in excess of 160 miles per hour at Lowe’s and Atlanta, 150 at Darlington, 135 at “The Rock,” and 110 at Bristol, where fender banging and paint swapping is business as usual for drivers in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series.
Those tracks are close to several installations: Fort Bragg, N.C., Fort Benning, Ga., and Fort Campbell, Ky., among others.
Military discount rates range from .75 for a five-lap ride to ,079 for a three-day course in which drivers learn slingshot-passing maneuvers and other controlled exercises.
“Before I left Hawaii, I had to go swimming with the dolphins,” said Sgt. Danielle Colson, Department of the Army’s Better Opportunities for Single Soldiers representative. “Price wasn’t even a factor in that. I just knew I had to go swimming with the dolphins, and we went with the top package and had a blast. When people come back from Afghanistan or Iraq, they have a little bit of money saved up.
“I know they push ‘save, save, save,’ but at the same time, you want to do for yourself, too, when you come back. You’ve just been pent up over there. You want to get out and experience something, and here is a great opportunity to do something you’ve always wanted to do – feel the speed.”
In 1956 and ’57, Baker, who learned how to drive fast while bootlegging in the Carolinas, became the first driver to win back-to-back NASCAR Grand National Championships. He also finished runner-up in the Grand National standings in 1955 and ’58.
In 1946, Baker competed in NASCAR’s inaugural season. Six years later, he won his first race in Columbia, S.C. One season later, he took the checkered flag in the Southern 500 and was on his way to 46 victories and 45 poles in 635 career starts.
In 1979, he opened Buck Baker Racing School, which helped groom NASCAR stars Jeff Gordon, Ricky Craven, Jeff and Ward Burton, among others. In 1980, his son, Buddy Baker, won the Daytona 500. Buck Baker died on April 14, 2002, but his spirit remains strong at the family-operated school.
Students only need a valid driver’s license and the ability to operate a manual shift transmission. The need for speed is optional. Minors must be accompanied by a parent willing to sign an insurance waiver.
“The Soldiers coming back [from deployment] are looking for outlets,” Colson said. “They’ve been in that high-adrenaline area so they need an outlet in a safe environment. Rather than doing something stupid at top speeds on the highway, they could take out their anxiety, their stress and their built-up emotions on a track.”
The program is designed to instill the thrill of racing in everyone – from beginners to advanced racers. The school does not use pace cars, but does allow passing.
“We set up quality events that keep Soldiers in structured environments that are not reckless like going out and doing crazy, spur-of-the-moment stuff. Our events are planned out with risk-assessment type of activities,” Colson said. “This is not just a driving down I-95 at top speed with the pedal-to-the-metal type of thing. They’re not risking the lives of themselves or anyone else.”
Advanced students receive on-track instruction via racing radios at Buck Baker Racing School, the first of its kind to employ CD-ROM camera/data acquisition technology in every race car. The cars are 3,400-pound NASCAR Sprint Cup Chevrolet, Dodge and Ford race cars with 358 cubic-inch engines packing 600 horsepower – slightly less than a race-day setup but designed to last more than 500 miles. Instruction focuses more on driving technique than speed.
The school is aligned with the philosophy of Warrior Adventure Quest, another Army Family and Morale, Welfare and Recreation Command-backed program for Soldiers.
“We provide activities that let Soldiers, in a constructive manner, get that adrenaline rush,” said Josh Gwinn, director of Soldier programs at FMWRC. “We mitigate the risk through structure, instruction and safety devices versus getting on a motorcycle and going 120 miles per hour to get that rush in a very unconstructive manner, which can result in injury or death. A program like this would probably be a much better option.”
After all, Gwinn added, “street racing is an issue for the 18 to 25-year-old age-group, which is a big part of our force.”
While stationed at Fort Eustis, Va., Gwinn knew that Soldiers loved to race on a local go-kart track that sat “right across from the barracks.”
“It was a way for the guys to blow off some steam,” he said. “The karts had governors on them, but you could bump, and then you would go off into the dirt and the hay bales. It gave them something to do, it was constructive, and it maintained some control.
“It was better than running around town doing who knows what. It was a place for the guys to hang out, and it was competitive. They got out there racing each other and had a blast.”
For NASCAR-loving Soldiers, this could be an once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.
“How many guys would like to say: ‘I was going 160 miles per hour around Lowe’s Motor Speedway?’” Gwinn said. “Or while watching a race at Bristol, say: ‘I was in that corner. Yeah, I was there. I did that.’”
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Long Term Health Care is No Longer An Option
Fifteen to 20 years ago, no one really looked into Long Term Health Care as a requirement for retirement. We all figured we’d be on medicare, some independent health insurance plan to back that up, and some nice retirement fund stashed away; even if that meant under the mattress. But these days, more and more concern has been raised on quality health care and the ever rising costs for insurance. Your health insurance premiums may be going up, but the coverage isn’t. It does not, and most certainly probably never will, cover long term care; period!
Since the economy has caused many to shiver with the thought of retirement in the next five to ten years, the cost of long term health care is enough to send you quaking in your boots. Consider the average New York State retirement pension/profit sharing payout of about ,000 a year. Consider the amount of social security that you may wind up with; maybe ,000 a year? That combination may seem like enough to live on comfortably, but add in there the cost of health care should you or your spouse be seriously injured in an accident, had a heart attack or stroke, develop cancer or Alzheimer’s. The average cost per day for a live-in aide in your home through a reputable agency is approximately 5 a day. Oh, they charge time and a half for holidays too! And I can assure you, 2.50 per day is for more holidays than you were given off from work. After the initial 90 days of treatment even in a rehab-type facility, you are responsible for 80 percent of that cost per day. Even medicare won’t pay for all of it, if it falls under some acceptable rehab category. You’re still paying out of pocket.
It is strong, sound advice to start shopping around for long term care insurance premiums, while you are in your 50s. The premium is less per month, and you more than likely will be able to pass the requirements with flying colors. The longer you wait, the higher the monthly premiums. Let’s face it, insurance companies are looking to make a profit. But if you consider that you could use up well over 0,000 in a year on just health care, that’s a small price to pay out now.
This will also come down to supply and demand in the near future, as well. The more people look into and purchase long term care insurance, the more likely the insurance premiums will start to rise over the next 10 years. All those baby boomers with their hands in the insurance pot!
We were fortunate enough to have a strong support system for my mom, when my dad was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s. Mom didn’t work, so she could be home all day with dad. Thirteen very long years to fight an unending battle could have been a financial ruin, if we needed to get help from the onset of the symptoms. Our family friend was not so lucky. She didn’t have family; at least not any that wasn’t stealing her money.
The cost for home care is on top of all those other little bills each month too, i.e., food, medications, medical supplies & equipment, cable, phone, TV, Internet, gas, electric, oil, home repairs, landscaping/gardening, snow removal, household items, autos, home and auto insurance, life insurance premiums, etc. We easily were paying ,000 plus each month for just the cost of the aides. This went on for years.
Long term health care is not just for the elderly, it is for anyone at any age. Health care holds no discrimination for age, race, or religion. It’s just inevitable. Be prepared to spend your retirement investments wisely, before it’s too late.
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Racing Insurance
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Racing Insurance question by Angelique: What is the best company to get travel medical insurance through?
I am going to France through a study abroad program through my college. In order to apply for a visa, I need a letter from my medical insurance company stating that I will be covered in France, but I think it would be faster to get coverage through an international travel insurer. I’m racing against the clock. I’m searching on the web, but I have no idea what I’m doing really. . What companies are most reputable?
Racing Insurance best answer:
Answer by ChocoBN
Tourists go through Travel Guard and similar companies (check www.insuremytrip.com to compare plans) but as a student I don’t think you are responsible for getting your own insurance. The study abroad program should have you covered through their insurance. Have you asked them?
Otherwise it doesn’t take long for your insurance company to confirm that you are covered abroad if that is the case, they can fax you the letter. Just call them and ask them to.
