Striking Spotlight

Go Bowling and Stewart-Haas Racing Continue Partnership to Grow the No. 1 Participatory Sport in the World

Event Overview
• Event: Go Bowling at the Glen (Round 25 of 36)
• Time/Date: 3 p.m. EDT on Sunday, August 21
• Location: Watkins Glen (N.Y.) International
• Layout: Seven-turn, 2.45-mile road course
• Laps/Miles: 90 laps / 220.5 miles
• Stage Lengths: Stage 1: 20 laps / Stage 2: 20 laps / Final Stage: 50 laps
• TV/Radio: USA / MRN / SiriusXM NASCAR Radio
Notes of Interest
• Go Bowling, Stewart-Haas Racing, and Aric Almirola have teamed up yet again to present one of the largest bowling activations of the year – at one of the largest motorsports events of the year. Almirola will pilot a never-before-seen Go Bowling paint scheme on his No. 10 Ford Mustang and race for the win in the Go Bowling at The Glen at Watkins Glen (N.Y.) International on Sunday, August 21. While Almirola’s partnership with Go Bowling dates back to 2013, the partnership at Stewart-Haas Racing is stronger than ever with new activations and strategic campaigns to continue to drive NASCAR fans and bowlers to the No. 1 participatory sport in the world.
• Go Bowling America League: Go Bowling is using this national platform to raise top-of-mind awareness both locally and nationally for the sport.
o Go Bowling America Leagues are running nationally, where bowlers receive equipment and Go Bowling America-inspired jersey designs.
o Go Bowling at The Glen Bowling Leagues are being run in the Northeast, which provide participating bowlers with a Go Bowling NASCAR crew jersey, tickets to the race, and other VIP Race Day experiences.
• Race Weekend Activations: Race fans attending the Go Bowling at the Glen will have a full menu of Go Bowling activities to engage in at the Go Bowling Fan Experience Tent in the fan midway at the track.
o Fans can win a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to sit in the No. 10 team’s pit box during the Go Bowling at The Glen Cup Series race on Sunday.
o Fans can enter a national promotion to earn a special VIP Bowling Experience for a grand prize winner and a companion to Go Bowling with Aric Almirola and the PBA’s Kyle Troup.
o Fans can bowl FREE on regulation bowling lanes installed in the Go Bowling Fan Experience Tent for the entire race weekend.
• Celebrity Appearances:
o Fans will also enjoy celebrity appearances including Aric Almirola, Drew Blickensderfer, crew chief of the No. 10 Go Bowling Ford Mustang, PWBA competitor Stefanie Johnson, the PBA’s Anthony Simonsen, Motor Racing Network’s (MRN) Alex Hayden and Jeff Striegel, and many more.
o NASCAR Hall of Famer and MRN analyst Rusty Wallace will serve as the Grand Marshal of the Go Bowling at The Glen and will make an appearance at the Go Bowling Fan Tent on Sunday, August 21.
o Almirola was the only NASCAR Cup Series driver to finish in the top-10 in this year’s opening three races. He finished fifth in the season-opening Daytona 500 at Daytona (Fla.) International Speedway, sixth at Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, California, and sixth at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. Almirola’s top-10 streak ended with a 12th-place finish at Phoenix Raceway despite running inside the top-10 throughout the race.
• Aric Almirola Stats: In 10 NASCAR Cup Series starts at Watkins Glen, Almirola has five top-20 finishes with a best of 12th in the 2019 race. He has also competed in two NASCAR Xfinity Series races there with a best finish of fifth in the 2018 race while driving the No. 98 Go Bowling Ford. He also finished eighth in the 2011 Xfinity Series race.
o Almirola is a three-time NASCAR Cup Series winner with a career-best finish of fifth in the season-ending driver standings in 2018. He has secured his spot in the NASCAR playoffs each of the past four years and five times in all. In addition to his Cup Series success, the native of Tampa, Florida, has three Xfinity Series wins and two NASCAR Camping World Truck Series wins.
• Watkins Glen has hosted 38 NASCAR Cup Series races, with Buck Baker winning the inaugural event there in 1957. A total of 24 different drivers have won on the circuit, led by Stewart-Haas Racing co-owner and Hall of Famer Tony Stewart’s five wins, and fellow Hall of Famer Jeff Gordon’s four.
• NASCAR’s Go Bowling at The Glen race weekend kicks off Friday, Aug. 19, with the ARCA Menards Series race, followed by the NASCAR Xfinity Series race on Saturday, Aug. 20, and the featured event, the Go Bowling at The Glen NASCAR Cup Series race on Sunday, Aug. 21.
Aric Almirola, Driver of the No. 10 Go Bowling Ford Mustang for Stewart-Haas Racing:

As a family man, what does it mean to you to represent the sport of bowling on and off the racetrack?
“Well, bowling is a lifetime sport enjoyed by all ages. I love to bring my family bowling whenever we can. Whether you’re a casual or avid bowler, you can have fun on the same lane, rain or shine. Just like racing, it’s a family sport. My grandfather got me into racing and I wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for him introducing me to the sport, and the same goes for bowling. Bowling is a sport that a lot of people learn at a young age as a family and I love that aspect of the sport.”

You have been with Go Bowling since 2013 and have continued to grow the sport through racing. Why has it been so successful?
“It’s a mix of the hard work from everyone at Go Bowling, Strike Ten Entertainment and the race team, and the NASCAR fans being the perfect demographic to market to. NASCAR fans are the most sponsor-loyal fans in the world with American values and, in this case, the sponsorship is a sport that every single one of them can participate in. When you look at all of the creative activations Go Bowling does, like bringing the lanes to the racetrack, setting up appearances to talk to fans about racing and bowling, and the fun opportunities that are provided through sweepstakes, you see a heightened level of excitement at the lanes. Not to mention, the millions of fans at home watching the No. 10 Go Bowling Ford Mustang at the Go Bowling at The Glen. It’s a win for everyone – especially race fans.”

Have you enjoyed the road-course racing at Watkins Glen?
“Watkins Glen is one of my favorite road courses. It’s so flowy and fast and you get in such a rhythm going through the bus stop. It’s unlike anything we do anywhere else. It’s incredible to drive a racecar to its limits and go through that chicane at 120 to 130 miles per hour. I remember before I ever went and made a lap at Watkins Glen, I walked back there to the backstretch and stood and watched Cup practice before I went out in an Xfinity car. And I watched the Cup cars go through there and was like, ‘Whoa! You want me to do that? Like, I don’t know if I can do that.’ But it’s just an awesome place. It’s a really great racetrack. We have a great fan base there up in New York and it’s always a packed house.”

About Info
About Stewart-Haas Racing:
Stewart-Haas Racing is the title-winning NASCAR team co-owned by three-time NASCAR Cup Series champion Tony Stewart and Gene Haas, founder of Haas Automation – the largest CNC machine tool builder in North America. The Kannapolis, North Carolina-based organization has won two NASCAR Cup Series titles, one NASCAR Xfinity Series championship and more than 90 NASCAR races, including such crown-jewel events as the Daytona 500, Brickyard 400 and Southern 500. For more information, please visit us online at StewartHaasRacing.com and on social at Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, TikTok, YouTube and LinkedIn.

About GoBowling.com:
GoBowling.com is the destination for bowling fans and enthusiasts seeking news and information about one of America’s favorite pastimes and the nation’s number one participatory sport. With more than 67 million people taking to the lanes every year, GoBowling.com is a one-stop location where people of all ages can go to satisfy their love of bowling. Consumers turn to GoBowling.com every day to find bowling fun – discovering new bowling centers, tips and techniques to use on the lanes, entertaining bowling news and great deals at more than 2,000+ family-friendly bowling centers across the country.

About Strike Ten Entertainment:
Headquartered in Arlington, Texas, Strike Ten Entertainment is the centralized sponsor-activation and casual bowling marketing arm of the International Bowling Campus (IBC) which includes USBC and BPAA. Strike Ten Entertainment serves the entire IBC by coordinating the sponsorship sales and casual bowling marketing efforts. Strike Ten Entertainment’s mission is to increase national awareness of bowling and to assist the bowling industry in developing new bowlers and increasing the frequency of existing bowlers each year through promotions, publicity and industry-wide marketing initiatives. For additional information, please visit http://www.stemarketing.com.
-SHR-