Faith Buggy: Scientology, NASCAR share a ride
By Jenna Fryer
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
CHARLOTTE
Race fans, let the couch-jumping begin.
The Church of Scientology, the religion for which actor Tom Cruise crusades, will attempt to spread its "Ignite Your Potential" message into auto racing through sponsorship of a race car in one of NASCAR's lowest levels.
Kenton Gray, a 35-year-old Californian, will attempt to make the field for a late-model race tonight at Irwindale Speedway in California. His No. 27 Ford Taurus will be sponsored by Bridge Publications, which publishes Dianetics, the best-seller by Scientology founder L. Ron Hubbard."
The hood of the car will say "Dianetics" on it, along with a volcano to mimic the book cover.
Details of the sponsorship agreement are still sketchy.
A woman who answered the phone at Freedom Motorsports, the team that Gray founded, referred all calls to Bridge Publications. Danielle Methvin, a spokeswoman for Bridge Publications, did not immediately return a call for comment. And there was no word whether Cruise, who famously jumped on a couch during an Oprah Winfrey appearance last year, will be attending the race.
NASCAR, for now, has no issue with the sponsorship.
"The sponsorship at the weekly and regional touring level are made independent of NASCAR, unlike our three series on the national level," spokesman Jim Hunter said. "However, we would step in at any level if we deemed it to be in bad taste or bad for the sport. But in this case, we don't think it is."
According to Freedom Motorsports' Web site, Gray announced the five-year sponsorship deal on May 6.
"Dianetics is a book that helped me in many ways since I first read it many years ago," Gray said in a statement. "It helped me get better control over the obstacles I had to get through to reach goals I was passionate about. It is a great honor to have a sponsor relationship that's so directly related to my making it this far."
Scientology is not the first religion to make its way into racing.
Morgan Shepherd has competed the past few years in the No. 89 Victory in Jesus Racing Ministries car. NASCAR had to sign off on his paint scheme, and refused to let his first offering onto the track before finally agreeing to allow the message "Racing With Jesus" onto the hood of the car.
And in 2004, Bobby Labonte drove the season-opening Daytona 500 in a car that advertised Mel Gibson's movie The Passion of The Christ.
Still, NASCAR keeps a close eye on what it allows on its tracks. "When you get into philosophies and morals, that's a slippery slope," Hunter said. "But we do understand that NASCAR has broad national appeal, and we reach millions of people every week. Not all of our fans agree with some sponsorships, but they do understand that it is imperative for our cars to have sponsors in order to succeed.
"Obviously, philosophically, everyone has different opinions."
By Jenna Fryer
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
CHARLOTTE
Race fans, let the couch-jumping begin.
The Church of Scientology, the religion for which actor Tom Cruise crusades, will attempt to spread its "Ignite Your Potential" message into auto racing through sponsorship of a race car in one of NASCAR's lowest levels.
Kenton Gray, a 35-year-old Californian, will attempt to make the field for a late-model race tonight at Irwindale Speedway in California. His No. 27 Ford Taurus will be sponsored by Bridge Publications, which publishes Dianetics, the best-seller by Scientology founder L. Ron Hubbard."
The hood of the car will say "Dianetics" on it, along with a volcano to mimic the book cover.
Details of the sponsorship agreement are still sketchy.
A woman who answered the phone at Freedom Motorsports, the team that Gray founded, referred all calls to Bridge Publications. Danielle Methvin, a spokeswoman for Bridge Publications, did not immediately return a call for comment. And there was no word whether Cruise, who famously jumped on a couch during an Oprah Winfrey appearance last year, will be attending the race.
NASCAR, for now, has no issue with the sponsorship.
"The sponsorship at the weekly and regional touring level are made independent of NASCAR, unlike our three series on the national level," spokesman Jim Hunter said. "However, we would step in at any level if we deemed it to be in bad taste or bad for the sport. But in this case, we don't think it is."
According to Freedom Motorsports' Web site, Gray announced the five-year sponsorship deal on May 6.
"Dianetics is a book that helped me in many ways since I first read it many years ago," Gray said in a statement. "It helped me get better control over the obstacles I had to get through to reach goals I was passionate about. It is a great honor to have a sponsor relationship that's so directly related to my making it this far."
Scientology is not the first religion to make its way into racing.
Morgan Shepherd has competed the past few years in the No. 89 Victory in Jesus Racing Ministries car. NASCAR had to sign off on his paint scheme, and refused to let his first offering onto the track before finally agreeing to allow the message "Racing With Jesus" onto the hood of the car.
And in 2004, Bobby Labonte drove the season-opening Daytona 500 in a car that advertised Mel Gibson's movie The Passion of The Christ.
Still, NASCAR keeps a close eye on what it allows on its tracks. "When you get into philosophies and morals, that's a slippery slope," Hunter said. "But we do understand that NASCAR has broad national appeal, and we reach millions of people every week. Not all of our fans agree with some sponsorships, but they do understand that it is imperative for our cars to have sponsors in order to succeed.
"Obviously, philosophically, everyone has different opinions."
