Open-Wheels Staff
October 4, 2019 | 1:00 PM
Just 44 days separate us from the inaugural running of the Open-Wheels.com 500 Mile Race presented by Mitchell Transmissions – which means there are just 43 days until the “Day Before the 500” festivities kick off.
Today, Open-Wheels has officially signed Grant King Race Shops to be the presenting sponsor of the fun-filled day, which will be held November 16, 2019.
“I am extremely excited to tie together the sim racing world and the history of real-life open-wheel racing by bringing on Grant King Race Shops as our Day Before the 500 presenting sponsor,” said Tanner Watkins, owner and editor of Open-Wheels.com, as well as the president of the Open-Wheels.com 500 Mile Race.
“You would be hard-pressed to give a review of the Indianapolis 500’s golden years without mentioning Grant King, and the race shops that are being maintained in his honor continue to respect and educate generations about those historical years in open-wheel racing.”
Built in 1970, Grant King Race Shops are the actual shops legendary open-wheel car builder and fabricator Grant King used to create his famous cars. Grant King Race Shops is a working museum, where vintage racing cars and engines are restored, and has the facilities to fabricate just about anything.
The non-work areas of the Shops are covered with many vintage open-wheel cars, including the last Indy car Grant King ever built, as well as the last Sprint, Midget and Sprint/Roadster he ever built. You can also see the Vogler “family car,” a midget King made for Rich Vogler.
For Grant King Race Shops owners Bill and Stephanie Throckmorton, partnering with Open-Wheels and the inaugural 500 Mile Race puts the good work of the museum in front of a new and engaging audience.
“We are new to Sim Racing, but are looking forward to sponsoring Tanner’s Day Before the 500,” said co-owner Bill Throckmorton. “We think this is a great opportunity to get the Grant King name in front of a brand new audience and get the word out on our museum, while helping Tanner with his first 500 Mile Race. It’s a win-win.”
Added co-owner Stephanie Throckmorton: “The Day Before the 500 sounds like a lot of fun! It’s so great to be able to get in ‘on the ground floor’ of a big new event! We look forward to our participation in the Open-Wheels.com 500 Mile Race and are wishing Tanner and his crew much success with it.”
The Grant King Shops are open by appointment for personal tours and they also host special events with catering available. Look for them on Facebook and on the web at www.grantkingraceshops.com.
The 2019 Open-Wheels.com 500 Mile Race presented by Mitchell Transmissions will go green on Sunday, November 17 – live worldwide on RaceSpot TV. Drivers interested in participating in the iRacing event are welcome to register at this link.
Additionally, sponsorship options are still available by following this link. Stay tuned for further coverage of the 2019 Open-Wheels.com 500 Mile Race and sim racing in general.