BY TONI LAPP
What do Tar Wars® and racing have in common? They both have a fan in AAFP EVP Douglas Henley, M.D.
Yes, the North Carolina native now living in Leawood, Kan., has long been keen on motor sports. And as a physician interested in seeing the tobacco epidemic snuffed out, Henley is glad several race car drivers are taking up the Tar Wars cause.
 "I can't believe people would want tobacco on their breath; what it does to the inside is bad enough," says Jennifer Jo Cobb, a racer who promotes Tar Wars. |
"In a sport that historically has depended on tobacco company sponsorship, it is great these drivers are choosing to support Tar Wars. They're engaged in an effort to mentor kids and their parents about the need to avoid this unhealthy habit" of smoking, says Henley.
It's good news for Tar Wars, the Academy's tobacco-free education program, that new drivers are carrying the no-smoking banner onto racetracks across the country. Tar Wars participants may remember that the effort started with California driver John Baumgartner three years ago.
Well, now Baumgartner has company. Four new drivers, in fact.
What gives? After all, racers receive no money from Tar Wars through the sponsorships.
"It's free advertising for us, and the drivers are connected to this successful education program," says Pamela Rodriguez, Tar Wars national manager.
And the drivers are more than happy to educate youngsters about the ills of tobacco.
"The age of kids that Tar Wars targets is a vulnerable age," says Jennifer Jo Cobb, a racer from Kansas City, Kan. "It's important that these kids hear how uncool it is to smoke." Cobb has competed in the NASCAR Weekly Racing Series and the ARCA/Remax Series. Besides sporting the Tar Wars logo on her car and her tracksuit, Cobb plans to present the Tar Wars program at schools.
Then there's Joe Wutke of Hillsborough, N.J. He drives a truck in the Championship Off Road Racing series -- events often televised nationally. When he began racing with the Tar Wars logo on his truck last year, he was surprised by the number of kids coming to the races who already knew about Tar Wars, he says.
Wutke feels he can reinforce the message.
"I can honestly and proudly say I've never tried any tobacco products," he says. "It's a terrible habit, and (tobacco companies) are making tons of money on other people's suffering."
In January, Wutke received full backing from Nissan, a "dream come true," he says. Nissan officials asked Wutke about his other sponsors. "They wanted to know what Tar Wars was, and when they found out, they were all for it," he says. So now the Tar Wars logo will be in high-profile company -- positioned near Nissan's emblem on Wutke's truck, helmet and tracksuit.
In the Indy Racing League, Ronnie Johncox of Jackson, Mich., competed under the Tar Wars logo in the Freedom 100 in May at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. He invited Evansville, Ind., student and former Tar Wars poster contest winner Jenny Beck to be "honorary crew member" at the race, where he finished in eighth position before viewers on ESPN2.
Johncox became familiar with Tar Wars through presentations at his daughter's school. Later, he decided to race under the logo. "When the opportunity came about to get involved, I didn't hesitate," he says. "In today's world, there are far too many negative messages directed at kids, and as a father of three, I wanted to give them a positive message to hear."
In Idaho, stock car driver John Peterson carried the Tar Wars logo to a trophy finish in May in a regional beginners' race called Future Stocks. Peterson, an ex-smoker, says having not one but three anti-tobacco groups sponsoring his car -- named "Smoke-Free 83" -- will motivate him to resist the urge to smoke.
Race car sponsorships are the perfect way to target kids, says Peterson. "It's exciting because a lot of kids come by after the race, and it's an opportunity to reinforce the 'don't-smoke' message."
Tar Wars staff caught onto that three years ago with Baumgartner.
The Tar Wars car has been a popular attraction at the AAFP Scientific Assembly for two years running. Look for a Tar Wars driver to appear during the Assembly this fall in New Orleans, courtesy of a grant from Novartis.
To reach writer Toni Lapp, e-mail tlapp@aafp.org.
FP Report is published by the
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Copyright © 2003 by
American Academy of Family Physicians.