Kings For A Day
Richard Petty Fan Appreciation Day
Every year the Richard Petty Fan Club gathers at Petty Enterprises for an open house hosted by the organization, and this year they were kind enough to let me join their activities. Being a Fan Club member has its perks on this day – you get to roam through the Petty shops fairly unrestricted. Amazingly, and such is a measure of the man, Petty’s 
fan club is still going full steam even though he hasn’t raced a stock car for more than a decade. I don’t think there are many athletes in any sport that have such a loyal and continuous following.
Fro the general public to get behind the locked doors at Cup shops is very unusual these days (even harder for certain members of the press); let alone a mass of people with cameras in hand. Yet Club members got to get up close to see the 2007 paint scheme for the #43, and to look over the Car of Tomorrow. Plus, they had hours with Richard for him to patiently sign memorabilia and get photos taken.
The Fan Club has a strong purpose besides gathering to meet and greet each year – they raise funds for the Victory Junction Gang camp created by Kyle and Pattie Petty in memory of their son Adam. Throughout the course of the open house, the Club has a couple of charity auctions and a swap meet where they generously open up their wallets to bid on Petty memorabilia and assorted racing stuff supplied by members.
Want a rare copy of “Speed Age”? It was there. Need a Petty car hood for over your fireplace? You could get that too. The money raised goes to Victory Junction, less some basic and essential expenses to put on the event. Club members volunteer to staff it and run the Club.
I interviewed a couple of the prime movers of the Petty Fan Club: Barry Kurman, who was working everywhere on this day and the auctioneer enthusing up those prices for a great cause, and Linda Ritchie, National Director of the Club. As she said, she is in charge of making sure they are still having fun at it.
OT: Barry, just what is this open house day about?
Barry Kurman: We have a Fan Club convention every year at the shops here in Level Cross. Richard is generous with letting us have full tours of the race shops, taking pictures, and signing autographs for hours.
We have our charity auctions, which I lead, and all the money raised goes to the Victory Junction Gang camp.
OT: What have you auctioned so far on the high end?
Barry Kurman: The most expensive item was a hood for $400, and couple of specialty hats for $300.
OT: How many people are attending this year?
Barry Kurman: The total is about 1,500. The Fan Club members that came the farthest are a husband and wife from Australia. This is the first time they’ve attended.
