Industry Speedway in Southern California to host a memorial cup event in honor of World Speedway Champion Bruce Penhall’s late son, Connor.
Industry Speedway will open its 2015 Speedway Motorcycle Racing Season with the inaugural Connor Penhall Memorial Cup, on Wednesday, May 27, 7:30 p.m. at the Grand Arena, Industry Hills Expo Center in Industry Hills. California.
Penhall, son, of twice World Indvidual Speedway Champion, AMA Motorcycle Hall of Famer and actor Bruce Penhall, was well-known motocross and desert motorcycle racer who was was struck and killed in April 2012 by a drunk driver while working as part of a contract crew for Caltrans on Interstate 10 in Baldwin Park, California. In addition to his love for racing, Connor had his sights set on a career in law enforcement. He was working as a concrete cutter at the time of his death.
“Connor had a promising future ahead of him,” says Bruce Penhall, vice president of Connor Concrete Cutting & Coring (the company is named in Connor Penhall’s memory). “His loss has become the inspiration for the annual Connor Penhall Memorial Cup and also a way to bring attention to important issues related to drunk driving and general highway safety.”
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), every day almost 30 people in the United States die in motor vehicle crashes that involve an alcohol-impaired driver. Roadway work zones are particularly hazardous for workers who build, repair, and maintain our nation’s streets, bridges, and highways. In road construction and maintenance work zones, California ranks among the top 10 states with the most motor vehicle crash fatalities.
“Through the years motorsports have brought our family together and now drunk driving has left an indelible impact on each of us,” Penhall adds.
The Connor Penhall Memorial will boast an $8,500 purse, and the even winner will receive a custom helmet painted by Troy Lee Designs.
“The Connor Penhall Memorial Cup is an avenue to show our support of the sport and its rising athletes, remember our son, and bring awareness to these critical issues through what we intend to make an annual event,” Penhall said. “It is a fine way to let countless friends who knew and loved Connor remember him as we do: a vibrant young man devoted to his family, with an unbridled passion for riding, racing and living.”
In addition to Bruce Penhall, other notable athletes and celebrities will be in attendance, including three-time and reigning World Speedway Champion Greg Hancock, who will serve as Grand Marshallof the event. Bruce Penhall’s CHiPs co-stars, Larry Wilcox and Robert Pine are also scheduled to appear along with Barry Weiss, the start of A&E’s Storage Wars. Legendary race announcer and AMA Motorcycle Hall of Fame inductee, Larry “Supermouth” Huffman is also confirmed to attend.
The event will follow a Grand Prix-style format for the sport’s top U.S.-based stars, but the night’s racing action will also include Junior Speedway, Mini and Pee Wee divisions. Key sponsors include Connor Concrete Cutting & Coring, Industry Racing, Red Bull USA, Quinn Caterpillar, Hilti power tools, Toyota of Escondido, Wahoo’s Fish Taco, Blue C and Troy Lee Designs.
For more information, visit http://www.industryracing.com. You can also follow on Facebook at www.facebook.com/connorpenhallmemorialcup.
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