 | By Van Cox, Special to NASCAR.COM
September 30, 2004
03:49 PM EDT (19:49 GMT)
When Wheels American Thunder made its debut in the NASCAR trading card market last year, collectors quickly realized that Press Pass' newest addition to the hobby wasn't just another card set. A premium set by anyone's definition, American Thunder 2004 is the real deal. For starters, the base set has been expanded to a full 90 cards split up into nine subsets. More importantly, Wheels American Thunder is chock full of bells and whistles. Game on New for the 2004 edition of American Thunder is Cup Quest, a 12-card interactive scratch-and-win game that gives collectors a chance to win a full set of cards featuring the final top 10 drivers of the current season. Cup Quest cards are seeded at a ratio of 1:20 packs and feature Jimmie Johnson, Dale Earnhardt Jr., Jeff Gordon, Tony Stewart, Bobby Labonte, Ryan Newman, Dale Jarrett, Mark Martin, Michael Waltrip, Terry Labonte, Jeff Burton and Ricky Rudd.  | |
If you have a Cup Quest card and the pictured driver makes the final top-10, simply scratch off the gray area on the card to reveal one of three messages. "Sorry, not a winner" is self-explanatory. "Cup Quest" means you win the first prize, again providing that your guy makes the cut, which is a full set of the 2004 NASCAR Nextel Cup Top-10 driver cards. If you scratch off to uncover "Champion" and your driver wins the Chase, you will receive the Grand Prize, which is a full set of Top 10 cards, PLUS a special memorabilia card that will be produced to honor the 2004 Champion. "We believe Wheels fans will be thrilled with the second release of American Thunder, which includes the new interactive game, Cup Quest," noted Mandy Kirkland, Product Manager for Press Pass. "With the excitement of the new NASCAR points system and the Chase for the NASCAR Nextel Cup, we developed this scratch-and-win game to follow the drivers who may be competing for the 2004 Chase for the NASCAR Nextel Cup Championship and give collectors the opportunity to receive a full set of these special cards. With our extensive memorabilia program and new programs like Cup Quest, American Thunder promises to be as innovative and exciting as its first release in 2003." Memorabilia? Yes. And Wheels American Thunder is loaded with it. Collectors can expect to find up to two race-used memorabilia inserts in every Hobby Box. Insertion ratios are 1:10 for Hobby boxes, 1:240 for Retail. The program will include cards from four different memorabilia platforms: Triple Hat: A memorabilia card featuring three swatches of driver-worn hats from over 35 drivers wearing their Pit Cap, Manufacturer's Hat, Nextel Hat, and-for select drivers-the Goodyear hat worn during this year's Daytona Speedweeks.Pushin' Pedal: Back for its second year, Pushin' Pedal offers pieces of race-used shoes worn by top NASCAR "shoes" like Mark Martin, Rusty Wallace and reigning Cup Champion Matt Kenseth. Fifteen of NASCAR's finest make up the roster.Cool Threads: This innovative chase set incorporates pieces of shirts worn by drivers under their firesuits into a trading card. Another 15-card series.Head To Toe: This insert combines pieces of driver-worn hat and shoes into one great collectible. Nine drivers are the focus of Head To Toe.Sign of the times What would a card set be without autograph inserts? Authentic Wheels Autograph cards are inserted 1:20 packs in Hobby boxes and 1:144 in Retail versions. More than 60 top names like Dale Earnhardt Jr., Mark Martin and Kasey Kahne make up the roster of signees, And there's more. Wheels American Thunder 2004 includes four more insert sets: Thunder Road: Eighteen top drivers are included in a chase set that employs a special coating using race-used tire.Post Mark: This is actually a 27-card set-within-a-set. The cards are much smaller than the traditional trading card and are designed look a bit like a cancelled postage stamp.American Eagle/Golden Eagle: This set reflects the heritage of NASCAR racing via a 12-card insert printed with an intricate etched pattern and stampked with silver foil. Insertion is 1:6 packs. The special Hobby-only Golden Eagle parallel is on gold foil, stamped in gold, and numbered to 250.American Muscle: Nine of the strongest cars in NASCAR flex their muscle in a plastic etched insert seeded at a ratio of 1:10 packs.Wheels American Thunder 2004 hit the streets three weeks ago, on September 9. This top-shelf set is available wherever NASCAR trading cards are sold. | |
