Career Development Week begins for UYRS students

PHILADELPHIA -- Craftsman on Tuesday kicked off its fifth annual Career Development Apprenticeship Week, bringing six students from the Urban Youth Racing Schools (UYRS) in Philadelphia and Washington, D.C., to the Mooresville, N.C., area to work with four different teams in the Craftsman Truck Series.

The students, who range in age from 16 to 18, worked side-by-side with the teams through Wednesday as they prepared race trucks for the Power Stroke Diesel 200 at O'Reilly Raceway Park in Indianapolis.

On Thursday, the students fly to Indianapolis where they will continue their learning experience as they will work in the pits with their teams on Friday night. All students will round out the evening joining the race winner in the Victory Lane celebration.

"Since implementing this apprenticeship program with the Urban Youth Racing School in 2002, we've seen past inters go on to work with teams and complete internships within various motorsports entities," said Scott Howard, manager of Strategic Partnerships for Sears.

"Through our relationships within the NASCAR garage, the Craftsman brand has been able to put tools in these kids hands and give them the opportunity to learn the trade first-hand and build relationships of their own, giving them a jump-start on pursuing careers in the industry whether it be on or off the track."

Philadelphia students include Kyle Baker who will intern with Red Horse Racing and driver David Starr; Brigette Depalma and Chris Lawrence who will be teamed up with TRG Motorsports and drivers T.J. Bell and Donny Lia; and Jeremy Ortiz who will work with Circle Bar Motorsports and driver Brendan Gaughan. Washington, D.C.-based students include Jarel Harris who will team up with Xpress Motorsports and driver Bryan Scott and Serfrederick Hill II who will work with Circle Bar Racing and driver Rick Crawford.

In addition to their race shop duties, the students also attended a pit crew demonstration at the P.I.T. Instruction and Training facility in Mooresville. Students will learn the intricate details of each position on the pit crew and will try their hand at tire changing, tire carrying and jacking the car.

To round out their 2008 internship week experience, the students also will take in the Allstate 400 at the Brickyard at Indianapolis Motor Speedway on Sunday. In addition to race festivities, the students will take in a tour of the historic IMS garage facility, hosted by General Motors Racing Engineers, as well as a tour of the Craftsman Mobile Marketing Experience -- giving the students a well-rounded look at both competition and marketing aspects of the motorsports industry.

About Urban Youth Racing School

UYRS is committed to the education, training and preparation of today's urban youth through exposure to the automotive and motorsports industry.

Since it's inception in 1998, UYRS has had over 1100 children go through its 10 week "Build A Dream" and "Team Development" Programs involving over 60 mentors who have been a part of the school for over seven years. Additionally, the school has given away over $60,000 in educational scholarships, taken 50 UYRS students to Charlotte, North Carolina to visit and intern with NASCAR race teams, and participates in the annual Sears Craftsman/UYRS weeklong internship program. UYRS is committed to making diversity and youth issues a national priority. For more information on UYRS, visit www.uyrs.com.