BAM Racing Could Return At Indy

(Originally published on July 2, 2008)

While all the buzz this week has been about one team shutting down, another is doing everything it can to get back to the track.

And BAM Racing is targeting July 27’s Allstate 400 at the Brickyard as a possible return date.

“Beth Ann [Morgenthau, the team’s owner] loves Indianapolis, and if we can make that race, we’re definitely going to try to do that,” said BAM Racing spokesperson Rhett Vandiver.

BAM last competed in a points race at Martinsville on March 30 with Ken Schrader behind the wheel. The team’s planned two-race sabbatical to facilitate a switch from Dodge to Toyota turned into a long-term hiatus when primary sponsorship fell through.

While searching for a primary sponsor, the company has still been offering its Diamond Sponsorship Program, which allows companies with smaller marketing budgets to get signage on the car, along with other activation materials. When the program launched last year it was being offered at an introductory rate of just less than $5,000. While Vandiver said he didn’t know how many Diamond Sponsors were now onboard, he added that when the team does return to the track it will have a lot of new decals to make for the car.

A large portion of BAM’s workforce has been laid off, but the general feeling around NASCAR circles is that team members are ready to come back at a moment’s notice.

That includes the 53-year-old Schrader.

“My understanding is he’s ready to go when we are,” Vandiver said.