Goodyear Makes Historic Change to Face of NASCAR Tires to Support Our Troops®

Classic Eagle Racing Tire to Feature First-Ever Patriotic Design

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Jul 01, 2010, 03:19 ET

AKRON, Ohio, July 1 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- For the first time in its history, The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company (NYSE: GT), the exclusive tire supplier of NASCAR's three major national series, has announced it will transform all Goodyear Racing Eagle tires for the NASCAR Sprint Cup and Nationwide Series races over the July 4th holiday weekend. The new design, featuring a patriotic red, white and blue color scheme reading "Support Our Troops" on the tires' sidewalls, is designed to say 'thank you' to the service men and women of the United States Armed Forces and launch the Goodyear Support Our Troops program. The Company will help jump-start this new support and fundraising effort with a $20,000 donation to a leading military support program.

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The Goodyear Support Our Troops program will also provide consumers a variety of ways to show their support for the troops and will encourage everyone to participate in a series of fund-raising initiatives to benefit members of the U.S. Armed Forces and their families. The rebranded Goodyear Support Our Troops tires will raise awareness for the support effort and will also serve as the first step in the fund-raising campaign, as Goodyear will auction the special logo'd, driver-autographed tires used in the July 3rd Coke Zero 400.

All funds raised will be donated to Support Our Troops®, a nonprofit nationwide organization which bolsters the morale and well-being of America's troops and their families. Funds raised through the Goodyear effort will benefit the highly effective programs, which deliver more than $8 million per year in care packs and requested items to the front lines, positive support at home, kids' camp assistance and more.

"For well over 100 years, Goodyear has been supplying and supporting the U.S. military, and has been a part of NASCAR's great history for more than 56 years. Now, we're making this historic change to honor them both," said Kris Kienzl, Goodyear's NASCAR marketing manager. "We are showing our support for the uniformed men and women who protect us and our families with a special message on the premier spot on our race tires. This program also waves the green flag on our fundraising and support campaign … the first lap of which will be the autographed tire auction."

The Goodyear Support Our Troops Charity Auction, held online at www.Goodyear.com, will begin when the green flag drops on July 3rd and will run through 11:59 p.m.Saturday, July 17th. The auction will offer fans the opportunity to own a piece of history, with race tires individually autographed by the top NASCAR Sprint Cup Series drivers including Ryan Newman – driver of the U.S. Army Chevrolet, Jeff Gordon, Jimmie Johnson, Carl Edwards, Kyle Busch, Dale Earnhardt Jr. and others. Proceeds from the sale of all auction items, including the Goodyear tires and several items donated by NASCAR sponsors, will go directly to Support Our Troops.

Each autographed race-used Goodyear Support Our Troops tire will come with a certificate of authenticity that includes the driver's name and car number, the race in which the tire was used, the driver's finish in the race and the tire's identification number. A minimum bid price has been set for each tire depending upon expected interest levels and ranges from $100 to $200; minimum bid prices will be displayed in each individual listing.

"We are very proud to have an iconic American company like Goodyear support us in our efforts to positively impact the lives of our country's service men and women and their families," said Martin C. Boire, Executive Director of Support Our Troops. "We are happy that NASCAR fans - some of the most patriotic and dedicated fans in the world – will have another great way to show their support through this program."

Goodyear's Support Our Troops initiative will feature additional unique ways for consumers to join in saying 'thank you' to the troops and will provide them the opportunity to participate in fundraising efforts. Consumers can visit www.Goodyear.com to view the latest updates and additions to the Support Our Troops program.

Goodyear has a longstanding history with the U.S. Armed Forces, with over 100 years of commitment to building innovative and reliable equipment to support and protect our troops. To this day, Goodyear continues to develop and test new possible fitments for U.S. military vehicles.

Goodyear's commitment extends beyond products and charitable donations; Goodyear prides itself on hosting events at U.S. military bases throughout the year, bringing NASCAR drivers and the Goodyear Blimp. These events allow the military service men and women and their families a chance to interact with the drivers and take rides on the Goodyear Blimp.

About NASCAR

The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, Inc. (NASCAR) is the sanctioning body for one of North America's premier sports. NASCAR is the No. 1 spectator sport – with more of the top 20 highest attended sporting events in the U.S. than any other sport, and is the No. 2-rated regular-season sport on television. NASCAR races are broadcast in more than 150 countries and in 20 languages. NASCAR fans are the most brand loyal in all of sports, and as a result more Fortune 500 companies participate in NASCAR than any other sport.

NASCAR consists of three major national series (the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, NASCAR Nationwide Series, and NASCAR Camping World Truck Series), four regional series, and one local grassroots series, as well as two international series. Also part of NASCAR is Grand-Am Road Racing, known for its competition on road courses with multiple classes of cars. NASCAR sanctions more than 1,200 races at 100 tracks in more than 30 U.S. states, Canada and Mexico. Based in Daytona Beach (FL), NASCAR has offices in New York, Los Angeles, Charlotte (NC), Concord (NC), Conover (NC), Bentonville (AR), Mexico City, and Toronto.

About Support Our Troops®

SupportOurTroops.Org provides simple constructive ways for citizens and community minded businesses to show their patriotism and appreciation for those who sacrifice so much to protect our country, our homes, our families, and our American way of life.

Support Our Troops® is a registered trademark licensed through SupportOurTroops.org The official SupportOurTroops.Org website is a nationwide platform for individuals, organizations, businesses and non-profits to bolster America's troops and their families in a multitude of ways. It is a moral covenant with those who serve to protect us and our families. SupportOurTroops.Org is a resource that was not available to previous generations of troops, which now stands as a permanent living testament to the affection, gratitude and loyalty good Americans hold for those who do so much for all of us every day.

About Goodyear

Goodyear is one of the world's largest tire companies. It employs approximately 69,000 people and manufactures its products in more than 57 facilities in 23 countries around the world. Its two Innovation Centers in Akron, Ohio and Colmar-Berg, Luxembourg strive to develop state-of-the-art products and services that set the technology and performance standard for the industry. For more information about Goodyear, go to www.goodyear.com/corporate.

SOURCE The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company