Shriners Hospitals for Children Races into 95th Anniversary Celebration with Ragan in Coke Zero 400 
Special Racecar Design Commemorates Hospital System’s Near
Century of Treating Children from around the World
 

TAMPA, Florida (June 28, 2017) – Shriners Hospitals for Children® will celebrate 95 years of caring for kids with a specially designed racecar in the Coke Zero 400 at Daytona International Speedway this Saturday, July 1. David Ragan’s No. 38 Front Row Motorsports Ford Fusion will feature photos of children treated at Shriners Hospitals and highlight their mission to provide specialty pediatric care, regardless of the families’ ability to pay.
 
Since opening its first location in Shreveport, La., in 1922 to treat children with polio, Shriners Hospitals for Children has become a global leader in the treatment of pediatric orthopaedic conditions, burns, spinal cord injuries, and cleft lip and palate. Founded by Shriners International, the health care system now has 22 locations in North America and conducts outreach clinics around the world. Shriners Hospitals for Children is known for its innovative treatments, world-class research and unparalleled comprehensive care.
 
“As both a Shriner and a father, this is a very special car for me to drive,” said Ragan. “It represents the more than 1.3 million kids cared for by Shriners Hospitals for Children. Every child helped by Shriners Hospitals is a testament to the hope, love and quality care that they provide.”


 
During Saturday’s race, Ragan will be cheered on by a Shriners Hospitals patient who is reaching his dreams. Fifteen-year-old Riley Desin has had more than a dozen surgeries at Shriners Hospitals for Children - Tampa for hereditary multiple exostoses, a genetic condition that affects his bones. He loves to play basketball and watch NASCAR races any chance he gets.

“Kids like Riley remind us why our mission to provide the best pediatric care possible is so important,” said Chris Smith, chairman of the Board of Directors for Shriners Hospitals for Children. “Many routine medical treatments were first pioneered at Shriners Hospitals for Children. With the help of David Ragan and our supporters, we look forward to another 95 years of global pediatric specialty care.”
 
About Shriners Hospitals for Children
Shriners Hospitals for Children is changing lives every day through innovative pediatric specialty care, world-class research and outstanding medical education. Our 22 locations in the United States, Canada and Mexico, provide advanced care for children with orthopaedic conditions, burns, spinal cord injuries, and cleft lip and palate. Learn more at shrinershospitalsforchildren.org.
 
Shriners Hospitals for Children is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization and relies on the generosity of donors. All donations are tax deductible to the fullest extent permitted by law.
 
About David Ragan
David Ragan is a two-time winner in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series with a long history of being at the top of his sport, including earning Rookie of the Year in the NASCAR XFINITY Series and Monster Energy Cup wins at the famed Daytona International Speedway and Talladega Superspeedway. Ragan currently races the No. 38 Ford for Front Row Motorsports.
 
Off the track, Ragan serves as an official Love to the Rescue ambassador and is a member of Shriners International.
 
About Front Row Motorsports
Front Row Motorsports is a winning organization in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series, the premier division of NASCAR competition. The team was founded in 2004 and is owned by Tennessean Bob Jenkins. FRM fields two full-time entries, the No. 34 of Landon Cassill and the No. 38 of David Ragan, from its Statesville, N.C., headquarters just outside of Charlotte. The team’s partnership base includes organizations such as Ford Motor Company, Love's Travel Stops and CSX Transportation. Visit teamfrm.com and follow FRM on Twitter at @Team_FRM and on Facebook at facebook.com/FrontRowMotorsports.
 
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Contacts:
Shari Spiewak
Front Row Motorsports
office: 704-873-6445 x215
cell: 704-200-1779
sspiewak@frontrowmotorsports.com

Meredith Resnick 
Shriners Hospitals for Children
Phone: 202-549-0807
mresnick@1stdegree.com 
 

​No. 38 Shriners Hospitals for Children Ford
Started: 28th | Finished: 31st
"Our Shriners Hospitals for Children team had a strategy in play, but we just needed more cautions at the end. We saved a set of tires early in the race. And it would've been good if we had a couple cautions later because we had an extra set of tires that other teams didn't. But we didn't get any cautions and got a little bit of damage on a restart and couldn't make the lap times that we did earlier in the race. We had a little bit better car than where we finished."

​Ragan on Sonoma"Road racing has been a lot of fun for me the last couple years. It's one of those deals where something clicks in your brain, and you're able to have a good car and qualify well and run a little better than you have in the past. And that happened to me during the 2014 or 2015 seasons. Things just started coming together for me a little better on road courses, being able to qualify and race in the top 10, top 15. Sonoma's a very technical track, but it's rewarding when you get into a rhythm and have some fun. 

"It's a marquee event for us and we take a lot of pride in it. If I make good decisions during the race, we can have a good finish in our Shriners Hospitals for Children Ford. We're visiting the kids at the Sacramento hospital on Thursday and we're going to have a patient from the hospital at the race on Sunday, so it will be a big weekend for us."

Meet David
Sunday, June 25, 8:40am - Fanatics Trackside Superstore (Sonoma Raceway Infield)

​No. 38 Shriners Hospitals for Children Ford
Started: 29th | Finished: 29th
"I'm proud of our Shriners Hospitals for Children team. I think we made our race car a lot better, and I feel like we had a really competitive car the last third of the race. Earlier we had a pit road issue, where I wound up having to make an unscheduled stop, and that kind of hurt us a bit. But we made a couple of big changes that really made a big improvement to our race car. Hopefully we can learn a little bit and be better when we come back here in August."

​Ragan on Michigan"I think the Michigan track has aged a little bit since last season. When we were up there a few weeks ago for a test, it was really gray. It had lost some of its color. There weren't enough cars running to really widen the groove out, but I think you will see two-and-a-half grooves open up. I don't think you're going to see cars up in the middle of the race track or the very top lane, but the bottom does still have a lot of grip. They did an outstanding job paving that place, and it just takes a few years for it to age.

"Michigan is a super fast race track. It's a fun place for us to race with a blue oval on our Ford Fusion. We're also going to have the Shriners Hospitals for Children with us this weekend. It will be their first race for the 2017 campaign promoting summer safety. It's a big weekend for us."

Meet David
Sunday, June 18, 10:40am - Fanatics Trackside (Michigan International Speedway Fan Zone)

N​o. 38 Overton's Ford
Started: 31st | Finished: 25th
"We had good strategy by Derrick Finley and our 38 team. We had one weak run – the second-to-last run when we were racing for the Lucky Dog. I don’t know if we had a funny set of tires or if we went a little too far on an adjustment, but that was our weakest run. All in all, we made improvements on the car. We just have to start a little bit better at the beginning of these races, but I’m proud of this Overton’s team. They had good strategy and a good day on pit road and we were able to put together a decent finish."

​Ragan on Pocono"Pocono is a very unique race track. It’s one of the reasons that our NASCAR circuit is fun to watch every weekend. Each race track is a little different, and Pocono is one of the more unique places that we race on. Turn 1 is a traditional, high-banked corner. Turn 2 is very flat, but very tight. And Turn 3 is very sweeping without a lot of banking. It's hard to get your car working well in all three corners, but our Overton's team will be working hard to get as close as we can.

"The stages are going to play a key role in the outcome of the overall finish because you’ll be able to pit during the stages without losing a lap and try to gain some track position. So, I think you’ll have guys on different strategies – some trying to gain points for that stage, but some cars that will just throw away those points and try to set themselves up for the final stage. I think Pocono could be a place where you’ll see some unfamiliar names up front at the end of one of the stages just because the strategy worked out right."