Fri, 9 May 2008, 12:24 PM U.S. Army Salute the Troops Top Fuel Dragster in Bristol

Courtesy of Chris Dirato

BRISTOL Tenn. -- With Memorial Day on the horizon, U.S. Army Top Fuel driver, Tony "The Sarge" Schumacher, will get a head start honoring the brave men and women of the U.S. Army by unveiling a special Salute the Troops paint scheme on his dragster next weekend in the O'Reilly Thunder Valley Nationals here at Bristol Dragway.

The special paint scheme on Schumacher's record-setting Top Fueler offers a hint of camouflage, photos of Soldiers and a Salute the Troops logo.

The NHRA effort is part of an overall USO Salute the Troops Memorial Day tribute to the armed forces, which will also take place during NASCAR's Coca-Cola 600 weekend in Charlotte.

Schumacher's NASCAR Sprint Cup teammate, Mark Martin, will have a similar paint scheme on his #8 U.S. Army Chevrolet for the Memorial Day weekend classic at Lowes Motor Speedway.

"It will be an exciting moment when we pull the cover off the U.S. Army dragster in Bristol," said Schumacher, the Top Fuel point leader. "I'm happy that we'll have the opportunity to show our Soldiers just how much we care about them. They all mean so much to us and this is a terrific way to express our support."

Through sales of diecast models and officially licensed merchandise via Motorsports Authentics, military families around the country will also benefit from the Salute the Troops program.

"I can only hope that our U.S. Army Top Fuel team can deliver a victory in Bristol and then Mark Martin can do likewise in Charlotte the following weekend," added Schumacher. "That would be a great present for our Soldiers."

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