Firestone Building Products Rewards Canadian Customers With A Trip To The 100TH Edition Of Indy 500

The week of May 24 was very special for nine Canadian roofing industry professionals. Firestone Building Products treated a group of its deserving clients to a forefront experience at the largest, single-day sporting event in the world.

Terry O’Connor, Firestone Building Products’ National Business manager and Tom Doyle, Eastern Region Sales manager, had the pleasure to host the guests during the four-day adventure.

“This is one of the ways to say ‘thank you’ to our loyal customers by treating them to an all-expenses paid trip to the Greatest Spectacle in racing,” O’Connor said. “It’s also an opportunity for our valued customers to get a glimpse of what goes on behind the scenes at Firestone.”

The annual trip comprises of guided tours to two of Firestone’s 21 North American manufacturing plants. This year the asphalt manufacturing plant (SBS, BUR and APP) in Beech Grove, IN, and the polyiso insulation plant in Florence, KY, were on the visitors’ itinerary. Following these tours, the Canadian roofing professionals were able to visit the corporate R&D facility in Carmel, IN, followed by a tour of sample roofs on that facility. The guests also had the chance to view new roofing systems during their evaluation.

“It was an opportunity to visit a part of the United States I have not previously visited,” said Andy Wierda of Marine Roofing Ltd., Burnaby, BC. “The tours of the Firestone facilities were very informative and I was impressed with the amount of research and development Firestone carried out behind the scenes.”

The culmination of the four-day adventure occurred on the weekend as the guests experienced the largest single-day sporting event in the world in VIP style. Firestone’s participation in the Indianapolis 500 Mile Race represents one of the longest relationships in motor sports. Saturday started off in tourist fashion at the Festival Parade in the streets of downtown Indianapolis as a state of frenzy engulfed the city the day before the legendary race. On Sunday, as special guests of Firestone’s Building Products division, the Canadian contingent joined the escorted bus convoy from the Firstone headquarters in Indianapolis to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

Following the race, 2009 Indianapolis 500 winner Helio Castroneves and his winning Penske team made a special appearance at the banquet dinner in the Firestone pavilion which is located at the heart of the Speedway.

“The Indy itself was incredible,” Wierda said. “What a great opportunity to view the race live as I probably would never have gone to see the Indy on my own. I will be paying much more attention to the Indy and racing in general after this.”

The 100th edition of the Indy 500 was a memorable experience but the opportunity to interact with roofing professionals from across North America in a peculiar setting was invaluable to many.

“I found the tours very informative and meeting other roofing contractors from across Canada and the United States gave us the opportunity to discuss roofing,” said Vincent Filice of Lakehead Roofing, Thunder Bay. “As an owner, I found these discussions very positive and valuable. The hospitality offered to us by Firestone over the four days was absolutely amazing. I felt like I was with family. As for the race, now I know why they call it ‘The Greatest Spectacle in Racing’.”

The Indianapolis 500-Mile Race, held annually over the Memorial Day weekend at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Speedway, IN, is billed as The Greatest Spectacle in Racing. It is one of the oldest motorsport events. With the annual attendance of approximately 400,000, Indy 500 is the largest, single-day sporting events in the world.