NHRA News: Smith and Scali to carry Craftsman paint in St. Louis (6/22/2004)

Smith and Scali to carry Craftsman paint in St. Louis

6/22/2004

Top Fuel driver John Smith and defending Pro Stock Bike champion Geno Scali will be sporting custom Craftsman paint schemes at the eighth annual Sears Craftsman NHRA Nationals in St. Louis.

John Smith's Craftsman Tools dragster.

"There are more than 300,000 people all across America who make and sell Craftsman tools, many of them in the St. Louis area," said Touré Claiborne, director of motorsports for Sears. "They pay close attention to the annual Sears Craftsman NHRA Nationals. Having two top drivers in the race carrying Craftsman logos gives them something extra to root for.

"It's also a reminder to all the fans in the grandstand and watching on TV that Craftsman is the Official Tool of the NHRA, and the most popular brand of tools in the country."

Smith will transform his Prestone machine into a Craftsman dragster, complete with Craftsman fire suit and crew uniforms, for the race, while Scali will bring out the special Craftsman paint job and race leathers from his victorious romp at last year's Sears Craftsman NHRA Nationals.

Geno Scali's Craftsman Tools Suzuki.
Racers Edge Photography

"It is an honor to represent Sears Craftsman and to fly their colors on our Top Fuel dragster," Smith said. "I have been associated with Craftsman throughout my entire career in drag racing. I began working with them when I was crew chief for Randy Parks, and our relationship has carried through to our Fram AirHog and Prestone Top Fuel dragsters."

Scali says he doesn't believe in luck, but last year's success with the Craftsman bike still might be a good omen.

"We won the 'best engineered' award for our chassis and setup last year on our way to winning the race," he said. "I thought the Craftsman paint scheme – the black bike with red and white – really popped. It looked cool in Victory Lane."

Craftsman is the Official Tools of the NHRA and sponsors the annual Sears Craftsman NHRA Nationals at Gateway International Raceway. According to a 2004 EquiTrend survey, Craftsman is rated the No. 1 brand in the nation for overall quality. Sears sells more than 1,600 Craftsman hand tools that are guaranteed forever. If any Craftsman hand tool ever fails to give complete satisfaction, return it for free repair or replacement. Sears offers Craftsman tools, merchandise and related services nationwide through its Full-line stores, Sears Hardware stores, Sears Dealer stores and Orchard Supply Hardware stores, as well as through specialty catalogs and online at www.sears.com and www.craftsman.com.

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