Roper Decals: The Busch Series Ladies Association (BSLA) will coordinate the distribution of Tony Roper
memorial decals to be placed on all cars competing in the NASCAR Busch Series' "Sam's Club 200" at North Carolina Speedway this weekend. The memorial decals will also be distributed to teams at the final NASCAR Craftsman Truck race held next weekend at California Speedway. The decals will not be made available to the public. The BSLA has also worked with North Carolina Speedway to incorporate a moment of silence as part of Saturday's pre-race ceremonies. This will allow teams and fans to honor Tony Roper and show support for his family and friends. On a separate note, the BSLA will distribute another decal to all Busch teams this weekend, this one offering "get-well wishes" to Tim Fedewa, driver of the #36 Stanley Chevrolet. Fedewa suffered injuries in a motorcycle accident Wednesday and is unable to compete in this weekend's event. Both sets of decals have been generously donated by
The Decal Source (336) 574-3141. Both decals are located on the BSLA website at: www.buschladies.com (10-20-2000)
Charlotte Services for Roper: A memorial service for Tony Roper has been scheduled for family and friends in the Charlotte area. The service has been set for Monday, October 23 at 6:30 p.m. and will take place at the West Cabarrus Church on 7655 Speedway Boulevard (704) 455-2591. Donations continue to be accepted for the Tony Roper Scholarship Fund(10-17-2000)
Services for Roper: Services have been scheduled to remember the life of NASCAR driver, Tony Roper. Visitation will be held Tuesday, October 17 from 6:00 - 9:00 p.m. at Greenlawn North Funeral Home in Springfield, Missouri. A memorial service will be held the following day, Wednesday, October 18 at 12:30 p.m. at the Fair Grove High School Gymnasium located approximately 10 miles north of Springfield on Highway 65. The family plans to schedule a memorial service to be held in Charlotte, NC in the near future. A Tony Roper Scholarship Fund has been established for Fair Grove High School. Roper was heavily involved in sports and activities and graduated from the high school in 1983. Any who wish to express their sympathies are encouraged to send a donation for the scholarship fund in lieu of flowers. Donations can be sent c/o: The Bank of Bolivar 40 North Main Street Fair Grove, MO 65648. Directions will be posted on Tony Roper's website, www.tonyroper.com (PR)(10-16-2000)
HANS Device: have gotten a few question regarding the HANS Device, and if Tony Roper had one one, the answer is no, would it had saved his life, can't answer that. How many Cup drivers are wearing it? two - Brett Bodine and Scott Pruett in Cup, Jack Sprague in the CTS and ARCA Champ Frank Kimmel and driver Rich Woodland also wear one. More info? What is the HANS Device? See my HANS Device/Safety page for images and links(10-15-2000)
Roper Passes Away UPDATE: #26 CTS driver, Tony Roper, is in critical condition at a Dallas hospital after suffering life-threatening injuries in a crash on the 33rd lap of Friday night's O'Reilly 400 at Texas Motor Speedway. Roper was airlifted from the track to Parkland Hospital, where he is unconscious, unresponsive and breathing with the aid of a ventilator. According to speedway officials, Roper's father, Dean, was at the race and has been summoned to the hospital. No other information is available on Roper, a 35-year-old from Fair Grove, Missouri. He and his wife, Michelle, have no children. Roper was involved in a crash with Steve Grissom, who had slowed his No. 43 Petty Enterprises Dodge after being tapped while running in a pack of three trucks. Roper tried to squeeze through a gap between Grissom and another truck and clipped the left-front of Grissom’s, veering hard into the wall in a nearly head-on crash. Roper had to be cut from the truck and after transported to the infield care center and then airlifted to Parkland Hospital in Dallas. According to a statement released by NASCAR, "Tony Roper, driver of the No. 26 Mittler Tool Ford, was airlifted to Parkland Hospital. He is listed in critical condition. He was unconscious and unresponsive when he was brought into the Lone Star Health infield care center. He is breathing with the assistance of a ventilator. His father, Dean, was in attendance and is also enroute to Parkland Hospital."(SpeedVision and the AP and NASCAR), thoughts and prayers are with Tony and his family UPDATE: From SpeedVision: At 11:00am/et Saturday, Roper was reported by the hospital as still in the emergency unit UPDATE 2: NASCAR announced that Truck series driver Tony Roper had died after a head-on accident during the O'Reilly 400 trucks race Friday night at Texas Motor Speedway. Roper had been on life-support(That's Racin') and from ESPN/AP: Tony Roper, a NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series driver, died late Saturday morning after sustaining severe neck injuries when his truck slammed into a wall during the O'Reilly 400 at Texas Motor Speedway. It's the first death at the Texas Motor Speedway. NASCAR Online just posted news: Roper dies of injuries incurred in O'Reilly 400 and another AP report at CNN/SI. The Tony Roper Site has a message board for fans to leave their thoughts and has info on a Memorial Fund(10-14-2000)
