Theresa Krueger never thought to ask why when she found out boyfriend Mark Spiller had booked them a weekend in Concord to enjoy NASCAR’s Nextel All-Star weekend. Perhaps she’ll be more inquisitive next time. Spiller, a long time Ken Schrader fan from Plainfield, Ill., made what he calls “a shot in the dark” several months ago, when he reached out in an attempt to meet the Nextel Cup veteran when the couple came to Lowe’s Motor Speedway. That “shot” turned out more beneficial than Spiller could ever imagine when a simple meeting with Schrader morphed into a Schrader-assisted wedding proposal. After Nextel Cup practice concluded on Friday, Schrader spent several minutes with the couple giving them a tour of the garage, before leading them over to his #49 Red Baron Dodge. With the couple in tow, Schrader casually leaned inside the car and emerged with the ring case in which he promptly handed to Spiller. It became official just after 3:45 p.m. Eastern when the 36-year old Krueger said “yes” to Spiller’s proposal on bended knee in front of Schrader’s #49 Red Baron Dodge.
“I’m still in disbelief that all of this came together,” said Spiller, the 38-year old Illinois native. “Never in my wildest dreams could I have imagined that Kenny would actually assist in my marriage proposal. We’re both huge NASCAR fans, and Kenny Schrader fans; it’s pretty cool that we had this opportunity and something we’ll both never forget. and thank God she said yes. We’ll eat Red Baron pizza and have food delivered from Schwan’s on our anniversary every year!”
As for Schrader? “I told him congratulations. It’s a good thing Theresa said yes and probably what he was going for, but if she had said no, it’d surely made one of them blooper reels.”(Williams Company)(5-21-2005)
