Jeff Green [not the NASCAR driver] compared his winning bid on the customized Cat Chopper motorcycle to enjoying a dish of Neapolitan ice cream. “I got the Cat Chopper, I met a true racing legend, Richard Petty, and I got to help a worthy cause like Victory Junction Gang,” said Green, a resident of Peoria, Ill. The winning bid was $100,000. Petty handed Green the keys to the Cat Chopper during a Caterpillar Inc. customer event at Caesar’s Palace. The event was part of ConExpo-Con/Agg, one of the largest construction trade shows in the world. Green, whose family owns 11 vehicle dealerships in Illinois, plans to exhibit the Cat Chopper at Green Chevrolet Hummer and Finish Line Ford, both in Peoria, and at various community events. The Cat Chopper was constructed for Caterpillar in 2005 during two episodes of cable TV’s American Chopper. The 150-horsepower, six-speed show bike toured 32 states and up into Canada before Caterpillar donated it to Victory Junction Gang last May. In February, Victory Junction Gang auctioned the Cat Chopper on eBay. All proceeds are going to the organization’s 72-acre camp in North Carolina. The camp, founded by the Petty family, caters to children with chronic medical conditions and serious illnesses. The Cat Chopper was constructed by Orange County Choppers (OCC) in New York and customized to reflect Caterpillar and its industry, including the signature yellow color, a bulldozer-like exhaust pipe and bolted front and rear wheels.(MCG Sports PR)(3-16-2008)
