Brad Brickel
September 1, 2011

Forest Hill, MD – When fans arrive to the inaugural 2011 Baltimore Grand Prix one thing is certain – “When The Wheel Spins Everyone Wins”. At 22+ feet tall The RAACE Foundations giant wheel will stand proudly with the rest of the downtown Baltimore skyline.

The Baltimore Grand Prix’s Family Fun Zone will have games and activities geared towards families. Located on the east end of the festival grounds, The RAACE Foundation will feature its huge “Time to Talk” Awareness Station and gaming wheel. This zone is located at the Charles Street entrance to the Convention Center and the IndyCar Paddock.

Kids of all ages will enjoy The RAACE Foundations “Time to Talk” display. Along with a Saturday autograph session with Indy Car Driver Martin Plowman, distributing copies of The RAACE Foundation’s “Time to Talk” Parents Guide, The “Time to talk” display or the giant wheel as it became known is an astounding 22 feet tall and 18 feet wide spinning gaming wheel. Kids and adults alike can spin the wheel for cash, all kinds of fun prizes, Baltimore Ravens vs. Indianapolis Colts & Washington Redskins vs. Philadelphia Eagles Football Raffle Tickets and cool event tee shirts. “One thing is for sure it definitely brings the Ocean City, MD Boardwalk experience to downtown Baltimore and the Grand Prix” said The RAACE Foundation Founder Kenneth Smith.

Why "Time to Talk"? Simply put with 1 in 3 girls and 1 in 7 boys being sexually abused before the age of 18, with over 39 million survivors and with experts agreeing that open and honest dialogue is the greatest advantage against child sexual abuse, it is definitely Time to Talk about child sexual abuse with The RAACE Foundation.

“Awareness and education are the two things that can slow down this epidemic. Not building more treatment centers, not putting more kids into foster care, and with only one in ten kids telling of their abuse it is definitely not the child who will tell. We need to turn the faucet off and that happens before the abuse ever occurs. Awareness is the first step to prevention.” said Smith.

Kenneth Smith, Founder of The RAACE Foundation continued: "The Wheel has been a huge success at every event it has been to. Not only does the sale of the sponsor spaces allow The RAACE Foundation to have the funds to put awareness materials in the hands of all 150,000+ grand prix attendees, but it will get them to stop and ask some serious questions, like what is this giant wheel all about. In the process race fans will have loads of fun playing the wheel and winning prizes while The RAACE Foundation and TeamRAACE volunteers will be able to educate fans so no other child has to suffer the same silent fate."

The Interactive Racing Zone is the place to be to take part in racing related fun like the TeamRAACE Kids Big Wheel races. This area located at the intersection of Light and Pratt Streets inside the venue will feature an array of activities and booths geared towards motorsports, including getting kids behind the wheel for some racing of their own.

For the youngest generation of racing enthusiasts, the RAACE Foundation will be operating a Big Wheel racing track all weekend long. The RAACE Foundation and TeamRAACE will present big wheel races for kids ages 3 to 9.

Children in three age groups (3-4, 5-6, 7-9) race for big trophies and prizes! The RAACE Foundation will be providing the trophies to the top three racers in each age group starting each day at 1 pm. Registration begins each day at 10 am. Big Wheels are supplied - no one can use their own. No need to pre-register. It will be free to participate and promises to be fun and laughs for the whole family.

The inaugural Baltimore Grand Prix is scheduled for Friday, September 2 through Sunday, September 4, 2011 and will encompass a 2.0 mile temporary street circuit traveling through the heart of Baltimore’s Downtown, rushing past the scenic Inner Harbor and racing around Camden Yards. The race weekend will feature a spectacular combination of world-class racing and festivities, highlighted by the American Le Mans Series presented by Patron and the IZOD IndyCar Series. Tickets for the Baltimore Grand Prix
are available online at www.baltimoregrandprix.com or by phone at 877-4-FLY-TIX. Visit www.raace.org to find out about the important work of this organization.