Come visit our booth in Orlando for the most up-to-date information on our newest product styles for retail and team apparel, custom crew shirts, pit shirts, and motorsports race team gear. Please contact your Vicci representative to schedule a meeting at the show.

by leah scofield…

The windy city felt none-too-welcoming as I arrived in Chicago amidst a Midwestern rain storm. The fall-like weather eventually gave way to a beautiful race weekend… perfect for crowning the Indy Car Series Champion.

Loaded down with samples of the many new products and styles we have available for the 2009 season, I had a few people asking if I was auditioning for a spotter job. After lugging around my bag of tricks all weekend, I decided I could be an equipment hauler if I had to… but only for the Australian exhibition race. And once we get there, I just can’t promise I’ll come back.

The crew at Dreyer and Reinbold Racing always throw out the big waves and smiles as I make my way down pit row.  Maybe it’s because I’m always telling them how good they look in their crew shirts. Or maybe it’s because we got to know each other well when I had to take shelter in their garage during the down-pour at the Iowa race.  Either way, I always appreciate their warm welcome.  Thanks again to the entire team for extending the “Indy Experience” to our crew while at our hometown race in Sonoma.

Speaking of Dreyer and Reinbold, congratulations to Milka Duno for leading her first laps in her Indy Car career. What an amazing year for women in motorsports.

Sarah Fisher’s Dollar General team

On Indycar.com, Sarah Fisher’s crew received recognition for their professional look after being picked up by Dollar General for the Kentucky and Chicago races. There are a lot of fans out there hoping to see more of Sarah next year. Sarah’s team surprised us by featuring Vicci on the back of their hero cards… what a thoughtful gesture. Thanks team SF!

I was able to spend some time at the ARCA garages getting reacquainted with old friends, and got some great shots of our teams in action. Check out the Gallery page of our site if you haven’t been there lately. We have some good lookin’ teams out there!

Lessons I learned this week:
1. Closed-toe shoes only in the IRL pits. The security team at Chicagoland is serious about their jobs, and no flip-flops shall be so blessed to touch that pavement.
2. There are rules about presenting those huge “Pole Award” checks, and I now know them. I’m thinking it could come in handy someday if my Australian spotter job doesn’t work out.
3. Ganassi wins another championship. Congratulations to the entire team.
4. Open wheel racing is awesome. I already knew it, but I’m just saying it again. Awesome.

I’m a little sad to see the season already come to an end, but I’m excited to work with our teams on next year’s apparel. If I didn’t make it over to see you in Chicago, give me a call. We’ll get you hooked up with some new gear. Thanks for a great season, IRL.

-LS

by lisa vanbeek…

As much as we say we’re going to update the blog often, it just doesn’t happen. So here’s a recap of some of the great things that have been happening in our little world lately…

Knoxville Nationals. 140 sprint cars on a half-mile dirt track in a tiny town in Iowa… spread out over 6 days of racing. It’s a natural wonder that you can cram that many people into a town of that size, and an even greater surprise that some of the best open wheel racing in the world occurs in there. The cars weigh 1100 lbs and push almost 800 hp… on a half-mile track, going into the corners at 100 mph. Standing below the grandstands and watching the cars fly into turn Knoxville’s Turn 1, it’s something everyone should experience.

IRL- Many thanks to our good friends at Dreyer Reinbold Racing for all their hospitality during the IRL race out here at Infineon. Several of our team members were treated like royalty by the Dreyer team and their marketing firm, Protential. I knew our artist Duane was hooked when I got a picture text on Saturday afternoon with just the caption “DANICA!!!” He’s in love. Speaking of which, check out Danica’s new replica jerseys at the next IRL race, or order one today from our friends at www.MainGateInc.com.

CORR- Big congrats to Vicci teams who scored recent wins – Team LeDuc, Papas and Beer, and Traxxas Racing. Have you been to one of these races? I, myself, am new to CORR this year and I just dig it. I sat in the stands at my first race and thought “I bet that’s a blast… I wonder if anyone wants to trade a few hours on the track for new crew shirts…” Check out Rodrigo Ampudia’s new retail apparel for men and women at the next CORR event in Chula Vista, CA this weekend – www.PapasRacing.com.

Melanie Troxel at the US Nationals

Labor Day means one thing, and one thing only to drag racing fans… the US Nationals. It’s the mother of all drag races, and we were fortunate enough to be a part of it. We had several teams in the final round this year, including winners Tony Schumacher in the US Army dragster, & Mike Castellana in the Awesome Alanabi Pro Mod team. Nice drivin’ boys!

New and cool… check out our friend Coby Gewertz’s work at www.CarsNotCulture.com. If you don’t own one of the Church t-shirts or books, today’s the day to get one. The talent coming out of this design house is genius and a definite must-have for anyone who appreciates the automobile.

Make it a good one, over & out.
-LV

by lisa vanbeek…

This past weekend, the NHRA rolled into our town for a weekend at Infineon Raceway, or Sears Point for all you nostalgic types. Blue skies and the smell of nitro… ahh, how I love July.

Vicci’s fashion designer with the Mac Tools dragster

Our lead fashion designer, Michele, came to the track with me on Saturday. Michele has designed clothing for many of the biggest names in apparel (Liz Claiborne, Macy’s, Van Heusen) but has never actually been to a professional race before this weekend. After a quick lesson in NHRA’s who/what/why/how, she was enamored with the microcosm that is racing and received the royal treatment from some of our best clients. The US Army top fuel team gave her the nickel tour of their pit area and answered questions about tire size, decals and “if the engine is in the back, what’s in that big front?” She posed for pics with Doug Kalitta, collected hero cards for her nephews and was treated to a delicious, laughter-infested dinner by our favorite Cowboys from Technicoat. Not a bad intro to drag racing.

On race day, our fearless female Hillary Will made a powerful final round appearance, though it seems nothing can stop that US Army team. Sunday’s victory put them up to 8 wins, which means they’ve won more than 50% of the 2008 races to date. We also saw Vicci athletes Antron Brown and Jason Line grab the low-qualifier spots, and Tim Wilkerson with top speed. Nice.

I received an email from Michele today. Amidst fabric swatches and pattern sketches, there are now dragster pictures hanging on the walls in her design office, and she was glued to the tv watching Sunday’s race. Another civilian converted to race-fan. My work here is done.

-LV

by vicciblog…

We are enjoying a great summer.  Look for our representatives in Sonoma this weekend.  Good luck to all of our teams!