Civil Air Patrol to debut with Lewis.

The Civil Air Patrol [CAP], an auxiliary of the United States Air Force, has announced a multi-year agreement as the primary sponsor of the #46 Lewis Motorsports NASCAR Busch Series Chevrolet.

By signing on as primary sponsor, CAP hopes to increase awareness of their three primary missions - cadet programmes, aerospace education, and emergency services.

"The NASCAR Busch Series offers the Civil Air Patrol an affordable and effective marketing platform that will provide the vehicle to inform and educate the general public about CAP," said CAP national commander, Brigadier General Richard Bowling.

"The enormous reach of the sport will enable us to introduce our 60-year old organisation to millions of people over a short period of time. This will provide the impetus necessary to effectively augment and advance CAP missions."

The Civil Air Patrol found a perfect fit with driver Ashton Lewis Jr, and the family-owned team of Lewis Motorsports, which began life in September 1999 as a venture between a father and his two sons. The team made its debut in 2000 by running a limited NASCAR Busch Series Grand National Division schedule before, in 2001, moving up to a full Busch Series programme in an effort to gain valuable seat time for its driver.

"Once the Civil Air Patrol recognised the marketing potential available to us through primary sponsorship in the NASCAR Busch series, it became necessary to find the right team - or the right fit - for CAP," Bowling explained, "We were not interested in just any team.

"Other than the obvious criteria - a driver with the ability to win races - there were other requirements that had to be met if we were to enter into this arena. The Lewis Motorsports team fit the bill for us. They are a family-owned and managed team. CAP is a family-oriented membership organisation. We have many members where the entire family participates in CAP missions - some even go back to the grandparents who joined during World War II."

Lewis Jr will pilot the #46 Civil Air Patrol Chevrolet, while his brother Charlie will continue calling the shots as crew chief.

"We have worked for years to get to this point, and to have our first sponsor be the Civil Air Patrol is more than I could have ever asked for," Lewis Jr admitted, "The CAP is new to the sport and we want to make their first year very memorable, and that is my major focus for the 2002 season.

"Last year, we ran in the front with teams that have 20 or 30 guys at their shop. Lewis Motorsports had eight guys total, including the team owner - my father, who drove the hauler for the second half of the season.

"Now we have sponsorship and a real budget that we can work with, and those variables have allowed us to hire additional guys to work in the shop to compliment the team we had in 2001. With every positive thing that Lewis Motorsports has going for us this season, we are sure to make a lasting impression in the NASCAR ranks."

The #46 Civil Air Patrol Chevrolet will make its debut run on 16 February in the Daytona 300.

The Civil Air Patrol was founded in December 1941, one week before the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, by over 150,000 citizens concerned about the defence of America's coastline. On 1 July 1946, President Truman established CAP as a federally chartered benevolent civilian corporation, while the US Congress passed Public Law 557 on 26 May 1948 making CAP an auxiliary of the new United States Air Force.