Bidding has begun for the Salute to Veterans Flag Fundraiser for Hunting with Heroes. The nonprofit organization supports veterans through outdoor activities, such as dirt-track racing.
Every year, the Hunting with Heroes Salute to Veterans series takes place in July. The miniseries takes place at a trio of Iowa tracks: Clay County Fair Speedway in Spencer, Kossuth County Speedway in Algona, and Boone Speedway.
(For more on the series and Hunting with Heroes, read “Salute to Veterans: Three-Race Series This Week.”)
Outside Groove contributing photographer Jim Steffens and his son Brandt created these flags to support Hunting with Heroes. Last year’s auction raised $2,975 for the nonprofit.
“It is a great feeling to volunteer to be part of Hunting with Heroes and the Salute to Veterans tour,” Steffens, of Primghar, Iowa, said. “We show our veterans that they are not forgotten, and they are honored for their service by enjoying hunting and racing — two of the most popular sports in the Midwest.”
The flags measure 3′ x 5′ and are printed on both sides. Each flag is unique.
“We just released the first three flags, and bids have been coming in from across the country — as far away as San Diego,” said Steffens.
This year’s bidding begins this month with three flags. Those carry the stock cars driven by Chad Palmer, Buck Schafroth, and McCain Jennings. Bidding for those flags concludes at the end of the April.
Next month will see the sport mods Alec Fett, Tim Warner, and Logan Anderson.
In June, four flags will go up for bid. They feature the modifieds of Jeremy Mills, Brandon Beckendorf, Joel Rust, and Nick Meyer.
Hunting with Heroes volunteer Alis Golombeski is coordinating the auction. To bid of the flags, follow this link.
Mike Adaskaveg has written hundreds of stories since the website’s inception. This year marks his 54th year of covering auto racing. Adaskaveg got his start working for track photographer Lloyd Burnham at Connecticut’s Stafford Motor Speedway in 1970. Since then, he’s been a columnist, writer, and photographer, in racing and in mainstream media, for several outlets, including the Journal Inquirer, Boston Herald, Stock Car Racing, and Speedway Illustrated. Among Adaskaveg’s many awards are the 1992 Eastern Motorsport Press Association (EMPA) Ace Lane Photographer of the Year and the 2019 National Motorsports Press Association (NMPA) George Cunningham Writer of the Year.
