One Lap for Charity

By Genny Paauwe

Edd Hendricks drove 11,000 miles in 17 days this spring, all for charity. Well, he also did it for fun! One Lap for Charity, sponsored annually by Car & Driver magazine, combines track events and philanthropy in a 10-day event.

Edd drove his 1990 Mariner Blue Miata from his Ventura County home to Rochester, New York, where the event began. He drove for Easter Seals and the Autism Society, racing on tracks in Indianapolis, Colorado, New Mexico, Kentucky and New York, to name a few. His "free" time was spent dodging from one racetrack to another, getting only a few hours' sleep between events.

Fran Rowell coordinated a relaxed-paced fun run on June 29 to show SAMOA's support for Edd's charity work. Edd and his wife came up for the fun run, followed by pizza, storytelling and music.

Eight cars showed their support and enjoyed the short drive up Jackson Highway, down Latrobe Road, up Green Valley and then curved around the Deer Valley Road loop before heading to Folsom for lunch.

With the Rowell's ('96 Montego), Leiningers ('91 Silver), Knorrs ('00 Mahogany), Rod Gonzales ('96 Montego), and two new faces, Kim and Carol, in their brand new '02 Titanium, we rounded out the crew in my '93 Red (the only Red one this time!).

Thanks goes to Edd and his wife for making the trek to Northern California for our little group. We enjoyed his tales of traveling the U.S. in a Miata (with a mini-trailer) and his spirit in keeping up the pace for charity.