"Betting on Brielle and Brooke" -Team Lowe's Track Record Magazine

August is SMA Awareness month! Brielle and Brooke are featured in an article with Chad Knaus inside the Lowes quarterly racing news magazine called, “Track Record.” This magazine goes out to 750,000 homes! That’s right, SEVEN HUNDRED AND FIFTY THOUSAND homes!!! What great awareness! Thank you Lowes & Chad for helping us raise awareness about Spinal Muscular Atrophy!!

Betting on Brielle and Brooke

Author:Chad Knaus
Date:08.09.10

Usually, the only gambling I do is on two tires versus four during a pit stop, or maybe on fuel mileage.  But I had an opportunity recently to bet on something far more important – at a casino night to benefit Brielle and Brooke Kennedy.
 
Brielle and her sister Brooke are both affected with Spinal Muscular Atrophy (SMA), which is the leading genetic killer of children.  Their aunt works at Hendrick Motorsports, and that’s how I met them.

The girls are adorable.  They’re very cute and very sweet. They’re extremely resilient and tough little ladies.  They definitely touched a soft spot in my heart and I wanted to help them any way I could and get some awareness out there.   We just held a poker tournament for them and a number of drivers and crew chiefs came out. We were able to raise a lot of money for these little girls and for SMA.   It’s really nice to be able to help this family.  It’s such a rare disease, and to have two little girls in that family affected by it, is just terrible.  I like the fact that I can help to a degree, and wish I could help more.

One exciting thing is that we’re looking for ways to help them with a wheelchair accessible conversion for their van so they can travel easier.  The poker night went a long way in raising money for their van, so we plan to have it for them soon.
 
They usually come to the Michigan race, so hopefully I’ll see them in the fall.  They all came to the race last year, and it was great to see how much they enjoyed it.  I had a chance to give Brielle a tour of the transporter, introduce her to some drivers and even put her in the racecar.  I knew our day was complete when she wished me luck on the race.
 
If other people would like to make a donation for these great little girls, they can contribute to:

Friends of Brooke & Brielle 
P.O. Box 740
Mattawan, MI  49071 
 
It’s an honor for me to be able to help this family and to see the progress of Brielle and Brooke.  It’s a bet that’s paying off in the most important ways.

Online version of the article:
http://www.lowesracing.com/Shop-Talk/Chads-Pit-Box/Chads-Pit-Box-August-2010.aspx

Brielle and Chad Knaus

Chad Knaus's Three Wishes - Sporting News

Sporting News’ 50 Most Beautiful People:  Chad Knaus

http://www.scenedaily.com/news/articles/sprintcupseries/Sporting_News_50_Most_Beautiful_People_Chad_Knaus.html

Sporting News asked that question of readers, fans and those who cover the sport, and the results weren’t limited by traditional definitions of beauty. The editors considered fan favor

Who are NASCAR’s most beautiful people?

The sites and sponsor favorites and gave them points, and they also awarded points to “those were were making waves in the sport.”

The results of this non-traditional approach are now out with the publication of NASCAR’s 50 Most Beautiful People. The special edition is now available on newsstands and at the online store at www.streetandsmiths.com.

SceneDaily is running the list, with one person from the top 50 to be featured each day. Only the top selection was ranked, with the rest following in a random order that allows fans to decide who should be ranked where.

Today’s installment features Chad Knaus, four-time NASCAR Cup championship crew chief with the No. 48 Hendrick Motorsports team of Jimmie Johnson.

Born: Aug. 5, 1971
Birthplace: Rockford, Ill.
Current residence: Cornelius, N.C.

In his words:
First job: I was washing cars in a used car dealership. I was working at a detail shop. I was 13 at the time, maybe 12.

Last year … [We won] our third straight [Cup] championship.

Pet peeve: I’d say, uncleanliness. I like things to be clean and neat and orderly. I’m a little anal retentive, a little type-A.

Can’t live without … my job. It’s everything I live for. I have a great group of guys. I have a great job. It’s definitely the one thing I’m most proud of and wouldn’t want to be without it.

Life-changing moment: We had a plane crash that took the lives of many who were very close to us. That was probably the largest reality check. It made me realize there’s a lot more to what we do and it means a lot more to people than what you may think. Watching the Hendricks go through what they did, it makes you understand relationships with people and understand love and what they mean to you.

In 10 years … I hope that I am married with a child or children and healthy and still involved in the sport.

Vacation: I typically will go to an island, somewhere where I can go scuba diving or snorkeling.

Best race track/city: Obviously Las Vegas is fantastic. It’s a cool city; there’s a lot going on. The facility at the track is awesome, and it’s very fan friendly. But they’ve (race tracks) all got their little twists. Infineon is cool. It’s a neat area. It’s beautiful with the mountains and the vineyards. I like going up there and staying at the winery. A lot of fans like that. There’s the going up and doing the wine tasting and there’s a lot of great restaurants. It’s a lot of fun.

Three wishes: My first wish would be to have a good wife and family. A successful family relationship — that would be awesome. My second wish would be to help kids. A friend of mine has two daughters who have spinal muscular atrophy (a genetic disease that causes muscle degeneration and weak-ness); if I could help them, I would. And my third wish would be to get three more wishes.