NASCAR Heads to Canadian International AutoShow with Variety of Interactive Attractions

Courtesy Andrea Goldstein, TSN Communications

To coincide with the launch of the 2006 NASCAR season, NASCAR will be front and centre at this year's Canadian International AutoShow at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre in Toronto from February 17 to 26. NASCAR Canada will host its second annual NASCAR Pavilion, offering a range of attractions, including authentic NASCAR vehicles. On display is the late NASCAR legend Dale Earnhardt Sr.'s #3 GM Goodwrench Chevrolet Monte Carlo and current NASCAR NEXTEL Cup star Kevin Harvick's #29 GM Goodwrench Chevrolet Monte Carlo.

The NASCAR Pavilion also gives visitors the chance to take part in exciting interactive activities, including the NASCAR Pit Challenge presented by Raybestos Brakes and Wix Filters and the Full Throttle Stock Car Simulator, hosted by Team Full Throttle.

In addition, two 40-inch Sony Bravia LCD televisions will be on-site providing live High Definition coverage of the Daytona 500 on February 19 at 1:30 p.m. ET on TSN.

Throughout the nine-day event, fans at the NASCAR Pavilion will be able to purchase exclusive travel packages to NASCAR Canada's upcoming NASCAR Canada Day @ Michigan International Speedway (August 20) and NASCAR Power @ Pocono (June 11) promotions. Coinciding with NASCAR's GFS Marketplace 400 and Pocono 500 races, the unique promotions offer Canadian NASCAR fans the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to travel south of the border to attend NASCAR NEXTEL Cup race events with VIP access.

TSN will televise 21 NASCAR NEXTEL Cup races this season, all of which are available in High Definition on TSN HD. TSN's coverage gets underway this Saturday (Feb. 11) at 8 p.m. ET with the first race of the season – the Budweiser Shootout from Daytona International Speedway. During TSN's coverage of the Daytona 500 on February 19, SportsCentre correspondent John Lu will be on-site from Daytona International Speedway to cover all the action from the day's events and race. Last year, TSN's coverage of the Daytona 500 attracted a national average minute audience of 550,000 viewers, making it the most-watched motorsport race in TSN's 21-year history. TSN's average audience for NASCAR in 2005 was 294,000 viewers, a 37 per cent increase from 2004.