Dale Jr. as a Navy recruiter
Star NASCAR driver Dale Earnhardt Jr. will see what his recruits look like next month at Great Lakes Naval Station near North Chicago.
Recruits have been joining the Navy's Dale Earnhardt Jr. Division boot camp, the first named for an individual athlete. A No. 83 Monte Carlo SS that launched the recruiting effort in a North Carolina race in May - complete with a special logo for Earnhardt's division on the hood - was parked Thursday morning outside the base's Navy Exchange.
It's all part of the Navy's marketing effort to connect with young adults. Other celebrities might come aboard as well in the future after the Navy assesses how well Earnhardt performs as a recruiter since striking an $800,000 deal.
Brad Keselowski, who drives a Navy-sponsored No. 88 car on NASCAR's second-tier Nationwide series for Earnhardt's JR Motorsports team, signed autographs at Thursday's event.
Part of the attraction of the individual sales pitch for the Navy is the ease of measuring results. Earnhardt's television commercials and other efforts have attracted 63 of a hoped-for 88 recruits, officials said.
The would-be sailors will report to Great Lakes in late August, with Earnhardt present to commission the division. Earnhardt is scheduled to return for the division's graduation at Great Lakes, tentatively set for Oct. 10.
Lt. j.g. Andrea Ross, the Navy's NASCAR program manager, said Earnhardt is vested in the division that'll bear his name. She also suspects it will provide a boost to the recruits before they start a grueling boot camp.
"Boot camp is hard enough. So, if Dale Jr. is there one day to commission your division, that's pretty cool," said Ross, who accompanied Earnhardt's No. 83 car to Great Lakes.
Earnhardt isn't the first sports connection to Great Lakes' recruit divisions. The Chicago White Sox and St. Louis Cardinals have divisions in their names set to graduate Aug. 1 and Oct. 3, respectively.
In the case of the Cardinals, White Sox, Navy Moms Online and other organizations sponsoring recruit divisions, no money exchanges hands for the privilege. The Sox have sent players to speak to recruits in the team's division, said Great Lakes spokesman Todd Willebrand.
Mark Bukoski, a senior chief at Great Lakes, said he doesn't see a downside to a reputable organization sponsoring a division, which typically has in the neighborhood of 88 recruits.
"I think it's free advertisement to some extent," Bukoski said.
Recruits can become involved in the division names that usually have a Navy connection. They pitch in their own money for supplies to create flags for their divisions before graduation.
Meanwhile, the Navy will drop its sponsorship of the No. 88 Monte Carlo that Keselowski drives for Earnhardt's JR Motorsports at the end of the season.
Ross said the $6.5 million deal provided the Navy with great exposure at 33 race tracks across the United States, but the time isn't right to continue the sponsorship.
"At the end of the day, we've decided to go in a new strategic direction," she said. "At this time, we've got to remain flexible. We can't make a commitment of this magnitude."