News 97-10-31

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: Anthony Vestal IHRA Director of Communication More information: (423) 764-1164

October 30, 1997

George Elliott steps down as IHRA President

BRISTOL, Tenn. -- George Elliott has resigned as President of the International Hot Rod Association, officials of the drag racing sanctioning body announced Thursday. Elliott, who served in the position for eight months, is leaving the company to pursue other opportunities. IHRA owners Elton Alderman and Tom Billstein reached a mutual agreementwith Elliott on the parting. "George did a great job for us and was largely responsible for positioning IHRA for the next step in this period of growth and reorganization," said Alderman. Elliott will be retained in a special IHRA advisor capacity. Motorsports marketing professional Gary Schuetz will serve as Administrative General Manager until a new president is appointed. Schuetz has worked closely withIHRA this season and is very knowledgeable about operations there. Day to day activities at the Bristol office will run as usual, as current priorities include completion of the 1998 schedule, among others. IHRA is the sanctioning body for the Snap-on Tools Championship Drag Racing Series.