Minot Air Force Base, ND- Chad Hord, was working in a swamp one day when a man walked up to him and asked: “Are you the guy that races?” Ever humble the young Hord replied “Yes Sir, I race off road buggies on the weekends...” The man asked Chad why he hadn’t sent his company a sponsorship proposal and instructed Hord to feel free to do so.
Chad drove home from work that day not realizing that the man he had spoken with had just sold a multi-million dollar company and had bought another. Upon sharing the news of who he’d met with his parents and girl friend, Hord’s family and friends quickly put two and two together, rolled up their sleeves and presented the man with a sponsorship proposal.
“I had the hardest time coming to terms with ‘why me’, I didn’t think I had anything of value to offer this man and his company.” says Hord “It got even worse when he came back with an offer to sponsor us with a full Pro Truck sponsorship... I mean we were about as ‘Mom and Pop’ an operation as they come, in the end we had to turn down the huge offer... cause it would have been a train wreck... we just weren’t at that level.”
A simple act of honesty, put Chad and his support team on terms with the man and his company that years later as made the names BOSS Snowplows and Pro Off Road Truck Racing mean one thing: Chad Hord Racing. The two enterprises have been partnered from Hord’s days behind the steering wheel of a Volkswagen powered buggy to today’s Nissan powered 800 plus horsepower Pro2 trophy truck and championship victories that go with it.
Chad Hord, visited team Minot as part of American300’s professional development program ‘The Never Quit Series’ sponsored by Air Force Global Strike Command. The program is based on the simple premise that mentors can make a difference. Over the past year American300 has been bringing amazing Americans who have rich life stories to the commands bases to share their very personal stories. "We bring individuals who service members want to meet, want to have their photos taken with... but as our guests open up and share their life stories the reality becomes one that goes far beyond meeting a celebrity... it no longer is viewed as a 'grip and grin' autograph session, an points out the programs founder Robi Powers.
How are the guests received? What do the Airmen think of the stories told? Senior Master Sergeant Ronald Lee, of the 91st Missile Wing provides some insight:
“From the moment American300 landed in the Magic City, I was taken aback by their heartfelt appreciation and genuine excitement to visit with our Airmen and share their life’s experiences with Team Minot. Our Airmen really connected with their powerful message about how they worked their way thru adversity to become a force to be reckoned with in their highly competitive careers, fueled mainly by a potent mix of personal drive, horsepower and sheer guts. Chad’s evolution from a novice off-road enthusiast to a Pro 2 Champion was unquestionably an inspirational journey. Despite numerous setbacks and challenges, some even at the height of his success, Chad never backed off the gas pedal and successfully recaptured his standing as the hard-charging frontrunner leading the pack. His message of believing in your dreams, staying the course despite the setbacks, keeping a positive outlook and perhaps most of all not burning bridges by remaining true to character despite adversity laid a solid foundation of personal fortitude for our up and coming Global Strike Warriors.”
Chad Hord was joined by MonsterJam professional driver Nicole Johnson and American300’s Robi Powers for four days of programming with both the Airmen of the 91st Missile Wing and 5th Bomb Wing. We’ll have more on Nicole Johnson’s story and the Airmen’s reaction to meeting her in the days to come. The Air Force Global Strike Command American300 partnership will continue on 2013 with more great Americans coming out to share their stories. "We've had some incredible volunteers come out and share this past year at all five of the Air Force Global Strike Command bases and we're looking forward to providing the Airmen with more 'resiliency road maps' in the year to come. says Powers adding: 'It's all about showing our service members that they're not alone, others have gone before them and gotten through some really tough bumps in lifes road."
For more on American300 visit: www.American300.org
For more on Air Force Global Strike Command visit: www.afgsc.af.mil
Chad Hord can be reached at: www.chadhordracing.com
No comments:
Post a Comment