NASCAR President MIKE HELTON, team Owner RICHARD CHILDRESS, Talladega Superspeedway Chair GRANT LYNCH and Coca-Cola Marketing Asset Manager BRENDA STATON on Thursday "pitched the virtues of the sport and the famed track to area business representatives." Helton said corporate interest these days is "strong and actually in some cases growing." Lynch said that 71% of fans at Talladega "come from out of state, an average of 290 miles away" (AP, 7/10).
THE GREAT BAMBINO: A "century and one day" after Baseball HOFer BABE RUTH made his major league debut for the Red Sox, an auction Saturday in Baltimore "commemorating that debut and featuring rare memorabilia from his career is expected to bring in large crowds and even bigger bids." The "centerpiece of the 126-item lot is a ball from a Florida collector that marks the first home run ever hit in Yankee Stadium" (Baltimore SUN, 7/11).
NAMES: Standard Security Life insurance company "went on the offensive against" former NHLer BRYAN BERARD on Thursday, filing a Manhattan lawsuit worth over $18M "after the stick handler accused the company of fraud" (N.Y. POST, 7/11)....Hockey HOF-elect MIKE MODANO and his wife, ALLISON, on Thursday had twins, JACK and KATE, and Modano “shared his happiness with the world via his Twitter account” (DALLASNEWS.com, 7/10)….Ravens coach JOHN HARBAUGH “has taken a loss” on his Reisterstown, Md., house. He purchased the property, founded on two wooded acres, in April ’08 for $2.34M but recently sold it for $2.05M (LATIMES.com, 7/10).
