SONOMA, California — Infineon Raceway helped local blood banks hit the jackpot on Friday as more than 100 people donated blood at the raceway’s 11th annual High-Speed Blood Drive.
"This is the 11th year having this drive at Infineon Raceway and it's always one of our best of the year."— Jeff Meyer
The raceway partnered with the American Red Cross and the Blood Centers of the Pacific on the drive, which generated 115 total pints of blood.
Since 2001, Infineon Raceway’s High-Speed Blood Drive has generated nearly 1,000 pints of blood for the American Red Cross and area blood banks.
There was an extra treat for all donors on Friday: a high-speed lap around the 12-turn road course in a race-modified Toyota Camry with a professional instructor from the Simraceway Performance Driving Center.
"This is the 11th year having this drive at Infineon Raceway and it's always one of our best of the year," said Jeff Meyer, CEO of the Northern California Blood Region of the American Red Cross, who also donated at the drive. "And we really like that we can give the donors the extra incentive of a hot lap around the track. It's something that's a little different and I know the donors enjoy it."
The American Red Cross lost 2,000 units of blood as a result of Hurricane Irene on the East Coast in September. The bad weather forced many blood drive cancellations, so the need for blood is even greater right now.
"It was a lot of fun taking the lap around the track, the driver even did some drifting. But the main reason was for the cause to donate blood. Several of us at work like to do community service and we researched this and thought it was a great idea so we came out to support the cause," said donor Khary Peterson, from San Pablo.
