BLIMPIE Announces Sponsorship of Star Mazda’s Charles Hall

Reflecting BLIMPIE'S position as a pacesetter for other sandwich shops across the country, the BLIMPIE brand announced today that it has entered into a marketing partnership with race car driver Charles Hall, a rising star of the sport.

Hall, the current point leader in the Star Mazda Championship presented by Goodyear, will represent BLIMPIE and its theme of "America's Sub Shop" in races in the United States and Canada, said Kate Unger, BLIMPIE's vice president of marketing. The Star Mazda Championship Series is a proven training ground for future open-wheel superstars. Supported by both Mazda and Goodyear, all of its races are televised on SPEED.

Hall's car will be affixed with the brand's logos and local store owners will take the partnership a step further by sampling product at regional races across the country.

Hall, a native of Sheffield, England, was on the short list for a Formula 1 test seat in 2005 when he was seriously injured in a traffic accident caused by a drunk driver. Despite several operations and a great deal of physical therapy, Hall never gave up on his dream to return to the sport he loves. Now in even better condition than he was prior to the accident, he has found a home with Andersen Racing, a Palmetto, Fla.-based team that is widely respected for its success in nurturing the careers of future open-wheel stars. It is the development team of IndyCar's Rahal Letterman Racing, owned by Indy 500 winner Bobby Rahal and late-night talk show host David Letterman.

Despite being a rookie in the Star Mazda series, Hall finished second in the first two races of the year. He led every lap of the third and most recent race, held at historic Watkins Glen International in Watkins Glen, N.Y. on June 7, to post his first series victory and propel him into the lead in the point standings.