New Jersey Legionnaire on Legion in INDYCAR: It’s a marriage of things I love
Last December, Chip Ganassi Racing (CGR) launched the “10 Days of #VetsGiving with The American Legion.” Each of the 10 days, CGR revealed an exciting new auction item help raise funds that will directly support veterans in need through The American Legion. Auction items included an Indy 500 VIP experience, go-karting with Alex Palou and kite surfing with Kyffin Simpson.
Another auction package was a tour of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway (IMS) Museum and workout session with defending Indy 500 champ Marcus Ericsson. The winning bid of $1,200 was made by U.S. Army veteran Dave Love, a member of Hellenic American Legion Post 440 in Union, N.J.
A 1994 U.S. Military Academy graduate and former Secret Service agent, Love shared with America Legion Social Media Manager Steven B. Brooks his experience with Ericsson and his feelings about the Legion’s partnership with CGR and their collaboration on the “Be the One” suicide-prevention initiative.
Steven Brooks: What was it about this particular Vetsgiving package that made you want to buy it?
Love: I try to stay fit. And all the packages were great. But we were in the museum, and I would like to buy every single polo shirt, sweatshirt and hat in there. But what I will always take with me … is the experience and the chance to get behind the scenes. We all watch the races. The chance to go behind the scenes and (work out with Ericsson), I wondered, “Can I even do that?” To feel that and experience that with the reigning Indy 500 champion, right there. And Marcus couldn’t have been more of a gentleman. He walks up the steps of the museum by himself. I spent seven years in the Secret Service. I can tell you about professional diva behavior. (Ericsson) is – and it’s going to sound like an insult when I say it, but I mean it as the highest form of compliment – he carries himself as common as a bag of dirt. He doesn’t seem himself as, “I’m better than you.” He’s the reigning Indy 500 champion, but he didn’t see himself as that. Everybody that stopped him for autographs, he has time for them.
Question: When did you start developing an interest in INDYCAR?
David Love: I knew about it as a kid growing up in Cincinnati. We never went to the races. I really started enjoying it during (the pandemic). I would always watch the 500. I would tune into INDYCAR radio when I could. But during lockdown I thoroughly started enjoying it, pulling up old races. I kind of kick myself because now I live in New Jersey. When I lived in Cincinnati, (IMS) was 90 miles away.
Question: Now that you’re an avid fan, what are you thinking when your organization, The American Legion, enters into INDYCAR with a team like Chip Ganassi Racing in 2021?
Love: It’s kind of the marriage of things I love. Especially since (Operation) Enduring Freedom, I think all of sports has more embraced and recognized the veteran. But they’ve been way behind the pageantry and taps the 21-gun salute of the Indy 500 ceremony. It’s unmatched and will never be matched by any other sporting event. And I feel like I’m riding along with (the CGR drivers). I’m like, “Hey, that’s me.”
Question: What about seeing The American Legion and its “Be the One” messaging on the Ganassi cars?
Love: You’re on Chip Ganassi Racing. It’s like sewing the Legion’s name onto Michael Jordan’s jersey. That’s what I would compare it to.
Question: Why is “Be the One“ so important right now?
Love: I’m fortunate. (Post 440 members) get together every month and chirp at each other and insult each other, and then they all love each other like brothers. That’s their network. But it makes me sad that there are those out there who don’t have that. It makes me sad to think that anybody, much less the Legion, has to come up with a “Be the One” campaign. It saddens me that there are others that don’t have the Post 440 network.
Question: What was it like for you seeing Alex Palou’s No. 10 American Legion Honda win the GMR Grand Prix last weekend, and being far and away the best car out there the entire race?
Love: To see that just running away, and to see that “Be the One” and nobody else around (Palou), it’s a lot of pride. I can’t drive an IndyCar. But me and (Post 440 Commander) Bill Theofanous, we were all riding along with him.