ST. PAUL, Minn. – The winners of the final VIP grand prize in the 3M Automotive Aftermarket “Your Ticket to the Track” sweepstakes had the time of their lives as special guests at the 2012 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Champion’s Week in Las Vegas.
 
The prize winner, Neil Smith, works for Masters Auto Body in Charlottesville, Va. His good fortune came from registering a specially marked box of 3M PPS™ online in the 3M “Your Ticket to the Track” Sweepstakes.
 
Jeff Cotten, owner of Masters Auto Body, Masters Collision and Collision Masters in Virginia and South Carolina, and his wife Lori joined Smith for the festivities. As part of the VIP grand prize, Cotten had the opportunity to bring his local distributor, Terry Whitmore, owner of E&M Auto Paint Supply, his wife, along with his lead sales representative, Stan Fitzwater, and his wife.
 
Their itinerary included admission into the Myers Brothers Award Luncheon, NASCAR Victory Lap and NASCAR After the Lap, lunch with 3M NASCAR driver Greg Biffle and, the centerpiece of the once-in-a-lifetime experience – tickets to the 2012 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Awards Ceremony on Nov. 30.
 
The guests were ecstatic to receive the red carpet treatment at stock car racing’s biggest social event of the year.
 
“We were all able to come to Las Vegas thanks to 3M,” said Cotten. “3M is a wonderful company, and we’ve been using 3M products at my shop since day one 35 years ago.”
 
Whitmore seconded the excitement.
 
“We were so excited to hear that we won and that we were able to bring our sales rep, too,” said Whitmore. “We started on Thursday, and it got better and better with each event, culminating with the NASCAR banquet. What an incredible experience!”
 
For Fitzwater, it was a first for a NASCAR fan.
 
“Probably the coolest thing I’ve seen in Vegas is … everything,” said Fitzwater. “I’ve never been here. Seeing the NASCAR drivers is really cool. I’ve been a NASCAR fan for many years. I’m thankful to get to do this, and I’m thankful I was invited.”