NHRA - National Hot Rod Association

The drivers get the trophies, television interviews, and winner's circle photographs. The crewmembers underneath their 12,000-horsepower race cars usually get another oil pan to remove and another engine to service.

VizionOne's Grunt of the Race program is making sure those workers get something else for their efforts: a check in their pocket and clean, healthy hands, courtesy of VizionOne's all-natural hand cleaner.

Since the NHRA event in Adel, Ga., the program has awarded $6,000 to winning bottom-end mechanics in NHRA Top Fuel and Funny Car competition, recognizing the crewmembers responsible for some of the dirtiest and most demanding work in professional drag racing.

Travis Vandermel, bottom-end mechanic for Top Fuel driver Shawn Langdon, leads the program with $1,750 in earnings following Langdon's St. Louis victory. Aaron Kelley, who works on Jordan Vandergriff's Funny Car, has collected three awards, while Jake Arceo, bottom-end mechanic for Matt Hagan, has also won three times since the program began in Adel.

Vic Wood, who oversees the Grunt of the Race program for VizionOne as the product's racing manager, has had the opportunity to personally present checks to the winning crewmembers. He said the reactions have ranged from quiet appreciation to outright excitement, but nobody has turned down the money.

"Everyone likes giving out money," Wood said. "Thankfully, Rodger Brogdon finances this deal, and the bottom-end mechanics just love it. A lot of them really light up when they get their checks. They all appreciate it."

Wood said the program has also accomplished something beyond handing out cash, allowing VizionOne to build relationships directly with the people who use its products.

"For us at VizionOne, it's really worked," Wood said. "It's helped us build relationships with the teams and, most importantly, the people who use the hand cleaner. It's a pretty good deal."

For Vandergriff, the program has provided an opportunity to reward somebody whose contributions usually go unnoticed outside the pits.

"If I had known Aaron was going to win the Grunt of the Race award this often, I might have worked out a deal with him where if I win, we all win," Vandergriff said. "But I'm happy for him. He's won three awards, and he deserves every dollar. He's the guy underneath the car getting dirty and changing the bottom end. Nobody deserves the recognition more than he does."

Vandergriff believes the recognition goes beyond the financial reward, particularly for crewmembers whose work rarely receives attention outside their own teams.

"These guys deserve the publicity because no car at this racetrack gets down the track without their hard work," Vandergriff said. "The bottom-end guys do some of the toughest work out here, and recognizing them gives them motivation to keep improving and advancing in their careers. Aaron Kelley is my bottom-end guy, and I'm proud he's getting this recognition."

Kelley had confidence in his team's potential long before the checks started arriving.

"I had a great feeling coming into this year that we would've won a lot," Kelley said. "And we have three diamond Wallys to prove it. I got three big checks to prove it. And I say we're going just good.

"As soon as I got hired onto this team with Cunningham and Bunker upstairs, I was like, 'Oh yeah, we're going to win a few races this year. And I'm going to have a lot of fun.' "

Vandermel admitted he never expected to become the program's leading money winner, although Langdon's success has given him plenty of opportunities to collect.

"No. Honest answer, no. I never would've thought it was going to come this far as it did," Vandermel said. "I mean, the three was great, and this season for our team, and then for this program that started, it's really amped up the drive for it, I guess, if you will. I mean, it just makes everything that much sweeter."

His teammates have also noticed the additional income. Asked how often they expect him to buy the beer, Vandermel answered, "Every time."

The Grunt of the Race program continues through the remainder of the NHRA season, recognizing the mechanics whose work keeps nitro race cars returning to the starting line. For those workers, the next win light now comes with more than another engine service.