Take A Tour With Kory

Following the official opening ceremony, Kory Russell took us on an informal tour around the exhibit to point out some of his favorite pieces and the stories behind them. Be sure to check out these items and many, many more when you visit the Caterpillar Visitors Center!

The piece that started it all: Kory collected his first memento — sheet metal from the 1999 Cat racecar — at age 12 while visiting the shop at Bill Davis Racing, the Cat team owner at the time.

The showpiece: This racecar at the center of the exhibit was assembled with parts Kory has gathered over the years. The hood, for example, is from a 2005 race at Daytona where driver Scott Wimmer crashed near the finish and flipped the car on the track. The nose and one of the side pieces are from the “throwback” car that raced at Darlington in 2016. (Look for the old Caterpillar logo.)

Suits from every driver: Just one suit representing each driver who has taken the wheel of the Cat racecar is on display, but Kory reports that he has many more in his collection at home. (So many more, in fact, he just broke a rod in his closet from the weight.)

2002 Daytona 500 trophy: This isn’t part of Kory’s collection, but he was excited to see it since he was at the track the day Ward Burton won that race.

Kory’s personal favorite: Many of the driver and pit crew helmets Kory has collected over the years are on display — including his favorite item in the collection, Ward Burton’s helmet from the 2002 Bristol night race. (“A driver’s helmet is a rare find and this one has a great story behind it. After Dale Earnhardt Jr. crashed into Ward, Ward got out of his wrecked car, walked up the racetrack and threw his foot heat shields at Junior. There are some great videos and pictures of this, which helps because I try to authenticate my items with visual proof.”)