December 2004
It’s been a great year. This year the Illinois Beat the Heat “Too Fat to Fly” team has spoken to 10,900 kids, traveled 2115 miles, and attended over 40 events. Even with the great numbers it could have been a better year. In mid July I broke the engine in “Too Fat to Fly” and it was sent out for rebuilding. While the engine was out, the second car “Unit 808” was used for the shows that we were scheduled to be at. We missed out on some great events like the Beat the HEAT World Finals in Florida, but it was a great year despite not being able to attend.
Illinois Beat the Heat has added another team to our cause. I would like to Welcome Police Officer Peter Goldman of the Oakwood Hills Police Department and his 1994 Pontiac Firebird “The INTERCEPTOR” Pete has completed his car and has submitted his application to the national office and is looking forward to a busy 2005 season.
Illinois Beat the Heat would like to announce that the State of Illinois General Assembly has acknowledged our race team for the work that we do with kids of all ages and the community with a resolution from the Illinois House of Representatives - Resolution #669. State of Illinois House Representative Jim Sacia of Freeport Illinois recommended us for this House Resolution which was recently passed. This document gives this team and organization the credibility for the work that we do. If you would like to download a copy of the House Resolution, you can do so by clicking on the link below!(Adobe Acrobat required)
"Click here to download Resolution"Illinois Beat the Heat Sgt. Johnstone as mentioned earlier has a second car “Unit 808”. This vehicle was used as a cover car when “Too Fat to Fly” was out for repair. For the 2005 season this car will be used full time in its own program with the help from one of my great sponsors Heartbreak Towing. Owners John Hulbert and Larry Hauser
APRIL 2004
It’s been a great start to the year. Already this year the Sgt. Johnstone’s “Too Fat to Fly” team has spoken to almost 8000 kids, and there is whole season to go. Sgt. Johnstone along with Officer Phillips of the Roselle Police Racing Team have attended some different but pretty awesome events.
Illinois Beat the HEAT was invited to the 2004 EXTREME Scouts outing that was held at the Route 66 Raceway in Joliet, IL. Sgt. Johnstone’s Big Fat Chevy along with Officer Phillips “Patriot” Super Comp Dragster were on display for over 1800 Boy Scouts. Also on display was the Will County S.W.A.T. Unit, The “Chicago Fire” Professional Soccer Team, The Pinewood Derby Finals, and a host of others. This event is held once every 3 years where Boy Scouts camp out and have fun for the weekend. It was nice to be a part of an well-attended event.
Illinois Beat the HEAT displayed at the 4th Annual “Tons of Trucks” that was held at the Bolingbrook Park District Aquatic Center. This event is geared to the little ones, the 2-6 year old kids. At this event Sgt. Johnstone believes that he set a new record in handing out picture cards with 600 in 2 hours. Event Staff believes that there was over 1000 kids in attendance for this event. The event had a lot of cool displays on hand including some pretty impressive large trucks from the Bolingbrook Public Works, a Valley View School Bus, the Fountaindale Library Book Mobile, a 36 Ft. Motor Home, along with others. The big hit for the day was the Air Horns on the big trucks.
Illinois Beat the HEAT is now gearing up for the Racing season along with all of the shows that are going on. The rumor mill has it that the Romeoville Officers are continuing their progress with their 1996 Caprice Hotrod. Sgt. Johnstone has the second car almost to the painting stage and is ahead of schedule. American Racing Wheel has come on board as a contributor to this project with a donation of a pretty awesome set of wheels. Officer Peter Goldman of the Oakwood Hills Police Department has obtained a 1994 Pontiac Firebird and has the support of his Chief to become a member of Illinois Beat the HEAT. Who would of ever thought that this program would grow to this.
As you can tell it has been a pretty busy first part of the year. Stay tuned in for more stuff and information on upcoming events and activities. As always I want to thank Jack Benton for the outstanding work he does on this web-site, I must say it is the best looking site on the web.
February - 2004
ORGANIZATION NUMBERS:
Well folks National Beat the HEAT, Inc. was busy in 2003. National Beat the HEAT members participated in 750 events in 27 states, 3 Canadian Provinces, and in the Northern Territory of Australia. National Beat the HEAT was able to document that our educational message of No GANGS, No DRUGS, and No Violence was delivered to over 1,700,000 youngsters in 2003. These numbers show exactly why we do what we do, and I know that all of the officers involved do it because we know we are making a difference.
WORLD OF WHEELS:
Illinois Beat the HEAT attended the World of Wheels January 30, 31, and February 1, 2004 at McCormick Place in Chicago, IL. This could be the best show we have done to date. The show was well attended and between the 2 Illinois teams, over 8000 kids were spoken to and received photos of the cars. Thanks to Peloza Construction, Oaklawn Illinois for their generous donation of our new Baseball Style card that we handed out at the show. The new card is displayed on this page. I would like to thank the members from the various Police Departments and other organizations that stopped by to say hello. (Warrenville P.D., Dolton P.D., LaGrange Park P.D., Chicago P.D., Bolingbrook P.D., Glencoe P.D., Ogden Avenue Street Machines, Illinois Viper Club, Edelbrock High Performance, Torco Race Fuels,) Since we have been doing this show, we have used it as an indicator of how the season will be. As good as the show was for us, it’s going to be a great year.
NEW CAR UPDATE:
The second car for Sgt. Johnstone is coming together. All of the parts have been obtained and the rebuild is underway. The front suspension has been redone along with the fuel system. I would like to thank Heartbreak Towing for their support with this project.
January - 2004
We started the year with our first race called "Hangover Fest" at Cordova Dragway, Cordova Illinois. We were part of 330 cars with over 500 spectators. We handed out lots of pictures to the kids along with key chains and stickers to the parents. The wording on the stickers and key chains was "Drive Hammered - Get Nailed". It was nice to get out in the dead of winter and run the car and talk to the kids.
We attended the annual "World Drag Expo" that was held at the Pheasant Run Resort in St. Charles Illinois. This event was 2 buildings full of everything drag racing with new products, seminars, manufacturers midway and a swapmeet area. We were still able to hand out cards to the kids on hand as we visited our friends in the show.
Our big event for January will be the 42nd Annual Car Quest World of Wheels in Chicago, Illinois. This show estimates the 3 day crowd to be well over a million people. I will have an accurate kid count for the next article. We plan on having a very nice display this year with Scott Phillips Olds 442, his super comp dragster "The Patriot" and my 1984 Chevrolet Impala. We will be using the D.U.I. Goggles with the crowd, playing some tapes about illegal street racing, and handing out a bunch of pictures. This show is our big kick off for the year! Come on out and see the Illinois Beat the Heat Team Cars!
Last but not least, I am putting together a second car for our program. We do alot of high school races in this area, and the kids sign up to race against the police car but it takes to long for the racecars to cool down. The second car will be more of a street car, a 1990 Chevrolet Caprice police car with all of the equipment the car had when I started on the Police Department. I am planning on having the car ready to go in early April.
December 2003
Illinois Beat the Heat has undergone some changes and the 2004 season has started! These changes will make us better! Just a little brief history is in order to bring you up to speed on our current news. The 2002 and 2003 seasons were not as great as we would have liked them to be. In 2002, with the change of the name, from the "Bolingbrook Police Racing Team" to "Illinois Beat the Heat", there were a lot of questions about the team that needed to be answered to both the public and to my sponsors. The changes turned out to be for the best since they have opened doors to take this program in a new direction. It was hard for me to get past the fact that important people did not support this great program for reasons that are pretty silly. Even though the support wasn't there, the program continues to move forward.
In the beginning of 2003, my work hours were changed and that made it difficult for me to attend all of the great local, regional and national events that we usually do. The Illinois Beat the Heat team continued to move forward and we managed to attend 20 events covering 2,975 miles and got to spend time with over 9,825 children and their families! Again, we moved onward and upward to continue to make this program a great one! Now the 2004 season is upon us and as I said in the beginning, we are going through some exciting changes. We will continue to show kids of all ages that there are alternatives to Gangs, Drugs and Violence. We will also be focusing on "Impaired Drivers" and "Illegal Street Racing".
Illinois Beat the Heat will be adding a third team to our program in 2004. Sgt. Glen Letrell, of the Romeoville Police Department, is building a 1995 Chevrolet Caprice with a 'Big Block Chevrolet engine" and other little goodies! Sgt. Letrell is partnering with the patrolman's union to help sponsor him and make his venture a success! Officer Scott Philips of the Roselle Police Department will once again be racing his awesome 1971 Olds Cutlass 442 and is also racing a "Big Block Chevrolet Powered Super comp Dragster called "The Patriot". Pictures of Scott's cars will be featured in the "Teams" section of our web site.
Sgt. Mike Johnstone of the Bolingbrook Police Department will continue to both show and race the 1984 Chevrolet "Too Fat To Fly" Impala Police Race Car. This car made it's best pass of 9.89 seconds @ 134 miles per hour! Sgt. Johnstone is currently adding a second car to the team, a 1990 Chevrolet Caprice police Car, so that more shows and events can be attended by the team. The second car should be completed in time for the beginning of the "outdoor show" season that starts in April, 2004!
It’s a Brand New Car! / January 2002
The new name of the car is “Illinois Beat the Heat” and it has an American Flag on the hood, onto the fenders and ending on the doors. The car will remain with the squad car appearance and the Black and White color scheme. I could not be happier with the new look of the car as it pays tribute to the Hero’s that lost their lives on Sept. 11th, 2001.
We welcome each and every one of you to come out this year and see the Illinois Beat the Heat race team at one of our events. Any community group that would like the race car to appear at an event should contact Sergeant Michael Johnstone. We will try to attend your event as long as that date isn't already filled.
