L to R: Larry Camp (President, SportCoins), Maj. Gregg Yetter, USMCR (General Manager) and Gen. Peter Pace, USMC, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. (Track PR Photo)

When sports memorabilia company SportCoins heard that General Peter Pace, the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, was going to be on hand at the Coca-Cola 600, the company offered a challenge... a challenge coin, that is. SportCoins bases its core product off the "challenge coins" that are commonplace in the military. General Pace was presented a special set of coins that featured several NASCAR medallions in a custom display box.

This one-of-a-kind set was part of the American Heroes program for the NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series Coca-Cola 600 on May 27, 2007, at Lowe's Motor Speedway in Concord, N.C. This program featured ten racecars sporting special paint schemes honoring the military. SportCoins created companion medallions to go with the special die-cast collectible racecar replicas that Motorsports-Authentics produced.

The medallions in the special set, and the service or organization represented, included:

No. 24, Jeff Gordon, Department of Defense
No. 48, Jimmie Johnson, USO
No. 11, Denny Hamlin, U.S. Marine Corps
No. 01, Mark Martin, U.S. Army
No. 16, Greg Biffle, U.S. Coast Guard
No. 21, Jon Wood, U.S. Air Force
No. 8, Dale Earnhardt Jr., no affiliation but sported a camouflaged scheme
2006 NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Champion, Jimmie Johnson
2006 NASCAR NEXTEL All-Star Challenge Winner, Jimmie Johnson
2006 Coca-Cola 600 Winner, Kasey Kahne

SportCoins, based in Concord N.C., has a heavy military influence. Its president, Larry Camp, is a U.S. Army Veteran, and the general manager, Gregg Yetter, is a Major in the United States Marine Corps Reserve.

About SportCoins Inc.: SportCoins Inc. was founded in 2003 by then current and former servicemen. They adapted the military challenge coin concept to NASCAR and began minting extremely high quality collectible medallions for NASCAR and other professional sports. SportCoins medallions quickly became popular among general fans and collectors alike for their unparalleled hand craftsmanship and competitive price point. For more information about SportCoins, please visit the Web site at www.sportcoins.com.