Hurst, Jaws of Life® Proud to Continue Sponsorship of NHRA

SHELBY, N.C.--Hurst Jaws of Life is proud to continue its sponsorship with the National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) in 2009. With this sponsorship, Hurst is titled as the “Official Rescue Tool of the NHRA.” As part of the agreement, the NHRA will use Hurst Jaws of Life rescue tools at all of its events nationwide.

Hurst's roots were established in auto racing when George Hurst, the inventor of the modern hydraulic rescue tool, saw a need with high speed car crashes on the racetrack. Hurst developed the Hydraulic rescue tool by working with prototypes in the 1960s, finally bringing the tools to fire and rescue departments in 1972. Hydraulic rescue tools such as the Jaws of Life are used to extricate personnel from vehicles in a crash that would cause them to be trapped inside.

“We're delighted to have the NHRA using Hurst Jaws of Life again in 2009. In auto racing, rapid extrication of the drivers during incidents is key,” says Aaron Guenther, vice president of sales and marketing for Hurst. “With this sponsorship, the NHRA will have state of the art equipment at all of its events on its 'Safety Safari' vehicles. We’re looking forward to continuing our partnership with NHRA.”

About NHRA:

Headquartered in Glendora, Calif., NHRA is the primary sanctioning body for the sport of drag racing in the United States. It presents 24 events through its NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series. The NHRA has 80,000 members and 140 member tracks. The NHRA-sanctioned sportsman and bracket racing series provide competition opportunities for drivers of all levels. The NHRA develops the stars of tomorrow by offering the NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series, NHRA Summit Racing Series, NHRA Street Legal Drags presented by AAA and the NHRA Jr. Drag Racing League for youths ages 8 to 17.

About Hurst® Jaws of Life:

Hurst Jaws of Life is a division of Hale Products Inc. Hale Products Inc. is a world leading provider of emergency service products in applications such as defense, rescue, firefighting, and industry, and is one of the largest manufacturers of products in its categories to the emergency services worldwide. Hale Products Inc. is a unit of IDEX Corporation, an applied solutions provider.