Champ Car: Bon Jovi, Jay Leno Headline Vegas Grand Prix Event

Hit country duo Big & Rich along with Cowboy Troy will also perform at the event.

Photo courtesy: wcu.edu

LAS VEGAS - The Vegas Grand Prix will host an April 5th charity gala featuring superstar performances by Jon Bon Jovi and Friends and Jay Leno.

Proceeds raised during the event's silent and live auction will be donated by the newly formed Jenyon Foundation, Inc. to Keep Memory Alive -- the foundation for the Lou Ruvo Brain Institute, a local organization that funds research to help find a cure to Alzheimer, Huntington, Parkinson, ALS and memory disorders - among others.

The gala, to be held at the Bellagio, will feature numerous celebrities.

Jon Bon Jovi and Friends will be the headline musical entertainment with comedian and "Tonight Show" host Jay Leno doing stand-up.

Hit country duo Big & Rich along with Cowboy Troy will also perform at the event.

The gala will also feature international cuisine, appearances by Champ Car World Series drivers and A-list Hollywood celebrities and a live auction hosted by auctioneer company Barrett-Jackson with an accompanying high-end silent auction.

Auction items include an exclusive winemaking and cooking apprenticeship in Tuscany, Italy with winemaker Roberto Stucchi; a stay in a waterfront condo in Kauai, Hawaii; a walk-on appearance on NBC's hit show "Medium"; VIP racing experiences with the American Racing Academy and rides in an L39 fighter jet.

Attendance at the event is by invitation only, with seating beginning at $5,000 for a table of 10.

Prices progress to the Pole Position, the title sponsorship, which at $350,000 includes three VIP tables to the gala, premium champagne and wine on tables and numerous other benefits.

"The Vegas Grand Prix Gala will be one of the most spectacular evenings for our sponsors and VIP guests to enjoy," said Bradley Yonover, co-owner of the Vegas Grand Prix. "It will be a night to remember, beginning the moment guests enter the cocktail reception through the Jon Bon Jovi and Friends concert."

The Jenyon Foundation, Inc. is named after the owners of the Vegas Grand Prix, Dale Jensen and Yonover.

Their company, DDB Ventures, is also putting on the Grand Prix Arizona, a similar event, in December 2007. The foundation will work with similar charities for the Arizona festival.

The foundation will also donate money raised at the celebrity poker tournament to be held at Binion's Gambling Hall on Saturday, April 7th, to benefit Keep Memory Alive, among other charitable organizations.

"The Vegas Grand Prix will prove to be a big help to so many people in Southern Nevada and beyond," said Jensen, partner with Yonover in DDB Ventures. "We're proud to be a part of the Las Vegas community and honored to be able to help those in need at the same time."

Keep Memory Alive works hard to raise research dollars, develop a cure for Alzheimer's disease and build a state-of-the-art facility designed by renowned architect Frank Gehry, the Lou Ruvo Brain Institute, which broke ground last week.

Since being founded in 1996, the foundation has raised $50 million toward the goal of opening the Lou Ruvo Brain Institute in downtown Las Vegas.

The center is named in honor of Lou Ruvo, father of foundation founder Larry Ruvo, who died from Alzheimer's disease.

For more information, visit www.keepmemoryalive.org.

About Vegas Grand Prix

The Vegas Grand Prix is a three-day festival of speed and entertainment being held April 6th-8th, 2007 that will encircle the heart of downtown Las Vegas.

The weekend will feature rock concerts, a celebrity poker tournament, Easter services, an impressive Easter egg hunt and culminate in the internationally televised 2007 series opener for the Champ Car World Series.

The racing portion of the weekend will also present a Historic Grand Prix with legendary open-wheel racers participating as well as the season opener for Champ Car Atlantic -- Champ Car's support series.

The temporary street circuit is a 2.44-mile, 12-turn course through the heart of "Glitter Gulch." Champ Cars generate nearly 750 horsepower and can reach speeds up to 180 miles per hour on the Vegas street course.

It is expected to be one of the largest events in the history of downtown Las Vegas.

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