JOEY GASE RACING
  • Home
  • Joey's Bio
  • News
  • Sponsors
  • Store
  • Contact
    • Join The Fan Club

News

Joey Gase named Ambassador by National Keratoconus Foundation

6/9/2023

0 Comments

 
Picture
The National Keratoconus Foundation (NKCF), the world’s oldest and largest organization dedicated to increasing awareness of the eye disease keratoconus, (pronounced carrot-oh-cone-us) has named NASCAR driver Joey Gase as Ambassador.

Gase, from Cedar Rapids, Iowa, discovered his lifelong passion when he won the first of many Go-Kart races at age 8.  By 18, Joey had been signed as a professional driver and was competing in the NASCAR Nationwide Series.  Today, Joey is driver and co-owner of Emerling-Gase Motorsports and has competed in more than 350 NASCAR events. 

Keratoconus is a bilateral eye disease characterized by progressive thinning and bulging of the cornea which results in vision impairment.  Keratoconus (or “KC”) most commonly begins in the teenage years and stabilizes in middle age.  There is no cure for keratoconus, but its progression can be slowed or halted.  In the most severe cases, a corneal transplant may be needed to improve vision. 

Visual acuity for NASCAR drivers can be no worse than 20/40.  Joey had worn glasses and contact lenses for vision correction for most of his life, but three years ago, he felt his vision was diminishing and visited his eye doctor who diagnosed him with keratoconus.

Picture
Conversations with the National Keratoconus Foundation led him to the Ophthalmology Department at the University of Iowa Medical Center where Gase was fit with impression-molded, custom contact lenses (EyeFitPRO) that improved his vision by compensating for the irregular shape of his cornea.  With his vision improved to 20/10, Joey is more assured in his role as driver/owner.  “In racing, you need to have confidence in your vision.  Driving 200 mph around a 2.5 mile track, I need to clearly see the imprints, grooves and marks, as well as any debris on the track.”  Gase added, “And, like any businessman, I spend hours each day in front of the computer.  I am now able to see the screen clearly and don’t experience headaches as I did in the past.”

Now based in North Carolina, Joey Gase and his wife Caitlin have twin sons, Carson and Jace.  Gase has devoted significant effort to promoting organ, tissue and eye donation and has been recognized by various organ procurement organizations for his charitable work.  He is happy to add keratoconus awareness to his list of causes.  
nkcf.org/

Mary Prudden, Executive Director of NKCF, was honored to welcome Gase as an Ambassador for the organization.  “Joey’s history is like so many other individuals with keratoconus.  He grew up believing he just had ‘bad’ eyesight when in fact he had a condition where his cornea was changing shape and his vision was becoming impaired.”  

Prudden added, “Because of Joey’s history with transplant agencies, he is happy to spread the word that early detection and intervention can save eyesight and eliminate the need for a corneal transplant.  Joey’s success as a NASCAR driver should be an inspiration to others who find that keratoconus is getting in the way of achieving their career goals."


About National Keratoconus Foundation:  NKCF is an outreach program of the Department of Ophthalmology at University of California, Irvine.  Since 1986, NKCF has educated patients and the public about keratoconus, an eye disease that causes the cornea to become weak and change shape, leading to reduced vision.  To learn more, visit https://nkcf.org/
​

About Emerling-Gase Motorsports:  In 2021, owner-driver Joey Gase joined forces with driver Patrick Emerling to form Emerling-Gase Motorsports. The team fields two cars, #35 and #53 full time on the NASCAR Xfinity Series circuit.  To learn more about Joey Gase, visit https://www.joeygaseracing.com/.
Picture
0 Comments

    Archives

    January 2025
    August 2024
    April 2024
    March 2024
    June 2023
    March 2023
    February 2023
    November 2022
    September 2022
    August 2022
    July 2022
    June 2022
    March 2022
    February 2022
    January 2022
    December 2021
    November 2021
    October 2021
    September 2021
    June 2021
    April 2021
    March 2021
    February 2021
    January 2021
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    June 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    December 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018

    Categories

    All

    RSS Feed

Follow joey gase

Gase started racing at Hawkeye Down Speedway in the track's junior classes in 2001. He won the track modified B championship at La Crosse Fairground Speedway in 2007.

Join the fan Club Now

Subscribe to Newsletter
Copyright 2021 Joey Gase Racing
Site powered by Channel Fusion
  • Home
  • Joey's Bio
  • News
  • Sponsors
  • Store
  • Contact
    • Join The Fan Club