ORO VALLEY, AZ — Water treatment company SLMCO Pure Water Systems, LLC announced on August 9 that it would become the primary sponsor of stock car racer James Hylton in both the NASCAR NEXTEL CUP Series and the ARCA RE/MAX series.

Hylton’s race car now is known as No. 48 SLMCO Pure Water Systems Dodge Charger. At 72, Hylton is the oldest driver in the NASCAR circuit and has 676 starts to his career.

George Foushi II, SLMCO president, and Dan Zemel, SLMCO vice president of engineering and manufacturing, said in the release that they felt this type of sponsorship “was uncharted territory” in the water industry and wanted to be the first.

In 2004, Midas Spring Water, based in Huntersville, NC, became an associate sponsor on the cars of Jay Robinson Racing in NASCAR’s Busch Series.

SLMCO gave one of its Series II water purification devices to Hylton, a driver and owner of Hylton Motorsports, a device he will use to make contaminant-free water for the race car’s cooling system as well as drinking water for the crew, at the rate of 450 gallons per day, the release said.

Zemel said in the release, “We are now trying to get some of our suppliers to also join SLMCO on the ‘water car’ — dollar-for-dollar there is no better advertising media. Our last race at Pocono Raceway we had coverage on national TV with plenty of narrative and camera coverage.”

Foushi II said in the release, “We will be at Talladega Superspeedway (in Talladega, AL) in October where driver James Hylton won first place in the past and is sure to be intensely covered by the press.”

Hylton is a veteran of 25 starts at Talladega Superspeedway with one victory, four top-five finishes and 10 top-10 finishes, according to his Web site.

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