Michelin, Yellowstone Park Foundation Publish First Michelin Travel Guide To U.S. National Park

GREENVILLE, S.C., April 24, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- As record numbers of drivers flock to America's national parks this week to enjoy free admission, Michelin is celebrating a first for the U.S. National Park Service and visitors to Yellowstone. Today Michelin joined officials from the Yellowstone Park Foundation to launch the inaugural edition of "The Yellowstone Park Foundation's Official Guide to Yellowstone National Park."

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The new Michelin travel guide, which debuts on the heels of Earth Day during National Park Week, marks an expanded relationship between the park and the tire company.

In 2009, Michelin became the official tire of the Yellowstone Park Foundation, after announcing a multi-year commitment (representing more than $350,000 in tire donations to date) to help equip the park's fleet of industrial trucks, earth-moving vehicles, passenger cars and light trucks.

Michelin is helping Yellowstone reach its goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions in the park up to 30 percent by 2016. 

"Michelin has provided Yellowstone's vehicle fleet with fuel-saving tires for the past three years in an effort to help the park reduce its carbon footprint by up to 30 percent," says Pete Selleck, chairman and president of Michelin North America. "The introduction of this guide presents yet another Michelin commitment to support Yellowstone and further enhance the experience for visitors to the park."

The new 106-page guide captures the magic of a visit to Yellowstone as only a Michelin Travel & Lifestyle publication can do, with in-depth, carefully curated content that includes tours, time-maximizing itineraries, insider tips from park experts and reliable recommendations for sightseeing and shopping. The guide enables visitors to plan in advance an efficient trip to the park, make the most of time spent on-site and enjoy a vivid keepsake from an unforgettable trip to one of the world's most astonishing and enduring natural wonderlands. 

"Michelin is taking an already successful sustainability partnership and boosting its impact to the next level by providing a valuable asset that not only enriches a visit to Yellowstone, but also helps benefit the park through proceeds from the sale," says Karen Kress, president of the Yellowstone Park Foundation. "As the publisher of our first official park guide, Michelin will help engage a larger portion of Yellowstone's 3.3 million annual visitors in the foundation's sustainability efforts while heightening awareness of environmental stewardship in the park."

In addition to the new travel guide and ongoing tire donations, Michelin regularly deploys field engineers to consult with the park's fleet managers to optimize tires for better fuel economy through proper care and inflation, meeting the demands of the harsh Yellowstone environment across more than 420 miles of roadways. 

"The Yellowstone Park Foundation's Official Guide to Yellowstone National Park" can be ordered online beginning today at www.shopmichelin.com and will be available for sale on-site at the park beginning on May 15, 2012.

About the Yellowstone Park Foundation

The nonprofit Yellowstone Park Foundation (www.ypf.org) has been Yellowstone National Park's official fundraising partner organization since 1996. The foundation works in cooperation with the National Park Service to fund projects and programs that protect, preserve and enhance the natural and cultural resources and the visitor experience of Yellowstone.  The foundation receives no annual government funding; it relies instead upon generous contributions from private citizens, foundations and corporations to help ensure that Yellowstone's great gifts to the world will never diminish. 

About Michelin

Dedicated to the improvement of sustainable mobility, Michelin designs, manufactures and sells tires for every type of vehicle, including airplanes, automobiles, bicycles, earthmovers, farm equipment, heavy-duty trucks and motorcycles. The company also publishes travel guides, hotel and restaurant guides, maps and road atlases. Headquartered in Greenville, S.C., Michelin North America (www.michelin-us.com) employs more than 23,000 and operates 18 major manufacturing plants in 16 locations.

SOURCE Michelin North America