NASCAR Camping World Truck Series
Race #20
American Racing Wheels 200
California Speedway
Saturday October 2, 2004

Rookie Notes: American Racing Wheels 200
● Brandon Whitt was the Raybestos Rookie of the Race at the Las Vegas 350 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. Whitt finished 13th and took top rookie honors for the first time in 2004.

● David Reutimann leads the chase for Raybestos® Rookie of the Year by 39-points (200-161) over Tracy Hines entering the American Racing Wheels 200 at California Speedway.

Whitt Considers California Home Turf
Coming off his best career finish in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series and a rookie of the race award, Brandon Whitt and the #38 Werner Ladder/Cure Autism Now Ford F-150 team head to the fast two-mile California Speedway for Saturday night’s California 200.

Small To Take Seat of Thorsport No. 13 at Fontana
Jason Small, of Bakersfield, Calif., will pilot the ThorSport Racing No. 13 Chevrolet this weekend at California Speedway. Small, a 25-year-old veteran of 32 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series races since the 2000 season, will be making his first series start of the 2004 season.

Park Positive about California After Slow Start
“It’s been an up and down season. We started off slow. Really getting started so late getting the people in place was a priority for us to get the Orleans team where it needed to be and that was up front and winning races. Three-quarters of the way through the season, we feel like we’re getting on top of that."

Steve Park No. 62 Dodge Teleconference
Fresh off a season-best third-place finish on Saturday night in the Las Vegas 350 NASCAR Craftsman Series Truck race at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, Steve Park and the No. 62 Orleans Racing Team enter this weekend’s American Racing Wheels 200 at California Speedway ranked 10th in the Series Standings. With six races remaining in 2004, the race is also heating up for the manufacturers’ championship. Dodge continues to lead with a 119-117 advantage over Chevrolet.

Slim Shady Running Again at California with Hamilton
“I paid a lot of attention to the lighting around the track in California when the Nextel Cup guys raced there.  I think it will be better for me and all the other competitors, and even the fans.  You just sort of take it in stride when tracks add lights because it is what it is, there is no changing it now.  The part about California that stands out is that it is a slick race track when it gets hot.  It changes a lot, kind of goes in and goes out. "

Multiple Groove Action in California Exciting for Chaffin
“I enjoy going out west and racing on tracks like California Speedway. It offers multiple racing grooves. It is one of the tracks you can draft on and that becomes really noticeable as the race progresses. You will see much of the same racing action as we did in Michigan earlier in the season. You come really close to racing wide open at California, but never all the way. The ability to change grooves allows for great racing for the fans and the drivers."

Kelly “Girl” Sutton Eager for Southern California Debut
The NASCAR Camping World Truck Series visits California Speedway this weekend for the speedway's first-ever 100-lap wire-to-wire under the lights event, and Kelly Sutton is ready. Riding the heels of a career-best 14th place qualifying run in Las Vegas, Sutton is looking for a strong run at her debut on the 2-mile, D-shaped oval.

P.J. Jones Set To Drive Team ASE/CARQUEST Dodge in California
NASCAR veteran P.J. Jones will saddle up in the cockpit of the Ultra Motorsports prepared No. 2 Team ASE/CARQUEST Dodge this weekend when the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series invades California Speedway for the American Racing Wheels 200.

Reutimann's Confident Third Times a Charm at California
Returning to California Speedway for the second time this season and the third time in his career, David Reutimann’s NASCAR Busch Series experience is pivotal for his success in the No. 17 NTN Bearings Toyota Tundra at the two-mile tri-oval for the American Wheels 200.

Cook Excited to Race "Under the Lights" in Fontana
“We’re planning on bringing the same truck from Las Vegas to California; it’s a brand new truck. We’re starting to build an arsenal of equipment, some really good trucks that will be very competitive at ppc Racing. We’re running with an open-wheeled series again this week with IRL. Last week it was with CART. I don’t see any big difference between the two series with us running on the track after them for practice or the race."

Bodine Looking for Gold in California
Hot off an exciting 2nd place finish in Las Vegas, Todd Bodine and the Germain / Arnold Racing team are looking to strike gold in California. The No. 30 Toyota Tundra led most of the final green-flag segment of the Las Vegas 350, but narrowly missed out on the accolades of Victory Lane from a pass by Shane Hmiel with just two laps remaining.

Toyota Truck Series Preview: California
The American Racing Wheels 200 will mark the eighth race at California Speedway for the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series (NCTS). There will be eight Toyota Tundras in the field. In the most recent race on the schedule at Las Vegas Motor Speedway (Sept. 25), three Tundra drivers finished among the top-six at the 1.5-mile oval. Todd Bodine, in just his third race driving the No. 30 Germain/Arnold Racing Toyota, finished second: just one second behind race winner Shane Hmiel.

Sprague, No. 16 Chevrolet Review: California
“California Speedway is a really cool place to race.  I have always been a big fan of night races so I am looking forward to the first night NCTS race there.  Hopefully we are running just enough later in the fall to not have the late afternoon sun be a problem early in the race, as it seemed to be for the Cup race.  Night racing is a better race for the fans I think, it brings a whole new dimension to how the trucks look on the track."

NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Notes: California
Hmiel, Ballew are winners in Las Vegas ... Two winless streaks – one short, the other long – were snapped when Shane Hmiel (No. 15 Whitaker Farms Chevrolet) won the Las Vegas 350 on Sept. 25. Hmiel won in his 19th appearance to become the season’s 10th different winner. Hmiel is the series’ fifth-youngest first-time winner at age 24 and four months. The race also marked the 101st time that Hmiel’s team owner, Billy Ballew of Atlanta, Ga., had fielded a truck in a NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race. Ballew’s first start came June 22, 1996 with Mark Gibson finishing 12th at Bristol Motor Speedway. His best finish over the first 100 races had been Hmiel’s pair of second-place finishes at Bristol and Memphis this season.

Fourth Straight Win in Sight for Musgrave
When there's a NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race at California Speedway and Ted Musgrave is on the entry list, good things are sure to happen for the No. 1 Mopar Dodge team.  Three times Musgrave has competed in the truck event and three times he has made a trip to Gatorade Victory Lane making it easy to see why this year Musgrave is such a favorite.  "We'll have a good enough shot at winning California, a good enough Mopar Dodge truck and a good enough Ultra Motorsports team," Musgrave said.  "But it's just luck the way it goes.  We should be able to contend for the win, but if it's gonna be four-in-a-row, that remains to be seen." (High Sierra Photo)

Setzer, No. 46 Chevrolet Pre-Race Report: California
“We are running the same truck at California this weekend that we did in Vegas last week.  It’s a good truck, probably our best chassis and body, and we feel its going to be really good here at California.  California has been a good track for us over the past few seasons.  We had a truck that could have won here last year, but just got outrun by a couple of trucks in the end."

Renshaw Hopes Similarity Between California and Michigan Holds True
While lady luck proved not to be riding with Deborah Renshaw at the Las Vegas Speedway last weekend, Renshaw is holding high hopes as the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series continues their tour of the west coast at the California Speedway in Fontana. The second NCTS event that Renshaw competed in this season was at the two-mile Michigan International Raceway where she earned a 22nd place finish.

Travis Kvapil California Advance Report
"California is a lot of fun, and I’m really optimistic going there. I’m certain my team will put a good truck under me, and we’ll run well. We’ll be taking the same chassis we ran at Michigan with a similar setup. I’ve always run decent at the California track. It’s very similar to Vegas in the feel that you get there, but it’s a half-mile larger. We do draft at a lot of race tracks, but California and Michigan are two places on the schedule where the draft plays a big part."

The Shane Hmiel Express Sets Sights on Southern California
The challenge for Shane Hmiel and the rest of the Billy Ballew Motorsports team is to bring themselves back down to earth after the team's first ever NASCAR Camping World Truck Series win at Las Vegas Motor Speedway last Saturday night. The task at hand now is for the team to focus on The American Wheels 200 at California Speedway's 2 Mile tri-oval and their chance for a west coast sweep. At Las Vegas Hmiel charged from his 21st starting position and smoothly picked off positions working his way through the pack. Hmiel caught leader Todd Bodine with only 2 laps to go.

Event Schedule: California


Cook Looking For Continued Success at California Speedway
Terry Cook, driver of the No. 10 Ford Power Stroke Diesel by International race truck, knows California Speedway very well.  The two-mile speedway is similar to his home track, Michigan International Speedway, where he recorded a seventh-place finish earlier this year. 

GM Racing/Team Silverado Pre-Event Notes and Quotes
Dennis Setzer: “We are running the same truck at California this weekend that we did in Vegas last week.  It’s a good truck, probably our best chassis and body, and we feel its going to be really good here at California."  Jack Sprague: “California Speedway is a really cool place to race.  I have always been a big fan of night races so I am looking forward to the first night NCTS race there." David Starr: “This will be the 7th time I have competed at California Speedway.  We earned the Pole in 2002 and took a 5th place finish in 2003 and 2001.  It is a Speedway I really enjoy."

Chase Montgomery Preview: California
Chase On California: Chase is coming off a discouraging 27th place finish last week in Las Vegas.  He is looking to rebound with a solid outing this week at the California Speedway.

Kvapil Shatters Bud Pole Record at California
Travis Kvapil continued Toyota's dominance of qualifying with a strong run to the pole for tomorrow night's Auto Club 200 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race at the California Speedway.  Kvapil's No. 24 Line-X Toyota ran a quick lap of 40.298 seconds/178.669 miles per hour, which broke the old track record by nearly three-tenths of a second. Toyota swept the top-4 positions, with Mike Skinner, rookie contender David Reutimann and Hank Parker, Jr. following Kvapil.  Last week's winner Shane Hmiel will roll off fifth.  Skinner's run was impressive, considering the primary engine had trouble in practice and the first laps the backup engine had during the day were on his qualification attempt.  NCTS championship contenders Carl Edwards and Dennis Setzer will go sixth and seventh, while former California pole sitter David Starr will roll off eighth.  Last week's runner-up finished Todd Bodine will start ninth, and Johnny Benson will round out the top-10. Current NCTS point leader Bobby Hamilton will be forced to start with a provisional after his truck would not start on the qualifying grid.  He will line up inside row number 17, and will be joined by Skinner, who by NASCAR rules will be forced to start at the back for an unapproved engine change. All 36 trucks that were entered made the starting field. (High Sierra Photo)

Kvapil Captures First Career Bud Pole at California Speedway
Travis Kvapil and his No. 24 Line-X team were basking in the California sunshine today and accolades from the driver’s first career pole for Saturday’s American Racing Wheels 200 in Fontana. The pole marks the third time a Toyota has captured the front-runner spot this season.

Kvapil to the Back Following California Accident
Travis Kvapil will start the American Racing Wheels 200 in a back-up truck after cutting a right front tire and hitting the wall in turn 1 on the last lap in happy hour. The team will run chassis BR009 which scored a 27th-place finish at Texas and eighth-place finish at Bristol earlier this season. (High Sierra Photo)

Starr's Hopes are High for Top Finish in California
Filled with confidence and determination, David Starr and the Spears Motorsports crew have high hopes for the American Racing Wheels 200, Round 20 of the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series at California Speedway, Saturday, October 2.

Cook Pleads for Help from NASCAR after Tough Finish in California
Terry Cook, driver of the No. 10 Ford Power Stroke Diesel by International race truck finished 19th at California Speedway Saturday night in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series event.  Cook battled along with the rest of the Ford Racing teams all night keeping up with the other competing manufacturers.  Cook’s highlight was leading under the second caution flag to gain additional driver points.  The nine-year series driver talked about his night of frustration on the two-mile speedway.

P.J. Jones Brings Team ASE/CARQUEST Dodge 14th At Fontana
Veteran NASCAR campaigner P.J. Jones brought home his No. 2 Team ASE/CARQUEST Dodge with a solid 14th place finish Saturday Night in the American Wheels 200 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race at California Speedway. Jones' Ultra Motorsports teammate Ted Musgrave finished a strong second to Todd Bodine, narrowly missing a fourth consecutive win in Fontana. It was Jones' first NCTS start since his 9th place finish at Homestead-Miami Speedway last fall in an Ultra Motorsports Dodge. Jones can clearly see that change has taken place in the NCTS garage.

Rookie Reutimann Rockets to Sixth in California
After starting third in the 100-lap event at California Speedway, David Reutimann finished sixth in the American Wheels 200 Saturday night. “The Darrell Waltrip Motorsports team did another great job this weekend,” said Reutimann, who led the first seven laps of the 200-mile event. “We were able to lead some laps and run in the Top-5. Bobby Kennedy said we had some really fast lap times there near the end. We just ran out of time. We were able to gain some points and come away with a Top-10 finish.”

Bodine Blows Away Fontana Foes For First Truck Win
Todd Bodine made a strong move to take over the lead with five laps remaining and drove through a “Days of Thunder” scenario coming to the checkered flag to pick up his first career NASCAR Camping World Truck Series win in the American Racing Wheels 200 at the California Speedway on Saturday night. Bodine was working hard to keep a hard charging Ted Musgrave behind him coming to the checkered flag when he was forced to make an evasive maneuver to avoid a spinning Kelly Sutton coming to take the checkered flag. Bodine weaved his way through and held Musgrave off by half a truck length at the flag. It marks the first win for the Arnold-Germain Racing team in just their fourth start and the third win for the Toyota Tundra. (High Sierra Photo)

Cut Tire Derails Hmiel’s Bid for Second Truck Win
Shane Hmiel's bid for two consecutive NASCAR Camping World Truck Series wins in the Billy Ballew Motorsports No. 15 Chevrolet were dashed when a cut tire send him hard into California Speedway's outside retaining wall while leading on lap 56. The ensuing damage to Hmiel's Chevrolet relegated him to a disappointing 30th place finish in the American Wheels 200. Hmiel qualified fifth , however he was advanced to the third starting position when pole winner Travis Kvapil and second place starter Mike Skinner were sent to the rear of the field. By lap 3, Hmiel took the point position by passing rookie David Reutimann for the lead.

Misfortune in the Pits Lands Kvapil in 18th at California
Travis Kvapil might not have won the trophy during the American Racing Wheels 200, but his Line-X crew received a dubious honor they certainly weren’t looking for during Saturday’s race - most pit stops during the 100-lap event. Quite contrary to their consistent, stellar performances on pit road this year, mishaps and misfortune marred the No. 24 team’s chances for a solid run leaving them in a battle against the odds for the second week in a row.

Toyota Motorsports California Post Race Report
Toyota earned its third victory in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series (NCTS) tonight when Todd Bodine drove his No. 30 Germain/Arnold Racing Tundra into ‘Victory Lane’ after a late race charge to the checkered flag in the American Racing Wheels 200 at California Speedway. Bodine, who earned his first career NCTS victory in 11 series starts, crossed the finish line first in just his fourth race with the recently-formed Germain/Arnold Racing team. The Chemung, N.Y.-native, who started ninth, ran among the leaders throughout the first half of the 100-lap event at California Speedway. He even moved ahead of the field on lap eight, and held the lead for eight circuits around the two-mile oval.

Musgrave Snags Second in California
Ted Musgrave drove the No.1 Mopar Dodge Ram from Ultra Motorsports to a second -lace finish at California Speedway on Saturday night, avoiding a last lap accident to take the checkered flag behind Todd Bodine. Musgrave, who won the last three races at the two-mile superspeedway, led 36 of the 100 laps in his drive to the front. Bodine's margin of victory was only .049 of a second, as a hard-charging Musgrave didn't relinquish his winning streak without a fight. "We had a good race. I just wish we'd had a little more there at the end. The Mopar Dodge Ram ran great all night and it showed, as we were able to lead several laps."

Huffman California Post Race Report
After a qualifying run that included making contact with the outside retaining wall in turn two, Huffman would start the American Racing Wheels 200 in the 16th position. Maintaining his position to the first caution on lap 10, Huffman brought his Toyota Tundra down pit road to make adjustments to his tight handling machine on lap 11.

Parker, Jr. California Post Race Report
Hank Parker, Jr. had his best qualifying effort in the NCTS, which would put him on the outside of row two, in fourth position.  However, due to the pole winner and the second place qualifier’s misfortunes during final practice, Hank would start the American Racing Wheels 200 on the outside of row one. Fighting an ill handling racetruck from the start, Parker, Jr. would settle into 4th position by the first caution at lap 10.

Despite Starting 36th, Hamilton Scores a Top 5 in California
Square D Driver Bobby Hamilton never got a chance to make his qualifying attempt because of a problem with a part in his Dodge motor, so the team changed it before Happy Hour practice forcing Hamilton to start the American Racing Wheels 200 at California Speedway in the rear of the field.  Hamilton quickly worked his way through the competitors and finished the race in fifth.  The veteran also spread out his points lead over Dennis Setzer by 56 points in NASCAR Camping World Truck Series points battle.

Bodine Strikes It Rich in California
In just four races Todd Bodine, driving the No. 30 Germain / Arnold Racing Toyota Tundra claimed the manufacturer's third win in the ultra-competitive NASCAR Camping World Truck Series. Bodine who started the evening 9th on the grid powered his way through the field to the first position passing David Reutimann for the lead early on in the race. Following the first caution of the night it was Shane Hmiel and Bodine fighting for the lead. With just 7 laps remaining in the American Racing Wheels 200, Bodine tracked down the leading truck of Ted Musgrave, taking over the lead and he never looked back. (Ronda Greer Photo)

Motor Failure Leaves Crafton 24th in Fontana
Matt Crafton, driver of the No. 6 GM Goodwrench Chevrolet Silverado, was along for the ride in the remaining 25 laps of Saturday night’s American Racing Wheels 200 at California Speedway due to a motor that dropped a cylinder. This left the Tulare, Calif., native in the 24th position at the checkered flag, still in the fifth position, 271 markers from the coveted first spot in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series point’s race.

Chaffin Scores 13th Top 15 Finish at California
After qualifying his Dickies Dodge in the 12th position, Chad Chaffin ran in the top 15 all night before finishing the American Racing Wheels 200 at California Speedway in the 11th spot.  The respectable finish enabled the Dickies Racing Team to pick up one position in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series points battle to sixth, now only 37 points behind fifth-place Matt Crafton.

Sprague Rebounds in California with Strong Third Place Finish
Jack Sprague and the No. 16 Chevy Trucks Silverado team rebounded from their recent string of disappointing finishes to score a strong third place in the American Racing Wheels 200 for the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series (NCTS) at California Speedway. Sprague, the only three-time NCTS champion, qualified 14th for the 100-lap/200-mile race and was quiet on the radio the first few laps following the drop of the green flag. “The first few laps the Chevy Trucks Silverado was a little tight in the center but way loose off the corners,” Sprague explained.  “I had my hands full hanging on to it for a few laps it was so loose.  I am sure some of the guys around me were going, wow, but as the tires came in, it started to get better."

David Starr Earns a Top Four Finish at California
Earning a fourth place finish in the American Racing Wheels 200 at California Speedway this past weekend moved David Starr and Spears Motorsports up into eighth place in this year's NASCAR Camping World Truck Series points battle. We came in to this round totally motivated to do well," said Starr, who qualified in 8th place.  Our goal is always to win and we knew our No. 75 Spears Chevy Silverado was definitely a top contender and we proved it with our finish.

Montgomery Rebounds in Fontana
A very long and weary week on the west coast was capped off by NASCAR Camping World Truck Series driver Chase Montgomery with a much needed strong performance.  The newly turned 21-year-old rookie finished 16th in the running of the American Racing Wheels 200 at the California Speedway.

California Speedway 2005 Individual Race Tickets on Sale
The 2005 California Speedway racing schedule tickets go on sale Wednesday, October 6. In addition to the February NASCAR weekend, tickets for the Grand American, AMA Superbike, Southern California Historic Sports Car Festival and IRL TOYOTA Indy 400 weekends will also go on sale. Labor Day NASCAR weekend tickets go on sale March 23.

Accident Relegates Patton to 26th-Place Finish
Despite rubbing the wall in practice and qualifying 30th for the American Racing Wheels 200 in Fontana, Calif., J.R. Patton and his #67 Fiddle Back Racing team were looking for their second consecutive top-15 finish. Unfortunately, a run-in with Tracy Hines on lap 70 took Patton off the lead lap and relegated the New Mexico-native to a 26th-place finish.

NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Notes: California Nuggets
Todd Bodine (No. 30 Arnold Development Toyota) and his Germain-Arnold team may have been late arrivals to the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series, but their Oct. 2 victory at California Speedway - and third top-five finish in four starts after a Richmond International Raceway debut - confirms driver and team are quick studies. Bodine becomes the 20th different competitor to win in both the NASCAR Craftsman Truck and the NASCAR Busch Series. There have been 11 or more different winners in five of the 10 seasons of the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series. The record is 14 in 1998.

Diary of a Champion: California Dreamin’
I got to California after a quick pit stop home in North Carolina following the Vegas race. The first stop on my agenda was to tour TRD (Toyota Racing Development) with part of my crew and finally get to meet all the hardworking people that make my job easy every weekend. It was really neat to see all of the employees behind the scenes that cheer me on and work hard on a daily basis to find each of their drivers speed. I signed a lot of posters, shook a lot of hands and enjoyed eating lunch at the facility. I was also very surprised when I was presented with a custom-made RC car just like my No. 24 Line-X truck as a thank you gift from everyone there for my first win at Michigan. (Ronda Greer Photo)

Official Results: American Racing Wheels 200


Entry List: American Racing Wheels 200


Happy Hour: American Racing Wheels 200


Starting Lineup: American Racing Wheels 200


Practice 1 Times: American Racing Wheels 200


Qualifying Order: American Racing Wheels 200


Qualifying Results: American Racing Wheels 200