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TrackSideLive!
| Kroger 200
Martinsville Speedway | October 20 - 21, 2006
TrackSideLive! Presented by
Team ASE with TrackSide Editor Charles Krall...
Exclusive online coverage - from start to
finish - of the tough trucks and even tougher drivers of the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series
including Practice Times, Notes, Quotes, Photos, Audio interviews and more!
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Good Morning from Martinsville
10-20-2006 7:11 am
Good morning everyone and welcome to TruckSeries.com's TrackSideLive! coverage of the Kroger 200 at Martinsville Speedway. It is a typical morning here in the mountains of southern Virginia as early morning fog is still burning off, hopefully soon, and we should have clear blue skies to work under throughout the day. High temperatures should reach a very comfortable 70 degrees so it should be a pleasant day for working for all of us here. Things are still a little wet and damp from overnight rain, but the track should be dry soon and we should be close to an on-time start here this morning. We'll have updates throughout the day from here at Martinsville Speedway so stick with us.
First Round of Pics Coming...
10-20-2006 7:15 am
While it's early - and we will be here virtually all day so we'll have time to get plenty of updates for you throughout - we're going to take a quick spin up and down pit road to see what the crews are up to. There are some new teams here and some new paint jobs to boot, so we'll take a look at what's out there and get a batch of TruckShots! posted ASAP.
Track Drying Underway
10-20-2006 8:50 am
While it hasn't rained in hours, the track here was still wet - not just damp - when we rolled in this morning. Martinsville Speedway jet dryers are out making laps trying to get the track in shape for the start of practice, which should start just about on time at 9 am ET.
Track Drying Nearly Complete
10-20-2006 9:00 am
The track officials are finishing up their final moments of track drying so we should be ready to start practice momentarily. We will have practice updates as well as an entry list update shortly.
Martinsville Track Facts
10-20-2006 8:19 am
Martinsville Speedway is 0.526-miles in length. The two straightaways are 800 feet long, tied together on each end by paperclip corners banked at a mere 12 degrees. The first race here - then run on a dusty dirt surface - was held on September 25, 1949. The 200-lap race distance translates to 105.2 miles. Seating capacity at Martinsville Speedway seats 65,000 people. Martinsville has hosted two races a season since 2003 and the Kroger 200 will be the 16th NCTS race held here.
Practice Ready to Fire Off
10-20-2006 8:26 am
The tower has just called the drivers to their trucks, the jet dryers are being parked safely away off the track and we are ready to get rolling for the first practice for tomorrow's Kroger 200. Stick with us, we will have all the action as it happens from Martinsville.
Martinsville Track Records
10-20-2006 8:31 am
Qualifying: Rick Crawford, October 2005, 19.732 seconds/95.966 mph
Race (200 laps): Jon Wood, October 2003, 1 hour 27 mins, 37 secs/72.069 mph
Pace Truck to Lead Field
10-20-2006 9:34 am
The pace truck is lined up at the head of the line on pit road and will lead the field around for several laps while the drivers make sure the track is dried and ready to go. It should just be a handful of laps before the pace truck pulls in and we get a full-blown green flag.
Pace Truck Off, Green Light On
10-20-2006 9:42 am
The green light just flickered on and nearly two dozen trucks have dropped the hammer and are hard at it trying to find the handle that will give them an advantage once the green flafg drops tomorrow. David Ragan, Bobby East, Mike Skinner and Casey Kingsland were among the first on to the speedway. We'll have timing updates shortly.
They Said It, Prac 1 No 1
10-20-2006 8:50 am
David Ragan, No. 50 Ford: "It feels very free getting in."
Mark Martin, No. 6 Ford: "Do whatever you need to do to it, but it gets up on it (the rev limiter) quite a bit."
Erin Crocker, No. 98 Dodge: "It is all over the chip getting in."
Bill Lester, No. 22 Toyota: "It's free into the center, then its about a four tight through the center."
Schedule Update
10-20-2006 9:52 am
The wet track has delayed activities and jumbled the schedule somewhat. The first practice will end at 10:15 am ET, then rookies will get their 30 minutes at 10:20 am ET. The final practice for the full field will roll for 60 minutes at 10:55 am ET.
Prac 1 Rundown 1
10-20-2006 9:59 am
1. Reutimann 20.190
2. Almirola 20.200
3. Crafton 20.229
4. Darnell 20.240
5. Martin 20.249
6. Benson 20.260
7. Cook 20.263
8. Sprague 20.278
9. Ragan 20.278
10. Crawford 20.289
11. Starr 20.295
12. Bliss 20.343
13. Hamilton, Jr. 20.346
14. Busch 20.383
15. Skinner 20.384
16. Setzer 20.401
17. Musgrave 20.401
18. Hornaday 20.403
19. Ambrose 20.419
20. D. Hamlin 20.427
21. Bodine 20.454
22. Lester 20.537
23. East 20.538
24. C. Miller 20.540
25. Gaughan 20.585
26. Crocker 20.605
27. McCumbee 20.653
28. Earnhardt 20.745
29. Shane Huffman 20.770
30. Dodson 20.852
31. Jimmy Simpson 20.884
32. Tam Topham 21.052
33. Chaffin 21.052
34. Richardson 21.088
35. Brad Reithmeyer 21.185
36. Stout 21.288
37. Damon Lusk 21.291
38.John Mickel 21.348
39. Todd Shafer 22.187
Prac 1 Rundown 2
10-20-2006 10:17 am
1. Reutimann 20.038
2. Crawford 20.106
3. Hamilton, Jr. 20.108
4. Benson 20.120
5. Crafton 20.144
6. Bliss 20.168
7. Setzer 20.190
8. Starr 20.193
9. Almirola 20.200
10. Hornaday 20.205
11. Ragan 20.206
12. Darnell 20.240
13. Sprague 20.242
14. Ambrose 20.243
15. D. Hamline 20.245
16. Martin 20.249
17. Musgrave 20.252
18. Cook 20.263
19. Bodine 20.319
20. Busch 20.383
21. Skinner 20.384
22. Gaughan 20.409
23. McCumbee 20.412
24. Crocker 20.434
25. Lester 20.472
26. East 20.538
27. Miller 20.539
28. Earnhardt 20.621
29. Chaffin 20.634
30. Huffman 20.652
31. Lusk 20.652
32. Topham 20.658
33. Dodson 20.698
34. Kingsland 20.769
35. Richardson 20.783
36. Simpson 20.884
37. Stout 21.118
38. Reithmeyer 21.185
39. Mickel 21.206
40. Shafer 21.223
Rookies Underway
10-20-2006 10:27 am
The rookies entered here are now on the track for their 30 minute session. We'll update any action as it happens, and get you a scoring rundown shortly. The full-field final practice will start up immediately following this session.
Rookie Rundown 1
10-20-2006 10:46 am
Here is the rookie rundown with a few moments to go:
1. Almirola 20.113
2. Darnell 20.242
3. Miller 20.281
4. Ambrose 20.321
5. Reithmeyer 20.433
6. Richardson 20.450
7. McCumbee 20.474
8. Lusk 20.480
9. Crocker 20.505
10. Simpson 20.653
11. Dodson 20.656
12. Huffman 20.678
13. Mickel 20.910
14. Shafer 21.073
Rookies Done; Final Practice Up Next
10-20-2006 10:51 am
NASCAR is switching over the timing and scoring and we'll have the full field final practice up next. Stick with us for timing updates throughout, and of course we'll have any updates of action on the track as it happens.
Starr Scrapes the Wall
10-20-2006 11:19 am
David Starr scraped the wall moments ago exiting turn four to necessitate a short red flag. NASCAR and track officials made a quick inspection and we are back to green.
Final Practice Rundown 1
10-20-2006 11:20 am
1. Martin 20.109
2. Hornaday 20.134
3. Sprague 20.146
4. Crafton 20.146
5. Setzer 20.156
6. Ragan 20.160
7. Benson 20.175
8. Darnell 20.187
9. Hamilton, Jr. 20.199
10. Musgrave 20.204
11. Reutimann 20.234
12. Almirola 20.239
13. Miller 20.242
14. Bodine 20.244
15. D. Hamlin 20.265
16. Bliss 20.272
17. Busch 20.281
18. Cook 20.293
19. Skinner 20.297
20. McCumbee 20.297
21. Crocker 20.320
22. Chaffin 20.321
23. Starr 20.360
24. Ambrose 20.367
25. Huffman 20.464
26. Lester 20.481
27. Gaughan 20.520
28. Earnhardt 20.567
29. Richardson 20.619
30. Lusk 20.621
31. Reithmeyer 20.729
32. East 20.764
33. Crawford 20.784
34. Topham 20.802
35. Dodson 20.806
36. Kingsland 20.815
37. Stout 20.967
38. Simpson 20.991
39. Shafer 21.486
Jimmy Simpson Crashes
10-20-2006 11:25 am
Jimmy Simpson has crashed in turn one to bring out another red flag. He has fired the truck and driven it back to the pits. We will get a damage update as soon as possible.
Final Practice Rundown 2
10-20-2006 11:37 am
1. D. Hamlin 19.956
2. Darnell 20.057
3. Hamilton 20.063
4. Sprague 20.071
5. Setzer 20.081
6. Almirola 20.102
7. Martin 20.109
8. Reutimann 20.131
9. Hornaday 20.134
10. Crafton 20.146
11. Benson 20.156
12. Ragan 20.160
13. Musgrave 20.204
14. Chaffin 20.204
15. Bliss 20.224
16. Crawford 20.235
17. Miller 20.242
18. Bodine 20.244
19. Reithmeyer 20.267
20. Busch 20.281
21. Ambrose 20.292
22. Cook 20.293
23. Skinner 20.297
24. McCumbee 20.297
25. Crocker 20.320
26. Starr 20.360
27. Huffman 20.408
28. Lester 20.481
29. Gaughan 20.520
30. Lusk 20.529
31. Earnhardt 20.567
32. Topham 20.568
33. East 20.609
34. Richardson 20.619
35. Kingsland 20.631
36. Dodson 20.667
37. Mickel 20.801
38. Simpson 20.856
39. Stout 20.892
40. Shafer 21.197
Simpson Withdraws
10-20-2006 11:51 am
After a crash in practice, Jimmy Simpson and his team have officially withdrawn from further competition here at Martinsville. The No. 64 Chevrolet had moderate damage to the right side of the truck and without a backup in the trailer ready to go the team was forced to withdraw. That leaves 39 trucks ready to compete for 36 spots in qualifying.
Starr's Team Hard at Work
10-20-2006 12:45 pm
The Red Horse Racing team is hard at work repairing the No. 11 Toyota after a brush with the wall in practice. They have finished with the right side bodywork, and are still working on the mechanicals under the truck. With plenty of time between now and qualifying they should have little problems getting it finished and through inspection. We spoke to David Starr about the incident in practice, and that interview will be posted to the Sights and Sounds Box shortly.
Audio on the Way
10-20-2006 12:49 pm
We just got back from the garage with six interviews following today's practice sessions.
Terry Cook talks about how his truck was in qualifying and how the track conditions will change from the time we practiced until the time we qualify with the Cup cars running their practice and qualifying sessions in between.
Matt Crafton discusses his chances this weekend, coming off a third place run here in the spring and bringing back a truck he thought could have won last time out for it in Loudon.
Rick Crawford is a winner here in late model and Truck Series competition, and he talks about how experience here at Martinsville helps in practice and how important a good qualifying run is.
Bradley Reithmeyer introduces himself to us, and talks about his first laps in Truck Series competition.
Robert Richardson is coming off his best career finish, and for the first time is coming back to a track he's raced at in the Truck Series before here this week in Martinsville. He tells us about how those two factors have given him an added boost in confidence.
Finally we talked to David Starr and he talked to us about what happened to his No. 11 Toyota in practice and how that affects the rest of his weekend here in Martinsville.
Look to the Sights and Sounds Box to the right side of the TrackSideLive! page and click on each driver's name to listen.
While you are checking out our exclusive driver audio, also browse through the TruckShots photo gallery, which is absolutely jam packed with images from here at Martinsville.
Martinsville Races Summary
10-20-2006 1:19 pm
09/25/95 Winner: Joe Ruttman Started 2nd Ford Pole: Qualifying Not Held
09/21/96 Winner: Mike Skinner Started 16th Chevrolet Pole: Bobby Hamilton
09/27/97 Winner: Rich Bickle Started 1st Chevrolet Pole: Rich Bickle
09/26/98 Winner: Jay Sauter Started 10th Chevrolet Pole: Greg Biffle
04/17/99 Winner: Jimmy Hensley Started 9th Dodge Pole: Mike Bliss
04/10/00 Winner: Bobby Hamilton Started 2nd Dodge Pole: Mike Wallace
04/07/01 Winner: Scott Riggs Started 2nd Dodge Pole: Joe Ruttman
04/13/02 Winner: Dennis Setzer Started 33rd Chevrolet Pole: Ted Musgrave
04/12/03 Winner: Dennis Setzer Started 5th Chevrolet Pole: Ted Musgrave
10/18/03 Winner: Jon Wood Started 2nd Ford Pole: Carl Edwards
04/17/04 Winner: Rick Crawford Started 3rd Ford Pole: Jack Sprague
10/23/04 Winner: Jamie McMurray Started 18th Dodge Pole: Qualifying Not Held
04/09/05 Winner: Bobby Labonte Started 5th Chevrolet Pole: Bobby Hamilton
10/22/05 Winner: Ricky Craven Started 9th Ford Pole: Rick Crawford
04/01/06 Winner: David Starr Started 15th Toyota Pole: Bobby Hamilton, Jr.
No. 50 Loses Transmission to NASCAR
10-20-2006 2:50 pm
The No. 50 Ford had it's transmission confiscated yesterday after NASCAR discovered the third gear did not meet specifications.
"We'll likely look at a fine, but we shouldn't look at any penalty such as starting at the back of the field for that," stated Roush Racing's Kevin Ray.
Josh Wise to Trucks
10-20-2006 4:14 pm
Former USAC Midget champion Josh Wise was spotted walking through the pits here at Martinsville today, and said he will be racing a Michael Waltrip Racing truck in the NCTS in 2007.
Pre-Qualifying Audio
10-20-2006 4:56 pm
We just collected a couple more pre-qualifying clips to add to the Sights and Sounds from Martinsville Speedway. We talked earlier to Nextel Cup Chase contender Denny Hamlin, who is making his first Truck Series start since 2004, and he tells us he is looking forward to the chance to go race without worrying about points. David Ragan also talks about some of the doors that have opened for him the past couple of weeks - namely his own Nextel Cup ride - but he also tells us he'd be more than happy to go to any local short track and race just as hard without the fame and fortune. Bobby East is still looking for that first top-10 Truck Series finish, and said he has a strong horse to ride here this weekend. Finally, Mike Bliss talks about the importance of qualifying, fuel mileage, and tires here at Martinsville. Look to the Sights and Sounds box to the right side of the TrackSideLive! page and click on each driver's name to listen.
Live! Bud Pole Qualifying Up Next
10-20-2006 5:10 pm
Click here to log on to our Live! Bud Pole Qualifying coverage
! We will wrap up TrackSideLive! coverage following qualifying. See you back here then!
Post-Qualifying Press Conference
10-20-2006 6:54 pm
Click here to listen to the entirety of the post-qualifying press conference here at Martinsville.
Bud Pole Fast Facts
10-20-2006 7:01 pm
Jack Sprague earns his 29th career NCTS Bud Pole, second best all-time to Mike Skinner...it is Sprague's second pole of the season; he won from the pole earlier in the season at Memphis...Sprague has never won in Truck Series competition at Martinsville in 12 career starts; his best finish here is third, four times: 1996, 1999, 2000 and the spring 2004 race...Sprague started 22nd in the spring race this year; he finished 17th.
Progression of the Pole
10-20-2006 7:12 pm
Chad McCumbee, out first, 20.291, starts 26th
David Reutimann, out second, 20.071, starts 15th
Bobby Hamilton, Jr., out fourth, 20.062, starts 14th
Ron Hornaday, out fifth, 20.016, starts sixth
Ted Musgrave, out eleventh, 19.948, starts third
Mike Skinner, out 12th, 19.940, starts second
Jack Sprague, out 39th, 19.792, starts first
Good Night! See You in the Morning...
10-20-2006 7:19 pm
We're going to go with the flow and head to the gates and call it a night from the Martinsville Speedway. We will return tomorrow with a complete look at the season to date, break down tomorrow's Kroger 200, and talk to many of the pre-race favorites heading into the 2006 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series short track finale. Good night everybody!
Race Day in Martinsville
10-21-2006 9:32 am
Good morning from Martinsville Speedway. It's raceday and we now countdown to the green flag for the Kroger 200, Round 21 of the 2006 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series season. It is a beautiful day here in the mountains of southern Virginia with the sun shining crisplythrough the hills and cool morning temperatures expected to reach into the upper 60s or low 70s for highs this afternoon.
The teams are making their final adjustments in impound, and the driver's meeting is slated for 10:30 am ET, between practice sessions for the NASCAR Nextel Cup Series.
We'll preview the race today, get with some of the pre-race favorites for some exclusive TrackSideLive! audio, and update all the news and notes from the speedway so stick with us...
Martinsville Best Finish
10-21-2006 9:53 am
Here is each driver in today's starting lineup, in order they qualified, and their best previous finish at Martinsville:
Jack Sprague, 3rd, 4 times
Mike Skinner, 1st, 1996
Ted Musgrave, 2nd, 2 times
Marcos Ambrose, 23rd, 2006-1
Erik Darnell, 11th, 2006-1
Ron Hornaday, 3rd, 3 times
Todd Bodine, 4th, 2005-1
Mark Martin, 4th, 2006-1
Kyle Busch, 5th, 2005-2
Matt Crafton, 3rd, 2006-1
David Starr, 1st, 2006-1
Aric Almirola, 18th, 2006-1
Chad Chaffin, 5th, 2005-1
Bobby Hamilton, Jr., 9th, 2004-2
David Reutimann, 8th, 2004-1
Dennis Setzer, 1st, 2 times
Rick Crawford, 1st, 2004-1
Mike Bliss, 2nd, 2003
Denny Hamlin, first start
David Ragan, 34th, 2006-1
Johnny Benson, 3rd, 1995
Terry Cook, 3rd, 2001
Brendan Gaughan, 6th, 2006-1
Shane Huffman, first start
Cameron Dodson, first start
Chad McCumbee, 21st, 2006-1
Kerry Earnhardt, 20th, 2006-1
Bill Lester, 14th, 2004-2
Chase Miller, first start
Erin Crocker, 25th, 2006-1
Damon Lusk, first start
Tam Topham, 34th, 2005-1
Robert Richardson, 28th, 2006-1
Bobby East, 13th, 2006-1
J.C. Stout, 31st, 2003-1
John Mickel, first start
NCTS Martinsville Race Averages
10-21-2006 10:00 am
Avg start of winner: 8.8
Mark Martin starts 8th, Kyle Busch starts ninth.
Dennis Setzer started deepest in the field to win, 33rd, in 2001.
Avg number of lead lap finishers: 16
Most: 27, 2005-2
Fewest: 10, 1997 & 2001
Avg number of lead changes: 4.93
Most: 8, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2003-1,
Fewest: 2, 1995, 1996, 1997, 2001
Avg number of lead drivers: 4.27
Most: 8, 1998
Fewest, 2, 1997
Avg number of caution flags: 10.3
Most: 16, 2006-1
Fewest: 6, 2003-1
Avg number of caution laps: 57.3
Most: 87, 2006-1
Fewest: 32, 2003-1
Cumulative avg speed: 67.321 mph
Fastest: 75.297 mph, 1997
Slowest: 59.219 moh, 2006-1
2006 Laps Led
10-21-2006 10:08 am
Mark Martin (10 starts) 522 laps les
Mike Skinner 501
Ron Hornaday 313
Todd Bodine 286
Johnny Benson 264
Kyle Busch (4 starts) 227
Jack Sprague 193
Rick Crawford 154
David Starr 126
David Reutimann 124
Clint Bowyer 92
Dennis Setzer 81
David Ragan 77
Marcos Ambrose 77
Terry Cook 62
Mike Bliss 53
Ted Musgrave 50
Bobby Hamilton, Jr. 28
Kyle Krisiloff 16
Erik Darnell 16
Bobby Labonte 10
Jon Wood 6
Kerry Earnhardt 5
A.J. Allmendinger 4
Mike Wallace 4
Bill Lester 3
Boston Reid 3
Chad McCumbee 3
Brad Keselowski 2
Brendan Gaughan 2
Matt Crafton 2
Kevin Hamlin 1
Chad Chaffin 1
Kelly Sutton 1
T.J. Bell 1
Travis Kittleson 1
Sean Murphy 1
There have been a total of 3294 laps run in competition in 2006.
2006 Key Race Stats
10-21-2006 10:14 am
Avg start of winner: 7.5
Todd Bodine starts 7th, Mark Martin starts 8th
Highest: 22nd (Hornaday @ Kentucky and Benson @ Nashville)
Lowest: 1st (Martin @ Daytona, Bodine @ Atlanta, Sprague @ Memphis, Martin @ Bristol, Skinner @ Vegas, Martin @ Talladega)
Pole starter has won the last two NCTS races.
Avg lead changes: 9.3
Most: 21, Daytona
Fewest: 2, Mansfield & Bristol
Avg lead drivers: 5.6
Most: 9, Daytona & Talladega
Fewest: 2, Atlanta, Charlotte, Bristol
Avg caution flags: 8.8
Most: 18, Mansfield
Fewest: 5, Daytona
There were 16 caution flags at Martinsville in the spring.
Avg caution laps: 38.6
Most: 87, Martinsville
Fewest: 17, Daytona
Avg running at finish: 31.3
Most: 35, Dover & Kansas
Fewest: 26, Talladega
Avg lead lap finishers: 21.4
Most: 26, California & Mansfield
Fewest: 13, Texas
The last two races, Vegas and Talladega, have had 25 lead lap finishers.
Cumulative lead changes: 186
So far we are one short of the number of lead changes to this point in 2005, where there were 187 lead changes through 20 races.
Avg lead changes per race: 9.30
There were an average of 9.35 lead changes to this point in 2005.
Avg leaders per race: 5.55
There were an average of 6.35 lead drivers per race in 2005.
Total laps under caution: 771
There were 49 fewer caution laps to this point last year, a total of 722.
Avg cautions per race: 8.8
We are averaging one more caution per race in 2006 than 2005, up from 7.8 cautions after 20 races last year.
MFR YTD
10-21-2006 10:27 am
Chevrolet: 3 wins, 1 pole, 19 top-5, 53 top-10, 806 laps led
Dodge: 0 wins, 1 pole, 4 top-5, 11 top-10, 44 laps led
Ford: 7 wins, 6 poles, 19 top-5, 48 top-10, 916 laps led
Toyota: 10 wins, 10 poles, 58 top-5, 88 top-10, 1551 laps led
Toyota has earned 50% of the wins, 50% of the poles, 58% of the top fives, and 44% of the top tens in 2006.
Driver's Meeting Notes
10-21-2006 11:16 am
Pit road speed: 30 mph
Pace truck speed: 35 mph
Pit speed starts 75 feet before the first pit box and ends 110 feet past the last pit box. The speed lines are marked yellow with an orange box instead of an orange cone because they are out on the racing surface.
The restart point is the double red line on the outside wall exiting turn four.
Minimum lap time to stay in competition is 22.72 seconds.
Drivers must touch the white line at the end of the backstretch to enter pit road. They must cross the line with the left side tires, and if they do touch that line with the left side tires they must enter pit road.
Average Finish
10-21-2006 11:34 am
Here is the top ten ranking for average finishes in 2006:
Todd Bodine 6.7
Johnny Benson 8.2
David Reutimann 9.2
Ted Musgrave 10.2
Rick Crawford 11.0
David Starr 11.7
Ron Hornaday 12.2
Dennis Setzer 12.3
Terry Cook 12.5
Mike Bliss 13.0
Pre-Race Audio
10-21-2006 11:40 am
We talked to a few drivers between the end of the driver's meeting and the start of Cup Series final practice. Johnny Benson tells us if he can meet or beat his best finish here back in 1995, and says it will be quite a challenge coming from the middle of the field today. David Reutimann talks to us about the monkey on his back here at Martinsville and how his life has changed since getting the call to come race in the Cup Series in 2007. We also spoke to Chad Chaffin, driving the hometown ride (HT Motorsports is based in Martinsville) tell us how he plans to attack today's Kroger 200 since he is not in a points battle. Look to the Sights and Sounds Box to the right side of the TrackSideLive! page and click on each driver's name to listen.
Toyota Sweeps Top-3 Starters
10-21-2006 12:41 pm
Jack Sprague, Mike Skinner, and Ted Musgrave give Toyota a sweep of the top three starting positions.
Field Gridded; Intros Underway
10-21-2006 12:44 am
The 36 trucks competing in today's Kroger 200 are gridded along the frontstretch wall, and the drivers are being introduced to another large and vocal crowd here at the Martinsville Speedway. Cheers for Mark Martin, Denny Hamlin, Kerry Earnhardt, and Dennis Setzer, and some boos for our point leader Todd Bodine. The fans continue to pour in through the gates, the teams finalize their pre-race preparations and we're about set to crank the engines and rock and roll for 200 laps at Martinsville Speedway.
Extra Lap on Roll-off
10-21-2006 12:50 am
The drivers will have five laps on the initial roll-off this afternoon, the first two of which will be run single file. On the third lap, the drivers will then form up into the 18 rows of two and they can start scrubbing in their tires to get them up to temperature and set pit road speed.
Kroger 200 Race Updates
10-21-2006 12:59 pm
10. Lap 21 - Sprague has caught the tail of the field. Musgrave has started to chase him down as the front five are spread out the length of the straightaways.
9. Lap 17 - Hornaday takes fourth from Skinner who is hung outside. Bodine, Martin, Starr and Busch are lined up and ready to pounce.
8. Lap 13 - Musgrave powers past Skinner to second and Darnell jumps in to take third.
7. Lap 9 - Martin dips under Busch to take eighth. Musgrave is racing Skinner hard for second. Darnell joins that fight as does Ambrose. Hornaday takes sixth from Bodine.
6. Lap 7 - Restart. Field stays single file and is cleanly through the first lap of green flag racing today.
5. Lap 4 - Gaughan and Lester pit, as does Cook and East. Caution comes out too early to make it the rest of the way from here so none of the leaders pit.
4. Green flag. Sprague jumps to the lead with Slkinner fighting Musgrave for second. Ragan spins and collects Gaughan, and Lester gets turned right up towards the wall and is hit by Topham. Caution is out. Gaughan loses a lap after stalling in turn three.
3. Field is doubled up and setting pit road speed. Two to go to the green flag.
2. Engines have been fired and the trucks are now rolling from the grid. Five pace laps before the green flag.
1. The drivers are getting buckled in and we are about to get the command to start engines. Richardson will drop to the back at the drop of the green due to unapproved adjustments during impound.
Kroger 200 Race Updates 11-20
10-21-2006 1:27 pm
20. Lap 56 - Bodine hangs East to the wind and Hornaday and Starr follow through.
19. Lap 51 - Green flag. Gaughan edges ahead of Musgrave. The top four are nose to tail, with Ragan separating Darnell from fifth place East. Reutimann locks up the left front big time going into turn one and comes to pit road under green.
18. Lap 50 - One to go. Gaughan lines up to the inside of Musgrave and says he will race the leader hard to get one of his two lost laps back.
17. Lap 47 - Ambrose comes to the pits giving up his position in the top-20. No other lead lap trucks pit.
16. Lap 45 - Hornaday was trapped behind the leader when the caution came out and is now the first truck a lap down. McCumbee receives the free pass.
15. Lap 42 - Musgrave leads by 10 lengths over Bliss. Sprague and Darnell dip below EWast to take third and fourth. Busch, Crawford and Skinner go three wide into one as Hornaday loses the left rear tire and goes for a wild spin in turn two. Caution out for the third time.
14. Lap 36 - Restart. Musgrave leads cleanly into one as Bliss clears Stout who is bottlenecking the race for position behind.
13. Lap 33 - Musgrave stays out as does Bliss. Sprague wins race off pit road with Darnell, Bodine, Starr, Martin, Setzer, Benson, Crawford, Reutimann, Hornaday, Ambrose, Skinner, Busch, Hamilton, Crafton, Almirola, Chaffin, Huffman, Hamlin, Cook, Dodson, Crocker, Miller, Richardson, Lusk, McCumbee, Mickel, Gaughan, Earnhardt, Topham, and Ragan behind.
12. Lap 31 - Lusk, Cook, and Ragan go three wide into three and make contact. The contact cuts Ragan's left rear and he spins in turn two and falls off the lead lap. This opens the pit window for everyone and most should pit for their one and only scheduled stop under this caution.
11. Lap 26 - Sprague is ready to put Gaughan, Lester, East, and Earnhardt down a lap. Musgrave has closed the gap further in traffic.
Kroger 200 Race Updates 21-30
10-21-2006 1:45 pm
30. Lap 143 - Musgrave is animated in the truck, very upset with the penalty. Sprague now leads Darnell, Starrm Martin, Benson, Skinner, Busch, Hamlin, Bliss, Crawford, Miller, Chaffin, East, Ambrose, Lester, Ragan, and Hornaday to the green.
29. Lap 138 - Musgrave gets too good a jump on the restart and is being shown the black flag. Sprague will take the lead over when Musgrave pits. Crocker spins in turn three after diving to avoid East.
28. Not a good day for the ThorSport team as Crafton's teammate Earnhardt goes up in smoke in a huge cloud of smoke going into turn one. Seventh caution waves. Gaughan picks up the free pass to rejoin the lead lap after his lap one problem.
27. Lap 128 - Crafton drops off the pace and comes to the pits. He takes the truck behind pit wall and the crew goes under the hood. He was ninth at the time of his problem. Musgrave leads on the restart.
26. Lap 124 - Ragan and Richardson make contact and Ragan goes for a spin in turn four. Caution six out. Musgrave leads Sprague, Darnell, Bodine, Starr, Martin, Benson, Skinner, Crafton, Hamlin, Busch, Bliss, Crawford, Miller, Setzer, Chaffin, Crocker, East, Ambrose, Dodson, Cook, Lester, and Almirola.
25. Lap 121 - Musgrave continues to lead but Sprague is just two lengths of his back bumper.
24. Lap 115 - East, Ragan and Ambrose come together in turn one but all motor off and continue on.
23. Lap 108 - Restart. Hornaday boots Musgrave coming off turn four but lets off and lets Musgrave regain control. Lapped trucks of Hornaday, Reutimann and Gaughan are mixed in with the top five.
22. Lap 103 - Caution out again for the fifth time, this time for debris. Musgrave leads Sprague, Darnell, Bodine, Starr, Martin, Benson, Crafton, Skinner, Setzer, Hamlin, Crawford, Almirola, Bliss, Miller, Busch, Crocker, East, Chaffin, DOdson, Earnhardt, Ambrose, and Cook.
21. Lap 59 - Musgrave leads Bliss, Sprague, Darnell, Ragan -1, Hornaday -1, Bodine, Starr, Martin, Benson, East, Skinner, Busch, Mickel -1, Setzer, Crafton, Almirola, Chafffin, Crawford, Hamlin, Cook, Hamilton, Huffman, Stout as Lusk makes hard contact with the front stretch wall at the start finish line. Caution is out for the fourth time of the day. Lusk's truck is heavily damaged and he's taken it behind the wall.
Kroger 200 Race Updates 31-
10-21-2006 2:30 pm
43. Lap 200 - Sprague Wins followed by Starr, Darnell, Martin and Benson.
42. Lap 196 - Sprague leads Starr as Bliss starts showing smoke from the pipes.
41. Lap 186 - Ambrose loses the left rear and comes to pit road.
40. Lap 181 - Starr looks inside Darnell for second but Darnell slams the door shut going into three. Cook slides sideways into one. Now Starr clears Darnell and tries to chase down Sprague for the lead.
39. Lap 177 - Sprague leads Darnell, Starr, Martin, Benson, Busch, Skinner, Hamlin, Crawford, Miller, Chaffin, Ambrose, Lester, Hornaday, Bodine, East, Cook, Almirola, Gaughan, Musgrave, Reutimann, Setzer, Ragan, and Crocker.
38. Lap 174 - Hamlin gets loose and taps Bliss, sending Bliss into the turn four wall with the back end. Bliss has damage but drives away. Caution out for the 12th time.
37. Lap 171 - Green flag. Busch jumps to the outise and passes Skinner and is side by side with Benson for fifth.
36. Lap 166 - Stackup on the resart. Crocker, McCumbee, Dodson, Richardson, Ragan and Stout come together in turn one. Richardson is stuck in the grass, Dodson comes to pit road with the nose ripped off his truck, and Ragan has the left front fender rumpled in the wreck.
35. Lap 163 - Sprague leads Darnell, Starr, Martin, Benson, Skinner, Busch, Hamlin, Bliss, Crawford, Miller, Chaffin, Ambrose, East, Lester, Hornaday, Bodine, Cook, Almirola, Crocker, and Gaughan.
34. Lap 160 - Ragan scores the hat trick and spins in turn four for the third time today. Insult has been added to injury to Musgrave as his truck is damaged in the aftermath. Musgrave comes to pit road to repair hood and nose damage.
33. Lap 153 - Restart. Sprague leads Darnell, Starr, Martin and Benson. Busch races Skinner hard for sixth.
32. Lap 148 - Clarification on Musgrave penalty: NASCAR penalized him after warning him for slowing the field too much before accelerating. Sprague leads Darnell in a flashback to the Memphis race in July.
31. Lap 146 - Gaughan and Dodson spin in four. After the caution, Miller and Chaffin tangle in one and Miller does a quick 360.
Kroger 200 Unofficial Results
10-21-2006 3:04 pm
1. Sprague
2. Starr
3. Darnell
4. Martin
5. Benson
6. Busch
7. Skinner
8. Hamlin
9. Crawford
10. Miller
11. Chaffin
12. Lester
13. Hornaday
14. Bodine
15. Musgrave
16. Almirola
17. Cook
18. Reutimann
19. Gaughan
20. Ragan
21. East
22. Bliss
23. Setzer
24. Richardson
25. Ambrose
26. Crocker
27. McCumbee
28. Stout
29. Topham
30. Dodson
31. Mickel
32. Hamilton
33. Earnhardt
34. Crafton
35. Huffman
36. Lusk
Kroger 200 Points Update
10-21-2006 4:54 pm
1. Bodine 3197
2. Benson 3118
3. Reutimann 2930
4. Musgrave 2923
5. Crawford 2846
6.Starr 2814 +1
7. Hornaday 2789 -1
8. Sprague 2728 +3
9. Cook 2693 -1
10. Bliss 2671
11. Setzer 2671 -2
12. Skinner 2669
13. Crafton 2575
14. Darnell 2529
15. Gaughan 2422
16. Hamilton, Jr. 2174
17. Almirola 2104
18. McCumbee 2035
19. Martin 1888 +2
20. Earnhardt 1835
Audio Posted
10-21-2006 5:01 pm
We met up with Jack Sprague, David Starr, Erik Darnell, Todd Bodine and Ted Musgrave after the race. Sprague talks about his first Martinsville win and how Musgrave's bad luck played directly in his hands. Starr discusses his comeback after an incident in practice yesterday, and Darnell talks about coming back to Martinsville and running well after a poor showing here in the spring. Bodine talks about the flat tire that ruined his day, and Musgrave shares his opinion on the black flag call that took him from contention to win. Look to the Sights and Sounds Box to the right side of the page and click on each driver's name to listen.
Musgrave’s Misfortune Gives Sprague Easy Win at Martinsville
10-21-2006 5:04 pm
Musgrave’s Misfortune Gives Sprague Easy Win at Martinsville
By Charles Krall | TruckSeries.com TrackSide Editor
The box score will show Jack Sprague won the Kroger 200 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series race from the pole. What it won’t show is how he accomplished his 27th career series victory. After leading early, Sprague handed the lead over to Ted Musgrave who looked like he would use a no-stop pit strategy to pick up his first win of the season.
Many expected someone to try it, but fail because of fuel mileage. No one expected a black flag penalty for an improper restart to send Musgrave to pit road.
That left Sprague in the lead and he was able to hold off all challenges over the final 40 laps to drive the No. 60 Con-way Freight Toyota to his second victory of the 2006 season.
Sprague celebrated the fact the fastest truck won the race, but wasn’t sure he could have beaten Musgrave.
“I’m not sure we could have beaten Ted had he not had that black flag,” Sprague said. “But the fastest truck did win today. We won the pole, got out and led and we could chase Ted down on a green flag run.”
Sprague wasn’t quite as optimistic on his chances to make it on a no-stop strategy.
“If this race had as many cautions as it did last year we could have done it easily, but knowing my luck it wouldn’t have worked out that way,” Sprague said. “We decided to come in early and get that stop out of the way and for once it worked out for us. I just knew if we tried what Ted tried we’d get stuck and run out of gas. It was going to be a good race without that penalty. I would have knocked him out of the way to win, and he would have knocked me out of the way to keep it.”
Musgrave was disappointed at the turn of events that left the No. 9 Team ASE Toyota 15th at the finish.
“I don’t know what that call was, you’ll have to ask the guys up in the tower,” Musgrave said. “I made the same second-gear restart I made all afternoon. I know there were some heated arguments in the 30 pit in Talladega and maybe that’s what this is all about. But I shouldn’t be getting any heat for that.”
Musgrave said the no-stop pit strategy would have worked, if not for the penalty.
“Yeah, we were fine on fuel,” Musgrave said. “We had enough caution laps and we were good to go. I don’t know that I could have held off Jack, but it sure would have been a great race for it. As it was, the fans got ripped off because that sure was a boring finish.”
David Starr finished second in the No. 11 ToyotaForklift.net Toyota. Starr won the at Martinsville race earlier in the season, but a brush with the wall in practice could have hampered his chances this weeked.
“You are never comfortable in this series,” Starr said. “We won in the spring, but we knew we needed to be better if we wanted to win this race. We were trying hard in practice and we got up into the wall and banged up our truck. The guys did a great job getting it fixed.”
Starr had to race hard with Raybestos Rookie of the Year candidate Erik Darnell late in the race to get up to second.
“He was able to stop his truck, get it to rotate, and get back on the gas,” Starr said. “That killed my momentum. I couldn’t get off the corner. On that restart he left a lane open and I shot in there and closed it up. He cut down on me and got himself loose, and I was able to take advantage of it.”
Starr’s day was not without controversy. On a restart with 65 laps to go, Starr and Todd Bodine made contact, cutting Bodine’s left rear tire and sending him to the pits.
“We got together and it cut down my left rear,” Bodine said dejectedly. “We had to pit, we had no choice. When you pit that late here it just kills you. We worked our way back up and made the best of it we could. We did everything right here and should have had a top-five but that’s the way it goes.”
Mark Martin finished fourth, and Johnny Benson rounded out the top five finishers. With his finish, Benson unofficially chopped Bodine’s point lead to 79 with four races remaining.
Kyle Busch finished sixth ahead of Mike Skinner, Denny Hamlin, Rick Crawford, and rookie Chase Miller.
The race was slowed a record 12 times for cautions, most for single-truck incidents. The race did get off to a slow start on lap one when David Ragan, Brendan Gaughan, Bill Lester and Tam Topham came together in turn one. Ragan’s day would go downhill from there as he would be involved in three other cautions. The most serious incident of the day involved Damon Lusk, who was making his first start of the season, and Chad McCumbee on the frontstretch. McCumbee made contact with the rear of Lusk’s machine turning him head-on into the wall at the flagstand. Lusk was done for the day while McCumbee was served with a two-lap penalty for rough driving. On lap 167, the other multi-truck incident of the day broke out when Robert Richardson, Erin Crocker, Cameron Dodson, J.C. Stout, and Ragan all came together in turn one. All drivers were able to refire from that incident and continue on with minimal damage.
The next race for the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series is the Easy Care Vehicle Service Contracts 200 at Atlanta Motor Speedway on Saturday October 28. TruckSeries.com will have complete event coverage starting with TrackSideLive! coverage of practice on October 27, Live! Bud Pole Qualifying at 12 P.M. Eastern on Saturday, and complete pre- and post-race coverage immediate thereafter.
That's All from Martinsville
10-21-2006 5:05 pm
They are turning out the lights in the media center in a minute so we have to go! Thanks to Mike Smith and the entire Martinsville Speedway PR staff for their hospitality and assisstance this weekend. We'll see you next Friday and Saturday from Atlanta! So long!
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