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TrackSideLive! | Ford 200 and Awards Banquet
Homestead-Miami Speedway| November 18, 2002
TrackSideLive! brings you exclusive online coverage of the tough trucks and
even tougher drivers of the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series.
Check out the TrackSideLive! Archives
MIAMI, FL (November 18, 2002) TruckSeries.com is retracting
a report that NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Official Randy
Kiser would be named NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Director.
The position in question is Race Director, vacated by Richmon
Gage earlier this year, not Series Director held by Wayne
Auton. No official decision has been made regarding the Race
Director position as stated on the November 16, 2002 Banquet
Edition of TrackSideLive! Steve Keller/TruckSeries.com
This concludes Trackside LIVE! presented by The Orleans from
the 2002 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Awards Banquet. Don't
forget to check TruckSeries.com on a regular basis for all the
news on the Tough Trucks of NASCAR as the off-season
progresses. Daytona is only 9 weeks away!!!
Highlights from tonight's NCTS Awards Banquet Starts NOW!
After dinner came the awards presented to the top-10 NCTS
drivers in the 2002 NCTS Championship standings...all awards
were presented by Sears Craftsman Motorsports Marketing Manager
Toure' Claiborne and NCTS director Wayne Auton.
1. Mike Bliss, #16 IWX Motor Freight/Knights Inn Chevrolet: "I
have learned two things tonight: I can't dance and Rick
Crawford can't sing. Maybe after you get a few more beers in
him he will get better! When I first met Dave Fuge, it was a
long time ago when we were both running late model cars. I
first met Steve and Joan in our open wheel days and we always
kept saying we were going to work together. They do this
because they love racing. I am just so glad to have been a part
of bringing them this championship. And guys, you are the ones
that won this championship. I was just the driver. It's really
starting to hit home now. Everything has happened so fast. It's
only been 24 hours since we won it. Guys, stand up in the back.
You are the guys that won this, and you deserve it." (12:15 pm
ET)
Next to the podium was 2002 NCTS Champion Mike Bliss. Bliss was
presented with the 76 Gasoline Award, the Featherlite Long Haul
Award, and the Craftsman Truck Series Championship Award. Mike
Helton presented Bliss with the championship ring, and Bliss's
wife with a beautiful necklace for her tolerance with putting
up Mike being a NASCAR driver and his desire to become a
champion. (12:12 pm ET)
Wayne Auton then presented the next award to Championship crew
chief Dave Fuge, Jr. "Xpress Motorsports has shown that a small
team that emphasizes teamwork can still reach the highest
goals. Guys like Ted Musgrave and Gene Nead, Rick Crawford and
Ray Stonkus really made this championship fight fun because it
was just like the old saying, fight hard on the racetrack, but
leave it there when it is over. We have been great friends off
the track, and it was an honor to race with them for this
championship." (12:08 pm ET)
The next award was presented by NASCAR's Brett Yormark to
XPress Motorsports Owner Steve Coulter, the owner and sponsor
of the NCTS Championship team. "Dave Fuge, Mike Bliss, everyone
at XPress Motorsports and IWX Motor Freight have given maximum
effort to make this happen," said Coulter. "Thanks to everyone
involved for believing in us." (12:06 pm ET)
2. Rick Crawford, #14 Circle Bar Racing Ford: "It's funny
because I have thought about taking up drag racing after I
retire from this just so I have an opportunity to to right once
in a while at the end of the drag strip. I would like to
congratulate Mike, Dave, Steve, and everyone on a great year. I
would also like to thank all of those people in back...the
Circle Bar Racing team. Those guys are the best. I can do a
little Elvis impersonation (Rick then got up and did a great
Elvis impersonation, including gyrating hips and some good
Elvis tunes)." (12:03 am ET)
Musgrave was then presented with the Gatorade Front Runner
Award for leading the most laps in the 2002 NCTS season.
3. Ted Musgrave, #1 Team Mopar Dodge: "The biggest change I had
to get used to was when you come to the track with the Truck,
all you need to do is focus on the truck. You don't have to
worry about this appearance or that appearance. Our most
memorable moment so far was the first win at Homestead last
year. We thought we were going to get one right off the bat at
Daytona, but we came down to Homestead and got one down here.
Our expectations were really high. We thought we would have won
some more races and won the championship. But we had a pretty
darn good season overall." (11:58 pm ET)
4. Jason Leffler, #2 Team ASE/CarQuest Dodge: "It wasn't a
difficult decision at all to come truck racing. To get an
opportunity with a group like Ultra Motorsports, Jimmy Smith
and Timmy Kohuth, you just have to take it. It has really been
great. But we did keep my streak going. This makes three years
in NASCAR national series with a win! We'll do our best to
break that streak next season. It's nice to be one of the few
drivers to come from southern California. Jimmy Smith is a
southern California guy too, so we work really well together. I
think driving out there on i-95 is more dangerous than racing
on the track; but we have the same problem on both, slow
drivers in the left lane! Ted and I work really close. In fact
we were so close yesterday that we traded some paint!." (11:54
pm ET)
5. David Starr, #75 Spears Manufacturing Chevrolet: "The
biggest thing between this year and last year is we got to race
more! We were in 22 out of 22. My friend Ted Musgrave was a lot
of help too. There were 7 or 8 tracks that I had never been too
and he has a lot of help getting adjusted to them. Our goals
next year are to win more races and be a championship team. We
want to give that 16 bunch a run for their money!" (11:52 pm
ET)
6. Dennis Setzer, #46 Makita/Acxiom Chevrolet: "I have always
been fortunate to have been with good teams like K-Automotive
and now Morgan-Dollar Motorsports. We are really excited about
next year. I think it will be exciting, especially going back
to some of the short tracks. That is where this series belongs.
I can remember back when I was in the Busch Series, we just
couldn't wait to get back to the house to put those Truck
Series races on from places like Tucson or Flemington." (11:49
pm ET)
7. Robert Pressley, #18 Dickies Dodge: "We're pretty happy with
the season. Bobby (Hamilton) won Daytona last year, so the
could have put any idiot in the truck and probably won. I was
the lucky won they called! The biggest difference between Truck
racing and Cup racing in the number of laps we go. In Cup, we
have 8 or 10 yellows and just as many chances to pit and make
changes. In trucks, if it isn't right right off the bat, it is
going to be a long day. I worked for Coca Cola for 13 years and
drove trucks for them. I only wrecked 7 of them in 13 years.
Heck I did that this year alone! As for next year, we'll have
to wait for what bossman Bobby has to say and go from there."
(11:46 pm ET)
8. Terry Cook, #29 Power Stroke Diesel Ford: "Last year, I got
laughed at so hard for wearing lipstick up here after kissing
my wife, I don't think anyone paid attention to what I was
saying. The biggest difference this year was the full support
of the people at Power Stroke Diesel. We were able to build
some new trucks and bring in some new people. We got a little
behind early on with the points, so we were able to just focus
on getting wins. Sometimes Amy can be a little rough on the
guys when we have a bad pit stop or something. The ride home
with her isn't so bad, but hearing it from the guys on Monday
morning after they see the broadcast can be rough! But she
loves to win, and wants to win as much as I do. Next year, we
want to start off the season on the right foot, with an engine
that passes through tech at Daytona!" (11:42 pm ET)
9. Travis Kvapil, #60 CAT Rental Stores Chevrolet: "Last year's
rookie class was pretty tough. Ricky Hendrick and I had some
great battles and we were both fortunate enough to get to
victory lane. This year's class was just as good. Brendan
really came on strong and took the series by storm. Bill Lester
had some great runs, and Jason Small had some good finishes
too. But Brendan did a great job, and I am honored to pass the
torch on to him. This year was fun, we had more luck on our
side at the end of the year. I remember back at Madison
International Raceway up in Wisconsin, I got the best advice I
ever heard from Roy Kenseth, Matt's dad. he told me 'you have a
great future ahead of you; chill out and take what the car will
give you.' It's awfully hard to win races with fenders knocked
off and A-frames knocked off. It has been great advice and has
really helped." (11:36 pm ET)
10. Coy Gibbs, #20 MBNA Chevrolet: "Last year when I was up
here, I gave a lot of grief to Mike Dolan. He took it to heart
and lost about 20 pounds. To honor all of his hard work, we got
this from one of the guys in the garage (Coy then took out a
stand up of Miss Makita, graciously donated by the
Morgan-Dollar Motorsports team, with Dolan's face pasted on
it). If anything in NASCAR translates from football it is
teamwork. We have a championship team assembled here, they are
just waiting on me to get there too. I used to race against my
brother J.D., and man, that was scary. Thankfully it never
lasted very long! He would usually have a problem and crash out
or something. Dad is always trying to give me tips, telling me
how to drive. I try not to listen to any of that!" (11:32 pm
ET)
After the Most Popular Driver Award was given, the 550+ guests
in attendance were invited to enjoy a lavish dinner of filet
mignon, truffle mashed potatoes, and grilled asparagus. The
largest crowd to ever attend an NCTS banquet was also
entertained by up-and-coming rock group Greenwheel, whose music
was set to a video tribute of the entire 2002 NCTS season.
(11:26 pm ET)
Kevin Triplett came to the stage next to present the NCTS Most
Popular Driver Award to surprised winner David Starr. "I am
very surprised by this," said Starr. "It is such an honor to be
a part of the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series, and to be voted
most popular driver by the people in the series is definitely a
very pleasant surprise." (11:24 pm ET)
The Clevite Engine Builder of the Year Award was next,
presented by Ron Sledge to long-time Dodge engine builder Joey
Arrington. (11:22 pm ET)
The Raybestos Rookie of the Year Award was next, presented by
Roger Hogeboom to Brendan Gaughan. Brendan was awarded a
beautiful trophy as well as a check for $10,000. (11:21 pm ET)
The first presentations were made to the top teams representing
each of the participating manufacturers, Dodge, Ford, and
Chevrolet. The Dodge award was presented by Bo Puffer to Ultra
Motorsports; the Ford award presented by Robert Brooks to
Circle Bar Racing, and the Chevrolet award presented by Dayne
Pierantoni to XPress Motorsports. (11:18 pm ET)
Other NCTS personalities seen mingling today: Dennis Setzer and
Fightin’ 46 team owner David Dollar; Green Light Racing owner
Gene Christensen and driver Bobby Dotter; public relations
representatives Jennifer Chapple, John Close, Matt Klug, and
Jeff Opalach. Also spotted were ESPN personality Amy East, Ford
NCTS program manager Robert Brooks, Chevrolet NCTS program
manager Dayne Pierantoni, as well as Jason and Alison Leffler.
(4:48 pm ET)
Many of the non-NASCAR guests here at the Bal Harbor have taken
an interest in the bright red #16 IWX Motor Freight/Knight’s
Inn Chevrolet that is parked out front of the hotel’s main
entrance. As has been tradition for NASCAR’s awards banquets
for many years, the champion’s vehicle is parked out front for
all to see. While the hotel valets are bringing their guests’
cars to them, more than one hotel guest has asked if they could
take the Truck for a spin around the block. (4:40 pm ET)
The format of the banquet will be slightly different than years
past. Gone will be the pre-written speeches of the past, and a
new “TV talk show” style question and answer period will be
held with each of the series’ top-10 drivers. Trackside LIVE!
will bring you the highlights of each drivers Q&A session later
this evening. (4:38 pm ET)
One of the drivers that has been in the rumor mill over the
past several weeks has been Robert Pressley. Bobby Hamilton
Racing spokesman David Pepper has indicated that Pressley may
indeed be out of the #18 Dickie’s Dodge after the checkered
flag flew at Homestead. No word yet on who would replace
Pressley in the #18, or exactly what BHR’s plans for 2003 will
be, nor is there word on where Pressley will turn up next
season. Some sources have him in a yet-to-be-named Winston Cup
ride. Trackside LIVE! will follow up on the story and bring you
an update this evening.
Drivers, team owners, and officials have taken over the Bal
Harbor Resort. There have been a steady stream of NCTS
personalities checking in, wandering the halls, and enjoying
each others company in the several lounges, and restaurants.
Many were down in the lounge watching today’s Busch Series
action from Homestead-Miami Speedway. Included were Rick
Crawford, Jon Wood, Matt Crafton and his wife Jocelyn, series
officials Wayne Auton, Dani Riggs, Betsy Tyler, Randy Kiser, as
well as Craftsman representatives Rick Gambill, Becky Severs,
Toure’ Claiborne, and Henry Ferris.
Good afternoon from the Bal Harbor Beach Resort, site of the
2002 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Awards Banquet. The
festivities have already started, with rehearsals, photo
shoots, and luncheons already taking place.
Here is the schedule for the remainder of the day:
Championship Team Photo Opportunity, Beachside; 4:30-5:15 pm ET
Championship Team On-stage Photo Opportunity, Grand Ballroom;
5:15-6:00 pm ET
Guest Reception, Grand Ballroom Foyer; 6:00-7:00 pm ET
Awards Banquet, Grand Ballroom; 7:00-10:45 pm ET
Champion’s Party, Crystal Ballroom; 11:00-2:00 am ET (4:15 pm
ET)
To wrap up the final Trackside Live from trackside this season,
I would like to take the time to thank everyone who has helped
bring you, our readers, all of this great information. Thanks
to the drivers, who have made themselves available all season,
and to the PR reps who make themselves available when the
drivers aren't. Thanks also to the NASCAR officials and all of
the track PR specialists that have provided information and
insight throughout the season. Thanks to the people at ESPN and
Lingner Group Productions, who were kind enough to let Chuck on
Trucks be a part of the team the past two years, and thanks to
Power Stroke Diesel and The Orleans for their support. It has
been a great season full of surprises and drama at every
turn...now we take a few weeks off to recover, then get all
revved up when the Trucks take to the highbanks at Daytona for
winter testing. Before too long, we will be right back at it!
Keep your browser bookmarked on TruckSeries.com for a special
edition of Trackside LIVE! presented by The Orleans from the
NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Awards Banquet tomorrow night. We
will provide you updates from all of the media functions
leading up to the presentation of the final series awards.
Post-race coverage from the Ford 200 starts now!
Here are the Contingency Award winners from the Ford 200:
Bud Pole Award: Mike Bliss ($1,300)
Clevite Engine Builder: Mark Smith (#11, $1,000)
Featherlite Long Haul: Ron Hornaday, Jr. ($1,000)
Gatorade Front Runner: Ted Musgrave ($2,000)
Raybestos Rookie of the Race: Brendan Gaughan ($1,000)
Waste Management Picking up Places: Robert Pressley ($1,000)
Mike Bliss, #16 IWX Motor Freight Chevrolet: "It was one of
those days for the IWX Motor Freight team. What we planned on
was that we wanted Ron Hornaday to win and I wanted to win the
championship. We did that. It shows how strong this team is.
I'm just fortunate to drive for them. We had a very good truck
today. We led some laps and ran third. When the 14 (Crawford)
went a lap down, we just had a championship to win. We didn't
have a race to win. We had a championship to lose at that
point. It hasn't sunk in yet. I'm sure tomorrow night when we
are on stage it will. It's not just myself. This whole team was
done last year. Dave (Fuge) had problems with NASCAR and had
his license suspended indefinitely. We tried real hard to get
it back and we finally did. Steve Coulter wanted to run one or
two truck races this year. We blew up in the first one and got
him all excited about running a second and third when we
started running better. That helped a lot. Steve does all of
this out of his own pocket. He loves racing. IWX is his
business but he doesn't use the money from the business. He
does this out of his own pocket. He has done that for years. I
don't want to say we were a bunch of misfits, but nobody wanted
to hire us and now this whole team are champions." (7:20 pm ET)
Ryan Hemphill, #4 Square D/BHR Dodge: "We broke something in
the suspension. Since we are not running for points, we decided
to come on in and get out of the way." (7:18 pm ET)
Jason Small, #07 Small Motorsports Chevrolet: "I guess we made
it to the end with no major problems, but we lost the radios on
lap 25. It is just typical of the way our season has been, I
guess." (6:58 pm ET)
Steve Portenga, #39 Roto Rooter Chevrolet: "Well, we made it to
the end. It has been a long season. I want to thank Roto Rooter
for everything they have done for us the past few years. I wish
we could have been up front for them a little more this season.
Unless something pops up overnight, we're probably going to go
back to running the Southwest Tour next season. We're sending
the transporter to Michigan to pick up a new Port City Chassis
and we have two others back at the shop. We look forward to it,
and who knows, maybe we'll find our way to a Truck race or two
next season." (6:56 pm ET)
With Hornaday's win, owner Steve Coulter joins a select group
of team owners that have won races in the series with different
teams within the same season. XPress Motorsports joins Hendrick
Motorsports, Ultra Motorsports, Roush Racing, and Bobby
Hamilton Racing as the only teams in series history to win
races with multiple teams in the same season. (6:54 pm ET)
Ron Hornaday, #11 IWX Motor Freight Chevrolet: "I didn't win
that race, the guys did, I just got to drive that rocket ship.
Awesome day that pit stop at the end was the key to it, then
that yellow came out. If you had asked me yesterday if I would
take a two tire stop during the race, the answer would be no,
but I think that it was the right choice today. The Cup and
Busch guys put enough rubber on the track that it was no
problem to only change two tires. I hadn't driven a truck in
awhile, so we decided not to change too much on it, since the
guys at IWX Motor Freight set the entire chassis up. Coming in
here with a sister truck to Mike Bliss, it made a lot of people
nervous. A lot of people said that I was coming out here to
knock people out, and I don't drive like that. We drove a good
clean race, and we were right there at the end to protect what
Mike had. We had been working on getting this put together for
three weeks now, and finally it got pulled together. It worked
out great." (6:48 pm ET)
Jon Wood, #50 US Navy Racing Ford: "We had a good truck and we
showed that by making our way up to sixth place, but I made a
mistake. I got up in the loose stuff in two and lost it. What
hurt us was starting so far back. Although we had a pretty
decent truck we couldn't get anywhere because the cautions
wouldn't fly." (6:46 pm ET)
Ron Hornaday's victory in the Ford 200 is his 26th career win,
and the first time he has visited an NCTS winner's circle for a
team owner other than Dale Earnhardt Incorporated. Hornaday's
last win was at Evergreen in 1999, the series 100th race. He
won a $100,000 bonus for winning that milestone event, which
meant he had won 25% of the series races run to that point.
(6:45 pm ET)
Lance Norick, #90 Express Personnel Services Chevy: "With all
the changes this team has had this season, we always came to
the track with a positive attitude. We are as happy as we can
be with the way the season went down. We would have liked to
have won a race and been in the top-10 in points, but all
things considered it wasn't that bad. We look forward to next
year, wherever we turn up, whether its here in the Truck Series
or in the Busch Series." (6:43 pm ET)
Brendan Gaughan, #62 NAPA/The Orleans Dodge: "This race was
just like several others this season at tracks we came to for
the first time. We needed all of practice and about 100 laps of
the race to get fast. At the end of the race, we were stout. We
just didn't have enough time from there. We had a good year,
but we are never happy anywhere finishing 11th in points."
(6:40 pm ET)
Bobby Dotter, #08 Stanley Steemer Chevrolet: "We are a little
disappointed. We brought a drop-snout down here and just
couldn't get it to work the way we wanted it to. We really
wanted to get that Stanley Steemer logo up front and in view of
everyone. We are just so happy to have them on board, we hope
we can keep them with us going into 2003." (6:37 pm ET)
Terry Cook, #29 Power Stroke Diesel Ford: "Crew chief Bob
Keselowski really made a great call; it was just a situation
where we were trying to outsmart them. We weren't going to win
the race unless we ended up with some track position. We took
on two tires and came out. We were probably one of the fastest
trucks on the track at that time. We gained a ton of track
position and our lap times were some of the fastest we turned
all day, so we knew we
were doing the right thing. Unfortunately, a caution came out
and we got caught a lap down and the pit strategy didn't work
from there. It was too little too late. If we had the track
position to work with at the end when the tires fall off with
about five to go, we couldn't hold anybody off. We were just
slipping and sliding, just hanging on for our lives. I think if
we had the track position we could have milked that for all it
was worth and been in contention to win, or at least end up a
solid top five, but unfortunately we came home 10th today."
(6:36 pm ET)
Matt Crafton, #88 Menards/Agromin Chevy: "We had a great truck.
What you saw the past few weeks was simple momentum. We haven't
done anything out of the ordinary. Nothing changed, but we had
a little extra confidence. We will be hard at work all winter
to start off the season next spring on the right foot." (6:34
pm ET)
Travis Kvapil, #60 CAT Rental Stores Chevy: "That yellow really
hurt us. I didn't want to come in for tires, but Rick made the
call. It didn't work out the way we wanted it to, but that is
really rare for these guys. Their calls are usually spot on. I
just want to thank CAT Rental Stores for all they have done for
us. They have been a great sponsor, and it has really been a
pleasure working with them." (6:32 pm ET)
Eric Jones, #34 WorldBestBuy.com Chevy: "The best race of the
day was probably me and Stan racing to get into the pits first.
Unfortunately, we couldn't come here to race and that is a
shame." (6:30 pm ET)
Rick Crawford, #14 Circle Bar Racing Ford: "We got dictated
what we needed to do by pitting early. That caution caught us.
My hat's off to Mike Bliss and the IWX team; they did a great
job all year and so did Ted. I think we finished ahead of Ted
for second. My hat's
off to the Circle Bar race team. We stayed up all day with the
Circle Bar Motel Ford. The team did a good job in the pits
under the green flag stop and that's just one of the
misfortunes of racing to get caught up out there like that. We
ran well all day and we ran up front. It's the end of a great
year, second in the points; I can't ask for more than that."
(6:30 pm ET)
Power Stroke Diesel is expected to announce their plans with
Terry Cook and K-Automotive for 2003 in a release later this
afternoon. Keep it locked to TruckSeries.com for all the news
when it breaks.
With the anticipated departure of some of the series big names
for 2003, some are wondering who will step in to fill their
shoes. Many young up-and-coming drivers are in the mix with
many top teams, and while no announcements are imminent, don't
be surprised if some new names end up some familiar rides for
2003. (2:05 pm ET)
Almost unnoticed this weekend with the tightest championship
fight in NASCAR coming to a close in the Ford 200 is the
departure from the series of Coy Gibbs. Gibbs will be moving
over to the Busch Series garage next season, and has likely run
his last race in the NCTS. Gibbs has been close to victory a
couple of times this season, and would like to wind up his
career in the NCTS with his first career win. (1:53 pm ET)
Big kudos must go to all NCTS teams here this weekend for
managing, and succeeding, in the tight and cramped conditions
here at Homestead. All team transporters are parked outside the
track, and anything not removed from the hauler before moving
them out last night must either be retrieved on foot or with a
golf cart. The teams have prepared all morning and afternoon on
pit road, and the track has been busy all day so the noise
level has never abated. Add to that a serious lack of shade and
temps in the mid-80s, and all the teams deserve a pat on the
back even before the first truck rolls off the grid. (1:48 pm
ET)
The Dodge people are all smiling today after unseating the
world-famous Bigfoot as the 2002 ProMT Monster Truck Series
Champion. It is the first time in seven years that Dodge has
fielded an effort in the popular Monster Truck tour. The name
of the championship-winning truck is catchy, too. It is knows
as "The Raminator", and is driven by Mark Hall. (1:42 pm ET)
Joe Ruttman was spotted wandering the garage area, trying to
work on a deal for next season. (1:28 pm ET)
Most teams are planning on two pit stops in the Ford 200. With
the long straightaways, fuel mileage will be key. "You are on
the gas here for such a long time, you just drink fuel like
water," said one crew chief that asked to remain anonymous.
"Looks like the fuel window will be between 50 to 60 laps, and
you don't want to run out here. You will loose so much track
position here it will just kill you." (1:27 pm ET)
Here are the pit assignments for the Ford 200, starting in turn
one and going back towards turn four:
Bliss
Crawford
Hornaday
Schrader
Hooper
Wood
Boyd
Jones
Leffler
Break in pit wall
Musgrave
Hemphill
Compton
Shepherd
R. MacDonald
T. MacDonald
Starr
Kvapil
Break in pit wall
Start-finish line scoring camera
Cook
Gaughan
Bodine
Houston
Dotter
Small
Portenga
Norick
Setzer
Lester
Break in pit wall
Gibbs
Reffner
Contreras
Sockwell
Hill
Pressley
Cofer
Rose
Crafton (1:05 pm ET)
The 2000 winner of the Indianapolis 500, and current Formula
One superstar, Juan Montoya was spotted perusing the make shift
Truck Series garage on pit road during Winston Cup Series
practice. No word if he was working on picking up a ride for
today's Ford 200... (12:57 pm ET)
The #7 SBC Ameritech Chevrolet of Bryan Reffner is changing
engines for the race. "It's just a minor detail," said team
owner John Conely, "we want more power, and this motor has
some." The truck is carrying a special phone number,
1-800-THELOST in hopes spectators and viewers at home will have
information on missing children. The program is in partnership
with the FBI, and since the last race in which the team
participated, Michigan, they have developed several leads in
the case of Steven Earl Craft, Jr., who has been missing from
his Benton Harbor, Michigan home since early 2001. "We are
proud to be able to help with this program," said Conely. "We
would like to be able to raise the funding to do this every
week, publicize the case of a missing child. We're working on
it, hopefully you'll see us here more regularly in 2003."
(12:53 pm ET)
Agromin, the sponsor of the truck that Cory Kruseman attempted
to qualify, will now be on teammate Matt Crafton's #88 Menards
Chevy. (12:43 pm ET)
Good afternoon from the Homestead-Miami Speedway! The teams are
busy preparing for the final race of the year, the fans are
streaming in, and even a few celebrities have been spotted
wandering the garage. Trackside LIVE! presented by The Orleans
will bring you all the news and notes from the garage pre-race,
and will have comprehensive post-race coverage from all the
major players in the race and the championship battle. (12:40
pm ET)
This concludes Trackside LIVE! presented by The Orleans from
Homestead in preparations for the Ford 200. Coverage will
resume bright and early when the garage opens at 9 am ET! Keep
it locked on to the Toughest Site on the Web for all the news,
notes, and quotes from pre-race, post-race, and the post-season
parties that are bound to break out after the checkered flag
falls on the Ford 200.
Bobby Dotter, #08 Stanley Steemer Chevrolet: "We came here
expecting to be tight, but instead we are really loose. We have
been good all day in practice. We just want to put on a good
show for the Stanley Steemer people. We are really excited to
have them on board, and hope they are as excited as we are and
they want to come back next year." (6:54 pm ET)
Rick Crawford, #14 Circle Bar Ford: "This place is rough. One
hundred and thirty four laps here is going to be a killer for
some of these guys. The turns are so long, and the engines work
so hard down the straightaways. Knock on wood, Ernie Elliott
builds us some strong motors. You see some guys start to nose
over at the start finish line, their motor just runs out of
power. You need to find that happy medium, and our guys will
get us there." (6:52 pm ET)
Morgan Shepherd, #21 Shepherd Racing Ford: "What you have seen
today is guys that got really tight and they made adjustments
for that, then they get loose coming through the corner and it
just jumps away from you. When you make those adjustments, when
it wants to get away from you, it just does. You don't have a
lot of time to catch it." (6:50 pm ET)
Travis Kvapil, #60 CAT Rental Stores Chevy: "We found a little
something right there at the end of practice. I have seen some
tracks that go both ways when the sun shines and there is a lot
of rubber laid down. Hopefully we made the right guesses and it
works out our way." (6:48 pm ET)
Robert Pressley, #18 Dickies Dodge: "I don't know what
happened. Maybe the water bottle came loose and it readjusted
some weight or something... We'll put on a good show for the
fans coming from the back. People have had some good luck
starting last and coming to the front, maybe we will too.
Wouldn't it be fun if they decided to invert the field,
though?" (6:45 pm ET)
Lance Hooper, #86 Motor State/Red Line Oil Chevrolet: "We have
been loose off with no forward bite all day. With the sun
tomorrow, that will only make it worse. We have a strong
Tri-Star motor here this weekend, we expect to be strong. We
should be in the top-15, hopefully the top-10. I am a little
sore from the crash at Phoenix last week (Winston Cup), but the
HANS really helped. I am not stiff in the least, but the
sternum hurts a little. Much better than it could have been
without the HANS." (6:42 pm ET)
Brian Rose, #51 Ware Racing Enterprises Dodge: "I have never
been here before, so I am trying to learn from some of the
veterans what I need to be seeing out there. I can't get any
heat in the left sides, but we are burning up the rights. We
just need to figure out what we need to be doing and we should
be able to get a little more speed." (6:39 pm ET)
Jason Leffler, #2 Team ASE/CarQuest Dodge: "Someone slowed down
in front of the 86 and he checked up. I was going a little
faster than I needed to be and I locked the brakes to keep from
hitting the 86 and it just went around on me. We were on old
tires, so it doesn't really matter that they were flat
spotted." (6:38 pm ET)
David Starr, #75 Spears MFG. Chevrolet: "This place looks
symmetrical, but it doesn't drive like it. We are tight at one
end and loose in the other. When the sun comes out, we will be
even looser than we are now. We will make some changes to
tighten it up so we aren't out to lunch when the sun is shining
during the race." (6:36 pm ET)
The practice is now over...the rundown:
Leffler, Musgrave, Cook, Setzer, Hornaday
Crawford, Bliss, Crafton, Kvapil, Gaughan
Dotter, Wood, Pressley, Compton, Schrader
R. MacDonald, Hooper, Hemphill, Gibbs, Lester
Starr, Small, Shepherd, Houston, Norick
Bodine, Reffner, Sockwell, Portenga, Contreras
Rose, Hill, Jones, T. MacDonald, Cofer (5:33 pm ET)
The five minute warning has been given...practice will conclude
at 5:30 pm ET. Pits will be picked at 5:45 pm ET, and the
garage will close at 7:30 pm ET. (5:25 pm ET)
Mike Bliss, #16 IWX Motor Freight/Knights Inn Chevrolet: "The
first lap wasn't that good. When I went across the line and
read the board, it read second. Normally a second lap here is a
little bit slower. When I went across the line I said "sorry
guys, that didn't do it." Dave Fuge came back on and said you
have no idea how fast you are running. We must have had a great
motor today, because I don't feel like I am getting into the
corners that good. This is a good start to the weekend. We just
need to finish it like this." (5:24 pm ET)
Darkness is quickly descending on Homestead...no word yet on
exactly when it will be too dark to continue. They will likely
give a timed warning, such as "five minutes remaining" when it
reaches that point, and the teams will then call it quits for
the day. (5:20 pm ET)
Changes on the leaderboard! The top-10:
Cook, Crawford, Musgrave, Bliss, Leffler
Kvapil, Gaughan, Dotter, Wood, Compton (5:17 pm ET)
All NCTS teams will have to move their pit equipment to the pit
stall they select after practice before they leave tonight. The
garage area they are using this afternoon will be used by
Winston Cup Series teams tomorrow. All preparations for
tomorrow's race will be done from pit stalls on pit road. The
team transporters will be moved outside the racetrack as soon
as the garage closes this evening. (5:15 pm ET)
Jason Leffler has spun the #2 Team ASE/CarQuest Dodge on the
entry lane to the pits. No contact was made, and he continued
on. The incident has not brought out the red to stop practice.
(5:12 pm ET) UPDATE: Leffler had to take evasive action to miss
a slower truck. Instead of running into him, he locked the
brakes and spun the truck to avoid. (5:13 pm ET)
New top-10 after some positions have shuffled...
Crawford, Musgrave, Bliss, Leffler, Kvapil
Gaughan, Cook, Dotter, Wood, Compton (5:10 pm ET)
The rundown at 5 pm ET, after 15 minutes of practice:
Musgrave, Crawford, Bliss, Leffler, Kvapil
Gaughan, Cook, Wood, Compton, Crafton
Pressley, Dotter, Schrader, Small, Hornaday
Shepherd, Starr, Hooper, Bodine, Lester
Houston, Setzer, Sockwell, R. MacDonald, Reffner
Norick, Gibbs, Contreras, Rose, Hemphill
Portenga, Hill, Jones, T. MacDonald, Cofer (5:05 pm ET)
It is reported that the #75 of David Starr had a broken oil
line. It has been repaired, and he is back out on the track.
(5:02 pm ET)
NASCAR has also sent a blanket warning to all teams to keep
speeds on pit road under reasonable control. (4: 58 pm ET)
"Trucks on the racetrack" is the call from NASCAR
officials...the green flag is back out. (4:55 pm ET)
Red Flag is out at Homestead...fluid has been spotted in the
groove on the track. (4:52 pm ET) UPDATE: NASCAR is saying the
source of the fluid may be the #75 Spears Motorsports Chevrolet
of David Starr. It is now confirmed, the 75 was leaking fluid
when he pulled in the pits. (4:53 pm ET) It is believed the
fluid has been confined to the access lanes inside the turns.
(4:54 pm ET)
Happy hour is underway! Updates and news as it develops...
(4:49 pm ET)
Brendan Gaughan has officially been named the 2002 NASCAR
Craftsman Truck Series Raybestos Rookie of the Year for 2002.
(4:39 pm ET)
Terry Cook, #29 Power Stroke Diesel Ford: " It's another
situation where we didn't come down here to qualify well, we
came down here to race well, and it feels like we have a good
truck on longer runs. Any time we were out in practice, at then
end of putting 15 to 20 laps on our tires, we're able to
continuous run quicker lap times on our 21st, 22nd and 23rd
laps out, even though we were doing this in three-lap intervals
where a lot of guys could only do that when they had good
tires. So, I'm still optimistic about the race, but a little
disappointed with qualifying; I thought we could be a little
better than that." (4:28 pm ET)
Rick Crawford, #14 Circle Bar Racing Ford: "We went out sorta
early and didn't get a cloud, so I don't know if that will hold
up or not. We gave it all we had. The Circle Bar Ford's been a
handful to work with this morning. It was following the line
pretty well. I'd just like to thank Milwaukee Electric Tool,
they've been with us for two years and they decided to come
back and sponsor us this last race; it's pretty neat deal. They
wouldn't forget about us and we haven't forgotten about them.
Maybe we can take them to the championship this weekend." (4:36
pm ET)
Barry Bodine, #03 Miccossukee Indian Resort Chevrolet: "We were
just trying to go a little faster on that second lap. We had a
little damage to the right rear, but there was nothing major.
Dad (Geoffrey) was over here earlier giving us a little help.
He has some laps here and gave us some pointers on how to get
around this place fast." (4:30 pm ET)
Jason Small, #07 Small Motorsports Chevrolet: "We had a decent
lap. We have struggled today. Our fastest lap was right off the
truck. We made some changes and we have made some errors. It
really hurt us through practice. We're in and we'll have a
decent spot out of it. We'll eat it and grin and go out and see
what we can do." (4:27 pm ET)
Brendan Gaughan, #62 NAPA/The Orleans Dodge: Normally, Shane
Wilson gets me really loose right off the bat. We came here and
we were really tight. I have never seen this place before. The
guys made a big adjustement to get it loosened up, but we were
way too loose. Give Shane a few more adjustments and we will be
back on top of the board where we belong." (4:25 pm ET)
Bill Lester, #8 Dodge Motorsports Dodge: "Heck, it was slick
out there even on my warm-up lap. I was like 'what happened?
Did the tire pressures suddenly change or what?' I knew it was
going to be a hair raising experience for two laps. I'm glad I
brought it back in one piece, and I wasn't too sure I was going
to do that off of turn four." (4:24 pm ET)
Jason Leffler, #2 Team ASE/CarQuest Dodge: "I think we got
everything out of our qualifying lap that we wanted. The guys
did an awesome job. We have been pretty quick all day, and its
been really good in race trim. We're happy to be starting
third, so we just need to work on it for the race." (4:21 pm
ET)
Ted Musgrave, #1 Mopar Performance Dodge: "There is still a
chance for this team to win the championship. As long as there
is a chance, we will go for it. A championship would mean a
lot. Jim Smith has been in this thing since the conception.
He's been at every race, so to get a championship for him would
mean more than anything." (4:20 pm ET)
No. 18 truck qualifying run disallowed. NASCAR has announced
that the fourth-place starting position for the Robert Pressley
No. 18 Dickies Dodge will not count due to an unapproved
spring. NASCAR officials have not indicated the specific issue
with the spring, whether it has incorrect coil spacing or
length. Pressley will start from the first provisional in the
33rd position. (3:58 pm ET)
Bliss' fourth pole of the season gives him 18 for his NCTS
career, second behind Jack Sprague's 20. (3:02 pm ET)
LIVE! updates from the garage to come shortly....
Dana White smacked the turn four wall on his second qualifying
lap. A damage assessment will follow qualifying. (2:19 pm ET)
UPDATE: The right side has been pancaked, from nose to tail. No
word on whether this truck can be used, if a provisional is
available, in the race. (2:22 pm ET)
Kevin Cram, crew chief for Kruseman, has been fined $250 for
unapproved jacking bolts found on the #98 Menards/Agromin Chevy
in initial inspection at PIR last week. (1:55 pm ET)
Barry Bodine spun the #03 Miccossukee Chevrolet coming out of
turn four on his second qualifying lap. He didn't make any
contact, although the track was red for a few minutes while the
cleanup crew cleared the grass and dirt from the frontstretch.
(1:40 pm ET)
Word in the garage is there could be an official announcement
this weekend naming the 2002 NCTS Raybestos Rookie of the Year.
(1:02 pm ET)
NCTS qualifying will get off the line a couple of minutes late.
There was a crash late in Busch Series practice that has slowed
the process from Busch practice to Truck qualifying. There
should be no more than a couple minute delay. (1:00 pm ET)
Rick Crawford is a contender for the NCTS championship, coming
into the Ford 200 only 32 points behind leader Mike Bliss.
Crawford wants to win the championship, but would like to do so
by winning the race as well. If he would go on to win the
championship without winning the race, he would become the
first national champion in NASCAR history to win the
season-long title without winning a race. (12:34 pm ET)
Terry Cook is full of optimism going into qualifying for the
Ford 200 later this afternoon. "We have a great truck this
weekend," he said smiling. "We'll have to wait and see how we
do, but we are looking for a good run. We want to wind up the
season with another win." (12:30 pm ET)
Carlos Contreras will be making his last NCTS start for the
immediate future this weekend in the #43 Hot Wheels Dodge for
Petty Enterprises. He will be driving for HRT in the NACSAR
Busch Series next season, and is making his debut in their #09
Ciclon Energy Drink Chevy here at Homestead this weekend. So
far, Contreras is 46th on the speed chart out of 53 drivers
that have taken time in NBS practice. (12:20 pm ET)
Teri MacDonald-Cadieux has been named to drive the #72
MacDonald Motorsports Chevrolet this weekend. Michael Dokken
was originally listed as the driver. (12:17 pm ET)
Mike Bliss comes to Homestead in a truck that has a perfect
winning percentage. The team has raced this particular truck
three times this season, and scored wins with it in Kentucky,
Kansas, and Nashville. The team's second entry, driven this
weekend by Ron Hornaday, Jr., is the same truck Bliss drove
last weekend in Fontana. (12:12 pm ET)
No engine changes have been reported this morning. The
SealMaster Racing team did report an overheating condition on
the #88 Menards Chevy of Matt Crafton, but that has since been
solved. The team is busy changing the rear gear on their second
truck entered for Cory Kruseman. (12:10 pm ET)
The red flag is out signifying the end of the session. A full
run-down, with times and speeds, will be posted shortly. (10:56
am ET)
Sticker runs jumbling the last moments of practice! Setzer now
6th, Crafton is 7th, Clarke now 28th, and Kruseman jumps from
40th to 31st. (10:50 am ET) UPDATE: Crawford jumps to 2nd and
Hornaday moves to fifth with mere seconds left. Other drivers
are scrambling to get one last sticker run before the red and
black flags wave to end the session. (10:53 am ET)
With just seconds remaining in the session, here is the
full-field rundown:
Bliss, Leffler, Pressley, Cook, Musgrave
Kvapil, Lester, Crawford, Gaughan, Bodine
Houston, Starr, Schrader, Hooper, Crafton
Hornaday, Wood, Setzer, Small, Gibbs
MacDonald, Compton, Hemphill, Shepherd, Dotter
Norick, Reffner, Clarke, Boyd, Bonifield
Portenga, Contreras, Sockwell, Mickel, Hill
Benton, Richardson, Rose, Cofer, Dokken
Kruseman, White, Jones (10:48 am ET)
Cory Kruseman is attempting to make his second NCTS start this
weekend. With his only previous experience coming last week at
PIR, Kruseman has spent much of the session on the track
logging laps, learning the feel of the truck and the track. He
has turned in 52 laps so far, 14 laps more than the second most
in the session. (10:40 am ET)
The rundown during the red-flag:
Musgrave, Leffler, Pressley, Kvapil, Lester
Cook, Bliss, Starr, Crafton, Hornaday
Wood, Crawford, Setzer, Small, Houston
Compton, Hemphill, Schrader, Gibbs, Gaughan
Hooper, Dotter, Shepherd, Norick, MacDonald
Bodine, Boyd, Bonifield, Reffner, Contreras
Clarke, Sockwell, Mickel, Hill, Benton
Rose, Portenga, Cofer, Dokken, Kruseman
Richardson, White, Jones (10:23 am ET)
Robby Benton has just spun the #36 Mac Tools Ford in turn 2,
but the incident has not brought out the red flag. (10:20 am
ET) UPDATE: NASCAR has decided to put out the red for a track
inspection The red is a result of a spin by Mike Cofer in turn
4 on the same lap as Benton spun. Neither truck made contact
with another truck or the wall. (10:21 am ET)
Still no incidents that have brought out the red flag during
practice. (10:15 am ET)
Drivers in jeopardy of missing the show based on practice times
and provisional status are:
Mickel, Clarke, Cofer, Benton, Kruseman, and Jones (10:13 am
ET)
Just like in Phoenix, the track is very crowded here at
Homestead this morning. With 43 teams entered and only 2 hours
to complete practice, track time is a premium. There have been
packs of five and six trucks on the track, which is race in
pre-qualifying practice. (10:10 am ET)
The top-of-the-hour rundown after 60 minutes of practice:
Musgrave, Leffler, Pressley, Cook, Lester
Bliss, Kvapil, Crafton, Hornaday, Wood
Crawford, Setzer, Small, Houston, Starr
Compton, Schrader, Gibbs, Gaughan, Hooper
Dotter, Hemphill, Shepherd, Norick, MacDonald
Bodine, Boyd, Bonifield, Reffner, Contreras
Sockwell, Mickel, Hill, Clarke, Portenga
Cofer, Rose, Kruseman, Richardson, White
Benton, Jones, Dokken (10:03 am ET)
Many of the drivers have reported a tight, or pushing,
condition through the long, flat turns here at Homestead.
(10:00 am ET)
NCTS practice will run from 9:00 am to 10:55 am ET. So far, the
session has not had any interruptions, not even for debris.
(9:55 am ET)
No incidents of any significance to report in the first 45
minutes of practice. (9:45 am ET)
Forty drivers have already been on the speedway 30 minutes into
practice. The rundown:
Musgrave, Leffler, Pressley, Lester, Cook
Crafton, Hornaday, Wood, Crawford, Small
Houston, Kvapil, Setzer, Schrader, Starr
Gibbs, Gaughan, Hooper, Dotter, MacDonald
Hemphill, Norick, Bonifield, Bodine, Boyd
Reffner, Contreras, Sockwell, Mickel, Clarke
Cofer, Hill, Shepherd, Richardson, Kruseman
Jones, Dokken, White, Benton, Rose (9:45 am ET)
Ron Hornaday, Jr., 1996 and 1998 NCTS Champion, is entered in a
second Xpress Motorsports Chevrolet, #11. This marks Hornaday's
second attempt this season, and first since the season opener
at Daytona. (9:38 am ET)
The first drivers out on the speedway this morning were
championship contenders Mike Bliss and Ted Musgrave, as well as
Rick Crawford, Brendan Gaughan, and Bill Lester. (9:36 am ET)
Good morning from the infield here at the Homestead-Miami
Speedway in warm, sunny Homestead, Florida. The trucks have
been on the track for almost 30 minutes, and we will catch you
up on all the action from Trackside as the morning progresses.
Temps should hit the high 70s or low 80s this afternoon, so
track conditions could be slick when the Toughest Drivers in
NASCAR take to the track for qualifying. Keep it locked on
Trackside LIVE! for the latest... (9:33 am ET)
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