This concludes Trackside Live! presented by The Orleans from the Virginia is for Lovers 200 at Richmond International Raceway. We will pick up coverage from the Texas Motor Speedway during practice for the Silverado 350 next Thursday, September 12. Don't forget to log on to Live! Qualifying presented by Acxiom from Texas at 7 pm ET.

Harvick's second-place finish ties Jason Leffler's record for most runner-up finishes without a victory with five. (11:23 pm ET)

In his post-race interview, Kevin Harvick said the track has gotten back to the way it used to be, with less grip on the bottom which opens up the middle and upper grooves, which should make for better racing the rest of the weekend. He also stated one of the reasons he started his Truck team was to get additional insight into setups for his Cup team. It worked for him at Loudon, and he expects to start Winston Cup Happy Hour with the same shock package as he used during the truck race tonight. He also expressed a desire to field a full-time Truck program in the future with another driver in the seat. (11:19 pm ET)

Jason Small, #07 Sunbelt Rentals Chevrolet: "Tonight was the driver's fault. The radios were cutting out and on that caution I got caught up and looked down to play with the radio. As soon as I looked back up, and it was only a second, the guy in front of me just stopped. I got into the back of him and damaged the nose. Cost us some time, but we stayed out of trouble the rest of the race and picked up a few positions, which should help us in points a little bit." (11:14 pm ET)

UPDATE: Matt Crafton has been released from the local hospital and diagnosed with a sprained foot, no broken bones. (11:11 pm ET)

Jason Leffler, #2 Team ASE/CarQuest Dodge: "The No. 4 and No. 75 got together between turns one and two and the No. 4 hit the wall pretty hard and shot back down across the track and clipped me in the right rear. I didn't have anywhere to go. It was the white flag lap and everyone was trying to finish, so they just kept pilling in. It got pretty ugly." (11:10 pm ET)

Bobby Dotter, #08 People Against Drugs Chevrolet: "We had a good truck in practice, one I thought could run in the top-10 all night. We ended up finishing there, but we are a little disappointed because we didn't run up there all night. I wish we could run a few more races on these bullrings, because we always seem to run well on them." (11:07 pm ET)

Brendan Gaughan, #62 NAPA/The Orleans Dodge: "We just went down in turn two and hit some oil or something and it went around. It is a shame because we had a really good run going. I cost the team a good starting spot tonight because I got mad right before qualifying, went out and pushed it really hard and hit the wall out of turn two. But we recovered and looked like we were going to have a good finish until that last lap deal happened." (11:05 pm ET)

Ted Musgrave, #1 Mopar Performance Dodge: "I guess we got lucky on that last lap. Everybody else wrecked and we made it through. I'd like to see a replay. I went high, I went low, I got hit in the back. We got hit in the front. This team should win the championship, no doubt about it. I'm just not happy about the way it's going, let's put it that way." (11:03 pm ET)

Robert Pressley, #18 Dickie's/Square D Dodge: "I don't know what happened. I got down into turn one, and I saw Bobby (Hamilton) going head-on into the wall. Everybody just went everywhere. Track position was everything tonight. If you had clean racetrack, you were good. If not, it was terrible." (11:00 pm ET)

Matt Crafton was involved in a heavy crash on lap 70 which ended the night for the #88 Menards/ColorPave Chevrolet. Crafton complained of some pain in his left foot and was taken to the local hospital for X-rays. (10:56 pm ET)

Bill Lester, #8 Dodge Motorsports Dodge: "I was expecting a long 200-lap race. I heard the spotter call 'inside', and the next thing I knew I got hit in the left rear. I'm just not sure what to think. I guess that is why they call me a rookie." (10:55 pm ET)

Tony Stewart, #33 Monaco Coach Chevrolet: "This is all about fun tonight. Not that the rest of the weekend won't be, but it will be more serious. This gets back to racing for the right reasons." (10:53 pm ET)

Adam Clarke, #45 Petty Driving Experience Dodge: "We would like to do this some more next year, depending on sponsorship. I spend six months here in Charlotte and six months back in Australia, but if I had to, I could stay here longer to run a full season." (7:05 pm ET) Clarke is 27 years old, and is a native of New Castle, Australia. This is his first ever NCTS start.

The word from NASCAR...Happy Hour is officially cancelled. (5:17 pm ET)

According to several teams in the garage, NASCAR has officially scrubbed Happy Hour practice for the NCTS. It was supposed to be over at 5 pm ET, and as of 5:07, NASCAR Busch Series qualifying has not yet been completed.

Hearing that since NASCAR Busch Series qualifying was filled with delays, NCTS final practice will be significantly reduced if not cancelled. More as the story develops. (5:01 pm ET)

Ted Musgrave, #1 Mopar Performance Dodge: "The truck has some really soft springs on it. We went down into the turn and it just bottomed out. No big deal. It is a new style truck with a little lower suspension, and the soft springs just shot it up the track when it hit." (4:29 pm ET)

Richmond International Raceway has announced the advance ticket sales for the Virginia is for Lovers 200 is 20-30% above sales for the 2001 event. Walk up sales are expected to be equally strong with the number of Winston Cup Series stars in the field. (4:19 pm ET)

Jason Leffler continued his pole winning record with his eighth Bud Pole Award of 2002. (4:16 pm ET)

Long-time NCTS team member and PR guru John Close is back at the track after recovering from mid-season back surgery. Close has worked with many of the series' top drivers, including Jack Sprague, Terry Cook, and his current charge, Mike Bliss. (4:13 pm ET)

The #03 EJP Chevy of Barry Bodine spun on its second qualifying lap. Bodine kept it off the wall with several smoky 360s, much to the crowd's approval. (4:09 pm ET)

Jeff Yastremski, the front tire carrier and a general mechanic for the #16 IWX Motor Freight Chevrolet driven by Mike Bliss, recently won the North Carolina State Catfish Championship. The tournament started in January and took place at a number of lakes in North Carolina. The participants received one point per pound for every fish they caught. Yastremski won the event with over 1,500 pounds total. He earned a $100,000 first-place check for his efforts. (4:08 pm ET)

Conrad Burr, #28 FDNY Chevrolet: "We just drove it down into turn three a little too hard trying to cut a good lap and we put it in the fence. Oh well, that's the way racing is sometimes." (4:04 pm ET)

Stan Boyd, #89 EVI Chevrolet: "I am really disappointed. I knew this would be a tough field to get into, but I thought we would have made the race. I guess I need to get better as a qualifier. I usually qualify average and race better, but we need to go to work on our qualifying." (4:03 pm ET)

Rick Crawford, #14 Circle Bar Racing Ford: "We had a rough morning. We were only 14th fastest or so, but we changed the gear for qualifying and it really seemed to help." (4:02 pm ET)

The #41 of Clay Collier backed hard into the turn three wall during his second qualifying lap. He was uninjured in the crash, but was taken to the infield care center to be checked out. (2:14 pm ET)

The #03 EJP Chevrolet team is entered this week with Barry Bodine in the seat. The team has indicated they will enter Homestead, again with Bodine in the seat, and would like to attempt Phoenix and/or Fontana as well. (1:34 pm ET)

Brian Rose, #15 Perry Connection Ford: "It is really great to be here with Gary Showalter. He has so much knowledge on what it takes to make these trucks go fast. He helps me out in the seat too. I overdrove it down into turn three once, and even before I was back to the start-finish line, he was on the radio telling me to keep calm and not overdrive it. I think we will be back for the rest of the season with this same combination. We wanted to give it a race or two to see if we had he combination, and it really looks like we do." (1:12 pm ET)

Kay Keselowski, team owner/spotter, #29 Power Stroke Diesel Ford: "We had a little brake bias problem early on, but we have really been okay. Terry hasn't said anything bad about the track conditions out there, but after the oil was laid down and the two crashes they had, we made sure he kept it in the lower groove. We don't want him taking any chances out there in the outside." (1:08 pm ET)

Matt Crafton, #88 Menards/ColorPave Chevrolet: "Turns three and four are a lot greasier than the rest of the track. The track was really good this morning, but the oil down really didn't help the situation. The Busch cars practicing before we qualify should help clean it up a little bit. We have a pretty good truck here. We tested at Toledo last week before coming down here and learned some stuff about how to make a drop snout handle on a short track like this." (1:06 pm ET)

Lance Norick, #90 Express Personnel Chevrolet: "We lost 30 minutes of practice pumping five gallons of fuel out of the cell and adding two bars of weight to the chassis. I have no idea why it took so long to do that, but I am pretty frustrated. We needed that practice time. The truck seems to run well on older tires, so hopefully we will be good this evening." (1:04 pm ET)

Clay Collier, #41 Col-Met Edging Dodge: "The track seems to be really consistent. I just can't tell if it is good or bad because I have never been here. We would like to do as many races as we can the rest of this year. I don't think NASCAR will approve me for Texas unless we come out of here having made the race and had a really good finish. It is frustrating for me because this team is used to running really well when they come to the track. Once I get used to the trucks and the tracks, I know we will run a lot better than we are right now." (1:02 pm ET)

Bob Coffey, #74 BoCo Performance Chevrolet: "I just lost it. I went down into three and the back end just came around. I am okay, just ready to load it up and head on home." (12:59 pm ET)

Brian Ross, #70 Bailey Excavating Ford: "We just can't get grip. Sometimes is pushes, and then sometimes it jumps really loose. Hopefully the track will get better as it cools off tonight." (12:58 pm ET)

The top-20 drivers after the completion of practice (the full run-down to be posted shortly):

Musgrave, Hamilton/Hemphill, Starr, Cook, Bliss

Compton, Setzer, Harvick, Leffler, Hamilton/Lester

Wood, Pressley, Rose, Crawford, Gaughan

Long, Schrader, Crafton, Gibbs, Hooper (12:04 pm ET)



The teams will receive their final five minutes of practice as the track has just gone green. (11:55 am ET)

The revised top-20 during the red flag for the BoCo crash:

Musgrave, Starr, Cook, Hamilton/Hemphill, Leffler

Bliss, Wood, Pressley, Compton, Crawford

Carl Long, Schrader, Crafton, Coy Gibbs, Norick

Harvick, Setzer, Stewart, Brian Rose, Dotter (11:52 am ET)

With only 10 minutes left in the time allotted for NCTS practice, the crash by Bob Coffey may have brought a premature end to the morning's practice session. (11:50 am ET)

BoCo has crashed. Bob Coffey went into turn three in the middle groove and he lost it, smashing the rear end of his #74 BoCo Performance Chevrolet. The truck is damaged heavily, and with no backup, this may eliminate any hopes Coffey had of making a qualifying run. (11:47 am ET)

Brian Ross has also returned after repairing a loose power steering line. (11:44 am ET)

Bob Coffey has returned to the speedway after changing the rear end. (11:44 am ET)

Jason Leffler has returned to the speedway in his backup truck. The team only needed 40 minutes to unload the backup and install their race motor before returning to the speedway. (11:43 am ET)

With just 20 minutes remaining in practice, the top-20 drivers are as follows:

Musgrave, Hemphill/Hamilton, Leffler, Cook, Bliss

Wood, Compton, Crawford, Schrader, Crafton

Norick, Harvick, Setzer, Stewart, Starr

Kvapil, Gaughan, Dotter, Sockwell, Pressley (11:41 am ET)

The Bailey Excavating Ford team of Brian Ross reports their #70 lost a power steering line which caused the smoke. The team is busy making repairs and hopes to have Ross back out before practice ends at noon. (11:37 am ET)

Ted Musgrave, #1 Mopar Performance Dodge: "I haven't been back out since the oil down. I think the best way to keep the truck off the fence may be leaving it in the garage. It looks really slick out there." (11:32 am ET)

The #70 Bailey Excavating Ford of Brian Ross has brought out the red flag once again after the truck erupted in smoke coming out of turn four. The track crew will again head out to the speedway and check for fluids. (1130 am ET)

Watching a couple of laps of practice, and it is obvious that not many drivers are willing to tempt fate in the outside groove for fear it is still very slick. (11:28 am ET)

Not many changes to the top-20:

Musgrave, Hamilton/Hemphill, Leffler, Cook, Bliss

Crawford, Norick, Harvick, Compton, Schrader

Setzer, Kvapil, Starr, Wood, Bobby Dotter

Sockwell, Hooper, Crafton, Pressley, Stewart (11:26 am ET)

Practice has resumed. (11:23 am ET)

Jason Small, #07 Sunbelt Rentals Chevrolet: "The track is in very bad shape. I have been on tracks with sealers on them before, and I have never seen one as bad as this. They say it might get better as the sun goes down, but as bad as it is, I think it might get even worse." (11:23 am ET)

Carlos Contreras, #43 Hot Wheels Dodge: "The truck was very comfortable. I went in to turn three on the outside of Pressley and it just snapped around. I feel just fine. We need to go to the backup truck, but it is not as good as the first truck was." (11:21 am ET)

Both incidents, Leffler and Contreras, appeared to happen in a very similar manner. Both went in to turn three on the outside of a slower truck in the lower lane, and both skated up into the wall rear-end first. Some teams are insisting there is still a good deal of oil just outside the racing groove which has caused both accidents. The track crew is currently inspecting the surface again for liquids. (11:13 am ET)

Jason Leffler, # 2 Team ASE/CarQuest Dodge: "I went into turn three alongside someone and it just jumped sideways on me." The team is currently taking the engine out of the primary truck to install in the backup. (11:10 am ET)

The green flag came out, but was quickly replaced with the red as Carlos Contreras crashed heavily in turn three. There is heavy rear end damage to the #43 Hot Wheels Dodge. Carlos is moving around in the truck and appears to be uninjured. The team will undoubtedly have to go to a backup truck. (11:07 am ET)

Jason Leffler has crashed the Team ASE/CarQuest Dodge in turn three just after the return to green flag practice. Leffler bounced the right rear off the wall after reporting track conditions to still be very slick. More on this situation as it develops. (11:01 am ET)

Team sources indicate Bobby Hamilton Racing will likely return in 2003 with a three truck effort. If there are changes to the number of trucks the team fields, it will likely go up to four rather than be cut back to two. Ryan Hemphill, driver of the #4 BHR Square D Dodge is one of several drivers in the mix for the seat next year. (11:00 am ET)


Green flag is back out at RIR!!! (10:58 am ET)

Trucks have again been stopped while the track clean-up crew again attempts to remove excess oil dry from the racing surface. They are now using jet dryers to blow the dust off the speedway. (10:52 am ET)

The top-20 during the red flag delay for track clean-up:

Musgrave, Hemphill/Hamilton, Leffler, Cook, Bliss

Crawford, Norick, Harvick, Compton, Schrader

Kvapil, Setzer, Starr, Wood, Sockwell

Hooper, Crafton, Robert Pressley, Stewart, Gaughan (10:50 am ET)

Track clean-up is complete, but NASCAR has kept the caution flag out for several laps to blow the residual oil dry off the speedway. It is currently too dusty on the track for any high speeds. (10:46 am ET)

Bob Coffey, #74 BoCo Performance Chevrolet: "We broke the rear end gear. We have another one in the truck. We are going to get it changed and get back out there." (10:45 am ET)

Two other incidents have brought a halt to the action, but both were very minor with no wall contact. The #45 Richard Petty Driving Experience Dodge of Adam Clarke got loose and spun down the backstretch at 10:20 am ET, while the #59 Tiger Tom Pistone's Race Cars Ford of Tommy Pistone III spun out of turn four at 10:31 am ET. (10:39 am ET)

Red Flag is out at RIR! BoCo, Bob Coffey, blew a motor going into turn one and has oiled down the fronstretch, turns one and two, and some of the backstretch. The track clean-up crew is attending to the surface and expects to have practice back underway again shortly. (10:37 am ET)

Some MAJOR changes in the top-10 after thirty minutes of practice. The top-20 drivers:

Musgrave, Ryan Hemphill, Leffler, Cook, Bliss

Crawford, Norick, Kevin Harvick, Stacy Compton, Travis Kvapil

Setzer, Brian Sockwell, Lance Hooper, Crafton, Starr

Wood, Stewart, Ken Schrader, Brendan Gaughan, Adam Clarke (10:35 am ET)

Two drivers have brushed the turn two wall already in the early laps of practice. The #41 Col-Met Edging Dodge brushed the wall when driver Clay Collier got high coming out of the turn. The team is working on the slight damage to the truck, which is all superficial paint scuffs and loose crush panels. The #88 Menards/ColorPave Chevy of Matt Crafton also brushed the turn two wall, which resulted in nothing more than scuffed paint. (10:22 am ET)

The top-10 drivers after 10 minutes of practice:

Jason Leffler, Rick Crawford, Jon Wood, Dennis Setzer, Lance Norick

Terry Cook, Robert Pressley, David Starr, Ted Musgrave, Mike Bliss

Tony Stewart is 11th. (10:11 am ET)

Good morning from a very crowded infield at Richmond International Raceway! Practice for the Virginia is for Lovers 200 has just started under beautiful sunny skies. Temperatures are expected to be in the mid-80s today, and a HUGE crowd is expected to file into the grandstands this evening for what should be one of the best NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series races of the season. (10:08 am ET)