Stacy Compton finished 26th in last Friday's Racetickets.com 200 at the California Speedway. Although he finished on the lead lap, his Ford F-150 was the victim of trash on the grille that forced an unscheduled pit stop. Just like a week earlier at Daytona, Compton had to stop to have a tear-away removed from the grille. He was involved in a two-truck accident 150 yards short of the finish line, but he steered his damaged racer through the infield grass to finish the race.

• Compton now has four NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series starts at the California Speedway, including a third-place finish there in 1999.
• Compton has 87 career starts in the Craftsman Truck Series,
  including two victories. He will drive the first two races of the season for Wood Brothers/jtg racing, then turn over the job to former U.S. Auto Club champion Bobby East for the rest of the season.
• Compton is ranked 25th in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series point
  standings.

Stacy Compton Quotes
On California: "We just can't catch a break right now. We had to pit under green one time for a tear-off. We didn't lose a lap that time. We had to pit again for another tear-off and that one hurt the motor. Early on we had a great truck, and right there at the end I got loose and chased it up the racetrack and Chad (Chaffin) was there and it didn't work out. It's disappointing because every week we have good trucks and good cars, and I think we've torn up more stuff in the last two weeks that I've torn up in an entire season."

On the season: "To know that we have vehicles that are this good is incredible. The guys have worked so hard building great cars and great trucks. We're competitive everywhere we go. I can't tell you what it means to go to every race knowing we've a contender to win. That's why when you tear something up, it bothers you so much. I think the guys have built something like 25 cars and trucks since Dec. 1. That's a tremendous amount of work, so the last thing you want to do is give them some more work. By the time we get to Atlanta, I know these guys will have fixed this truck and probably built me another new one."

Crew Chief Gary Cogswell Quote
On California: "Once again, you have control over things like setups, engine preparation and every race strategy, but you can't control your luck. In two races we've made three pit stops to remove tear-aways. Trash is the only thing that's keeping us from a couple of top-10 finishes. This kind of start can really hurt a team's confidence, but everyone here realizes we're building for the future. They see their hard work has resulted in some very fast race trucks. As long as we're fast and we're able to contend, we won't have any problems keeping everyone motivated."