A broken power steering pump plagued Bill Lester's No. 22 Toyota Tundra early in the Toyota Tundra Milwaukee Mile 200, but despite the misfortune, Lester and his team rallied to their best finish of the 2006 season.

Moments into the pre-race practice session, Lester said he was happy with the performance of his Toyota. He told crew chief Doug Wolcott that he would like to be able to turn a little better in the middle of the corner, but he was really happy with the truck's performance on entry and exit of the corners. The team changed rear springs, hoping to help push the truck through the center of the corner. The new springs worked well, and Lester was optimistic about Friday night's race.

When the green flag was displayed to the 36-truck field for the start of the 200-lap event, Lester was on the inside of row eight. For the first 35 laps, Lester kept his Tundra in the top 20. He told his crew that the truck felt really good, and he was just trying to stay out of trouble. Lester pitted under caution on lap 38. The four-tire stop also resulted in a small trackbar adjustment, which the team made to keep the truck's handling in tune with the changing track conditions.

On lap 39, Lester told his crew that he was having a hard time turning the steering wheel. He brought his truck down pit road so the team could investigate the problem. Wolcott told his driver there was a hole in one of the power steering pump hoses, and he would have to run the rest of the race without power steering.

Lester restarted 32nd, ready for the challenge of battling through the field sans power steering. By lap 70, Lester stood 24th. He was pleased with the handling of his truck, and he was posting lap times as fast as those of the leader. When the caution flag waved on lap 82, the No. 22 team decided to roll the dice. It made its final four-tire stop of the night, hoping the fresh rubber and fuel would take the truck to the finish and to the front of the field.

With 82 laps remaining, Lester rode in 12th position, but he had not completed his charge to the front. On lap 125, Lester broke into the top 10 and continued moving forward. Newer tires eventually prevailed, and Lester began slipping through the field. He battled hard for the final 50 laps and crossed the finish line in 15th.