A devoted fan of Elvis Presley and one of NASCAR's most accomplished short track racers Rick Crawford looks forward to returning to Memphis Motorsports Park.  With each trip to Memphis Crawford gets to visit the home of the King of Rock and Roll and renew his short track roots. Crawford has been to Graceland on numerous occasions but this year Crawford and teammate David Starr would take a special after hours tour of the home of the King. As Graceland was closing and the fans from the regular tour were leaving, Crawford and Starr drove past the famous Graceland gates and up the drive to Presley's beloved Graceland. For the next 2 hours Terrie Love, Graceland's Senior Tour Lead, gave the long time Presley fan an enlightening tour of Graceland.  The special tour of Graceland was the perfect entrée to the O'Reilly 200.

Over the years, crew chief Kevin "Cowboy" Starland and the Power Stroke Diesel by International team have developed many new Circle Bar chassis's. Several years ago the team created a short track chassis, CB-17. From it's first race CB-17 was special and over the course of time had picked up 2 of Circle Bar Racing victories and a double hand full of top 5's and 10's. After hard crash and resurrection from the scrap heap in 2006 CB-17 was given a new name and it has been rocking and rolling ever since. Ever since Elvis has been alive at Circle Bar Racing. Coming off a near win in Mansfield and a top 5 in Milwaukee, Cowboy and the Power Stroke Diesel by International team had Elvis ready for Memphis.

As practice opened for the O'Reilly 200, Elvis was ready to take center stage. Solidly in the top 5 during practice Elvis was proving why he was Crawford's favorite short track chassis. The Power Stroke Diesel by International team spent the bulk of practice sessions getting Elvis ready to race. Crawford had an early draw and would take the provisional pole. As qualifying moved forward cloud cover moved over the speed way and the temperature dropped and with it so do it the qualifying times. The Power Stroke Diesel by International Ford F-150 would end up rolling off 17th.  Not the starting spot they were looking for but the team knew they had a good Ford F-150.

With the drop of the green flag Elvis was hung up in a crowded field and everyone knows Elvis needs room to move. Five laps in Elvis found the outside lane and was starting to make some bold moves to the front. On lap 7 Crawford and Johnny Benson would rub against each other and the contact would cut the left rear tire and send the Power Stroke Diesel by International Ford F-150 into the outside retaining wall. On pit road under the attention of Cowboy and the crew, the team started to piece Elvis back together. Hammers beat the body back down while the guys tried to tape the body back together enough where they wouldn't lose pieces back on the racetrack.  The team would soon find out that the body damage was the least of their problems.  Jack Johnston the rear tire changer discovered more than a blown tire when he changed the left rear. When the tire shredded it exploded the battery, destroying the battery compartment and the firewall filling the drivers compartment with battery acid. Putting another battery in the truck would be easy; finding something to attach it to would take time. The tire had not only destroyed the battery but also the battery box and everything that held the battery in the truck. Some quick thinking and engineering found the only thing left to attach to was Crawford's seat. Replacing the battery would put the team 3 laps down but the only truck a lap down. With a few quick cautions the team could get back on the lead lap. Taking a speeding on pit road penalty to avoid going another lap down put Crawford at the tail end of the longest line and long way away from the leaders. 

Desperately needing a caution, the race took on a green flag look and it would be 60 laps before there would be another caution. Dooming the Power Stroke Diesel by International team to being trapped 3 laps down. Under caution the team would get an opportunity to put 4 fresh Goodyears on Elvis and continue to try and make the ailing Ford F-150 work as good as they could get it. Under caution the team became aware that not only had battery acid covered the driver's compartment; it had covered the driver as well. Inside the truck Crawford was fighting 2 problems, an ill handling beat up F-150 and the battery acid was now working its way through his fire suit and onto his skin. The team handed Crawford bottles of water and sent him back out on track. Able to take up a position close to the front in the lap down line Crawford was close to the front and when Elvis is close to the front magical things happen. Covered in battery acid, with the left rear gone, the right rear sticking a foot higher in the air than is should and the rear clip bent Crawford was clocking lap times faster than the leaders. Trapped 3 laps down the Power Stroke Diesel by International team never gave and continued to work on their Ford F-150. The record book will show a 28th place finish but not the Herculean effort but forth by the Power Stroke Diesel by International team.

KEVIN "COWBOY" STARLAND  "I guess Rick and Benson were racing pretty hard and I imagine Johnny got a little loose and got into Rick's left rear tire and blew it out and backed Rick into the wall from there.  It was survival after that.  I think we would have stayed on the lead lap if the battery didn't explode when the tire went down.  When the tire went down, it destroyed the battery.  We had nothing to attach it to; NASCAR wouldn't let us out [of the pits] until we properly attached it.  We lost a couple of laps in the pits trying to reattach the battery.  But overall, I think we could have stayed on the lead lap all night. It was Built Ford Tough - it just kept running."

RICK CRAWFORD "Johnny (Benson) and I were racing side by side when we got together. It cut the left rear sent me into the wall and the tire destroyed our battery. Cowboy and the guys worked really hard to get us back on track but with severe damage like that, even if you are Built Ford Tough, and your trying to make Bold Moves in the Power Stroke Diesel by International Ford F-150, there's not much you can do but hang on and just finish the race and that's what we did tonight.  We just need to do better for the Built Ford Tough 225 presented by the Greater Cincinnati Ford Dealers race in Kentucky coming up week after next and win the thing.  We finished second there last year, so we just need to pass one truck this year." 

The Circle Bar/Power Stroke Diesel by International Team will be in action when the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series holds round 13 of the 2007 season in the Built Ford Tough 225 presented by the Greater Cincinnati Ford Dealers at Kentucky Speedway on Saturday July 14th at 7:30 PM EST. For live trackside reports of practice and qualifying go to truckseries.com. Live coverage of the race provided by Speed, MRN and Sirius Radio.