STOUT: Making Season Debut This Weekend at Charlotte
05-15-2008 11:05 am

JC Stout, 24, will put his #91 Chevy Silverado on the 1.5 mile Lowe's Motor Speedway on Friday May 16th for his 2008 season debut.

The all volunteer Stellar-Quest Racing Team has had a very busy winter in their Western New York shop preparing their sole truck for 2008 competition. Meeting the new year's rules handed down from NASCAR® is a challenge. Having half a new body hung and accommodating the new mandated 18 gallon fuel cell burns a lot of time for a part time team located so far from many resources. Much time was also spent adapting to a different motor package and figuring out chassis geometry utilizing a better suspension set up. "We are always striving to improve and staying competitive in this series is tough when we're already at a significant monetary disadvantage. Our off season work included finding ways to be faster through the corners from the center off," Crew Chief Steve Mollnow recently said.

Team PR Director Michelle Maines added, "The impact of a seemingly simple fuel cell size reduction will further disadvantage our part time volunteer pit crew on race day. Carrying less fuel will require additional pit stops. Our crew works incredibly hard, but with a median age of 41, is more likely to lose time competing against the well trained, young, full time crews at each and every stop. However, the NASCAR® rule change does give the fans a potentially better show, and without the fans there is no show."

Due to unpredictable Western New York weather conditions, the team was unable to perform any testing. The first chance Stout will have to feel his new set up will be his first practice session at Lowe's. Even with the odds stacked against him, JC is excited about the impending race. "I love Lowe's! The combination of speed and high banks makes that place the most exciting track I've ever raced on. We finished twenty sixth(26) there last year because we overheated early on in the race and lost two laps in the pits pulling tape off the grill. Being able to pass Kevin Hamlin in a Dodge and Shane Huffman in the Key Motorsports truck with ten laps to go, unfortunately not for position, makes me feel very confident going into our first race of the year."

The #91 machine, running with a naked hood, will have to qualify into the race on time Friday afternoon and the competition is expected to be fierce among the go or go home teams. Stout is known to pull off a good qualifying lap with his back against the wall."Our first goal is to take the green flag when it flies at 8:00 pm Friday night. Then we'll work on getting to the checkered flag as fast as we can", Maines added.