While the NASCAR Sprint Cup and Nationwide Series teams are out west for the second consecutive weekend, the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series squads have had the last two weekends off. And for Ron Hornaday Jr., enough is enough.
Hornaday, the four-time and defending Truck Series champion, is eagerly looking forward to next weekend, when the truckers will be at Atlanta Motor Speedway for the Atlanta 200 on March 6, race No. 2 of 25 for 2010.
Like a lot of his fellow NASCAR racers in all three divisions, Hornaday loves to race at the 1.54-mile AMS quad oval, where the combination of aged asphalt, a wide surface and multiple grooves make for engaging racing.
"Everybody asks me what track is my favorite track and I say, 'It's the ones I win at,' but Atlanta is my most favorite because I got to do my burnout," said Hornaday, who was a winner at AMS in 2005. "I pulled in [to Victory Lane after winning] and there was somebody watering the flowers before that and my tires started spinning, so I just kept spinning into Victory Lane. I got to the next track and tried to do the same and got scolded by everyone and NASCAR."
The big racing groove doesn't hurt, either, said Hornaday. "At first glance it's just another 'cookie cutter' track, but its not. It's a track with - the aging of the asphalt, the tires Goodyear brings, the atmosphere and the fans … The track is so wide, the way the banking is, and the way you come off Turn 4 - I don't know why it makes for good racing, but everybody seems to like ."
Hornaday will have a new crew chief next week at AMS, veteran Doug George, who will try to get the No. 33 Kevin Harvick Inc.-owned Longhorn Chevrolet Silverado back to victory lane for the first time this season. George replaces Dave Fuge, who lasted just one race with KHI before being released.
On Wednesday, Hornaday was in Georgia with Gov. Sonny Perdue on Wednesday to promote the Georgia NASCAR license plates and participated in a Georgia H.E.A.T. Enforcement Team check point. As part of the promotional appearance, Hornaday awarded Atlanta 200 race tickets to the first 30 families securely buckled up during the traffic stop.
"I've been in that predicament before and pulled around the corner leaving a restaurant and you have no idea where your license is and you're making sure everyone is buckled properly," said Hornaday. "There's a nervousness when you see [a traffic stop] and then you hand them a ticket to go to the racetrack and then you see the kid's eyes light up. To see the reaction of some people who think they're in trouble but aren't and then they get a ticket to the racetrack, its pretty cool."
