Plans are in the works for 5-time and 2003 ARCA Champ Frank Kimmel to run the final race of the year in the Craftsman Truck Race at the Homestead Speedway in Miami, FL. They have acquired a Ford truck from K Automotive Racing, who normally fields the #29 in the series. The Ford F-150 will carry sponsorship with Advance Auto Parts and the National Pork Board and will carry the number 69. The number being the same as driven by Frank’s dad and brother for many years.(Frank Kimmel Site)(10-28-2003)
UPDATE: Five-time ARCA RE/MAX Series Champion, Frank Kimmel, will tackle the competition of the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series at the newly configured 1.5-mile oval of Homestead-Miami Speedway for the series season finale on November 14. Kimmel, who earned the 2003 ARCA RE/MAX Series Championship just a few weeks ago, will make his ninth career NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series start at the same speedway where he earned his best series finish of ninth in March of 1996.
“This is a really great way to finish out the 2003 season, said Kimmel. It is always exciting to try your hand with a different group of racers than you are used to running with each weekend and when you know you have competitive equipment it is just that much better. Having my Tri-State Motorsports Championship team working on this truck and Joe Rhyne building the motors, I know we will be competitive. We will also have the support of our ARCA team sponsors, Advance Auto Parts and Pork. The Other White Meat on the No. 69 Ford race truck and I hope we can give them a good showing in Miami.
Kimmel will be learning the new configuration of the Homestead-Miami Speedway along with the rest of the NASCAR competitors throughout the week beginning with a test session on Monday, November 10. Kimmel hopes that the new race track will even the playing field for the Ford 200, giving the ARCA Champion a chance to showcase his talents at the front of the field.
The NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series is a competitive series and it shows each weekend, said Kimmel. We battled stiff competition every weekend this year in the ARCA RE/MAX Series and I am really looking forward to one last race before the start of the 2004 season.
Kimmel will have the supervision of his brother and championship crew chief, Bill Kimmel calling the shots throughout the week. Prior to his start at the Homestead-Miami Speedway, Kimmel had made eight starts in the series including two previous at Homestead, two at the Louisville Speedway, the road course at Topeka, Gateway International Speedway and the Las Vegas Motor Speedway. Kimmel concluded his 2003 ARCA RE/MAX season with an accumulation of six poles, seven wins and 19 top-five finishes in 22 starts.(LM Motorsports Marketing), see an image of the truck on my Truck Paint Schemes page.(11-5-2003)
