The 2004 racing season is upon us and there are several changes not only for NASCAR, but for Bill Davis Racing as well. In 2004, NASCAR hands over the guard to NEXTEL after longtime supporter Winston bowed out after supporting the series for over 30 years, while Bill Davis Racing has expanded its operation to include two Craftsman Truck Series teams.
Shelby Howard, an Indiana native, will compete in the #23 Toyota truck with Dave Fuge Jr., as his crew chief. Howard began racing at age nine in a sprint car that was owned by his father. He competed in several different series from age 10-15 and in 2000 became the youngest driver to win a feature, breaking the record previously held by NASCAR Champion Jeff Gordon. He ran five ARCA races in 2001 and quickly made the transition to heavier stock cars, scoring two top five finishes in those five races. In 2002, Howard ran the full schedule in ARCA and finished fifth in the final standings and then in 2003 became the youngest driver to win a race in the series. He finished the season with three wins, 10 top-five and 12 top-10 finishes and a career-high third in the standings.
Bill Lester will drive the #22 Toyota truck for Bill Davis Racings second entry in the Craftsman Truck Series with the experience of Jeff Hensley as his crew chief. Lester comes to the team with a Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering and Computer Science from University of California, Berkeley. He worked with Hewlett-Packard Company while competing on the weekends in several divisions around the California area. He quit his job in the mid-80s to race full-time in the SCCA series. He raced in the 24 Hours of Daytona four times and later made his way into the NASCAR community when he competed in a Busch race at Watkins Glen in 1999. He sporadically raced in the truck series until getting a full-time ride in 2002 with Bobby Hamilton Racing. He raced two full seasons, scoring his first pole in 2003 at Lowes Motor Speedway.(Bill Davis Racing PR)(1-5-2004)
