The television camera doesnt do justice to the steep 36-degree banked concrete turns of Bristol Motor Speedway. Few are prepared for the enormity of what they see. Imagine, then, what passes through the mind of a rookie competitor gazing upon the .533-mile track for the very first time. Robert Huffman (No. 12 Toyota Tundra Toyota) recalls his first visit to the unique east Tennessee track. I remember walking through the gate and across the track and thinking, This is the most intimidating place Ive ever been to, said Huffman, a former NASCAR Dash Series champion who made his Bristol debut in that series in 1995.
I drove around the place for 100 laps and Im beat. I remember thinking after the race, How do the NASCAR NEXTEL Cup guys do this for 500 laps? I was worn out and pretty sore for days after that.
Huffman, one of nearly a dozen Raybestos Rookie of the Year contenders hoping to compete in Wednesday nights NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series OReilly 200 presented by Valvoline MaxLife, will have a bit of an edge on some of his freshman rivals.
Huffman has some Bristol experience in a truck as well as a car. The 36-year-old Claremont, N.C. driver finished 33rd in the 1997 event and a year later, drove as relief for an injured Bob Keselowski.
I think we got lapped once when we made the driver change and another time during the race, but I was pretty happy, said Huffman of that 18th-place effort.
That race along with Huffmans five Dash titles factored into his hiring by George deBidarts Innovative Motorsports, one of four teams fielding Toyota trucks in 2004. Huffman qualified on the outside front row in March at Atlanta Motor Speedway, but only recently has been finishing near his and the teams potential.
Huffman finished eighth at Nashville Superspeedway, his series best. That followed a ninth at Michigan International Speedway and 10th at Kentucky Speedway. Huffman has finished on the lead lap in three of his past five starts.
Weve run pretty decent all year; we just havent had the results, said Huffman, whose teammate is Hank Parker Jr. (No. 21 Z Max Toyota). Now, in the last few races, weve been running with the leaders and running in the top 10 and getting results. You cant get better if you dont get the experience and now were getting it.
Huffman isnt alone among Raybestos Rookie contenders whove competed at Bristol. Others include Chase Montgomery (No. 8 Herbalife International Dodge), who finished 22nd in the 2003 NASCAR Busch Series Channellock 250. David Reutimann (No. 17 NTN Bearings Toyota) won the Bud Pole for the NASCAR AutoZone Elite Division, Southeast Series 2001 visit to the track. Kelly Sutton (No. 02 Team Copaxone Chevrolet) also competed at the track in several NASCAR Dash races.
Any experience especially at Bristol is helpful, according to Huffman.
I think my Dash Series experience will definitely help me, especially when figuring out the best way to get through the corners, he said. Things I learned at Nashville in the series proved to be helpful last weekend. Im sure the same will be true at Bristol.
NEWS & NOTES, PART II
NEXTEL Cup Series drivers enter OReilly 200 Three NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series veterans have entered the OReilly 200 presented by Valvoline MaxLife, including Kevin Harvick (No. 92 GM Goodwrench Chevrolet), who lost the race lead to tire failure with slightly more than a lap remaining in last years event. Robby Gordon (No. 47 ACXIOM Chevrolet) will make his first series appearance since 1997 as will Ken Schrader (No. 52 Federated Auto Parts Chevrolet).
Hamilton in pursuit of Tennessee Triple Bobby Hamilton (No. 4 Square D Dodge) can go where no driver has before, with a chance to win all three current series stops in the state of Tennessee in the same season. Hamilton won at Memphis Motorsports Park in June and at Nashville Superspeedway on Aug. 14. Also the NCTS points leader, Hamilton will drive a chassis dubbed Mini Me, the truck his son, Bobby Jr., put on the Bud Pole at Nashville and drove to a fourth-place finish. Mini Me is the elder Hamiltons nickname for Bobby Jr.
Etc. Hamiltons championship lead of 84 points over Dennis Setzer (No. 46 Chevrolet Silverado Chevrolet) is the second largest of the season. Setzer held a 131-point advantage over Carl Edwards (No. 99 Superchips Ford) after the June 25 event at The Milwaukee Mile. The OReilly 200 presented by Valvoline MaxLife has been won off the front row three times, and by a competitor starting among the top three on five occasions. The defending winner, Travis Kvapil (No. 24 Line-X Toyota), started 12th last year. Ron Hornaday Jr. led all 200 laps in winning the 1997 race. Hornaday also won the last event in which there were no lead changes July 12, 1997 at the old Louisville Motor Speedway. Reutimanns team owner, Darrell Waltrip, won 12 NASCAR NEXTEL Cup events at Bristol Motor Speedway, the most by any driver. The teams general manager, Bobby Kennedy, was Michael Waltrips winning crew chief in the 2003 NASCAR Busch Series Food City 250 Three of the first four Bristol events were decided by less than one second. Joe Ruttmans victory over Geoffrey Bodine in the first NCTS event remains the closest finish, a margin of .130 second. Chevrolet has won five of six series races at Bristol Motor Speedway. Dodge remains winless, but was the runnerup in 1999 and 2003.
ON THE RIGHT TRACK
Three of top four Bristol lap leaders to compete Drivers ranked second through fourth in laps led at Bristol Motor Speedway have entered this weeks event. They are Jack Sprague (No. 16 Chevy Trucks Chevrolet, 129 laps led), Mike Skinner (No. 42 Toyota Tundra Toyota, 125) and Kevin Harvick (124), respectively. In five Bristol starts, Sprague has never finished out of the top 10, completing each of a possible 956 laps.
QUOTEBOOK
You see a lot of veterans win on short tracks just because theyve been there to figure the track out and are patient enough to wait on the right timing during the race. There is not really a certain way to drive them. Just staying out of trouble is hard enough. It pays to be in the front of the pack. Bobby Hamilton on what it takes to win a short-track race.
There is nothing we race on that is similar to Bristol. Bristol is such a unique track by itself. Whether its Mansfield, Memphis, IRP or Martinsville, absolutely zero will help us at Bristol. There is nothing weve done at the other short tracks this year that can help us at Bristol. Terry Cook (No. 10 International Truck and Engines Ford), whose 14th-place finish in 1998 remains his best effort at Bristol Motor Speedway.
You know how quickly things can happen out there and stay heads-ups from the drop of the green. Even then, you can be leading and then in the garage in a blink of an eye. Jack Sprague.
Its a pivotal race for points. Were going to keep our eyes wide open when we get there, but there again, I gotta keep my foot wide open, too, in order to stay at the front and out of trouble. Ted Musgrave (No. 1 Mopar Dodge), the 2003 OReilly 200 presented by Valvoline MaxLife Bud Pole winner.
FROM THE ARCHIVES
Two competitors, Joe Ruttman (1995) and Rick Carelli (1996) recorded their first NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series victories at Bristol Motor Speedway. Every subsequent winner Ron Hornaday Jr. (1997-98), Sprague (1999) and Travis Kvapil (2003) – has been a series champion.
Fast Facts
What: OReilly 200 presented by Valvoline MaxLife (Race No. 16 of 25).
Where: Bristol Motor Speedway, Bristol, Tenn.
When: 9 p.m. ET, Wednesday, Aug. 25.
Track layout: .533-mile high- banked concrete oval.
Race length: 200 laps/106.6 miles.
Posted awards: $446,514.
TV: SPEED Channel, 9 p.m. ET.
Radio: MRN, XM Satellite.
2003 winner: Travis Kvapil.
2003 polesitter: Ted Musgrave.
Pre-race schedule (all times local): Wednesday, Practice 11:20 a.m. until 1:20 p.m. Qualifying 4:40 p.m. Trucks impounded following qualifying.(NASCAR PR)(8-23-2004)
