BACK IN THE SADDLE: Twenty-six-year NASCAR veteran Ken Schrader will resume driving duties of the No. 2 Kevin Harvick Inc. (KHI) Chevrolet this weekend at Texas Motor Speedway (TMS). The Fenton, Mo. native made his KHI debut in the Truck Series race at Kansas Speedway on May 2 where he qualified 12th and finished ninth.
TEXAS TWO-STEP: This weekend will mark Schrader’s second Truck Series start at Texas Motor Speedway. In 2007 Schrader made his TMS Truck Series debut, starting 12th and finishing eighth. Despite only making one previous start at the 1.5-mile quad-oval, Schrader is no stranger to the Lone Star State. He has made 14 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series starts since 1997, earning his best finish of 10th in 2001.
KHI TEXAS STYLE: KHI knows what it takes to perform well at Texas Motor Speedway. Since its first race at the track in 2004, KHI has fielded entries for 16 Truck Series starts at TMS. The team has racked up six top-five and nine top-10 finishes, leading 463 of the 2,527 total laps in those 16 races. KHI’s most shining moment at the Texas track was in 2008 when four-time Truck Series champion Ron Hornaday swept the season, winning both annual visits to the speedway.
Thoughts from the Driver: Ken Schrader
How do you feel going into this weekend’s race at Texas Motor Speedway?
“I like Texas. Like a lot of people, I didn’t like it as much when they first built it, but after the changes they’ve made to it, it has become a really good racetrack. I’ve only gotten to run in the Truck Series one time there, and we ran eighth in that race. I’m really looking forward to going back. I like being with the IRL, and I’m looking forward to seeing them run while we’re there too.”
What do you feel is the key to performing well at TMS?
“Handling. Texas is a big, fast track, the fastest non-restrictor plate track, so you’ve got to handle really well. You also have to hope that the yellow flags fall at the right time. The yellows aren’t quite as big of a deal in the Truck Series because the races are shorter and fuel mileage doesn’t come into play as much, but you still have to hope that the cautions are in your favor.”
PREVIOUS RACE RECAP: With Elliott Sadler behind the wheel for his first Truck Series start at Charlotte (N.C.) Motor Speedway, the No. 2 team experienced a consistent top-five weekend. After running third fastest in both practices and earning a fourth-place starting position, the No. 2 Best Buy/Insignia team rallied back from a potentially devastating pit stop miscue to finish fifth in the North Carolina Education Lottery 200.
CHASSIS HISTORY: The No. 2 team will utilize chassis No. 042 this weekend at Texas Motor Speedway. Chassis No. 042 made its debut in March at Atlanta Motor Speedway where KHI team co-owner Kevin Harvick drove the No. 2 to Victory Lane. The chassis also served as the primary truck for this season’s races at Nashville Superspeedway, Kansas Speedway and Charlotte Motor Speedway where it was driven to second, ninth and fifth-place finishes, respectively.
ARE YOU A FOLLOWER? Twitter users can now keep up-to-date with Kevin Harvick Inc.’s NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Teams by following at http://twitter.com/KHI_TruckSeries. In addition, you can follow KHI’s Nationwide Series team at http://twitter.com /KHI_NNS. Want more from KHI? Follow KHI’s co-owners Kevin and DeLana Harvick at http://twitter.com/kevinharvick and http://twitter.com/delanaharvick.
MEDIA ACCESS: Members of the media can now log on to www.kevinharvickinc.com to gain access to press kit information online. For more information, please email Jessica Trippy at KHI: jtrippy@kevinharvickinc.com.
About Kevin Harvick Inc.
Kevin Harvick Inc. (KHI), established in 2001 by Kevin and DeLana Harvick, is an 80,000 sq. ft. facility located in Kernersville, N.C. Home of the 2009 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series championship team, KHI enters 2010 in its seventh full year of competition with two full-time Truck Series teams and one full-time Nationwide Series team. Four-time Truck Series champion Ron Hornaday returns to the helm of the No. 33 Truck team looking for his fifth title and third championship for KHI (2009 and 2007), while Sprint Cup series stars Kevin Harvick and Elliott Sadler guide the No. 2 Truck team. Two-time NASCAR Nationwide Series champion Harvick will again shine as the lead driver of the No. 33 Nationwide Series team as he continues to make his mark in motorsports and establish KHI as one of the top teams in NASCAR competition. For more information about KHI and its teams, please visit www.KevinHarvickInc.com.
QUICK NOTES
Race Info:
June 4, 2010
Texas Motor Speedway
WinStar World Casino 400K
Length: 167 Laps/250.5 Miles
Truck Specs:
Chassis: 042
Engine: Earnhardt-Childress Racing (ECR)
Track Layout:
1.5-mile Quad-Oval
Banking:
Turns: 24-degrees
Straight-a-ways: 5-degrees
WEEKEND SCHEDULE
Thursday:
Practice: 12:00 p.m. – 1:15 p.m. EST
Final Practice: 1:45 p.m. – 3:00 p.m. EST
Qualifying: 7:00 p.m. EST
Friday:
Race: 9:00 p.m. EST
TV: The WinStar World Casino 400K can be seen live on SPEED on Friday at 9:00 p.m. EST
Radio: The Motor Racing Network (MRN) will broadcast live at 9:00 p.m. EST
Ken Schrader
Truck Series Statistics at
Texas Motor Speedway
Starts: 1
Wins: 0
Poles: 0
Top 5: 0
Top 10: 1
Laps Led: 0
Average Start: 12.0
Average Finish: 8.0
Ken Schrader
Sprint Cup Series Statistics at
Texas Motor Speedway
Starts: 14
Wins: 0
Poles: 0
Top 5: 0
Top 10: 1
Laps Led: 7