8/31/03…….. The 2004 Toyota Tundra had its first test at Caraway Speedway in Asheboro, North Carolina this past Thursday. The Tundra was approved by NASCAR earlier this summer for entry into the Craftsman Truck Series for the 2004 Season.

Veteran driver Joe Ruttman was the driver used for the test. Ruttman stated that the truck handled exceptionally well for its first time on the track. This was considered to be a great sign for the Toyota Motorsports people as they prepare to continue testing the Tundra throughout the fall in preparation for its debut at the Daytona International Speedway in February.

Ruttman also expressed enthusiasm for being chosen to help develop the new entry in the Truck Series. The teams who will be racing the Toyota entry haven’t been announced yet, it may very well come to pass that Ruttman will be one of the initial drivers on a Toyota factory backed team when the Tundra takes hits the track at the 2004 series opener Daytona.

Check out a couple of pictures that I took in the Toyota tent at Nazareth Speedway of the new Craftsman Truck Series Toyota Tundra here if you haven’t already done so.

Most of you know by now that Jimmy Spencer is driving the No. 2 Team ASE/CARQUEST sponsored Ultra Motorsports Dodge in place of former driver Jason Leffler. The Virginia is for Lovers 200 marked the 200th start for the No. 2 ASE team in the Craftsman Truck Series.

In the nine year association between ASA, Ultra Motorsports, and the Craftsman Truck Series, the team has produced 16 wins and 29 pole positions with drivers Mike Wallace, Jason Leffler, Scott Riggs, and Mike Bliss. Spencer was happy as a lark to be driving the entry for its 200 race mark for owner Jim Smith. There’s nothing written in stone that Spencer will keep the ride for more than one race, or even maintain the seat for the rest of the season. Time will tell, and after all, Silly Season is now in under way in full swing, so anything can happen, and it probably will!

5/5/03……. Winston Cup Champion Tony Stewart repeated last season’s win at Richmond in only his third Craftsman Truck Series outing. Stewart started the event in the 27th position, but constantly moved to the front of the field to take command of the race it its waning laps over Ted Musgrave and Robert Pressley.

Stewart was followed across the finish line by Robert Pressley, Ted Musgrave, Jon Wood, Dennis Setzer, Rick Crawford, Brendan Gaughan, Bobby Hamilton, Travis Kvapil, and Johnny Sauter.

The top ten starters and how they finished:

1. Travis Kvapil -- No. 16 Chevy – finished 9th
2. Brendan Gaughan -- No. 62 Dodge – finished 7th
3. Ted Musgrave -- No. 1 Dodge – finished 3rd
4. Dennis Setzer -- No. 46 Chevy -- finished 5th
5. Rick Crawford -- No. 14 Ford – finished 6th
6. Jon Wood -- No. 50 Ford – finished 4th
7. Bobby Hamilton -- No. 4 Dodge – finished 8th
8. Jimmy Spencer -- No. 2 Dodge – finished 29th
9. Carl Edwards* -- No. 99 Ford – finished 25th
10. Terry Cook -- No. 29 Ford – finished 16th

The driver’s standings have see-sawed back in Brendan Gaughan’s favor by a mere five points with a total of 2631 points over the second place driver Travis Kvapil who dropped down one spot to second. Ted Musgrave still holds onto third place and is now listed with a -39, and able to move into the top spot in any given race. Dennis Setzer isn’t that far back and is considered to still be in the hunt in the fourth position listed with a -111. Rick Crawford still rounds out the top five listed with a -140. Positions six thru ten are: Jon Wood, -147; Bobby Hamilton, -194; +1 rookie Carl Edwards, -356; +1 Terry Cook, -416; and -2 Jason Leffler, -422. Leffler has left the series, so he will continue to drop down through the ranks allowing a deserving competitor to move up.

Next week the Craftsman Truck Series ventures north to the New Hampshire International Speedway for race No. 18 out of its 25 race 2003 schedule. The New Hampshire 200 is scheduled to be broadcast live by the SPEED channel at 1 p.m. eastern on Saturday, September 13th.

Last season the New Hampshire truck race was in July, and the winner was Terry Cook. Following Cook across the finish line were Dennis Setzer, David Starr, Ted Musgrave, rookie Brendan Gaughan, Coy Gibbs, Travis Kvapil, Kevin Harvick, Robert Pressley, and mike Bliss.

Jason Leffler won the Bud pole with a speed of 128.424 miles per hour. There were five caution flags for a total of 28 laps out of the 207 lap race on the 1.058 mile oval.

9/13/03……….. It’s really no surprise to hear that Darrell Waltrip is moving into ownership in the Craftsman Truck Series. He also stated in an interview that he had “the blessings from headquarters” to drive in at least three races during the upcoming season, “Headquarters” being his wife Stevie.

It hasn’t been disclosed at this time which manufacturer that Darrell Waltrip Motorsports will associate itself with. Could it possibly be Toyota? That’s a tough call, In one way I’d be surprised to see Waltrip race anything but Chevrolets, but on the other hand, Toyota is making its debut into the series for the 2004 season, and it would be very beneficial to Waltrip to get in on the ground floor in the initial Truck Series season with the extremely powerful Toyota racing entity.

With Toyota entering the NASCAR picture, there should be a few of the present Ford, Dodge, or Chevy teams that will be moving to Toyota. This scenario usually brings out the manufacturers recruiters with full factory backing for anyone who will sign up with their manufacturer. Waltrip will be in a position to get a great deal from just about any manufacturer he chooses.

The news has been prevalent about DW stealing brother Michaels Busch Series crew chief Bobby Kennedy to head up his Truck Series program. Kennedy, a NASCAR veteran of many years, will remain with the Aaron’s Dream Machine and Michael Waltrip Racing for the remainder of the 2003 season.

It didn’t take Jimmy Spencer long to show his stuff in the Craftsman Truck Series. Qualifying was rained out for Spencer’s first race with the series at Richmond, but he actually got to qualify the No. 2 ASE sponsored Ultra Motorsports Dodge at New Hampshire, and handily won the pole for the New Hampshire 200.

When cup drivers step down onto the truck series, they always seem to be able to master the trucks over the other competitors, until they get complacent in the series. Almost all of the competitors who moved down from Cup came into the series with a bang. Former Cup drivers Jason Leffler, Robert Pressley, Ted Musgrave, and Bobby Hamilton, just to name a few, all made good showings with the Trucks in their initial few runs. Leffler didn’t win in his first season, but the rest of the drivers did, and even though Leffler didn’t win, he placed second several times. We need to remember that Leffler wasn’t really a veteran Cup driver either, like the rest of them are.

Spencer won’t be driving the truck for Ultra Motorsports in the next two upcoming races. Andy Houston will be assuming the driving duties because Spencer will be at Dover and Talladega handling his Cup duties for Jim Smith’s Ultra Motorsports No. 7 Sirius sponsored Dodge while the trucks will be racing at California and Las Vegas on those dates.

The New Hampshire 200 wasn’t underway very long before rookie Carl Edwards came into the pits too hot and slid into one of his tire carriers. Edwards sliding truck hit the tire that the tire carrier was holding and knocked it into the gas man who was on his way over the wall to service the truck. The gasman was on loan from Jeff Burton’s Cup crew, also within the Busch Racing organization. Jeff Burton, a veteran at the New Hampshire track, was spotting for the rookie driver Edwards in the No. 99 to help him hold the right line around the track. The gas man was taken to the infield medical facility complaining of leg and hip pain. No follow ups were available by the end of the broadcast as to the condition of the injured crewman. Edwards was interviewed after the event, and didn’t seem to know anything about it, or if he did, the situation wasn’t acknowledged. The interviewer didn’t ask any questions about it thinking that Edwards hadn’t yet been apprised of the mishap.

One could say that the incident can be blamed on the fact that the driver was a rookie, but we have to remember the boner that veteran Cup driver Dale Jarrett pulled this season speeding into his pit stall to fast, spinning out and injuring one of his crewmen. Jarrett’s pit was in the first stall on pit road, and Jarrett should have known that he had to drop his speed before reaching the line in order to stop safely in his pit box. If these incidents on pit road continue, NASCAR will be forced to lower the pit road speeds at all venues throughout the circuit in order to promote a safer atmosphere for pit crews.

Jimmy Spencer won his first Truck Series race in his second outing. His win made him one of eight drivers who have won races in all three of NASCAR’s top series. The event also marked the first time in the series history that events were won back to back by Cup drivers, following Tony Stewart’s win at Richmond last week. Spencer’s win from the pole was the first win from the pole in 21 races. As a result, a $10k bonus was awarded to the No. 2 ASE Ultra Motorsports crew.

Rookie Carl Edwards ended up second after he fought with Spencer for the win in the waning laps and ended up whacking the wall a time or two before Bobby Hamilton caught up to him and raced him hard for second place. Hamilton finished third followed by Dennis Setzer and Brendan Gaughan to round out the top five. Finishing positions six thru ten were: Chad Chaffin, Travis Kvapil, David Starr, Jon Wood, and Matt Crafton.

The top ten starters and how they finished:

1. Jimmy Spencer -- No. 2 Dodge – finished 1st
2. Brendan Gaughan -- No. 62 Dodge – finished 5th
3. Bobby Hamilton -- No. 4 Dodge – finished 3rd
4. Carl Edwards* -- No. 99 Ford -- finished 2nd
5. Ken Schrader -- No. 52 Chevy – finished 11th
6. David Starr -- No. 75 Chevy – finished 8th
7. Chad Chaffin -- No. 18 Dodge – finished 6th
8. Ted Musgrave -- No. 1 Dodge – finished 12th
9. Terry Cook -- No. 29 Ford – finished 15th
10. Jon Wood -- No. 50 Ford – finished 9th

The first four positions in the driver’s point’s standings remain the same with sophomore driver Brendan Gaughan leading the way with 2786 points. Travis Kvapil is right on Gaughan’s heels with 2777 points, just nine points away from the top spot. Former Cup driver Ted Musgrave is still in third and is now listed with a -62 while Dennis Setzer remains in fourth listed with a -101. Jon Wood moved up one spot to fifth listed with a -164 followed by Bobby Hamilton who moved up one spot sixth listed with a -184. Rick Crawford dropped down two spots to seventh listed with a -186. Rookie Carl Edwards remains in eighth listed with a -341 followed by Terry Cook who remains in ninth listed with a -453. Chad Chaffin moved up one spot to round out the top ten listed with a -470.

Next week the Truck Series moves to the west coast for race 20 out of the 25 race 2003 schedule. The American Racing Wheels 200 at the California Speedway will be held on Saturday, September 20th at 1 p.m. The event will be televised live by the SPEED channel.

Last season’s winner of the California race was Ted Musgrave. He was followed across the finish line by Jason Leffler, rookie Brendan Gaughan, Travis Kvapil, Rock Crawford, Coy Gibbs, Robert Pressley, Dennis Setzer, Mike Bliss, and Terry Cook.

David Starr won the Bud pole award with the speed of 175.850 miles per hour. There were only two caution periods for a total of 12 laps out of the 100 lap 200 mile race on the 2 mile oval.

9/21/03…….. Ted Musgrave won his third race of the season and his third consecutive race at the Fontana, California Speedway facility, having won in 2001 and 2002. It was the 13th win in Musgrave’s Truck Series career.

Musgrave has serious suspension problems early on in the race and ended up all the way to the back of the field. After drastic measures that included moving the rear end assembly were made, Musgrave charged relentlessly to the front. He caught and over took race leader Brendan Gaughan with just nine laps remaining and kept the lead to take the checkered flag.

The Truck Series joined the Busch Series in trying out the new rules that were imposed this week by the sanctioning body that put an end to racing back to the finish line after the caution flag was shown. There has been some controversy created by some of the drivers in all three of NASCAR’s major series not being able to comprehend the rules as they were explained.

The rules seem really simple to me, I don’t understand why some of these people are creating such a fuss. Basically, it appears to me that they are just trying to play the media and garner some attention to themselves, using the new rules as a platform for the attention. One of the worst is Cup driver Jeff Gordon, who states that the rules are totally confusing. I guess it doesn’t take a lot of brains to drive a racecar.

The part of the rule that tends to confuse people is the first lapped driver getting his lap back at each caution. It’s as simple as this, if there are 20 cars on the lead lap, then the car in the 21st position is the first car that is a lap down. It doesn’t make a bit of difference where the car is located on the track in reference to the leader’s position, the 21 is the first lapped car. When the caution flag comes out, the 21 gets to go around and take his place on the tail end of the lead lap while the pace car is leading the cars to the green flag restart after pit stops are completed. It appears to be a no-brainer to me!

Getting back to the action at California, Brendan Gaughan followed Musgrave across the finish line ahead of Dennis Setzer, Rick Crawford, David Starr, Andy Houston, rookie Carl Edwards, Travis Kvapil, Jon Wood, and Jason Small. The top ten starters and how they finished:

1. Brendan Gaughan -- No. 62 Dodge – finished 2nd
2. Rick Crawford -- No. 14 Ford – finished 4th
3. Carl Edwards* -- No. 99 Ford – finished 7th
4. David Starr -- No. 75 Chevy -- finished 5th
5. Dennis Setzer -- No. 46 Chevy – finished 3rd
6. Jon Wood -- No. 50 Ford – finished 9th
7. Bill Lester -- No. 8 Dodge – finished 28th
8. Andy Houston -- No. 2 Dodge – finished 6th
9. Robert Pressley -- No. 159 Dodge – finished 11th
10. Ted Musgrave -- No. 1 Dodge – finished 1st

The top five positions in the Truck Series driver’s point’s standings remain the same, with Brendan Gaughan leading the way with 2966 points. Travis Kvapil in second place is now listed with a -42 point deficit, followed by Ted Musgrave listed with a -62. Dennis Setzer is in fourth place listed with a -116, followed by Jon Wood rounding out the top five with a listing of -206. Positions six thru ten are: +1 Rick Crawford, -206; -1 Bobby Hamilton, -244; rookie Carl Edwards, -370; Terry Cook, -506; Chad Chaffin, -538.

Next week the Truck Series makes its way a little ways east to the Las Vegas Motor Speedway for the Las Vegas 350, race No. 20 on its 25 race 2003 schedule. The event is slated to be aired by the SPEED channel at 9:30 p.m. on Saturday, September 27th.

Last season’s winner of the Las Vegas 350 was Davis Starr. He was followed across the finish line by Mike Bliss, Dennis Setzer, Travis Kvapil, Jason Leffler, Rick Crawford, Robert Pressley, rookie Brendan Gaughan, Ted Musgrave, and rookie Jason Small.

Davis Starr won the Bud pole award with a speed of 163.112 miles per hour. There were two caution periods for a total of 10 laps out of the 146 lap race on the 1.5 mile oval.

9/28/03……….. Brendan Gaughan made his team owner happy, along with sponsor Orleans Hotels, by winning a season high fifth race at his home track in Las Vegas, Nevada,

Gaughan led 107 laps of the 146 lap Las Vegas 350 with the No. 62 Orleans sponsored Dodge, and won the $10k bonus check from Craftsman by winning a race after starting from the pole position.

David Starr followed Gaughan across the finish line to finish second. Finishing behind him were: Dennis Setzer, Travis Kvapil, Jack Sprague, Andy Houston, Terry Cook, Ted Musgrave, Matt Crafton, and Bobby Hamilton.

Gaughan’s win gave Dodge the manufacturers title for the second consecutive year. With 20 races in the books for 2003, Dodge has won eleven of them, with Ford winning five races and Chevy winning four. With only five races remaining, neither the Ford nor Chevy model can numerically beat or tie the Dodge, so Dodge gets the nod for 2003 with the most wins.

The top ten starters and how they finished:

1. Brendan Gaughan -- No. 62 Dodge – finished 1st
2. David Starr -- No. 75 Chevy – finished 2nd
3. Carl Edwards* -- No. 99 Ford – finished 27th
4. Ted Musgrave -- No. 1 Dodge -- finished 8th
5. Chad Chaffin -- No. 18 Dodge – finished 18th
6. Travis Kvapil -- No. 16 Chevy – finished 4th
7. Rick Crawford -- No. 14 Ford – finished 36th
8. Jack Sprague -- No. 111 Chevy – finished 5th
9. Jon Wood -- No. 50 Ford – finished 19th
10. Bill Lester -- No. 8 Dodge – finished 20th

Brendan Gaughan expanded his driver’s point’s lead a little over second place Travis Kvapil. Gaughan is now listed with 3151, with a 67 point lead over Kvapil. Musgrave is still in third listed with a -100 while Setzer remains in fourth listed with a -136. Jon Wood still rounds out the top five and is now listed with a -285. Positions six thru ten are: +1 Bobby Hamilton, -295; -1 Rick Crawford, -336; rookie Carl Edwards, -468; Terry Cook, -545; Chad Chaffin, -614.

Only the top four now have a numerical chance of gaining the lead in one race. A DNF (did not finish) from either of the top three would drop them down at least two spots. With five races remaining, positions four thru six still have a good chance of taking the reins.

Next week the Truck Series visits South Boston Speedway for race No. 21 of the 25 race 2003 schedule. The redneck named John Boy and Billy 250 is scheduled to be televised live by the SPEED channel at 4:30 p.m. eastern on Saturday, October 4th.

Last season’s winner of the John Boy race at South Boston was Mike Bliss. He was followed across the finish line by Dennis Setzer, Rick Crawford, Coy Gibbs, Travis Kvapil, Jon Wood, David Starr, Bobby Dotter, Jason Leffler, and Ryan Hemphill.