10/3/04… Todd Bodine didn't waste any time getting to victory lane with his new ride in the #130 Germain/Arnold Motorsports Toyota. The victory was Bodines first in the Truck Series and the third win for Toyota in its first Truck Series season.

The new team of Germain/Arnold is made up of Toyota dealers Bob and Steve Germain, along with real estate developer Don Arnold, who has fielded Cup and Busch Series cars for Bodine. The Germains, along with Arnold, are based in Florida. Bob Germain had purchased the Toyota dealerships from Arnold more than 25 years ago. The partners have a solid working relationship that goes back a long way, hopefully insuring the longevity of the new Truck Series team.

This was the fourth race for Bodine with the new team, giving him three top five finishes for his efforts. He placed fourth in the Kroger 200 at Richmond, suffered electrical problems at New Hampshire, but placed second last week at Las Vegas.

Following Bodine across the finish line in the top ten were Ted Musgrave, Jack Sprague, David Starr, Bobby Hamilton, rookie David Reutimann, Johnny Benson, Steve Park, Dennis Setzer, and Carl Edwards. The top ten starters and how they finished:

1. Travis Kvapil -- #24 Toyota -- finished 18th
2. Mike Skinner -- #5 Toyota -- finished 33rd
3. David Reutimann* -- #17 Toyota -- finished 6th
4. Hank Parker Jr. -- #21 Toyota -- finished 15th
5. Shane Hmiel -- #15 Chevy -- finished 30th
6. Carl Edwards -- #99 Ford -- finished 10th
7. Dennis Setzer -- #46 Chevy -- finished 9th
8. David Starr -- #75 Chevy -- finished 4th
9. Todd Bodine -- #130 Toyota -- finished 1st
10. Johnny Benson -- #23 Toyota -- finished 7th

The top five positions in the driver's point's standings haven't changed in stature, just the numbers. Hamilton leads now by a 56 point margin over second place driver Dennis Setzer. Carl Edwards finds himself down now by 146 points, followed by Ted Musgrave in fourth listed now with a -150. Matt Crafton, who is definitely out of the championship picture with just five races left, rounds out the top five with a -271.

Chad Chaffin moved up one spot to sixth listed now with a -308, followed by defending champion Travis Kvapil who dropped down one spot to seventh listed with a -310. David Starr moved up one spot to eighth listed with a -372, followed by Steve Park, who has moved up one spot to ninth listed with a -420. Jack Sprague moved up three spots into the top ten listed now with a -451.

Next week the Truck Series has a week off. They will continue racing the following week at Texas Motor Speedway. The Silverado 350K will be aired by the SPEED channel on Saturday, October 16th at 2 pm eastern.

Last season's winner of the October 11th Texas Motor Speedway event was Brendan Gaughan. He was followed across the finish line in the top ten by Travis Kvapil, Ted Musgrave, rookie Carl Edwards, Andy Houston, Jon Wood, Terry Cook, Dennis Setzer, Rick Crawford, and Bobby Hamilton.

Andy Houston won the Bud Pole Award in the #2 ASE Dodge with a speed of 181.531 miles per hour. There were six caution periods for a total of 31 laps out of the 146 lap event on the 1.5 mile oval.

10/17/04… Todd Bodine won his second event in a row, giving Toyota their fourth win of the season. This was Bodine's fifth outing in the #130 Toyota with the new Germain/Arnold team, and his fourth top five since joining the team last month.

It's way too late for Bodine to make a serious run for the championship this season, but if he continues with his streak the remainder of the season, he'll be a serious contender in 2005. He moved up one spot to 28th in driver's points, and could very easily be listed within the top 25 money paying points positions before season's end.

Following Bodine across the finish line in the top ten were Johnny Benson, Bobby Hamilton, David Starr, Jack Sprague, Ted Musgrave, Rick Crawford, Dennis Setzer, Carl Edwards, and Shane Hmiel. The top ten starters and how they finished:

1. Mike Skinner -- #5 Toyota -- finished 11th
2. Shane Hmiel -- #15 Chevy -- finished 10th
3. Bill Lester -- #22 Toyota -- finished 28th
4. Hank Parker Jr. -- #21 Toyota -- finished 13th
5. David Starr -- #75 Chevy -- finished 4th
6. David Reutimann* -- #17 Toyota -- finished 30th
7. Johnny Benson -- #23 Toyota -- finished 2nd
8. Dennis Setzer -- #46 Chevy -- finished 8th
9. Chad Blount -- #2 Dodge -- finished 25th
10. Jon Wood -- #50 Ford -- finished 10th

Hamilton and Setzer are still the point's leaders, with Hamilton holding a 79 point lead over second place Setzer. Ted Musgrave moved up one spot to third, listed now with a -165. He followed by Carl Edwards who dropped one spot to fourth listed with a -173. Matt Crafton, who won't be back in the #6 Chevy for Kevin Harvick next season, rounds out the top five with a -336.

Chad Chaffin still maintains sixth place, now listed with a -358, followed by David Starr, who moved up one spot to seventh listed with a -372. Travis Kvapil is in eighth place after dropping one spot, and is listed with a -381. Steve Park is in ninth listed with a -458, followed by three-time Truck Series Champion Jack Sprague who rounds out the top ten with a -461.

Next week the Truck Series moves to Martinsville Speedway to join the Cup Series. The Kroger 200 will be aired by the SPEED channel on Saturday, October 23rd at 1 pm eastern.

Last season's winner of the fall Martinsville event was Jon Wood. He was followed across the finish line in the top ten by rookie Carl Edwards, Dennis Setzer, Rick Crawford, Bobby Hamilton, Jimmy Spencer, Darrell Waltrip, Ken Schrader, David Starr, and Ted Musgrave.

Rookie Carl Edwards won the Bud Pole Award in the #99 Ford with a speed of 91.549 miles per hour. There were six caution periods for a total of 32 laps out of the 200 lap event on the short 0.526 mile paperclip shaped oval.

10/23/14… Jamie McMurray won the Kroger 200 Truck Series race at Martinsville. In doing so, McMurray became the eighth driver in NASCAR's history to win an event in all three of the top series, Cup, Busch, and Truck. The other seven race drivers who have won events in all three of the major series are: Kevin Harvick, Bobby Hamilton, Greg Biffle, Ken Schrader, Mark Martin, Jimmy Spencer, and Terry Labonte.

NASCAR.com is calling this feat a "career hat trick" for some reason or other. Did he do a trick with his hat when he got out of the truck? Does he have a career hat that he wears now every time he goes to a race? Go figure…

At any rate, it was McMurray's first Truck Series victory in only his third outing in the #2 ASE/Carquest sponsored Dodge . Following McMurray across the finish line in the top ten were Dennis Setzer, Bobby Labonte, Jon Wood, Ted Musgrave, Matt Crafton, Todd Bodine, Carl Edwards, Bobby Hamilton Jr., and rookie Robert Huffman. The top ten starters and how they finished:

1. Bobby Hamilton -- #4 Dodge -- finished 26th
2. Dennis Setzer -- #46 Chevy -- finished 2nd
3. Ted Musgrave -- #1 Dodge -- finished 5th
4. Carl Edwards -- #99 Ford -- finished 8th
5. Matt Crafton -- #6 Chevy -- finished 6th
6. Chad Chaffin -- #18 Dodge -- finished 30th
7. David Starr -- #75 Chevy -- finished 29th
8. Travis Kvapil -- #24 Toyota -- finished 21st
9. Steve Park -- #62 Dodge -- finished 23rd
10. Jack Sprague -- #16 Chevy -- finished 28th

Dennis Setzer gained a lot of points on Bobby Hamilton with his second place finish. Setzer is now the point's leader by one lousy point over Hamilton. With just three events remaining in the 2004 season, this may prove to be the same thrilling point's battle as it was last season, being decided in the very last event with Ted Musgrave losing the championship to Travis Kvapil because of passing on a restart.

Ted Musgrave remains in third position, now listed with a -91 points down from leader Setzer. Carl Edwards and Matt Crafton remain in fourth and fifth listed with a -122 and a -277. Defending champion Travis Kvapil moved up two spots to sixth listed with a -367, followed by Chad Chaffin who dropped one spot to seventh listed with a -376. David Starr dropped down one spot to eighth, listed with a -387, followed by Steve Park who remains in ninth, now listed with a -455. Jack Sprague remains in tenth, and is considered to be mathematically out of the championship battle listed with a -473.

Next week the Truck Series has a week off. The trucks continue Friday, November 5th, with the Silverado 150 at Phoenix International Raceway. The event will be aired by the SPEED channel at 5:30 pm eastern.

Last season's winner of the event was Kevin Harvick. He was followed across the finish line in the top ten by Ted Musgrave, Dennis Setzer, rookie Carl Edwards, Bobby Hamilton, David Starr, Jon Wood, Robert Pressley, Travis Kvapil, and Andy Houston.