Milwaukee: Ron Hornaday NASCAR Busch Race Preview
THE MILWAUKEE (WIS.) MILE FACTS & STATS:
Ø NINTH START AT MILWAUKEE: Ron Hornaday will make his ninth start at The Milwaukee (Wis.) Mile.
Ø REUNITED: In 2006, crew chief Wally Rogers and driver Ron Hornaday both worked “double-duty” at The Milwaukee (Wis.) Mile racing in the NASCAR Truck Series event on Friday night and the NASCAR Busch Series race on Saturday night. Rogers and Hornaday earned the top starting position for the Truck Series event last year and raced to a third-place finish.
Ø LOOKIN BACK: During the 2006 season Rogers assisted the No. 33 Truck Series team and Hornaday to two victories at Mansfield (Ohio) Motorsports Speedway and Kentucky Speedway. Rogers flew from Charlotte to Mansfield, Ohio to help set-up the No. 33 truck in practice then returned to Charlotte for Busch Series practice the next day. Rogers also helped set-up the No. 33 truck that Hornaday drove to victory lane in Kentucky, Rogers communicated via phone and American On-Line (AOL) Instant Messenger to the team in Kentucky while Rogers was in Chicago, Ill. for the Busch Series event. In 2005 Rogers was paired with two-time NASCAR Truck Series Champion Ron Hornaday and together they earned a Truck Series victory at Atlanta (Ga.) Motor Speedway.
NE BIG KISS: Ron Hornaday and Wally Rogers have an uncompromising relationship as driver and crew chief. But they also have a strong bond as confidants and friends. Pictured in the attachment, Rogers and Hornaday celebrated their pole at Milwaukee (Wis.) last season for the Truck Series event. Hornaday and Rogers will work together as crew chief and driver with the Dollar General stores crew on Saturday during the Busch Series event. Rick Ren will call the shots on Friday during the Truck Series event for Hornaday in the No. 33 Camping World Chevrolet.
Ø HAPPY BIRTHDAY!: Ron Hornaday will celebrate his 49th birthday on Wednesday, June 20. Hornaday made his first start in the NASCAR Busch Series (NBS) at the age of 40 in 1998. Hornaday made four NBS starts in 1998 driving the Kingsford Chevrolet in three events, including his first start at The Milwaukee (Wis.) Mile and the Armor All Chevrolet in one event. Kingsford and Armor All are both vendor partners of Dollar General and sold in the over 8,200 stores nationwide.
Ø TOP QUALIFYING SPEED: Kevin Harvick Inc. (KHI), team co-owner and driver Kevin Harvick holds the NASCAR Busch Series qualifying speed record at The Milwaukee (Wis.) Mile. Driving the No. 2 Richard Childress Racing (RCR) owned Chevrolet, Kevin Harvick qualified on the pole for the 2001 Busch Series event with a speed of 122.474 miles per hour (mph).
Ø CHASSIS NO. 018: The Dollar General stores crew will unload chassis No. 018 for Ron Hornaday this weekend at The Milwaukee (Wis.) Mile. Chassis No. 018 has previously raced three times in the 2007 Busch Series season. Nextel Cup Series driver, Bobby Labonte climbed behind the wheel of chassis No. 018 at Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway in the sixth Busch Series race of the 2007 season. Labonte qualified the car fifth on the starting grid and raced to an 11th-place finish around the high-banked half-mile track. A month later, Kevin Harvick Inc. (KHI) team co-owner Kevin Harvick qualified chassis No. 018 13th at Richmond (Va.) International Raceway on the starting grid and raced to a fourth-place finish. Another month later at the 14th Busch Series race of the 2007 season, Kevin Harvick qualified 29th at Dover (Del.) International Speedway and crossed the start-finish line in the seventh position.
Ø FAN ZONE: Dollar General launched their Win a Fast Million promotion two weeks ago in Nashville (Tenn.), which will run through October 13, 2007. Dollar General is offering race fans and shoppers alike the opportunity to take a ride on easy street with Win a Fast Million – the sweepstakes that offers one lucky winner the chance to win $1 million if Bobby Labonte is declared the official winner of the Homestead-Miami Busch Series event. Entries will be accepted online at www.dollargeneral.com; through the mail by completing an official sweepstakes entry form available at all Dollar General stores; or by entering at an official Dollar General mobile marketing display located at the participating race events. The Dollar General Win a Fast Million mobile display will be set up in the fan zone at The Milwaukee (Wis.) Mile. The display will be open to the public Friday, June 22 and Saturday, June 23.
RON HORNADAY QUOTES:
“I’ll do anything needed to help Kevin and DeLana [Kevin Harvick] and the Dollar General company. I love going to Milwaukee (Wis.) and I’ve had success there in the past. It’s a great race track for laying it all out and racing your way to the front. I know that the entire Dollar General stores crew will bring me a Chevrolet to win. And with racing the Truck Series race on Friday night, I’ll have 200 more laps on everyone else in the field.”
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