CALIFORNIA RECAP: Typically sunny southern California was not so sunny two weeks ago for the No. 2 American Commercial Lines (ACL)/RVs.com Chevrolet.  Enduring a weekend of rain, qualifying for the San Bernardino 200 was canceled on Friday forcing Sprague and the No. 2 ACL/RVs.com team to begin Saturday’s race in the 30th position. Sprague and the No. 2 ACL/RVs.com team fought a loose-handling truck all weekend long.  After hitting on a comfortable set up during the final practice session the team was optimistic about the outcome of the race.  However, with a pit road incident during the first scheduled pit stop the No. 2 ACL/RVs.com team tried to rebound working on the truck for the remainder of the race.  As the laps wound down the No. 2 ACL/RVs.com team dealt with front end damage and a loose-handling truck but still rallied to a 22nd-place finish. 

ONE OF THE FEW… Atlanta Motor Speedway is one of only eight tracks currently on the NASCAR Truck Series schedule where Sprague has yet to visit victory lane.  In seven starts, Sprague has recorded one top-five and three top-10 finishes.

 CHASSIS HISTORY: Chassis No. 014 saw action last season at some of the 1.5-mile tracks including California, Texas, Atlanta and Charlotte.  Sprague’s KHI teammate Ron Hornaday drove this truck to the lead in each of the events it competed in last season, as well as to victory lane at the Lowe’s Motor Speedway in May 2007.  

 TESTING 1, 2, 3…  In early January the No. 2 ACL /RVs.com team traveled to the Atlanta Motor Speedway for a round of preseason testing.  Running the same truck they plan to race this weekend, the No. 2 team practiced in the top five during both days of testing.  During day one of testing Sprague’s KHI teammate Ron Hornaday laid down the fastest lap, while Sprague rounded out the day with the third-quickest lap. 

HIGHLY RATED: Driver rating is one of NASCAR’s newest statistical measures and takes into account wins, finishes, top-15 finishes, average running position while on lead lap, average speed under green, fastest lap, most laps led, lead-lap finish. For any given race the maximum points that can be earned is 150.  KHI veteran Sprague ranks third among active drivers with a driver rating of 108.2 at Atlanta Motor Speedway coming in behind Mike Skinner and Todd Bodine. 

GEORGIA PEACH: Rear tire carrier for the No. 2 ACL /RVs.com Chevrolet, Austin Walker, hails from the peach state.  Walker, a native of Lawrenceville, GA moved from his hometown four years ago to fulfill his dream of one day working on a NASCAR Truck Series crew.  Walker joined KHI in January 2008 to perform the duties of rear tire carrier and mechanic on the No. 2 ACL/RVs.com Chevrolet.

 Jack Sprague Quotes:

DURING TRUCK SERIES TESTING IN JANUARY YOU LAID DOWN THE THIRD FASTEST LAP; WHAT DO YOU ANTICIPATE FOR THIS WEEKEND’S RACE?

“We ran really well at the test.  We are taking back the same truck and one that has a winning reputation.  I think we are going to go back to Atlanta even better than we tested.  I would really like to get a win here.  We need to begin to get the ball rolling in the right direction this season and I think Atlanta is the perfect place for us to turn our luck around.”

ATLANTA MOTOR SPEEDWAY IS KNOWN FOR THREE-WIDE FINISHES; YOU’VE BEEN A PART OF A FEW OF THOSE IN TRUCK SERIES HISTORY, WHICH ONE STICKS OUT?

“In the fall of 2005 I had led most of the race.  I was within a corner of winning; I was battling Kyle Busch who had fresh tires.  As we came out of three we all got together and I ended up finishing fourth, wrecked in the grass. That was a tough one to lose.”

YOU HAVE YET TO WIN AT ATLANTA MOTOR SPEEDWAY; WHAT DO YOU THINK IT TAKES TO WIN HERE?

“You really have to have a good handling truck here all day.  At other places horsepower can compensate for handling issues.  Not at Atlanta. I would rather be down a little on horsepower and have a wonderful handling truck.”

 Ernie Cope Quotes:

WHAT ARE THE CHALLENGES AT A FAST PLACE LIKE ATLANTA?

“Atlanta is a big fast place.  There is really no track like it on the circuit.  We just need a good handling truck all day.”

 THIS IS A TRIED AND TRUE RACE TRUCK FOR KHI; WHAT KIND OF RESULT DO YOU ANTICIPATE HAVING WITH THIS TRUCK?

“I think that we are bringing a really good piece to Atlanta.  This truck has been a proven winner.  I hope to get a good top-five run out of this truck.”

 ABOUT AMERICAN COMMERCIAL LINES: 

American Commercial Lines is a leader in the marine transportation and manufacturing business.  Through its subsidiary companies, ACL owns and operates approximately 2,800 barges and 160 towboats; transporting a vast array of cargos such as grain, coal, steel, chemicals, petroleum products, edible oils, fertilizers and construction materials on the U.S. inland waterways.  ACL also owns the largest single-site manufacturing facility for vessels in the United States, offering technically advanced marine design and manufacturing capabilities for both inland and ocean service vessels.  ACL is publicly traded on NASDAQ under the symbol ACLI.  For more information about ACL generally, visit www.aclines.com.

 ABOUT KEVIN HARVICK INC.:

Kevin Harvick Inc. (KHI), established in 2001, is a 70,000 sq. ft. facility located in Kernersville, N.C.  KHI houses two full time Truck Series teams: the No. 33 Camping World/VFW Chevrolet Silverado driven by three-time Truck Series champion Ron Hornaday as well as the No. 2 American Commercial Lines (ACL)/RVs.com Chevrolet Silverado driven by three-time Truck Series champion Jack Sprague.  KHI is also home to the No. 33 Camping World/RoadLoans.com/ Rheem Chevrolet driven by two-time Nationwide Series champion Kevin Harvick, Ron Hornaday and Cale Gale and the No. 77 Rheem/VFW Chevrolet driven by Cale Gale and Ron Hornaday competing in the NASCAR Nationwide Series.  2008 marks KHI’s fifth year of full-time competition in NASCAR’s elite divisions.  Please visit www.kevinharvickinc.com for more information. 

 

QUICK NOTES

Race Info

March 7, 2008

Atlanta Motor Speedway

American Commercial Lines 200

Race length: 130 Laps/202.2 Miles

Banking/Turns: 24-degrees in turns;

5-degrees on straight-a-ways

Track layout: 1.54-mile
Shape: Quad-oval

 

Pre-Race Schedule

Friday:

Practice: 9:00-10:00 a.m., ET

Final Practice: 11:20-12:50 p.m., ET

Qualifying: 4:45 p.m., ET

TV: The American Commercial Lines 200 can be seen live on SPEED at

9:00 p.m., ET

Radio: The Motor Racing Network (MRN) will broadcast live at

9:00 p.m., ET

Truck Specs

Chassis: 014

Engine: PME