Catchfence

FT. WORTH, TX. (November 5, 2011) — Cold winds blew on a clear Texas night as the next to last Truck Series race of 2011 went green. Timothy Peters and the No. 17 NTB/Service Central Toyota Tundra team started in the 15th position. Peters quickly made his way into the top 10, running as high as second, before late in the race the driver of the No. 17 felt the truck was beginning to experience mechanical issues. Trying to nurse the truck home to collect his 12th top-10 finish of 2011, a late-race caution forced a green-white-checkered finish where Peters’ mechanical issues caused him to fall from fifth on the final restart to take the checkered flag in the 11th position.

“We had a great race going until the final lap,” said Peters after climbing from the No. 17 NTB/Service Central Toyota Tundra. “I hate that caution that came out there at the end to set up the green-white-checkered finish. I knew something was a little off late in the race. It seems like we had some sort of mechanical issue, but we will have to take the truck back to the shop to figure out exactly what happened. Everybody did a great job today especially on pit road. The National Tire and Battery Service Central Toyota Tundra was great all night long – we just were not able to bring it home where it belonged there at the end. We have a week off and we will take this baby (the truck) back to the shop and get it ready to go to Homestead and Lord willing, get on the stage.”

Peters started the WinStar World Casino 350K from the 15th position, and by the first caution on lap 13, Peters had moved into the top 10 scored in the ninth position. The team decided to come to pit road for right-side tires, fuel and a chassis adjustment. Peters returned to the track in the 10th position for the restart on lap 20. The caution flew immediately when a truck experienced an engine failure on the restart. The team chose to stay out as they were just on pit road moments earlier. Peters continued to make forward progress moving past trucks one by one. The caution was displayed once again on lap 32. The team chose to come down pit road for fuel only and another chassis adjustment.

Peters restarted in the fifth position on lap 37. Getting a great restart, the driver of the No. 17 NTB/Service Central Toyota Tundra quickly moved past each of the leaders, settling into the second position. Peters maintained second until the caution was displayed for an accident in turn four on lap 55. Peters reported to the team that he was too loose in the corners on both ends. Crew chief Butch Hylton called for four tires, fuel and a wedge adjustment.

Many of the leaders were on a different pit strategy; some staying out, some taking two tires, some fuel only. After the round of pit stops, Peters returned to the track scored in the 10th position. As the green flag run ticked off laps, Peters continued to work his way back toward the front of the field taking over the sixth position on lap 76. Peters continued to run in the top 10 as the laps wound down, but his truck slowly began to lose the handle as the No. 17 machine had become too tight. The caution waved again on lap 97. The No. 17 team readied on pit wall for the final pit stop of the night. The team changed four tires, added fuel and made another chassis adjustment. Peters was scored in the eighth position for the restart on lap 103.

Maintaining his top-10 running position, Peters communicated to the team on lap 115 that the truck was really good and he felt that the longer the green-flag period lasted, the trucks in front of him would begin to fade. He felt confident his truck was better than many of his competitors and a few laps later, he began to prove it passing trucks one by one.

On lap 124, Peters radioed to the team that he felt like something was going wrong mechanically with the No. 17 truck. The team was powerless in the moment but knew that the driver of the No. 17 could hold on to a top-10 finish if the race went green until the end as he continued to maintain fast lap times. Scored in the eighth position, Peters did not want to see the caution when it waved on lap 141, sending the WinStar World Casino 350K into overtime. The race restarted on lap 146 with Peters scored in the fifth position, as some of the leaders had run out of fuel under caution. Peters took the restart and tried to hold on, but something broke mechanically as smoke billowed from underneath the No. 17 machine and he took the checkered flag in the 11th position. Peters maintains fifth spot in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series point standings, 58 markers behind the leader heading into the final race of the season at Homestead-Miami Speedway.

The Truck Series returns to action in two weeks on Friday, November 18, 2011, at Homestead-Miami Speedway for the Ford 200 which can be viewed live on SPEED at 8:00 p.m., ET.

About TBC Retail Group

Headquartered in Juno Beach, Florida, TBC Retail Group, Inc., a subsidiary of TBC Corporation, operates more than 800 tire and automotive service centers under the brands: Tire Kingdom, NTB – National Tire and Battery, and Merchant’s Tire and Auto Centers, along with over 400 franchised Big O Tires locations. The contingent of over 1200 stores has trained and certified ASE technicians who use state-of-the-art equipment to provide quality service on cars and trucks. The nationwide warranty provides peace of mind while it protects consumers and their investment in over 40 states. TBC Retail Group employs more than 300 associates at its Juno Beach, Fla. headquarters and approximately 10,000 associates nationally. To locate a store near you, call 800-NEW-TIRE. TBC Corporation, headquartered in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, is one of the nation’s largest marketers of automotive replacement tires through a multi-channel retail and wholesale strategy.

About Red Horse Racing:

Founded in 2005 by former Mobil Corporation executive Tom DeLoach and NASCAR veteran Jeff Hammond, Red Horse Racing aims to be a professional racing team that strives for excellence on and off the race track. Red Horse Racing hopes to build and maintain solid, mutual relationships with its partners to win races and championships and to represent itself in a professional manner. The team has four victories and five poles in its brief existence. DeLoach and Hammond also own Performance Instruction Training (PIT), the number one pit crew training center in the world that also has many corporate training options that include team-building, lean manufacturing, motorsports demonstrations and more.

- Red Horse Racing Press Release