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PRESS RELEASE
Jack Sprague Charlotte Advance
Kevin Harvick Inc. Press Release
Jack Sprague
No. 2 American Commercial Lines
Team Race Preview
NASCAR Truck Series Race 6 of 25 — Lowe’s (N.C.) Motor Speedway
KHI STACKED STATS: Thus far in the 2008 Truck Series season, Jack Sprague in the No. 2 American Commercial Lines (ACL) Chevrolet or his Kevin Harvick Inc. (KHI) teammate Ron Hornaday and the KHI No. 33 Camping World/VFW Chevrolet have started from the first position in each Truck Series race with the exception of Daytona. The two teams have combined for one win, four top-five and six top-10 finishes in five races.
Jack Sprague Quotes:
WITH LOWE’S BEING A HOME TRACK FOR MOST NASCAR TEAMS, IS THERE ADDED PRESSURE TO PERFORM?
“I don’t think there is really any added pressure. It means a lot to win at any track. I have come very close to winning at Lowe’s in both the Truck and Nationwide Series. I think Lowe’s is a fun track that has a lot of unique character. Last year Ron and I were running first and second. I was closing on him and it looked like it would be another classic battle to the finish, unfortunately bad luck struck and I blew a tire going into turn two. Lowe’s is one of those places I would really like to put a tally in the win column.”
SINCE THE GRINDING OF THE TRACK SURFACE IN 2006, HOW HAS LOWE’S MOTOR SPEEDWAY CHANGED?
“I really do not think it has changed that much. It is still the same Charlotte it was when we began racing here. There are the bumps in turns three and four and then the track smoothes out going into one and two. I like the bumps. I enjoy the uniqueness of the track. Charlotte is Charlotte and it is a lot of fun racing there. ”
TOPPING THE CHARTS: A second-place finish at Kansas Speedway two weeks ago helped vault Sprague and the KHI No. 2 ACL team from 15th to ninth in the Truck Series Point standings.
“Were not out of this (championship) by a long shot,” said Sprague on Sirius’s The Morning Drive. “To come together in just five races and almost win at Kansas says volumes about what this team is capable of. I can’t wait to go to Charlotte.”
HOMETOWN BOY: The spotter of the KHI No. 2 Chevrolet, Andy Houston, hails from –and still resides in- Hickory N.C.. His father Tommy competed in the NASCAR Nationwide Series for 15 years, and Andy was once a fixture in all three of NASCAR’s elite series, making 121 Truck Series, seven Nationwide, and 22 Sprint Cup Series career starts Hanging up his helmet in 2005, Houston has brought his years of experience as a driver and now translates his knowledge to be the eye in the sky for veteran driver Sprague.
“It would mean so much for me to get a win here right in my own backyard,” said Houston. “I love coming to Lowe’s Motor Speedway, this place has so much history to it.”
CHASSIS HISTORY: The KHI No. 2 ACL team will bring chassis No. 023 to Lowe’s (N.C.) Motor Speedway. Prior to Kansas, chassis No. 023 had never seen a lap of competition. After a second-place performance two weeks ago at Kansas, the team decided to make this truck their primary this weekend at Lowe’s (N.C.) Motor Speedway.
PREVIOUS RACE RECAP: Two weeks ago at Kansas Speedway KHI teammates Ron Hornaday and Jack Sprague put on a spectacular one-two show, giving KHI its first one-two Truck Series finish. Beginning the race in the third position Sprague and Hornaday quickly pulled away from the field during the first quarter of the race. At lap 67, pit strategy dropped Sprague deep in the field. Working his way patiently through traffic and avoiding on-track incidents, Sprague found himself back in contention by lap 109. After Todd Bodine slammed the wall with 10 laps to go, the Truck Series two most successful drivers were left to battle it out for the win. Sprague tried multiple maneuvers to over take his teammate, but fell 0.149 seconds short as he crossed the line with a season-best finish of second.
QUICK NOTES
Race Info
May 16, 2008
Lowe’s (N.C.) Motor Speedway
NC Education Lottery 200
Race length: 134 Laps/201 Miles
Banking/Turns: 24-degrees in turns;5-degrees on straight-a-ways
Track layout: 1.5-mile
Shape: Quad-oval
Pre-Race Schedule
Friday:
Practice: 9:00-10:00 a.m, ET
Final Practice: 10:20-11:50 a.m., ET
Qualifying: 3:35 p.m., ET
TV: The NC Education Lottery 200 can be seen live on SPEED at 7:30 p.m., ET
Radio: The Motor Racing Network (MRN) will broadcast live at 7:30 p.m., ET
Truck Specs:
Chassis: 023
Engine: Pro Motors Engineering (PME)
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.
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