From The Inside
by Todd Bodine-Staff Writer and Winston Cup Driver
05/08/2003

Hi Race Fans –

The NASCAR Winston Cup series took off to our third short track event of the season at Richmond International Raceway on Saturday night. Obviously, the goal was to try to avoid all the accidents which would help us get our National Guard program back on track.

The car was good when we unloaded and we were second for the whole first half of practice. When all was said and done, we ended up 11th. We were pleased at being able to have a competitive car off the truck and were hoping it was a good sign for the remainder of the weekend.

Heading into qualifying, we put 1 lb of air in the right front for qualifying, and it made the car push. A little adjustment like that along with the track getting slicker makes a big difference. However, we were able to get into the field once again on time and began to focus on the race.

The car was not very good in our first practice after qualifying. We adjusted on it for the second practice and ended up pretty decent. We never tried to get a fast lap, we just kept making adjustments to get the car to turn in the middle and not be loose up off.

The car was fast but early on after we pitted we were racing with Mike Skinner and we got together. I am not sure what happened. I guess Ryan Newman was putting something down on the track. It took me a minute to gather it in and not wreck and we lost several positions. It also screwed up the toe, which we could never get fixed.

We were on the lead lap and trying to get a good finish for the National Guard when we ran into a little trouble near the end of the race. Jimmie Johnson, and I think Sterling Marlin got together, and we got caught up in it. I think we were running in the top 15 when it happened. As my crew chief said, it looked like I hit a tree with the front end. We had to come in to make sure the radiator was all right and lost track position.

Despite the incident, we remained on the lead lap and able to recover for a 23rd place finish. We are running better, and our test at Charlotte for the 600 was really good in race trim. So, I am encouraged. We would like to start having finishes indicative of how the car's running, but that will come. We are headed in a positive direction and little things are happening everyday to make this team better. Sometimes, you have to learn to walk before you run and that's the case with this team

The NASCAR Winston Cup series will take this weekend off as many of the WC guys prepare for the Winston and the Winston Open. We are not taking the car we tested. We are saving that for the 600, but I am hoping that the notes from our test session will carry over to the Winston Open car. I would say I am cautiously optimistic for our chances.

I would also like to ask everyone to keep Jerry Nadeau and his wife Jada, daughter Natalie, and other family members in your prayers. It's at times like these that we are reminded of what is important in life and that is the relationships you have with others and God.

I’ll be back after the Coca-Cola 600 to let you all know how our trip to Lowes Motor Speedway ended up.

Until Then,
Thanks for reading!
Todd Bodine

You can reach Todd Bodine at: tbodine@catchfence.com