March 18, 2003

Chad Chaffin, No 18 Dickies Dodge Notes: Mesa Marin

Lucas Oil 250
March 23, 2003
Mesa Marin Raceway

TV: SPEED (Live) 5:00 PM-Eastern Time
Radio: MRN (Live) 4:45 PM-Eastern Time

2003 points after 2 of 25 races
Position Driver Points
1st Bobby Hamilton 345
2nd Travis Kvapil 340
3rd Rick Crawford 331
4th Brendan Gaughan 309
5th Robert Pressley 304
7th Chad Chaffin 272
13th Bill Lester 236

Chad Chaffin - Personal Info:
Birthdate - July 20, 1968
Wife - Cindy
Children - Brooke, Chase, Chaz
Residence - Murfreesboro, TN

Chad Chaffin-Fast Facts…
NASCAR Career (1993-2003)
1. Busch Series - 79 Starts
2. Two Track Championships
at Nashville Speedway USA

2003 Truck Series Season
Starts - 2
Poles - 0
Wins - 0
Top fives - 0
Top tens - 0
Earnings - $ 22,190
Laps Led - 1 of 253
Races Led - 1 of 2
DNF's - 0

Truck Series Career Statistics
Starts - 9
Poles - 0
Wins - 0
Top fives - 3
Top tens - 3
Earnings - $ 92,415

Chad Chaffin No. 18 Dickies Dodge
Race Notes

Topics of Interest

Performance Record: Mesa Marin Raceway
(Chad Chaffin Has No Previous Starts at the Facility)

No. 18 Team History: Year Start Finish Driver
2002 (No Race at the Facility)
2001 3 6 Joe Ruttman
2000 7 16 Joe Ruttman
1999 12 9 Butch Miller

First Time Out: Mesa Marin Raceway is one of the two facilities out of the 23 that the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series competes at that Chad Chaffin has never raced.

"It's not that big of a deal," said Chaffin. "It will be just like any other place. The team has been there several times, and they've always been well, so I'm pretty sure we'll be fast right off the hauler."

Pit Crew Challenge: The No. 18 BHR Dickies Dodge team will participate in the Dodge Pit Crew Challenge on Friday, March 21, 2003 at 7:00 PM at the Bakersfield Downtown Street Fair in Bakersfield, California. They will be going up against the No. 62 Orleans Racing Dodge team of Brendan Gaughan. Over the past year, the Dodge Pit Crew Challenge has been dominated by Bobby Hamilton Racing. Since May of last year, BHR has gone undefeated, winning seven events in a row and capping last season's tournament off with a sweep of the top three spots in the competition.

The thing that makes this so interesting is that it will mark the first time Orleans Racing and BHR have faced off. The finals will be held at the same place as last year's finals the Sun Coast Hotel in Las Vegas, which is owned by the Gaughan family. So to say there is a little added pressure on the home team is an understatement.

"We know they're a good team, and we have our work cut out for us," said Randy Seals, crew chief of the No. 18 team. "But this team is the defending champions of the competition, and we intend on getting back to the finals."

Earnings/Starts: Chaffin needs $ 7,585 to surpass the $ 100,000 mark in career NASCAR Truck Series earnings. If Chaffin can accomplish this feat this week, it will have taken only 10 starts in the series to do so.

Testing: Two weeks ago the No. 18 BHR Dickies Team tested at Nashville Speedway USA to prepare for this weekend's race at Mesa Marin Raceway.

Bobby Hamilton Racing
No. 18 Crew Roster
Name Duties
Jerry Adcox Spotter
Stu Beckett Gasman
Chad Chaffin Driver
Jeff Davis Front Tire Changer
Ken Evans Rear Tire Changer
Roger Guard Catchcan
Mark Hackett Jackman
David Pepper Marketing and Public Relations
Randy Seals Crew Chief Front Tire Carrier
Kevin Warren Rear TireCarrier

Appearances: Following the Dodge Pit Crew Challenge, Chaffin will be signing autographs from 8-9:00PM on Friday, March 21, 2003, at the Bakersfield Street Fair in Downtown Bakersfield, California.

This Week's Truck: The No. 18 Dickies Team will be relying on one of their best trucks this weekend at Mesa Marin Raceway. Angel will make its first run of 2003 this week, and its 25th start in its history. It has victories at Pikes Peak in 2001 and Michigan in 2002. In the previous 24 starts, the truck has a record of two wins, seven top fives, and 15 top ten finishes.
Performance Chart: Angel (last 15 starts only)
DATE RACE START/FINISH DRIVER
10-14-01 Las Vegas 13 8 Joe Ruttman
11-3-01 California 15 16 Joe Ruttman
5-5-02 St. Louis 7 31 Robert Pressley
5-19-02 Pikes Peak 10 30 Robert Pressley
6-22-02 Memphis 7 12 Robert Pressley
7-6-02 Kansas 7 7 Robert Pressley
7-13-02 Kentucky 13 3 Robert Pressley
7-27-02 Michigan 8 1 Robert Pressley
8-2-01 IRP 4 5 Robert Pressley
8-10-02 Nashville 4 9 Robert Pressley
9-5-02 Richmond 11 15 Robert Pressley
10-13-02 Las Vegas 15 7 Robert Pressley
11-2-02 California 5 7 Robert Pressley
11-8-02 Phoenix 10 14 Robert Pressley
11-15-02 Homestead 33 4 Robert Pressley

Chaffin Quotes

"Last week was a momentum builder, but we need to keep it going this week at Bakersfield. If we're going to put together a great season, then you have to run in the top five every week. That was our goal when the season started, and that won't change all year long."

"I don't know what to expect about the race track, but everyone has said that Mesa Marin Raceway is a lot like Nashville fairgrounds, so I think we'll be good there. We tested two weeks ago for this place, and we felt pretty good about our test. I have heard that they have put sealer on the track, so who knows what to expect. Sometimes that makes a place great to race on and sometimes it makes it an ice rink."


Chaffin's 2003 Craftsman Truck Series Event Results
Location Start Finish Laps Status Money Won
Daytona 6 17 103 of 106 Running $ 13,015
Darlington 7 5 147 of 147 Running 9,175
Bakersfield (Next Event)
Totals 250 of 253 (98.8%) $ 22,190

Best Start: 6th @ Daytona International Speedway 2-14-03
Best Finish: 3rd @ Nashville Speedway USA 8-12-00
Biggest Purse: $17,725 @ Nashville Speedway USA 8-12-00