August 18, 2003

Square D Racing Preview: BRISTOL

Testing Results: "We took two trucks to test in Bristol for Square D. I think that we learned a lot from that test. One truck was set up one way and one was set up a little differently. We did that so we could have more information from the test to base our Bristol setup on. The test session lasted for 15 hours. It was grueling, tiring but the benefits we have from it will help us in the race guaranteed. Chad (Chaffin) did pretty good there because he has raced on that track before. Bill (Lester) had never even seen the track before we walked in there the day of the test. His times improved significantly, so I look for all three of our teams to be a contender at Bristol."

More Tracks Like Bristol: "I don't know why all these people who build tracks don't build more like Bristol. You can bet your bottom dollar that if I were going to build a track, it would be like Bristol. It holds a ton of people and there is not a bad seat in the house. Bristol Motor Speedway has been sold out of tickets for the Winston Cup race there for about 10 years. Who wouldn't want that? On top of the ticket sales, the race is guaranteed to be one of the best that we will watch all year."

Trucks Back to Bristol: "I'm glad that we got this track added back to the Craftsman Truck Series schedule this year. I have a ton of laps under my belt at this track in a Winston Cup car, so hopefully that will help me get around it. A lot of the places we go to race, your finish is really based on your setup and how your truck raced against the others. At Bristol, the setup is pretty important, but just knowing how to get around that track is the biggest battle we face in the race. Think about it this way, we're driving around a half-mile track going about 120 miles per hour around turns the whole time. Someone on the back straightaway spins out and you will be right in the middle of it in less than seven seconds, or the blink of an eye, if you don't know how to get around it. The track will bottle up and people pile up on each other in no time. Now if that doesn't make you sit on the edge of your seat, I don't know what will."

Notes:
" This week's truck is King. Hamilton raced it in Memphis, he finished seventh in that event.
" Hamilton will be signing autographs on Aug. 21st from 8-9 pm at the Dodge/Tomar souvenir trailer at Food City Race Night on State Street in downtown Bristol, VA/TN.

Testing schedule: Hamilton is very busy these days. Even after the Bristol race he won't have another weekend off like his competitors do. Instead Hamilton will travel to Atlanta for a two-day Dodge test session, then back to Pikes Peak International Raceway for another test session. His free time that was already limited, just became worse. "We have to do this to stay on top of the competition out there. It's important to test and keep our trucks up to date with what other people are finding to make their trucks run better. We don't know that everyone else is on top of the latest techniques, but we have to assume that we are behind, so we work harder to stay on top. We want to have the best performances we can every week and we want to get ahead for next year. The best way to do that is to test. In turn that test session will give us knowledge that we can use at the last few races we have this year and get us that much further ahead for next year."

For More Information see www.bobbyhamiltonracing.com