July 21, 2003

Crash Eliminates Bill Lester After Solid Run

Bill Lester and the No. 8 Strauss Auto Parts/The Club Dodge Team had a solid run going in the 12th position, until on lap 141, a crash eliminated them from the race and relegated the team to a 22nd place finish.

“I just can’t believe what happened over there in turn three,” said Lester. “The No. 33 truck and I were racing on the lead lap for 12th and 13th place when the No. 07 truck, which was laps down, just crashed us all. I really couldn’t tell what he was thinking. I don’t know who or where he came from. I just hate it for the guys. We’ve got a truck that is destroyed and for no reason. All year we’ve been trying to work on finishing races, and so far, we’ve been doing a good job, but there’s very little we can do about other people on the track. We’ll just load up and go to Michigan next week and see what we can do there.”

Lester started the event in the 14th position after rain washed out qualifying for the Ram Tough 200 event. When the race started, Lester fell back to 15th place with a small handling problem. The team made several changes to the truck during the race, and as the laps were winding down, he was making a run at a top ten finish. He had battled all day to get himself in position to race the No. 33, the No. 88, and the No. 15 trucks for the tenth position. That is when the race came to a screeching halt. As Lester was passing the No. 33 truck, the No. 07 truck that was a lap down dived to the bottom of the track under both of the lead lap trucks and proceeded to run into the No. 8, sending it spinning into the wall along with the Paul Menard truck.
When the truck came in on the tow truck, it was apparent that the day was over. The team was credited with the 22nd position. However, finish did not affect Lester and the team’s position in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series points standings.
“We lost a little ground tonight, but what can we do,” said Lester. “We’ve got the entire second half of the season to get it back.”

The Ram Tough 200 event from Gateway International Speedway was won by fellow Dodge Driver Brendan Gaughan, with Jason Leffler, Travis Kvapil, Carl Edwards and Rick Crawford rounding out the top five.

Driver: Bill Lester, No. 8 Strauss Auto Parts/The Club Dodge Team
Starts Pole Wins Top Fives Top Tens Earnings Points Position
12 1 0 0 1 $ 138,275 13th

Race-by-Race Run Down:
Location Start Finish Laps Status Money Won
Daytona 8 18 97 of 106 Accident $ 15,165
Darlington 15 12 144 of 147 Running 9,465
Bakersfield 23 13 255 of 255 Running 8,190
Martinsville 17 19 250 of 250 Running 9,315
Charlotte 1 15 135 of 136 Running 11,890
Dover 15 11 198 of 200 Running 13,750
Texas 13 12 167 of 167 Running 13,165
Memphis 14 26 128 of 200 Running 8,990
Milwaukee 23 12 198 of 200 Running 10,215
Kansas 2 10 167 of 167 Running 14,000
Kentucky 9 12 150 of 150 Running 14,940
St. Louis 14 22 141 of 160 Accident 9,190
Michigan (Next Event)
Totals 2032 of 2138 (95.0%) $ 138,275