Mike Bliss
No. 4 Open Joist Dodge Ram Race Recap
The Toyota Tundra Milwaukee 200
The Milwaukee Mile

For the second time this month Mike Bliss climbed behind the wheel of the No. 4 Open Joist Dodge and overcame a poor starting position to finish in the top 10. Bliss qualified 23rd for the Toyota Tundra Milwaukee 200 at the Milwaukee Mile and battled a tight truck most of the night for the 11th event of the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series season. He finished seventh, the team’s second straight top-10 finish with Bliss behind the wheel.

The No. 4 Open Joist Dodge Milwaukee Race Recap

Bliss qualified the No. 4 Open Joist Dodge in the 23rd position, one spot ahead of teammate Ken Schrader.

Immediately Bliss made his way into the top 20. “It’s really tight behind other trucks,” said Bliss on lap 20.

Bliss moved into the 15th spot on lap 37. “It is still tight,” said Bliss once again. Crew Chief Marcus Richmond assured him they would fix it on the next pit stop.

“It doesn’t rotate on the throttle,” said Bliss on lap 56 while running 13th. “But it really rolls good through the center.”
The caution waved on lap 68 and Bliss hit pit road for adjustments. The Open Joist Racing team changed all four tires, added fuel and went up on the track bar to help Bliss with the tight condition. He restarted in the 14th position.

Over the next 20 laps Bliss ran in the 12th position. “It’s still a little tight, but a lot better,” said Bliss.
On lap 143 he cracked the top 10 for the first time of the night and never looked back.

The fifth of six cautions waved on lap 159 for a crash in turn four. Bliss came down pit road for four tires, fuel and another track bar adjustment to help with the tight condition. With nothing to lose and a lot to gain, the veteran came back down pit road before the restart and the Open Joist Racing team opened up the front shock to help even more. He restarted in the 10th position.

On lap 175 he moved into the ninth position and then one lap later he grabbed the eighth position.

In the final 10 laps Bliss moved into the seventh spot. He battled door-to-door in the final two laps of the race with competitor Erik Darnell, but was credited with the seventh spot as they crossed the finish line.

Johnny Benson won the The Toyota Tundra Milwaukee 200 before an estimated crowd of 28,000. Ron Hornaday Jr., Todd Bodine, Mike Skinner and Rick Crawford rounded out the top five finishers. The next event for the NCTS will be at Memphis Motorsports Park on June 30th, 2007 with Kevin Hamlin behind the wheel.