2002 Media Release

Contact: David Pepper 
615-754-6868
dnpracing@aol.com

Rookie Points Standings:
Brendan Gaughan 33
Jason Small 32
Bill Lester 23
Trent Owens 19

Bill Lester - Fast Facts…..
2002 Season
Starts - 3
Poles - 0
Wins - 0
Top fives - 0
Top tens - 0
Earnings - $ 30,120
Laps Led - 0 of 497
Races Led - 0 of 3
DNF's - 1

Truck Series Career Statistics
Starts - 9 (128th all-time)
Poles - 0
Wins - 0
Top fives - 0
Top tens - 0
Earnings - $ 81,455 (108th all-time)

Performance Record:
Gateway International Raceway
Craftsman Truck Series
Date      Location   Start Finish   Laps         Status       Money
5-6-01 St. Louis     31   36   1 of 160    Handling   $ 7,765

Topics of Interest

Back to Where it All Began: One year ago at the Gateway International Raceway, Bill Lester began a relationship that has turned out to be a dream come true. Before this race a year ago, Lester was down and out with very little hope of getting his break in NASCAR racing. That all changed when veteran NASCAR Winston Cup driver, Bobby Hamilton called him to start a third Bobby Hamilton Racing truck at Gateway.

"That was a big deal," said Lester. "It was my break so to speak. Now I'm just excited about going back to St. Louis, because it's a place that I'm familiar with. It's a track that requires a lot of technical skill. You have to down shift into turn one, and up shift off the exit of turn two.  Each corner is different and I think that fits my style of driving. It's also a place that I have gone through practice and qualifying so I have a good idea of what to expect. In a statement, I'm very confident about returning to St. Louis."

Lester started his first race for Bobby Hamilton Racing at Gateway International Raceway last year. Unfortunately, Lester was forced out early after starting the team's backup truck following a practice crash the day before at the one-mile facility. The truck was not setup for the Gateway track and Lester made one lap and pulled into the pit area.

"I can tell you what, I will never forget my first start for the team even though I would like to," said Lester. "I had a good truck but a part broke in happy hour practice and I crashed hard. With no backup all I could do was use the No. 18 truck's backup and make one lap. So I really hope I get to race this time around."

Media Tour and Plant Tour: Lester spent last week in the St. Louis area helping track officials promote the Ram Tough 200 event. During the four-day media tour, Lester spent time at Scott Air Force Base, a Sears Hardward store, and Southtown Dodge, along with the media luncheon.

"I think it's terrific what the folks at Gateway are doing. They have spent an enormous amount of time, money, and effort to reach out to the fans and get them excited about the race coming there," said Lester.

Career Starts: Bill Lester will make his 10th start in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series on May 5th at Gateway International Raceway

Rookie of the Year Battle: Lester has yet to be the top finishing Rookie of the race, but he comes into St. Louis having out qualified his fellow rookie competitors the last two times out.

Testing: Bobby Hamilton Racing spent last week participating in the private Dodge Motorsports test at Nashville Super Speedway. BHR had six vehicles at the test. Unofficial, Bobby Hamilton was the quickest in one of the trucks.  Others at the test included Ultra Motorsports, Ware Racing, and Petty Enterprise.

"I would say that the test at Nashville did not help us for St. Louis setup-wise, but it's always good to get a little seat time going into a race week as opposed to being on break for the last few weeks," said Lester.

This Week's Truck: Lester will be piloting a brand new No. 8 Dodge Ram out of the Bobby Hamilton Racing stable. Its name is "Curley" and comes equipped with what appears to be a wood grain dashboard.

"We always try new things to make our trucks look good and the dash just seemed like a cool idea," said Kip McCord, Crew Chief for the No. 8 Dodge.  "The guys in the shop just wanted to do something different."

Lester's 2002 Craftsman Truck Series Event Results

Best Start: 10th @ Nashville Super Speedway 8-10-01
Best Finish: 18th twice @ Daytona International Speedway 2-15-02 and
Phoenix International Raceway 10-26-01
Biggest Purse: $ 15,165 @ Daytona International Speedway 2-15-02

For More Information see www.bobbyhamiltonracing.com
 

©2002 Bobby Hamilton Racing