CALIFORNIA RECAP: Typically sunny
southern California was not so sunny two weeks ago for the No. 2
American Commercial Lines (ACL)/RVs.com Chevrolet. Enduring a
weekend of rain, qualifying for the San Bernardino 200 was
canceled on Friday forcing Sprague and the No. 2 ACL/RVs.com
team to begin Saturday’s race in the 30th position. Sprague and
the No. 2 ACL/RVs.com team fought a loose-handling truck all
weekend long. After hitting on a comfortable set up during the
final practice session the team was optimistic about the outcome
of the race. However, with a pit road incident during the first
scheduled pit stop the No. 2 ACL/RVs.com team tried to rebound
working on the truck for the remainder of the race. As the laps
wound down the No. 2 ACL/RVs.com team dealt with front end
damage and a loose-handling truck but still rallied to a
22nd-place finish.
ONE OF THE FEW… Atlanta Motor
Speedway is one of only eight tracks currently on the NASCAR
Truck Series schedule where Sprague has yet to visit victory
lane. In seven starts, Sprague has recorded one top-five and
three top-10 finishes.
CHASSIS HISTORY: Chassis No. 014
saw action last season at some of the 1.5-mile tracks including
California, Texas, Atlanta and Charlotte. Sprague’s KHI teammate
Ron Hornaday drove this truck to the lead in each of the events
it competed in last season, as well as to victory lane at the
Lowe’s Motor Speedway in May 2007.
TESTING 1, 2, 3… In early January
the No. 2 ACL /RVs.com team traveled to the Atlanta Motor
Speedway for a round of preseason testing. Running the same
truck they plan to race this weekend, the No. 2 team practiced
in the top five during both days of testing. During day one of
testing Sprague’s KHI teammate Ron Hornaday laid down the
fastest lap, while Sprague rounded out the day with the
third-quickest lap.
HIGHLY RATED: Driver rating is one
of NASCAR’s newest statistical measures and takes into account
wins, finishes, top-15 finishes, average running position while
on lead lap, average speed under green, fastest lap, most laps
led, lead-lap finish. For any given race the maximum points that
can be earned is 150. KHI veteran Sprague ranks third among
active drivers with a driver rating of 108.2 at Atlanta Motor
Speedway coming in behind Mike Skinner and Todd Bodine.
GEORGIA PEACH: Rear tire carrier
for the No. 2 ACL /RVs.com Chevrolet, Austin Walker, hails from
the peach state. Walker, a native of Lawrenceville, GA moved
from his hometown four years ago to fulfill his dream of one day
working on a NASCAR Truck Series crew. Walker joined KHI in
January 2008 to perform the duties of rear tire carrier and
mechanic on the No. 2 ACL/RVs.com Chevrolet.
Jack Sprague Quotes:
DURING TRUCK SERIES TESTING IN JANUARY YOU LAID DOWN THE
THIRD FASTEST LAP; WHAT DO YOU ANTICIPATE FOR THIS WEEKEND’S
RACE? “We ran really well at the test. We are taking
back the same truck and one that has a winning reputation. I
think we are going to go back to Atlanta even better than we
tested. I would really like to get a win here. We need to begin
to get the ball rolling in the right direction this season and I
think Atlanta is the perfect place for us to turn our luck
around.”
ATLANTA MOTOR SPEEDWAY IS KNOWN FOR
THREE-WIDE FINISHES; YOU’VE BEEN A PART OF A FEW OF THOSE IN
TRUCK SERIES HISTORY, WHICH ONE STICKS OUT? “In the
fall of 2005 I had led most of the race. I was within a corner
of winning; I was battling Kyle Busch who had fresh tires. As we
came out of three we all got together and I ended up finishing
fourth, wrecked in the grass. That was a tough one to lose.”
YOU HAVE YET TO WIN AT ATLANTA MOTOR
SPEEDWAY; WHAT DO YOU THINK IT TAKES TO WIN HERE? “You
really have to have a good handling truck here all day. At other
places horsepower can compensate for handling issues. Not at
Atlanta. I would rather be down a little on horsepower and have
a wonderful handling truck.”
Ernie Cope Quotes:
WHAT ARE THE CHALLENGES AT A FAST PLACE LIKE ATLANTA?
“Atlanta is a big fast place. There is really no track like it
on the circuit. We just need a good handling truck all day.”
THIS IS A TRIED AND TRUE RACE TRUCK
FOR KHI; WHAT KIND OF RESULT DO YOU ANTICIPATE HAVING WITH THIS
TRUCK? “I think that we are bringing a really good
piece to Atlanta. This truck has been a proven winner. I hope to
get a good top-five run out of this truck.”
ABOUT AMERICAN COMMERCIAL LINES:
American Commercial Lines is a leader in the marine
transportation and manufacturing business. Through its
subsidiary companies, ACL owns and operates approximately 2,800
barges and 160 towboats; transporting a vast array of cargos
such as grain, coal, steel, chemicals, petroleum products,
edible oils, fertilizers and construction materials on the U.S.
inland waterways. ACL also owns the largest single-site
manufacturing facility for vessels in the United States,
offering technically advanced marine design and manufacturing
capabilities for both inland and ocean service vessels. ACL is
publicly traded on NASDAQ under the symbol ACLI. For more
information about ACL generally, visit
www.aclines.com.