Carmichael 29th at Martinsville
March 31, 2009, 2:33pm
MARTINSVILLE, VA – Ricky Carmichael and the No. 4 Oakley / KHI All-Stars team finished 29th in Monday’s rain-postponed Kroger 250 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series (NCWTS) race at Martinsville (Va.) Speedway. The race was won by the No. 2 Kevin Harvick Inc. (KHI) truck driven by team co-owner Kevin Harvick and was followed by KHI teammate Ron Hornaday in second place.
Ricky Carmichael Post-Race Quote: (frustrated sigh) “Everything was really good until that first spin (on lap 91). I learned a lot today – especially that it’s so tough to come back from a mistake. I was able to get to the finish to gain the experience. My teammates Harv (Kevin Harvick) and (Ron) Hornaday have run more pace laps here than I’ve had total laps so I needed to learn a lot in a hurry when the green flag fell. We were able to hang on to the lead lap after the first crash, but then the second one (on lap 186) really jacked us up. After that, it was just hanging on by a thread and trying to stay out of the way of the other guys.”
Race Highlights: Carmichael, the most successful motocross racer in American history, started from the 29th position and patiently moved forward on the tight half-mile track. Climbing into the top 20 by lap 70, Carmichael became more and more confident, quickly earning the 12th position by lap 82. However, on lap 91, the No. 4 truck spun while trying to squeeze into the middle of a three-wide sandwich with a lapped truck. Carmichael spun, and lost a lap while stalled. The truck was slightly damaged, and the team dropped to the 30th position. Carmichael earned the free pass back onto the lead lap on lap 113. During the yellow-flag period, the team made more repairs to the truck, which allowed Carmichael to again turn competitive lap times, earning a second free pass on lap 153. The No. 4 truck climbed to 22nd position until being involved in another multi-truck crash on lap 186. The considerable repairs took 11 laps to complete, relegating the team to a 29th-place finish.
What’s Next: Carmichael is scheduled to race the Monster Energy / KHI All-Star Silverado again Saturday, April 25 at Kansas Speedway.
RACE STATS:
Career Truck Starts: 4
Started: 29th
Finished: 29th
Point Standings: 20th (-2 positions)
Ricky Carmichael Post-Race Quote: (frustrated sigh) “Everything was really good until that first spin (on lap 91). I learned a lot today – especially that it’s so tough to come back from a mistake. I was able to get to the finish to gain the experience. My teammates Harv (Kevin Harvick) and (Ron) Hornaday have run more pace laps here than I’ve had total laps so I needed to learn a lot in a hurry when the green flag fell. We were able to hang on to the lead lap after the first crash, but then the second one (on lap 186) really jacked us up. After that, it was just hanging on by a thread and trying to stay out of the way of the other guys.”
Race Highlights: Carmichael, the most successful motocross racer in American history, started from the 29th position and patiently moved forward on the tight half-mile track. Climbing into the top 20 by lap 70, Carmichael became more and more confident, quickly earning the 12th position by lap 82. However, on lap 91, the No. 4 truck spun while trying to squeeze into the middle of a three-wide sandwich with a lapped truck. Carmichael spun, and lost a lap while stalled. The truck was slightly damaged, and the team dropped to the 30th position. Carmichael earned the free pass back onto the lead lap on lap 113. During the yellow-flag period, the team made more repairs to the truck, which allowed Carmichael to again turn competitive lap times, earning a second free pass on lap 153. The No. 4 truck climbed to 22nd position until being involved in another multi-truck crash on lap 186. The considerable repairs took 11 laps to complete, relegating the team to a 29th-place finish.
What’s Next: Carmichael is scheduled to race the Monster Energy / KHI All-Star Silverado again Saturday, April 25 at Kansas Speedway.
RACE STATS:
Career Truck Starts: 4
Started: 29th
Finished: 29th
Point Standings: 20th (-2 positions)
