KEN SCHRADER RACED HIS #21

LITTLE DEBBIE FORD FUSION

TO A NINTH PLACE FINISH IN SUNDAY’S DAYTONA 500

 

Ken Schrader and his Wood Brothers Racing team started the 2006 season with a top-ten finish at Daytona on Sunday.  Schrader’s ninth place finish here today showed that the veteran racer has what it takes to come back from adversity and drive to the front.  “A top-ten at Daytona, we’ll take it for sure,” said Schrader after the race.  The 2000 edition of the Daytona 500 was the last time the St. Louis, Missouri driver started a season with a top-ten run.

 

Schrader started the race 23rd, but quickly fell back in the field and ran 30th or so until about the mid-way point of the 500-miler.  And only then did he show what the car and he might be able to accomplish. 

 

Along the way, Schrader displayed his veteran driver’s instinct following a near miss on pit road with Ryan Newman when he managed to get into his pit anyway.

 

When asked about the incident, Ken told the media, “Listen, I’ll go to the back any time, before I tear my fenders off. I knew I had to turn to keep from tearing my fenders off but then I saw the pit right there, so I thought I’d still hook a left. Just kind of slung it around, put on four tires, backed up, took off.”

 

The take-off was marred however.  When the green flag flew to restart the racing on lap 159 following the four-lap caution for debris he had a problem.

 

Ken described what happened.  “Well, I had hovered toward the back, but not intentionally.”  (The car had been geared for a hot, slick track and the crew had to make a number of adjustments to loosen it up enough to make it drivable.) “We had to make a lot of adjustments; the weather change got us pretty severely. Then I messed up the nose of the car, and how the motor held together, I don’t know. On that one restart everybody was stopping and I hit Bill Elliott, and then they all took off so I’m slow with two flat spotted tires.  And I decided not to say anything.” 

 

Ten laps later he was seeing evidence of the damage that had been done to the front end of his Ford on his gauges.  He called into the pits and told the team, “The temperature has tanked, and the water pressure is maxed.” 

 

The caution flag came out a few laps later, and the crew was able to make some repairs to the front end damage. Crew Chief David Hyder cautioned his driver to stay as tight to the field as possible because the front end was still messed up. 

 

With only 20 laps remaining of the scheduled 200, Ken was 33rd.  In those 20 laps he came into the pits one more time, under caution, for tires and fuel.  He had already started his climb through the field, and when the caution came out on lap 197 Ken was listed 10th.  The race finished with a green – white – checker, and he was able to move up one more spot before crossing the start/finish line for the final time.

 

After the race Len Wood said, “We’re tickled to get out of here that high, a good start in the points, and we ran three races down here and get any cars torn up.  We’re pleased.  We didn’t get what we wanted in the Bud Shootout or the 150-miler.  We had a better car and we finished 14th (Bud Shootout) and 12th (Duel 150).  He got into the back of Bill Elliott and we ran extremely, extremely hot.  We went from Bud Shootout night – too cold, to hot, and that’s the way it goes.  But, the Roush/Yates engine stood up more than you could ask for.”  He added, “It’s great to have Kenny.  With the group that we’ve got going now we need a veteran to be a father figure to all of these boys and he did a heck of a job today so we are pleased and hope we can have another four or five good races now and get up in the points where we should be. We struggled a little bit in testing with things going wrong, and it bothered us a little bit, but the guys worked together and I felt after we changed engines things went so smoothly on that I thought, okay, maybe now things are headed in the right direction.  With this merger (Wood Brothers/JTG Racing), we had two trucks that didn’t show their potential.  They both got hot the other night, but our Busch cars performed well yesterday.”

 

And team co-owner Eddie Wood stated, “I’m glad we got it back in one piece.  That green, white, checker – you never know what’s going to happen.  After we got into Elliott, it was running hot and we got a caution just at the right time.  I’d say at this place it’s hard to get to the end of this thing.  It always had been.  It’s not like any other race.  Last year we started in a hole, and it just feels good leaving here and not be wadded up or have a bad finish.  I don’t know where the thing will wind up when it’s all said and done.  I said before we came down here if we could get a top 15 I’d be happy so we’ll see where it goes.

 

All in all, everyone decided it was a great way to begin a new season – ninth place finish and ninth in the points.

 

The second race of the 2006 NASCAR NEXTEL Cup season will be held this coming Sunday, February 26 at California Speedway.  Television coverage of the Auto club 500 is scheduled to begin at 3:30 p.m. EDT on FOX.  The Motor Racing Network (MRN) will also broadcast the event live over its network of radio affiliates.

 

Daytona 500 top-ten results and driver points: