SCHRADER 40TH AT LOWE’S;

NOW 30TH IN POINT STANDINGS

It was a short night for Ken Schrader and his #21 Motorcraft Genuine Parts crew at Lowe’s Motor Speedway Saturday night.

 

The yellow flag flew often during the first 50 laps.  Twenty-four of the first 52 laps were run under caution.  The fourth time the yellow was displayed, the race was slowed to clean up debris from an accident on the back stretch involving Todd Kluever and Schrader.

 

After the two drivers were checked over and released from the infield care center Kluever said, "I had the No. 66 on the outside of me there. These tires, the racing here has been really good, it's just once they go, man they go quick and in a big hurry. Just lost it there unfortunately, we got Kenny [Schrader] in the wreck here with me. I thought we were going to be okay for a little while, we just put tires on it."

 

In response to a reporter’s statement, “You just had no where to go it appeared,” Ken responded, “Well, I had room on the inside, but I just thought for sure that Todd was going to come back across, and Todd did a good job.  He basically held her straight, but I just thought he was going to come back across and I went the wrong way.”  And Schrader added, "He [Kluever] didn't hit me in that wreck, I drove into it. He did everything textbook right, he stayed in the middle of the race track. I just had a gut feeling that it was going to run back across the bottom and I was going to shoot the gap at top."

 

It didn’t take long for the Motorcraft Team to determine Ken’s Ford Fusion couldn’t be fixed, and the night was over.

 

An early draw for qualifying resulted in a 17th place start.  Even though the team knew as the night air cooled qualifying speeds would drop, they were pleased with the effort.  And Ken told reporters, "Our little Motorcraft Fusion was good.  It was good in practice and he (Fatback McSwain) told me the track had a bunch more grip, so to go ahead and scare myself, and I did.  It's not going to be stellar, but it's not going to be embarrassing by any means."  After exiting the car and looking at his time he had laughingly stated, “I think that should be good for my age group.”

 

Schrader was listed 40th when the results of the race were released, and he is now 30th in the point standings going to Martinsville next week.

 

Kasey Kahne won the Bank of America 500.  Chase contenders Jimmie Johnson and Jeff Burton were second and third, respectively.

 

Burton leads the top-ten in points, and Matt Kenseth remains second while Kevin Harvick moved up one place into third with five events left in the 2006 season.

 

Next weekend the NEXTEL Cup Series is slated to run the only short track on the Chase for the Championship schedule.  The Subway 500 will be contested on the Martinsville, Virginia .526-mile flat track this coming Sunday, October 22.  NBC will carry the television coverage live, beginning at 12:30 p.m.  The Motor Racing Network will provide the radio broadcast over its network of affiliates.

 

Lowe’s results:

1. Kasey Kahne
2. Jimmie Johnson
3. Jeff Burton
4. Dale Earnhardt, Jr.
5. Bobby Labonte
6. Kyle Busch
7. Tony Raines
8. Carl Edwards
9. Joe Nemechek
10. Brian Vickers

    40. Ken Schrader

 

Points after Lowe’s:

1. Jeff Burton                  5763
2. Matt Kenseth                         5718
3. Kevin Harvick                        5674
4. Mark Martin                           5661
5. Dale Earnhardt, Jr.    5657
6. Denny Hamlin                         5626
7. Jimmie Johnson                       5617
8. Kasey Kahne                         5603
9. Kyle Busch                 5568
10. Jeff Gordon                            5547

   30.  Ken Schrader                       2714