NASCAR engines again roar at The Rock
Three NASCAR Truck series teams are participating in tire testing at Rockingham Speedway in preparation for an April 15 race.
By Jim Utter - jutter@charlotteobserver.com
Tuesday, Mar. 06, 2012
ROCKINGHAM, N.C. It's just a test.
But for NASCAR and the Sandhills region of North Carolina it signifies much more.
For the first time since 2004, drivers from one of NASCAR's three national series made laps around Rockingham Speedway in preparation for an upcoming race.
Three NASCAR Truck series teams took part in a Goodyear tire test on Tuesday in preparation for the inaugural Good Sam 200 on April 15. The two-day test concludes on Wednesday.
The excitement is definitely building. It's something we've been looking forward to for so long, said Andy Hillenburg, a former race car driver who bought the track in 2007 from Speedway Motorsports Inc.
Here we are inside a month-and-a-half, and seeing the trucks here and the NASCAR staff here today it's a dream come true. This is Rockingham's moment to get back in the limelight.
The Cup series held two events annually at the 1-oval through 2003 and one event in 2004, the last of which was won by Matt Kenseth.
The track, then called N.C. Speedway, was sold in 2004 by International Speedway Corp. to SMI as part of a complicated deal that eventually saw Rockingham's last Cup date added to Texas Motor Speedway.
In recent years, Hillenburg has hosted a variety of non-NASCAR events at the track, including Hooter's Pro Cup and the Automobile Racing Club of America series. A half-mile track constructed behind the backstretch is used by many NASCAR teams for testing purposes.
Many NASCAR officials, drivers and longtime fans were excited when the track announced in September it was adding a Truck race to its schedule in 2012.
"Coming in the tunnel today it was just unbelievable to see the changes done here by Andy and Robert (Ingraham, track operations director). The race track looks ready to go, said Wayne Auton, the Truck series director.
"Over the years Rockingham has seen a lot of great racing. I am confident you will see more next month.
The State of North Carolina estimates the economic impact at $10.5 million and the addition of a couple of hundred permanent and temporary jobs due to the new race.
Much of the affection in NASCAR for Rockingham lies in its history .
The late Dale Earnhardt locked up the last of his seven Cup titles at The Rock. Such drivers as Richard Petty, Junior Johnson, Buck Baker and Wendell Scott have added to the track's lore.
Everybody wants to come here and race, Auton said. For us in the Truck series, to be able to bring racing back to Rockingham is the highlight of my career.
Three drivers Jason Leffler, James Buescher and Timothy Peters made 20-lap runs on Tuesday as Goodyear worked to select a competitive tire for the race.
Leffler is the only one of the three with previous NASCAR experience on the track, having raced in both Cup and Nationwide series events before the track changed hands in 2004.
I haven't had good finishes, but I've always enjoyed racing here. It's a technical race track. It's a driver's race track, Leffler said.
It's all about tire management and getting your truck to handle. It seems a lot of drivers really enjoyed racing here it's a shame we don't come here more often.
Read more here: http://www.thatsracin.com/2012/03/06/83140/nascar-engines-again-roar-at-the.html#storylink=cpy
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updated by @dave-fulton: 12/05/16 04:04:08PM