3/27/2007
Bill Lester
LESTER AND BALLEW TAKING LESSONS LEARNED TO MARTINSVILLE SHORT TRACK
Bill Lester and the Billy Ballew Motorsports team head to Martinsville Speedway for the first short track race of the 2007 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series season. The NCTS competitors will take to the speedway for the running of the Kroger 250 at the famed .546-mile racetrack in Virginia.
With 20 starts between them at the track, both Bill Lester and the No. 15 Chevrolet Silverado team bring lessons from the past and present with them for this weekends’ event. Lester, who will be driving in his first short track race for the team, feels confident after testing Monday at the Caraway Speedway in Asheboro, NC.
“Martinsville hasn’t always been kind to me and I’m hoping to improve on my performance there,” Lester said. “We took the truck to Caraway on Monday and I think we made major gains. We found a suspension set-up that we really needed for Martinsville, which should enable us to have better grip. I think we accomplished what we set out to do at the test and I think it will really make a difference for us come Saturday.”
The paperclip-shaped short track in Virginia is known for some exciting action and this week’s NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series event should not be any different. Crew chiefs and drivers alike know that the track is tough on the brakes due to the sharp corners and that track position is the key to a successful run.
“I’m pretty confident about our run this weekend in Martinsville,” Lester said. “It’s hard to be completely confident because at Martinsville you can get caught up in an incident in a matter of seconds. I always seem to start in the middle of the field and this year I hope to have a starting position closer to the front. It’s always better to be up front since the accordion effect can happen quickly when you are in the middle or at the end of the pack. The pit stops at Martinsville are another key element of success because track position is so important. We have a great group of guys that go over the wall so I am sure we’ll be fine on that part of the race. This Billy Ballew Motorsports team has a great short track program and I’m looking forward to heading to Martinsville to see what we can put together.”
Billy Ballew Motorsports has posted two top-five finishes (Kyle Busch 2005, Rich Bickle 1998) and four top-ten finishes in 11 starts in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series at the famed short track. Lester has nine starts at the short track with a best start of 12th in spring 2004 and a best finish of 12th in the fall race in 2006.
Red Top Auto Auction of Cartersville, GA will be serving as primary sponsor with their parent company Auction Broadcasting Company, LLC (ABC) onboard as a major associate sponsor on the No. 15 Chevrolet Silverado.
The NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series drivers take to the track for the running of the Kroger 250 Saturday, March 31st beginning at 3:00pm ET where the series returns to network television. Saturday’s Kroger 250 will air live on FOX, the first time the series has appeared on the network. The last time the series was seen on network television was July 15, 2000 when CBS broadcast the Chevy Silverado 200 from Nazareth Speedway.
For more information on Bill Lester and Billy Ballew Motorsports please visit www.BillLester.com and www.BillyBallewMotorsports.com.
Submitted By: Philip Hampton
