Ford 200 Race Report

OVERVIEW

posted on November 14, 2008

Buescher Finishes 19th in Inaugural Truck Series Race

James Buescher scored a 19th-place finish in his debut NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series event. The rookie had never seen the Homestead-Miami Speedway prior to this week; however Buescher quickly adapted to the 1.5-mile oval to earn a top-20 finish in the Ford 200. Buescher’s performance capped off the 2008 season to leave the Ergon Racing team 22nd in owners points.

Buescher started the Ford 200 from the 10th position. The Ergon Racing Tundra was fast out of the gates and quickly raced into the eighth-place, however the No. 15 truck began tightening up. As the race went on, Buescher’s machine began to slide the nose through the corners. The condition grew worse and Buescher fell to 15th-place before the first caution, lap 40. The crew used the caution period to change all four tires, top off the fuel cell and add a spring rubber to the right-rear of the truck. Buescher rejoined the field in 19th-place.

The race returned to green on lap 48. The Ergon Tundra was still too tight for Buescher’s liking, however he managed to pick up two positions and move into 17th-place before the next caution, lap 90. To gain track position, crew chief Doug George opted for a two-tire change, along with a track bar adjustment to loosen up the truck. Buescher moved into 10th-place for the restart.

The race went green on lap 95. The Ergon Tundra was still pushing through the turns and preventing Buescher from standing on the throttle. He dropped back to 19th-place before the caution flag halted the action on lap 124. George called Buescher into the pits for his final stop. The crew changed the tires and made a track bar adjustment to help the handling of the vehicle. Buescher returned to the track in 19th-place.

The green flag waved on lap 130. Buescher held his position to bring home a top-20 finish in the Ford 200.

“I learned a lot this weekend,” said Buescher. “I hadn’t raced a truck or seen this racetrack until this week. The Ergon team did a great job bringing me up to speed and helping my learning curve. We were tight for most of the race. We made some pretty big adjustments on the truck, but none seemed to help it very much. It just kept getting tighter as the race went on. It was a good race though, especially considering that we had never worked together before this race. To leave with a top-20 is not too bad. I want to thank Ergon and Billy Ballew for giving me this opportunity.”