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Food City 250 - Hank Parker Jr. Notes Hank Parker Jr. / GNC Live Well Racing Pre-Race Notes EVENT INFORMATION - Event: NASCAR Busch Series Food City 250; Time and Date: 8 p.m. EDT, Friday, August 24; Site: Bristol Motor Speedway, Bristol, Tenn. Live Coverage: TNT Network (television) and PRN (radio); Qualifying: 3:30 p.m. EDT, Thursday, August 23; Happy Hour: Friday, August 24, 1:45 p.m. EDT. 2001 SPRING RACE AT BRISTOL - The No. 36 GNC Live Well Chevrolet rolled off from the 21st starting spot in the Cheez-It 250 Busch Series race in March of 2001 at Bristol Motor Speedway. Hank Parker Jr. was caught up in an accident that also involved Jeff Green around lap 50 of the 250-lap event. Unable to get his car in reverse to back away from the carnage, Parker lost a number of laps as he waited for the safety crews to remove the wrecked vehicles blocking his path. Parker finished the race in 21st position, 22 laps down to race winner Matt Kenseth. STANDINGS - Hank Parker Jr. currently sits 20th in the NASCAR Busch Series drivers' points standings, while team owner Scott Welliver is 23rd in owners' points. SOMETHING OLD, SOMETHING NEW - The No. 36 GNC Live Well Racing team is now working for a new organization, but for the same owner. Scott Welliver announced on Wednesday that he and his cousin, Jeff Welliver, had purchased all assets of the Cicci-Welliver Racing organization, effective immediately. The buyout brought to an end the 10-year relationship between Scott Welliver and his former partner, Frank Cicci. The Wellivers will continue to operate three NASCAR Busch Series teams under the banner of Welliver Racing. In addition to the No. 36, the No. 66 Phillips 66 Chevrolet, driven by Geoffrey Bodine, and the No. 34 AFG Glass Chevrolet, driven by David Green, will continue to work from the teams' facilities near Concord, N.C. INTERIM CREW CHIEF NAMED - Ted Kennedy, who has worked with the No. 36 team since June as a shock specialist, was named on Monday as the interim crew chief for Hank Parker Jr. Kennedy has found success as a crew chief in both the NASCAR Featherlite Southwest Tour Series (STS) and the NASCAR Winston West Series (WWS). In 1996, he helped lead Chris Raudman to both the "Rookie of the Year" title and the STS championship for Chris Raudman Racing, becoming the first organization in the history of that series to claim both titles. In 1999, working with Bill McAnally Racing and driver Sean Woodside, Kennedy served as crew chief for Woodside's four wins and two Busch pole awards. The team went on to claim the 1999 NASCAR Winston West Series championship. HANK PARKER JR. ON THE CHANGE IN TEAM OWNERSHIP - "Change is never an easy thing, but I believe Scott and Jeff did what they feel is best for this organization. I try not to get too caught up in what's going on in the front office. My job is to drive the car the best way I know how, so I try to stay focused on that and leave the rest of it to people who know more about the business end than I do. "I do know that no one in this organization has been satisfied with the way any of the teams have been performing this year. We'll move forward from here and focus on finishing this season as strongly as we can and get prepared to give GNC the strong runs they deserve this season and in 2002." ON THE BRISTOL MOTOR SPEEDWAY NIGHT RACE- "To steal a line from a beer commercial, 'It don't get no better than this.' I love short-track racing, especially under the lights. It reminds me of being back at Concord Speedway, where I got my start in Late Models. The energy level here at the night race is unbelievable, there's an electricity in the air that's hard to describe. When you get here and see this place filled up with fans, you understand why everyone wants to see a Bristol night race at least once. "It's so much fun to be a part of, if you avoid the big wreck, that is. You just try to be in the right place at the right time and get through it as best you can. If you survive at Bristol, it's a good race. The key to getting around this place is to be able to get your car down on the white line in the turns. Handling is key here, and if you don't have a good handling car, you're in for a long night. Well, it's a long night if you don't wreck. If you wreck, then it's a really long night." ON THE LAYOUT OF BRISTOL MOTOR SPEEDWAY - "At some other tracks, you can kind of look ahead and get a sense of what's waiting for you in the turns, you really don't get to do that here. The track is so steep that, when you're down in the middle of a turn, it's really difficult to see what's coming up ahead of you. It makes you rely that much more on your spotter. He really is your lifeline at a track like this. "You really only look out a small part of your windshield at Bristol. You're constantly looking out the upper left hand side of your car, which really cuts down on what you can see. But worse than not knowing what's coming up ahead of you is not knowing what's coming up behind you. You can sometimes avoid a wreck that's in front of you, but there's not much that can be done about a guy slamming into your car from behind."
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