Race 2 Win: Diamond Hill Plywood 200

NASCAR Busch Series

Diamond Hill Plywood 200 - Kevin Harvick Notes

Kevin Harvick
No. 21 U.S. Coast Guard Chevrolet
Event Preview Fact Sheet

Event/Date: Diamond Hill Plywood – May 12, 2006
Venue: Darlington (S.C.) Raceway

NOTES:

This Week’s Race Car at Darlington Raceway … Kevin Harvick will race chassis No. 037 from the Richard Childress Racing (RCR) stable. Re-skinned for the 2006 season, Jeff Burton raced it at California (started 21st, finished fourth), Atlanta (started eighth, finished first) and Texas ( started 16th, finished sixth)

Stat Facts … In seven Busch Series starts at Darlington Raceway, Harvick has posted one pole, one top-five, and three top-10 finishes. The Bakersfield, Calif., native also has been running at the finish of each of his seven Busch races at the 1.366-mile egg-shaped track.

In the Loop … Harvick dominates the loop data for the NASCAR Busch Series. He leads four categories – driver rating (114.7), quality passes (603), percentage of laps run on lead lap (100%) and miles led (421.19).

Owner Victories … With Team Coast Guard’s four wins this season (Kevin Harvick – 3, Jeff Burton – 1) Richard Childress has collected a total of 30 wins in the NASCAR Busch Series, tying him with Aline Ingram for third on the all-time car owner career wins list.

Special Guest … This weekend Captain Curtis B. Odom, the Commanding Officer of the Coast Guard Training Center, in Cape May, N.J., will be the honorary crew member for the No. 21 team. He leads the unit that shapes new recruits into Coast Guardsmen ready for duty. Captain Odom is a native of Darlington, S.C. He received his commission in 1977 from the United States Coast Guard Academy.

Did you Know … “Happy” Harvick led 321 laps this past weekend at Richmond International Raceway. He led 49 laps in the NASCAR Busch Series race en route to his third win of the season and led 272 laps during the Cup race, which is the most laps lead for Harvick in a single race.

Testing One, Two, Three, Testing … Harvick and the No. 21 Coast Guard team tested at Lowe’s Motor Speedway in Charlotte this week in preparation for the Carquest Auto Parts 300 later this month. The test was the last one allowed under NASCAR’s 2006 testing policy.

What a Leader … Crew chief Shane Wilson has started the season off with 11 straight top-10 finishes. Ten have come with the No. 21 Coast Guard Chevy and one with the No. 29 Hershey’s Kissables Chevy at Daytona. Wilson has also led the Coast Guard team to four wins (Atlanta, Nashville, Phoenix and Richmond)

New Sponsor for 2006 … The Richard Tocado Companies, associate sponsor on the No. 21 Coast Guard Chevrolet, specialize in home mortgage refinancing and interest-only mortgages. Since its inception in 1999, stating with catchphrase “one free, five minute phone call is all it takes to get started,” President and founder Richard Tocado has been instrumental in growing this once small entity into a multimillion dollar mortgage and real estate corporation. Headquartered in Charlotte, N.C., the Richard Tocado Companies has provide its services to thousands of consumers throughout the United States.

Always Setting the Standard … A Coast Guard officer, Lieutenant Elmer Stone, became the first pilot to successfully complete a trans-Atlantic flight, this week in May, 1919. Lieutenant Stone flew a NC-4 “Flying Boat” from Rockaway, N.Y., to Lisbon, Portugal and is regarded as the first hero of Coast Guard Aviation.

Up to Speed … The Diamond Hill Plywood 200 at Darlington Raceway will be televised live Friday, May 12 beginning at 7:30 p.m. EDT on FX. The Motor Racing Network (MRN) and XM Satellite will also carry the race broadcast live. Qualifying for the Diamond Hill Plywood will air live on SPEED Friday, May 12 beginning at 5 p.m. EDT.

KEVIN HARVICK QUOTES:

What do you contribute to you recent string of success?
“It’s been very fun to be a part of it all. I think the last time I went on a roll like this, I was racing late models. The teams have done a great job this year. Everybody has put great race cars together and we have been able to capitalize on situations whether we had the best car or not. We have been putting ourselves in a position to win races and doing the things we need to do to give ourselves a chance to win. It’s been a lot of fun.”

What’s your impression of Darlington?
“Darlington’s tough, but I like it. It’s a very narrow, fast racetrack that has a lot of history and is very prestigious to win. It’s one of those places where I’d like to win either in the Busch Series or in the NEXTEL Cup Series. Keeping the car off the walls is a key when you go to Darlington. You’ve got to get in a rhythm there and be consistent over the long runs. You have to take care of the fenders, tires and sides of the car.”

How well does you team perform at Darlington Raceway?
“It seems like Darlington is feast or famine for both my teams. When we avoid trouble, we always run in the top-10. But if we get into the wall or struggle mechanically, then we never seem to be able to fight our way back. The one thing I have seen this year is that my teams are willing to fight back and get the best finish we can. Hopefully, we can stay out of trouble and run up-front all night long. That’s what championship teams do week in and week out.”