Emerson Radio 250 - Landon Cassill Notes

PREVIEW: LANDON CASSILL (NO. 24 NATIONAL GUARD CHEVROLET)
VENUE: RICHMOND INTERNATIONAL RACEWAY (.75-MILE D-SHAPED OVAL)
CIRCUIT: NASCAR BUSCH SERIES (RACE 28 OF 35)
EVENT: FRIDAY, SEPT. 7, 2007 (250 LAPS, 187.5 MILES)

CASSILL RETURNS: Landon Cassill, 18, returns to NASCAR Busch Series competition this Friday night at Richmond (Va.) International Raceway. The race will be Cassill's third of the 2007 Busch Series season and the third of his young career. The Cedar Rapids, Iowa, native competed at Gateway International Raceway in July and at O'Reilly Raceway Park at Indianapolis in August.

CASSILL'S SCHEDULE: Cassill's most recent outing came at Pocono Raceway, where he led 36 laps in the August ARCA Series race. In total, Cassill has competed in six events for Hendrick Motorsports this season -- two NASCAR Busch Series races, two NASCAR Busch Series East races and two ARCA races.

KEEP 'EM COMING: Following this Friday's race at Richmond International Raceway, Cassill will next compete Sept. 22 at Dover (Del.) International Speedway and finish the season with races at Memphis (Tenn.) Motorsports Park and Phoenix International Raceway.

SUPER SPOTTER: 1994 Busch Series champion David Green will be Cassill's spotter in Friday's race at RIR. Green, who spotted for Cassill during practice sessions at both Gateway and O'Reilly Raceway Park, has also filled the role as mentor for Cassill, coaching him through his first year of NASCAR competition.

24 TEAM AT RICHMOND: The No. 24 National Guard team, headed by crew chief Chad Walter, finished seventh at RIR in May with driver Casey Mears.

REPRESENT: The hood of the No. 24 National Guard Chevrolet will honor the 32nd Infantry Brigade from Wisconsin this weekend. Cassill will meet with select National Guard soldiers prior to Friday night's race.

GONE TESTING: Since his last Busch Series race, Cassill has tested four times for Hendrick Motorsports. He has driven NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series cars twice at Kentucky Speedway and once at the Milwaukee Mile.

TRAINING REGIMEN: While not testing or competing on the track, Cassill has a strict training routine that he follows. The Hendrick Motorsports human performance group designed a program for the young driver that includes weight lifting and cardiovascular development.

CHASSIS 402: Crew chief Chad Walter has selected Hendrick Motorsports Chassis No. 402 for Friday's Busch Series race at Richmond. Cassill qualified sixth at Gateway International Raceway in the car and Casey Mears also drove it to a seventh-place finish at Richmond in May.

CASSILL TO THE CAPITAL: Cassill will fly to Washington, D.C., on Thursday to meet with National Guard soldiers at the Army National Guard Readiness Center. Following an introduction to the center's employees, Cassill will be available for pictures while his National Guard teammate Casey Mears holds an autograph session.

TEAM BUILDING: On Monday, Cassill will ride in a Chinook helicopter with his No. 24 National Guard team to Fort Jackson Army base in Columbia, S.C., to take part in a team building experience at the military base. While there, Cassill will receive firearm instruction, observe training activities and attempt the basic training obstacle course. Fort Jackson trains in excess of 45,000 soldiers annually.

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LANDON CASSILL, DRIVER OF THE NO. 24 NATIONAL GUARD CHEVROLET: (ON WHAT HE LEARNED IN HIS FIRST TWO NASCAR BUSCH SERIES RACES.) "So far I've learned that it's really important to go hard at the beginning, but you really have to be able to put yourself in the right position on the race track to keep yourself out of trouble. And if you're going for the win, you've got to be able to put yourself in the right position for the win. So hopefully I can apply some of the things I learned in the first two races to put the National Guard Chevrolet up front."

CASSILL: (ON HIS UNFAMILARITY WITH RICHMOND INTERNATIONAL RACEWAY.) "I haven't been there, but I've talked to other drivers and have gotten great advice on Richmond. David Green will be my spotter and he's been a huge asset to my performance this year. I've heard that it's a really fun race track and I'm looking forward to having a good time."

CASSILL: (ON USING A RACE SIMULATOR.) "I usually do a lot of testing on the computer and make myself go faster. The cars aren't always realistic, but the track usually is. It's definitely trying to get an edge on everything I can. I use the simulator to hit my marks, so I'll maybe know what I'm doing when I go out there with the National Guard Chevrolet [LAUGHS]."

CASSILL: (ON WHAT HE'S DONE SINCE HIS LAST RACE.) "Since my last race with the National Guard Chevrolet I've been able to test the Impala SS Car of Tomorrow. I've also done some testing on the Busch (Series) side. I've been to Lakeland, Fla., and I've been to Milwaukee with the COT. I've just been trying to keep myself in a race car as much as possible."

CASSILL: (ON HOW HIS HENDRICK MOTORSPORTS TEAMMATES HAVE HELPED HIM.) "I talk to my teammates as much as I can. I see them on race weekends. Even if I'm not racing, I try to go to as many races as I can. I see them in the trailer, talk to them before they get into the car if I can. Jeff, Jimmie, Casey and Kyle, they're all really nice and easy to talk to and get along with. They're always there if I need help. David Green has also been huge for me this year. He's kind of been my mentor this year and he's up there on the spotter's stand helping me out. He's another set of eyes for me."