UAW-DaimlerChrysler 400 - Ken Schrader Notes

Ken Schrader Notes, Quotes: UAW-DaimlerChrysler 400
Looking to build off solid Fontana run

Ken Schrader and the #49 Schwan’s Home Service Dodge team head to the 1.5-mile Las Vegas (Nev.) Motor Speedway this week for Sunday’s UAW-DaimlerChrysler 400; the third race of the 2005 NASCAR Nextel Cup season.

After a week off for the series, though not for Schrader who was racing late models in Texas, the Schwan’s Home Service team will be looking to carry the momentum from a promising run at Fontana in which Schrader was among the fastest all day and finished 14th despite his 38th starting position. The finish was the highest for BAM Racing at the two-mile California Speedway.

Driver of the #49 Schwan’s Home Service Dodge, Schrader is a native of Fenton, Mo. The busiest driver in major league motorsports, Schrader has raced and continues to race on virtually every type of speedway in virtually every type of race car. Schrader continues a winning career with BAM Racing, which fields the Schwan’s Home Service team.

The team is owned by Beth Ann and Tony Morgenthau, investors from Coral Gables, Fla. Ms. Morgenthau, whose initials make up the name of the team – BAM Racing – is the only female car owner in motorsports to become involved without prior family connections. General manager Eddie Jones is a veteran of the NASCAR Nextel Cup wars, enjoying a championship career as a crew chief, mechanic and team leader. Crew chief David Hyder has over 20 years of racing experience both driving and as a chief mechanic.

The Schwan Food Company is a privately held manufacturer and marketer of fine frozen foods through its nationwide Schwan’s Home Service home-delivery service, its Schwan’s Consumer Brands North America retail grocery business, and its Schwan’s Food Service Group foodservice unit. Headquartered in Marshall, Minn., Schwan’s production and distribution activities in the United States and Europe employ 24,000 people. Among its well-known brands are Schwan’s®, Tony’s®, Red Baron®, Freschetta®, Pagoda®, Mrs. Smith’s®, and Edwards®.

The thoughts of Schwan’s Home Service Dodge driver Ken Schrader heading into Las Vegas:

“Off to Las Vegas; the one track on the circuit everyone wants to go to. Is it because of the great side-by-side racing? Well, not exactly. But, Vegas will get a free pass, or in this case, ‘free spin,’ when it comes to that. Personally, I like the track. If your car is handling well, of course, you’re going to like it. If it’s not, you’ll be ready to get back in line at one of those all-you-can-eat deals downtown. Vegas is one of the flattest superspeedways on the circuit and if you can’t keep your car on the bottom through the turns it’s going to make for a long weekend.

“Our superspeedway program is something we’ve put a great amount of energy into improving over the off season. It only makes sense considering that a large percentage of our events are at those tracks. We had a promising run at Fontana a couple weeks ago. That’s one of the better handling race cars that I’ve ever had. David (Hyder, crew chief) and the guys did a great job setting that car up. We had a great test at Fontana a few weeks before the season started and it carried over to our on-track performance. We had a really good test out at Vegas around the same time, so hopefully the same will hold true this weekend. If we handle as well as we did in Fontana and stay out of trouble, then we should have another good run at Las Vegas.

“A lot is being made over NASCAR’s enforcement of speeding on pit road. Back in Daytona, we were caught for speeding and believe it or not it was only the second time I had ever been caught for speeding on pit road… ever! It’s kind of hard to get mad because they’re clocking it electronically, but it was extremely frustrating. A lot of guys have been getting caught so it’s something everyone is going to have to adjust to.

“The way I see it, you’re just going to have to slow down and make sure you don’t speed. It’s pretty simple. Yeah, you might feel like you’re losing a little time getting in and out of the pits, but it’s better than having to come back in for a ‘pass-through’ penalty and drop off the lead lap as a result. Some of the guys are trying to figure out where the timing traps are on pit road so that they can gain a little advantage, but as one of my co-panelists (on Inside Nextel Cup) will tell you, that didn’t work either.

“Two weeks ago at Fontana was a big morale booster for this Schwan’s Home Service team. It’s like anything in team sports; you want to go out and get the results you know you’re capable of. We were good at Fontana, probably a little bit better than where we finished, but we proved to ourselves that we’re capable of running that way. Now we have to go out and build on that momentum. It’s not easy; nothing ever is in Nextel Cup. But, we feel good about what we’ve got going here, and we all know what confidence can do for an organization.”