LABONTE HANGS ON DESPITE ROUGH RIDE AT PHOENIX

Source: Janice Goss
Date: 11/13/2006

It wasn’t the day that Bobby Labonte or the No. 77 Dollar General stores crew wanted, but they made the most of it. They ran into trouble early in the Busch Series event at Phoenix (Ariz.) International Raceway (PIR), dealing with a brake duct grinding the right-front tire. Two pit stops later, the No. 77 Dollar General stores crew had fixed the problem but found Labonte buried deep in the field. Undeterred, Labonte began picking off positions and was in the mid-20s when right-front tire issues resurfaced. This time, the tire went down, breaking the right-front sway bar in the process. The No. 77 crew worked quickly to make repairs and returned Labonte to the track. Labonte was able to finish the event, crossing the start/finish line in the 34th position.

The Dollar General stores team unloaded primary car No. 025 for the Arizona.Travel 200 event in Phoenix (Ariz.) International Raceway. The Busch Series cars took to the track in first practice Friday afternoon. Low on the speed charts the Dollar General stores crew worked diligently on the No. 77 to seek out the problem and correct it. Labonte’s feedback to the crew led them to replace the truck arms on the Dollar General stores Chevrolet. Completing only four laps in the first practice session, the Dollar General stores crew had repaired the issue and was ready for the final practice session. Five laps into the final practice session, Labonte lost control of the No. 77 Dollar General stores machine, due to too much brake in the rear. At the point of the incident, the No. 77 Dollar General machine was the fastest car on the track making “race-preparation” runs as apposed to “qualifying” runs. Labonte was released from the infield care center with no injuries, and the Dollar General stores team was forced to bring out the back-up car.

As the Busch Series garage closed Friday night for the rest of the teams, the Dollar General team was granted an hour and a half of extra time to prepare the Dollar General back-up car for qualifying on Saturday morning. Labonte drew the last qualifying position for the Saturday morning qualifying session. With the Dollar General stores Chevrolet Monte Carlo SS not having a lap of practice, Labonte took care to not over drive it and provided valuable feedback to crew chief, Gene Nead. The Dollar General stores car lined up 41st on the grid, but was forced to start from the rear of the field due to racing a back-up car and having a motor change.

The green flag waved over the field and Labonte was moving forward when it appeared that the dark cloud had lifted off the Dollar General stores team. By lap 20, Labonte was knocking on the 30th position and brought the car down pit road for four tires, fuel and a track bar adjustment to help with tight-handling in the center of the corner. On lap 25, Labonte was forced to return to pit road after reporting a right-front tire rub. The Dollar General stores crew went to work pushing the right-front brake duct off the tire and returning to the track. As the field took the green flag for the restart, Labonte was moving forward and by lap 50 was running 26th.

The field was slowed down due to the No. 77 looping around on lap 56. Without making any contact Labonte nursed the car around the track and down pit road to replace a right front tire that had been cut down. Due to the right-front tire being flat and continued driving around the track, the sway bar was ground down and eventually too weak to hold. On lap 65 Labonte brought the Dollar General stores Chevrolet behind the pit wall for repairs. The Dollar General stores crew worked quickly to fix the issue and returned Labonte to the track on lap 83.

Labonte reported that the car was loose on the entry to middle of the corner, but wasn’t too bad. Making light of the situation, Labonte joked with the crew that, “you can bet your bottom dollar, I’m not gonna be going to the casino tonight.” Crew chief, Gene Nead responded, “I know how you feel.” Labonte ended the day in the 34th position.

The Busch Series teams are down to the season finale. The final Busch Series event can be seen live on Saturday, November 18 on TNT at 7:00 p.m. ET.

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ABOUT DOLLAR GENERAL:

Dollar General is a Fortune 500® discount retailer with more than 8,000 stores. Dollar General stores offer convenience and value to customers by offering consumable basic items that are frequently used and replenished, such as food, snacks, health and beauty aids and cleaning supplies, as well as a selection of basic apparel, housewares and seasonal items at everyday low prices. The Company store support center is located in Goodlettsville, Tennessee. Dollar General's website can be reached at www.dollargeneral.com.

ABOUT KEVIN HARVICK INC.:

Kevin Harvick Inc. (KHI) is a 70,000 sq. ft. facility located in Kernersville, N.C. KHI is home to the No. 33 AES Truck Series team and driver Ron Hornaday, the No. 33 Outdoor Channel/Old Spice Busch Series team with drivers Tony Stewart, Ron Hornaday, Ron Fellows and Kevin Harvick and the No. 77 Dollar General stores Busch Series team with driver Bobby Labonte. KHI enters into its third year of full-time competition in 2006 in NASCAR’s elite divisions. Please visit www.kevinharvickinc.com for more information.

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