RON HORNADAY, KEVIN HARVICK & RICK CARELLI - TOGETHER AGAIN

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. Things have come full circle at Kevin Harvick Inc., a phenomenon the team hopes will culminate in the 2007 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series championship.

Call it what you may – old-home week or just former comrades-in-arms reuniting – but there’s little doubt the opportunity to meld talent with familiarity is creating unlimited potential.

Driver Ron Hornaday Jr. (No. 33 AES HR Solutions Chevrolet), crew chief Rick Ren and Team Manager Rick Carelli may have come to KHI from different directions but each has been linked to the other since the beginning of the series in 1995.

Two of the trio – Hornaday and Carelli – also have a relationship with Kevin Harvick that reaches into the NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series star’s teen-age years.

"Right now at KHI the people we have in place, the drivers we have and the crew chiefs we have is pretty impressive," said Carelli, whose first of four victories was shared with Ren at Bristol Motor Speedway in 1995.

Hornaday was among Harvick’s mentors when he began his NASCAR weekly racing career at the old Mesa Marin Raceway in Bakersfield, Calif.

And, a number of years ago, Harvick’s father, Mike, was crew chief of Carelli’s late model racing team.

"I know where Kevin is with this program, Hornaday speaks for himself and you have sort of a quiet storm putting him and Rick (Ren) together," said Carelli, Hornaday’s spotter in 2006 when the driver won races at Mansfield Motorsports Park and Kentucky Speedway.

Hornaday, who finished seventh in last year’s point standings, is excited about the acquisition of Ren, a five-time winner in 2006 with Bill Davis Racing’s Johnny Benson (No. 23 Exide Battery/Toyota Certified Used Vehicles Toyota).

"Everything changes in NASCAR racing, especially these trucks, so you have to stay on top of it," said the 48-year-old, two-time series champion. "Last year, (crew chief) Wally (Rogers) was cut thin between the Busch car and the truck and Kevin obligated himself to do the right thing.

"Kevin was down here yesterday trying to help us out and showing the interest an owner needs to know to show that he and DeLana are really gung-ho about the whole situation."

Harvick, Clint Bowyer and newcomer Cale Gale will share driving duties in a second KHI truck. Veteran Charlie Wilson, like Harvick a Bakersfield native, has been appointed crew chief of the No. 2 Chevrolet.

"I had a really good working relationship with Rick but the problem was they lived in Colorado and they wanted somebody there fulltime so we parted ways after the ’97 year," said Ren. "But Rick, his wife and my wife have kept up a very good ‘race relationship’ over all these years.

"We go out to eat; I remember we went out to eat at Richmond (in 2000), the night before he won in his comeback from being hurt. That was a really memorable moment."

Ren believes the team has championship potential.

"You know when you already have a relationship with the team manager, I know the driver – his record speaks for itself – and I see the owner who is a young guy trying to build his programs," said Ren, who has won in the series with Benson, Carelli, Andy Houston and Travis Kvapil (No. 6 Ford). "(Kevin) has climbed the rungs of the ladder and he’s gaining.

"Maybe we haven’t all worked together but we already know each other. When you walk in the door you already know what they expect of you."

2006 Standings Runnerup Is Optimistic … Despite the departure of crew chief Ren, Benson remains optimistic about his chance of becoming the series’ 10th champion. "Even if our team was 100 percent intact and didn’t have Rick as a change, we’d face the same changes coming in here anyway," said Benson. "With the changes to the front end of the truck and the tire change those challenges are made no matter what. It’s not like we unloaded a truck that came right off the track last year." Benson believes the team’s success will carry over into the new campaign with crew chief Trip Bruce, a NASCAR Craftsman Truck veteran with Evernham Motorsports and Ultra Motorsports. "Momentum is key, because it gives the guys a great attitude coming into the season for sure."

Lap Leaders … A quick glance at today’s top times: Saturday morning session – top five lap times:

1. Travis Kvapil, Ford – 50.180 seconds/179.354 mph 2. Erik Darnell, Ford – 50.633 seconds/177.750 mph 3. Peter Shepherd, Ford – 50.703 seconds/177.504 mph 4. A.J. Allmendinger, Toyota – 50.806 seconds/177.144 mph 5. Mike Skinner, Toyota - 50.967 seconds/176.585 mph

Friday afternoon drafting session

1. Travis Kvapil, Ford – 48.252 seconds/186.521 mph 2. A.J. Allmendinger, Toyota – 48.399 seconds/185.954 mph 3. Jack Sprague, Toyota – 48.730 seconds/184.691 mph 4. Tyler Walker, Toyota – 48.767 seconds/184.551 mph 5. Mike Skinner, Toyota – 48.825 seconds/184.332 mph

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