Tony Raines "Magic Mile" Preview
Upcoming Race: Busch 200.
Tony Raines and the rest of the Busch Series
competitors head to the New Hampshire International Speedway (NHIS) for race No.
11 of the scheduled 34 Busch Series events. The "Magic Mile", as NHIS is
commonly known, is a 1.058-mile oval located in Loudon, New Hampshire. Both
turns one and two, as well as three and four, are evenly banked at 12 degrees.
Previous Race: Hardee's 250.
Tony Raines' bad luck continued to hamper the progress of the No. 33 team as a
blown engine on lap 51 of the 250 lap event regulated Raines to a 37th
place finish under the lights at the Richmond International Speedway. Due to
inclement weather, Bud Pole qualifying was canceled and the field was set based
on owner's points. Raines started the race in the 17th place spot.
After working his way through traffic during the early part of the race, Raines
was running comfortably in tenth went the engine expired coming off of turn 2.
"The car was really fast through the center of the corner," commented Raines
following the race. "That is what we all inspire to have; a car that will fly
through the center of the corner. Unfortunately for us, the motor expired and
sent us home a little earlier than expected."
The Ride:
Tony Raines will be piloting chassis No.30 this
weekend at NHIS. This car previously ran this past weekend in Richmond.
Although it could only boast a 37th place finish, the car
demonstrated great corner handling that will be an asset for the tight turns of
the "Magic Mile". In addition, Raines will be sporting a new scheme for this
weekend's event. Raines has his sponsor, Bayer Consumer Care, have teamed up to
run a special paint scheme which features Bayer's newest product for women,
Bayer Women's Aspirin plus Calcium. The primary colors for the car are white
and Carolina blue.
Tony Raines on racing at NHIS:
"Well, they have changed the track
around a little. I expect that everybody will be in the dark when they get
there. It is like a surprise, like a Jack in the box, you really won't know
what you have got until you get there. I like the track, assuming that they
didn't change it a whole lot. Hopefully they didn't change it to the point that
it is no good or that it is so different that we are not prepared for it. I
feel like we can figure it out. It is a flat track. It is either going to be
flat with U-Turns or flat with two turns on each end."
Tony Raines on sporting a new scheme:
"I think the car looks good. We
ran the white scheme at Richmond and everybody on the team liked it. It was
really bright and stood out well against the black surface. Hopefully, we got
all the bad luck shook out of that paint scheme and we can have a good run with
all the decals on this weekend."
Crew Chief Michael Kadlecik on NHIS:
"They changed the race course and
nobody really knows what they did to it. Your car has got to turn and that is
why we are taking the one from Richmond. The car this past weekend was awesome
and I felt it was definitely a top-two car. From what I have understood about
the track, instead of having a gradual entry like we have had at Loudon in the
past, you are going to have a sharper entry more similar to Richmond. So that
is why we feel confident in taking the car from this past weekend. Until you
see it, you won't know. However, I do know, you better turn at Loudon or you
will be in for a long day."
Current Standings:
Raines currently sits in 21st place
in the NASCAR Busch Series driver's point standings with. Raines is credited
with two top-ten finishes this season and has collected nearly $190,000 in
winnings so far in 2002.
Tony Raines Past Performances at NHIS
Year Start
Finish
1999 6 13
2000 11 15
2001 17 12
Avg. Start- 11.3
Avg. Finish- 13.3
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