INDIANAPOLIS, July 26, 2007 – Wisconsin Dells native Frank Kreyer drives into this Saturday’s NASCAR BUSCH Series Kroger 200, his third event in the series, a much more confident racer thanks to a combination of increasing familiarity with the Mac Hill Motorsports Culver’s Racing #56 Chevrolet Monte Carlo SS and experience here at the O’Reilly Raceway Park venue.
The NASCAR rookie enters Saturday’s qualifying session with DNFs in his initial two BUSCH races: the first a result of being punted into the wall on lap 221 of last month’s AT&T 250 at the Milwaukee Mile; the second this past weekend when brake failure forced retirement on the 41st lap of the Gateway 250 at Gateway International Raceway.
Despite these setbacks, the 37-year-old short-track specialist remains optimistic.
“I am getting really comfortable in the car and communicating well with (crew chief) Tony Lambert about how I want the car to behave and what it is doing on the track,” he said. “And I have raced my late model on this track successfully. The last time, I started toward the back of the field, had moved up to second and was challenging for the lead, when, with four laps to go, I ran out of gas.”
Jack McNelly, Mac Hill team owner, also likes the progress he sees by Kreyer.
“You can tell Frank is adjusting to both the car and racing at this level, something he discovered was very different from his extensive experience driving super late model stock cars in the upper Midwest,” said McNelly. “Don’t get me wrong, the driving he has done has been a good, solid training for competing in the BUSCH Series, but he just needs seat time in this program to move into the next echelon.”
Kreyer’s increasing time behind the wheel continues at 9 a.m. Saturday, July 28 during the first scheduled practice session on the .686-mile banked oval, with two more practice rounds to follow prior to the 4:35 p.m. (all times Eastern Daylight-savings Time)
qualifying session and the 8 p.m. start of the race (which will be broadcast live beginning at 7:30 p.m. on ESPN2).
“I remain excited about being in NASCAR,” said the long-time Culver’s-supported driver. “The opportunity the folks at Culver’s, as well as Mac Hill Motorsports and Key Motorsports (which ran the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Chevrolet Silverado he drove earlier this season in two races) has been a dream come true.”
Culver’s, the restaurant chain known for its fresh, frozen custard and ButterBurgers®, has been a sponsor for six years of Kreyer’s racing in Wisconsin and the upper Midwest. Kreyer grew up among the short-track racers and has raced everything from motorcycles to lawn mowers.
In addition to the NASCAR program – which concludes with the November 10 Arizona Travel 200 at Phoenix International Raceway – Kreyer will continue driving the #99 Culver’s Ford Fusion in the Wisconsin Challenge Series, along with selected appearances in the ASA Midwest Tour in Wisconsin, Illinois, Iowa and Minnesota.
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