Idaho anticipating Tolsma's return

MERIDIAN, Idaho (August 16, 2000) - Family, friends and fans are set to welcome home Randy Tolsma, driver of the No. 25 CITGO-SUPERGARD Motor Oil Dodge and the most recent winner in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series. Tolsma is the man who is putting Idaho on the map in the history books of NASCAR. He and wife Tiffanie are going west on their weekend away from the tracks of the truck series circuit and heading to Idaho to spend time with family, and at Meridian Speedway, where it all began.

Randy’s grandfather, Ray Tolsma helped in the building of Meridian Speedway. As a child, Tolsma watched his uncles Don and Tony Tolsma, and father Ron race in late model stock cars. Randy picked weeds out of the walls of the track and worked in the concession stands - doing anything to immerse himself in the track atmosphere. He started racing go-karts at the age of 9 and racked up more than 100 wins before he got his license to drive a car.

Memories from Meridian Speedway are strong, as Randy is the reigning Midget track record holder and it's the place where he met his future wife in the pits as a teenager.

"I am so excited about going home," said the winner of last weekend's Federated Auto Parts 250 at Nashville Speedway. "When I was a little kid, I would have never dreamed I’d be in the position I am today. It's an honor to wear a uniform with a name like CITGO-SUPERGARD Motor Oil on it and to drive for Dodge. Being involved in NASCAR is a dream come true. Like I said, I never imagined my career would reach this level."

When Tiffanie met Randy in the pits at Meridian Speedway, they were 16 and 17. Randy was already making a name for himself in Boise, and Tiffanie was a competitive go kart racer herself. They have been together ever since, and Tiffanie has not missed a race in 17 years.

"The timing of this win could not be better," said Tiffanie. "I'm so proud of Randy for his accomplishments and we are very happy to be going home to Idaho with this win behind us."

So how does someone from Meridian, Idaho make it to the elite level of NASCAR competition?

"Sacrifice," said Tolsma. " Sacrifice, hard work, and dedication. Tiffanie and my parents have always supported my dream of making it in racing. I have been truly blessed having them in my life. I remember Tiffanie and I eating cereal for dinner or me selling a painting so we'd be able to go racing that weekend. I could not have persevered without their support. So when I go home, I want to spend as much time giving something back to the people who have supported me- my family, friends, and the fans."

Annette Dunn, the Director of Promotions for Meridian Speedway speaks for the entire town when she said, "We are so excited about Randy coming home its more than we can stand! I stood up on a pit box last weekend during our race and announced Randy had won in Nashville and everyone burst into screams and cheers. We're just so excited and we root for him week."

Since Tolsma took the checkered flag for the win last weekend in Nashville, he's been absolutely relishing in the media frenzy that's taking place around him. "This is just another phenomenal part of my job. I just love it," smiled Tolsma. The next chance Tolsma will have to sit down and take a breather is when he jumps back into the No. 25 CITGO-SUPERGARD Motor Oil Dodge at Chicago Motor Speedway August 25th.