BUSCH: Dick Trickle to Run Jimmy Spencer's Car
Trickle to run Spencer's NASCAR Busch Series car By Shawn A. Akers CHARLOTTE, N.C. (Jan. 14, 1999) Dick Trickle, who has raced full-time in the NASCAR Winston Cup Series the past few years, will run a full schedule in 1999 in the NASCAR Busch ...
Trickle to run Spencer's NASCAR Busch Series car By Shawn A. Akers
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (Jan. 14, 1999) Dick Trickle, who has raced full-time in the NASCAR Winston Cup Series the past few years, will run a full schedule in 1999 in the NASCAR Busch Series Grand National Division for Spencer Motor Ventures, with Schneider National Trucking as his sponsor, Trickle said Thursday.
Trickle has been unable to find a full-time NASCAR Winston Cup Series ride since his departure from Donlavey Racing at the end of last season. He and team owner Jimmy Spencer came to an agreement recently for Trickle to race the No. 5 Schneider National Chevrolet, beginning in 1999.
Schneider was the primary sponsor on Trickle's car this past season at Shoemaker Racing, but the deal was only for a partial schedule because of Trickle's NASCAR Winston Cup Series commitments. That won't be a problem this year, although Trickle is scheduled to drive Bill Elliott's No. 13 Ford Taurus in the season-opening Daytona 500 on Feb. 14.
"This is a great deal," Trickle said. "Schneider was a good sponsor last year and I'm excited just being able to bring this team (at Spencer Motor Ventures) to the next level. Jimmy's going to have like three brand new cars going for him plus we'll have some spares of his. He's building a new quality shop over in the high-rent district by Lakeside Park, which we hope to move in around April.
"Right now, we're working out of the shop he has on the dragstrip park in Mooresville (N.C.) We've got a good engine program, we've got good chassis, we're trying to get good personnel, and we've got Bryan Schaffer, my crew chief from last year with me, which I think is a plus."
Schaffer helped Trickle to a 22nd-place finish in last year's NASCAR Busch Series point standings, making just 22 starts. That included a victory in the Dura-Lube 200 Presented by Bi-Lo at Darlington Raceway in the fall, the second win of Trickle's NASCAR Busch Series career.
Spencer himself posted a win last season at Las Vegas. In eight starts, he posted six top-10 and four top-five finishes.
The 1999 campaign will be the first time that Trickle will run for a NASCAR Busch Series championship. Last season he posted seven top-10 efforts and four top-five finishes.
"I just felt it would be the combination we needed to take it to the next level," Trickle said. "We were competitive last year, but not as consistently as competitive as I like to be. I think the program will be better. Jimmy has a lot of contacts, I've got a few. There's a reason things happen. I've always had the sponsor in my back pocket. I wasn't sure I had, but I made the move and evidently they decided to go with me. Primary sponsorship is a necessity. You can't go Busch racing nowadays without a major sponsor, and they're a great sponsor, too.
"If we've got any luck at all, we will (run for the championship). We'll go out there racing just like we've done, and then let the points stack and see where we're at. I've still got Winston Cup priorities, but I don't think I'd use that option unless I'd have a consistent Winston Cup ride. I've got a quality ride here, so why should I miss a couple of Busch races here and there. This is the first year I haven't had a Winston Cup ride, but I'm already racing the (Daytona) 500, so that's a step in the right direction. Just a few weeks ago, I didn't have anything."
The deal with Elliott at Daytona is a one-race deal, but Trickle said he hopes it will develop into more opportunities to run in the NASCAR Winston Cup Series in 1999.
Source: NASCAR Online
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