July 1, 2005 (Daytona, FL)
The Aaron’s Dream Machines invaded Daytona International Speedway this Friday to qualify for the holiday weekend races. After rain washed out Thursday’s Busch and Cup practice, the action picked back up Friday with limited practice before the two qualifying sessions.
Michael Waltrip and Ken Butler made Kerry Earnhardt’s dream come true as he returned as the driver of the No. 99 Aaron’s Dream Machine NASCAR Busch Series car. He was very satisfied with the handling and power during the one-hour practice Friday and looked forward to securing a good starting position for the Winn-Dixie 250.
Earnhardt was the fourth car out for Busch qualifying started during the humid, mid-day heat,
and turned a hot lap of 49.83 seconds around the 1.5-mile, high-banked superspeedway, earning the 17th position. Kevin Harvick won the pole for the Busch race with a lap time of 49.31 seconds and a speed of 182.515 mph.
The NEXTEL Cup stars took to the track shortly after the Busch contenders qualified to set the field for Saturday night’s main event. Michael Waltrip Racing secured a Cup car from Bill Davis Racing that performed well at the Daytona 500 and the Aaron’s 499 earlier this year, hoping for a solid starting spot.
With limited practice Friday, Kenny Wallace ran a 49.419” lap in the No. 00 Golden Dream Machine, hoping the time would be good enough to make the Saturday evening Pepsi 400. However, as the evening set in, the track temperature cooled and the cars that qualified later ran better times. Even though Wallace was the 36th fastest of the 46 cars that made attempts, NASCAR’s new qualifying rules allow the top-35 drivers in the points standing a guaranteed spot in the race, leaving only eight spots to be filled by the fastest cars. Of the twelve cars that had to make the race on time, Kenny was tenth fastest, and the Bill Davis Racing crew had to load up and go home.
After the disappointment with not making the Cup race, all attention turned back to Kerry Earnhardt, who had a solid starting spot for Friday nights Winn-Dixie 250. Michael Waltrip and Ken Butler were with Kerry and his family for all of the pre-race activities and Earnhardt was eager to get the race started.
Lined up in the ninth row for the start, Kerry dropped back in the field to avoid any mishaps from the frontrunners. Those cars up front were fighting hard for positions right from the start and Earnhardt felt it was safer to lay back since it was early in the race. That was the right call because there was a crash on lap 13 and Kerry had time to react to it and avoid being involved.
The Dream Machine was a little “tight” at the start and the caution allowed the crew to put four fresh tires on and make an adjustment to make his car handle better. On the restart, those at the front continued to scramble and Earnhardt kept a comfortable distance. The car was handling better and Kerry kept pace with the lead pack, but on lap 31, Earnhardt reported on the radio that the engine had locked up and he coasted to the garage ending rd the evening early and finishing a disappointing 43 .
The real excitement of the weekend was the Kerry Earnhardt autograph session at store C0051 in Daytona Beach. Fans lined up in the store early to have a chance to meet one of the most famous names in racing, and they were not disappointed.
Ronny Mason entertained the crowd of about 200 with Aaron’s trivia and free giveaways and had everyone register to win the 55 Chevy sweepstakes. Kerry was gracious enough to make sure everyone in line got his autograph and even took pictures with those who had cameras. After Kerry signed for one hour, Ronny pulled names from those who registered and gave away die cast cars, shirts, hats and even the Kerry Earnhardt banner that hung outside of the store. It was a fun and eventful day at the Daytona Beach store and Aaron’s made a very nice impression with those fans that attended.
The Butler Brothers will be racing in the USAR Hooters ProCup Aaron’s 250 race this Saturday night. This event marks Brett Butlers debut in the ProCup series and both he and KBIII are excited about competing against each other at this level.
KBIII and Brett will be busy leading up to the event with autograph signings of their own.
Thursday
Hickory Crawdads Game
Arrival: 5:30 - 6:00
Grandstands Open: 6:00
GameTime: 7:00
Friday
Aaron's in Hickory 5:00 - 6:00
2653 Highway 70 SE
Hickory, NC 28602
The Aaron’s 250 USAR Hooters ProCup Race: Hickory Motor Speedway
Hickory, NC Saturday, July 9, 8 PM Advance tickets available at 828-464-3655
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