Bamboozled at Bristol... | More >> | 2004 Recap Archive | 2003 Race Archive
Start - 10th | Competitors - 15| High - 1st | Low - 10th | Finish - 7th | analyzer report
A small field showed up for the repeat visit to Thunder Valley. Bristol is a feast or famine race which like the changing winds can blow favorably or roar like a hurricane. The August visit here blew in like a cool gentle breeze which in a place where anything can happen is a refreshing change. Fifteen drivers left the grid and when it was all over only one driver could claim that privilege of having drawn a caution. On lap fifty-eight Mile Hammrick had run out of patience as Glen Brown was holding him up and nudge the TAZ Chevy ever so slightly for the caution flag. At the time Kevin had showed some muscle, drawing up five cars from his tenth place starting spot. What was to follow was unprecedented in recent history as the rest of the race went green and without incident.
So where did things go wrong? Well lets talk about where things went right first. Kevin was on a rail and after ducking in for fresh tires and fuel, the AMSOIL Chevy was up to the challenge. The pit under yellow was stellar as Kevin gained one position and restarted in fourth place when the race went back green on lap sixty-three. After the first green flag run went so long, Kevin decided to hang back conserve tires but make steady progress on the field. On this night it was a good call as he held his ground, worked his way to third and led a lap when others ducked in at the end of the fuel run. This is where the bad comes in. The entry into the pit box was flawless but a jammed gun held the crew up and resulted in a longer stop. Kevin came into the pits in front of Glenn True and in an effort to keep that advantage off pit road, sped ever so slightly. Well in NASSCAR's eyes, a miss is as good as a mile and he had to heed the black flag and answer to a drive through penalty.
The rest of the race was without incident and there was no way to recover from the gaff.
