ARCA

ARCA Racing Series Tests at Palm Beach Int'l Raceway Roadcourse

JUPITER FL (2-8-10) - Fresh from the Daytona Int'l Speedway, the ARCA Racing Series presented by RE/MAX and Menards moved farther south to Palm Beach Int'l Raceway in Jupiter, Florida Monday, where 18 drivers took part in an open test in preparation for the next event on tour - the Kingdom Tire 150 presented by ModSpace February 27^th.

Roadcourse veteran Chris Cook, in a Venturini Motorsports Chevy, topped the charts on the 2.034, 11-turn, high-speed road course with an average speed of 92.355 mph. Cook, not expected to race in the upcoming event, was there to assist Venturini Motorsports drivers' Steve Arpin, Mikey Kile and Alli Owens.

Arpin, who finished 10^th in Saturday's Lucas Oil Slick Mist 200 at Daytona, was fastest overall among the series regulars, just a tick away from Cook. Arpin posted a top speed of 91.613 mph.

'The Venturinis brought an awesome car," said Arpin. "Same car we ran at New Jersey last year, same package and set-up. We broke on the first lap at New Jersey so it was nice to turn some laps today. We tweaked on it today a little, but not much; it was really close. We watched a bunch of roadcourse races in the off-season, did a lot of research, and I think it paid off.

"It's an absolutely awesome facility. It's got everything. High-speed corners, high-speed straights, low speed corners; it's a really nice mix of everything you'd ever want in a roadcourse. I thought the track was really wide too. What a beautiful facility. The whole area around it is absolutely beautiful. I think we're going to put on a really good show."

Tim George, Jr., in a Richard Childress Racing Chevy, was third fastest overall with an average speed of 91.378 mph in front of roadcourse veteran Andy Lally (91.339 mph).

Shelby Township, Michigan series regular Robb Brent was fifth fastest overall at 91.311 mph.

"Really nice track," said Brent, who finished a career-best fourth on the New Jersey Motorsports Park roadcourse in 2009.

"The place really offers a nice variety of stuff - long straightaways, tight corners, high-speed corners, what I call patient corners that are big, wide and sweeping. I had a little trouble pushing up in the corners. But once we freed it up, we got a lot better. There are some long straightaways so you'll need to keep a lot of momentum off the corners to get down the straightaways."

Nine-time series champion Frank Kimmel was also among those who tested.

"I'm just really impressed with the whole facility," said Kimmel. "It's a really cool track; it's gunna be a lot of fun. I learned a lot today. Anytime I go roadcourse racing, I learn a lot. I thought we had an excellent test overall. We put a set of tires on in the morning and stayed with them all day."

Kimmel also tested the new Hoosier rain tire.

"The Hoosier rain tire did just fine. There were no major problems. I hope we won't be in a situation where we have to use it, but if we do, I think the tire will perform just fine. But what a nice place; I'm really looking forward to coming back. I know we were reaching speeds of 170 on that back straight, and that's getting with it."

The Kingdom Tire 150 presented by ModSpace is scheduled to roll off at 1:00 PM Sunday afternoon, February 27^th. On-track activity begins on Saturday, February 26^th with practice from 11:30 AM to 2:30 PM followed by Menards Pole Award Qualifying presented by Ansell at 4:00 PM.

The race will also be featured in live streaming audio at ARCAracing.com.

ARCA Racing Series presented by RE/MAX and Menards
Open Test Results, Palm Beach Int'l Raceway, 2-8-10

POS	NO	DRIVER	MAKE	TIME	SPEED
1	25D	Chris Cook	Chevy	78.857	92.355
2	25B	Steve Arpin	Chevy	79.495	91.613
3	31	Tim George, Jr.	Chevy	79.7	91.378
4	31A	Andy Lally	Chevy	79.734	91.339
5	36	Robb Brent	Dodge	79.758	91.311
6	25	Mikey Kile	Toyota	79.805	91.257
7	32	Justin Marks	Dodge	79.854	91.201
8	16	Joey Coulter	Chevy	80.63	90.324
9	77	Tom Hessert	Dodge	80.868	90.058
10	44	Frank Kimmel	Ford	80.898	90.024
11	02	Josh Williams	Ford	81.189	89.702
12	22	Dakoda Armstrong	Dodge	81.479	89.383
13	60	Patrick Sheltra	Chevy	81.771	89.063
14	11A	Bryan Silas	Chevy	82.294	88.497
15	1	Nick Igdalski	Ford	82.342	88.446
16	97	Ed Bull	Ford	83.337	87.390
17	1A	Chase Matiolli	Ford	83.451	87.270
18	25	Alli Owens	Chevy	83.833	86.873

Bobby Gerhart Adds to the Record Books with Historic sixth Lucas Oil Slick Mist 200 Daytona Victory; Danica Patrick gains valuable experience, survives spin to finish sixth in stock car debut

DAYTONA BEACH, Florida (February 6, 2010)-Veteran ARCA Racing Series presented by RE/MAX and Menards driver Bobby Gerhart earned a historic sixth Lucas Oil Slick Mist 200 Daytona race victory on Saturday evening, using patience and fuel strategy in ARCA's wreck-filled season opener to notch his seventh-career restrictor plate victory while IZOD INDY Car Series star Danica Patrick finished sixth in her stock car debut.

Patrick, who is expected to decide on Monday if she will compete in next week's NASCAR Nationwide Series race at Daytona, used the ARCA race to learn how to adapt to big, heavy stock cars. She showed that she is a fast learner, working the No. 7 GoDaddy.com Chevrolet on the inside, outside and middle lanes of the racetrack in both the front and the back of the field throughout the 80 lap/200-mile event.

Patrick ran in the lead pack for the first half of the race until getting loose in turns 1 and 2 on lap 50, losing the draft and dropping from sixth to 13^th. Three laps later Nelson Piquet, Jr., the former Formula One driver who also used Saturday's ARCA race to make his stock car debut, made contact with Patrick's car coming off of turn 4, forcing her through the infield grass. Patrick slid sideways on the track and went through the infield grass but was able to avoid making contact. She made two pit stops following the spin, remaining on the lead lap, finishing sixth in her career first stock car start.

"I was just kind of hanging out there for most of the race," said Patrick. "There were lots of yellows. It feels to me like I got bumped a little bit in turns one and two (on lap 53). I just held to the yellow line because I know that you're not supposed to go below the yellow line to advance your position and I took myself out unfortunately. I was pretty excited to go from last to the top five. I felt pretty good, I was going side-by-side with people. And then at the end I was running eighth and I thought what the heck so I pulled out of the line and ran high. You can see I was racing by all of the marks on the car. The GoDaddy.com Chevrolet doesn't look very pretty."

While Patrick garnered most of the media attention this weekend it was Gerhart to etched his name further into the ARCA Racing Series Record Books, earning a record sixth Daytona ARCA victory. The Lebanon, Pennsylvania, native pitted to make adjustments to the No. 5 Lucas Oil Slick Mist Chevrolet on lap 12 of 80 during the second of six caution periods, making the most of the pit stop by topping the car off with fuel. He did not pit for the remainder of the 200-mile race and worked his way to the point position by lap 30.

"To be honest with you we calculated that we could run 66 laps before we would need to refuel," said Gerhart. "Every chance I could I was doing everything possible to conserve fuel. I probably gained six laps by coasting during cautions. As a little kid I dreamed of having the opportunity to come here and race. I couldn't have believed that I would ever be here six times and one day I hope to retire here in Daytona victory lane but let me tell you something, I don't like the number six so I guarantee I will be back."

Venturini Motorsports teammates Mark Thompson (No. 66 Phoenix Air Toyota) and John Wes Townley (No. 35 Zaxby's Toyota), spent much of the closing portions of the race working together to secure second and third-place finishes, respectively.

"We really didn't have much for Bobby," said Thompson. "His car and my car were pretty much even and I could have gotten a little bit of a run on the backstretch but he was running smart."

With his third-place finish Townley, a fulltime NASCAR Nationwide Series driver for Richard Childress Racing, bested the career-best fourth place Daytona ARCA finish he earned in 2009.

"I was always a little bit tight but we had a real fast car," said Townley. "It was tough to do anything because Bobby was so good. I really think this was a valuable experience. A great opportunity to come here and run and I'm really excited to go into next year and drive for RCR, how many people can say they run for that team?"

Defending race winner James Buescher finished fourth in the No. 51 Phoenix Construction Toyota after leading the first 29 laps and earning the Menard Pole Award presented by Ansell on Friday. Buescher will return to Daytona for next weekend's NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race. Indiantown, Florida native Patrick Sheltra earned a career-best fifth-place Daytona finish.

The race was plagued by six cautions and a 21 minute, 40 second red flag that occurred on lap 27 while track safety workers made repairs to the speedway's fencing after Jill George made hard contact in the No. 48 Radon.com Dodge. Jesse Smith (No. 29 Hormel Foods-Child's Tire dodge) was also involved.

Seven drivers were evaluated and released from the Infield Care Center after a lap 7 incident that started when 1998 ARCA Racing Series Champion Bill Baird (No. 52 Saturn Machine Chevrolet) and Steve Blackburn (No. 68 Harley-Davidson & Honda of Prestonburg Dodge) tangled in turns 1 and 2. Butch Jarvis, Milka Duno, Leilani Munter, Josh Richards and Chad Hackenbracht were also involved.

There were no injuries.

Bobby Gerhart earned the Aaron's Lap Leader Award and the Messina Half-Way Leader Award, James Finch's No. 51 Phoenix Construction Toyota Team earned Crew Chief of the Race Honors and the Klotz Engine Mechanic of the Race Award. Nick Igdalsky was the RE/MAX Rookie of the Race and Tommy Joe Martins was the CGS Imaging Hard Charger.

ARCA Racing Series teams will test at Palm Beach Int'l Raceway in Jupiter, Florida on Monday in preparation for the February 27 Tire Kingdom 150, the second of 20 events on the 2010 series schedule and the first of two road course races this year. Check http://www.arcaracing.com for live timing and scoring of the full day test session, scheduled to begin at 9 a.m. Eastern Monday.

The next SPEED televised ARCA Racing Series race is at Texas Motor Speedway on April 16. Check local listings for broadcast times.

Race Results

2010 ARCA Racing Series by RE/MAX and Menards Event #1
Daytona Int'l Speedway, Daytona Beach FL, 2-6-10
Lucas Oil Slick Mist 200

February 6, 2010 / 6:57 PM

FIN	STR	NO	DRIVER/HOMETOWN	TEAM & CAR	LAPS	STATUS
1	8	5	Bobby Gerhart/Lebanon PA	Lucas Oil Slick Mist Chevrolet	80	Running
2	6	66	Mark Thompson/Cartersville GA	Phoenix Air Toyota	80	Running
3	9	35	John Wes Townley/Watkinsville GA	Zaxby's Toyota	80	Running
4	1	51	James Buescher/Plano TX	Phoenix Construction Toyota	80	Running
5	11	60	Patrick Sheltra/Indiantown FL	PowerTrac Machinery Dodge	80	Running
6	12	7	Danica Patrick/Roscoe IL	GoDaddy.com Chevrolet	80	Running
7	14	4	Ricky Carmichael/Tallahassee FL	Monster Energy Toyota	80	Running
8	28	95	Tommy Joe Martins/Como MS	Tommy Joe Martins Racing Ford	80	Running
9	5	11	Bryan Silas/Stuart FL	Rockingham Speedway-American Custom Yachts Ford	80	Running
10	10	55	Steve Arpin/Fort Frances ON	Venturini Motorsports Toyota	80	Running
11	15	32	Justin Marks/Rocklin CA	Construct Corps Toyota	80	Running
12	27	28	Chris Cockrum/Conyers GA	Accu Tech-Mohawk Cable Chevrolet	80	Running
13	32	36	Robb Brent/Shelby Township MI	Orchard Chrysler Dodge Jeep Dodge	80	Running
14	26	83	Sean Corr/Goshen NY	Empire Racing LLC Ford	80	Running
15	23	77	Tom Hessert/Cherry Hill NJ	Cunningham Motorsports Dodge	80	Running
16	2	25	Mikey Kile/Westlake LA	TAG Heuer Eyewear Toyota	80	Running
17	42	21	Jennifer Jo Cobb/Kansas City KS	Bowsher-Mooi Motorsports Chevrolet	80	Running
18	35	23	Frank Wilson/St. Marys WV	Drug Testing Centers of America-Lifeguard Medical Chevy	80	Running
19	34	31	Tim George Jr./New York NY	RCR Development Chevrolet	80	Running
20	16	1	Nick Igdalsky/Long Pond PA	ModSpace Ford	79	Running
21	21	30	Terry Jones/Amherstburg ON	Jones Group Dodge	79	Running
22	36	34	Darrell Basham/Henryville IN	Anti-Monkey Butt Powder Chevrolet	79	Running
23	19	15	Alli Owens/Daytona Beach FL	ElectrifyingCareers.com Chevrolet	78	Running
24	37	26	Brad Smith/Shelby Township MI	ApplianceZone.com Ford	78	Running
25	13	44	Frank Kimmel/Clarksville IN	Ansell-Menards Ford	78	Running
26	3	16	Joey Coulter/Miami Springs FL	Rip It Energy Fuel Chevrolet	78	Running
27	7	6	Nelson Piquet/Brasilia Brazil	ESR Toyota	67	Running
28	30	14	Chase Mattioli/Long Pond PA	Big Machine Records Ford	67	Running
29	39	06	Barry Fitzgerald/Sykesville MD	TheBusPlace.com Ford	56	Accident
30	20	09	Grant Enfinger/Fairhope AL	BeasleyAllen.com-Roush Yates Performance Ford	38	Driveline
31	38	48	Jill George/Cedar Falls IA	Radon.com Dodge	25	Accident
32	18	29	Jesse Smith/Wildwood MO	Hormel Foods-Child's Tire Dodge	24	Accident
33	4	22	Dakoda Armstrong/New Castle IN	Cunningham Motorsports Dodge	16	Accident
34	33	81	Craig Goess/Greenville NC	Greenville Toyota of NC Toyota	16	Accident
35	40	17	Hal Martin/Galliano LA	Mark Gibson Racing Dodge	7	Accident
36	17	52	Bill Baird/Sturgis KY	Saturn Machine Chevrolet	6	Accident
37	22	68	Steve Blackburn/Prestonsburg KY	Harley-Davidson & Honda of Prestonsburg Dodge	6	Accident
38	29	12	Russ Dugger/Owasso OK	Accell Construction Chevrolet	6	Accident
39	25	59	Leilani Munter/Rochester MN	GREENandSAVE Dodge	6	Accident
40	31	58	Chad Hackenbracht/New Philadelphia OH	Tastee Chocolate Apples Chevrolet	6	Accident
41	24	0	Butch Jarvis/Blountville TN	Steris Corporation Dodge	6	Accident
42	43	99	Josh Richards/Shinnston WV	Presta Chevrolet	6	Accident
43	41	90	Milka Duno/Caracus Venezuela	Stringer Motorsports Toyota	6	Accident

			MENARDS POLE AWARD PRESENTED BY ANSELL: James Buescher 49.575 (181.543 mph)
			MRGN OF VICT: .230 seconds	CAUTIONS: 6 for 36 laps
			TIME OF RACE: 1:49:23	AVG SPEED: 109.706 mph
			LAP LEADERS: Buescher 1-29 (29); Gerhart 30-80 (51)

James Buescher on the pole for Saturday's ARCA Racing Series race at Daytona

DAYTONA BEACH, Florida (February 5, 2010)-The starting field for Saturday's Lucas Oil Slick Mist 200 ARCA Racing Series presented by RE/MAX and Menards race is set following Friday's qualifying session at Daytona International Speedway. Defending race winner James Buescher will lead off Saturday's 43-car starting field after earning the Menards Pole Award presented by Ansell with a 49.575 second/181.543 mph lap around the 2.5 mile speedway.

Danica Patrick, making her stock car debut in Saturday's ARCA Racing Series race, qualified 12th with a 50.059 second/179.788 mph lap, posting the exact same time as Indiantown, Florida's Patrick Sheltra. Sheltra starts ahead of Patrick in the race based on 2009 car owner points.

"She's just another driver in the field and that's how you have to look at it," polesitter Buescher told members of the media on Friday afternoon when asked about racing alongside Danica Patrick during her stock car debut. "Hopefully everyone in our race stays smart and no one over drives while trying to impress the large audience we have for this race. They showed us a crash video during the driver's meeting yesterday and it got our attention. I think there were 3 or 4 wrecks ahead of me in this race last year that I was able to avoid so hopefully my heart won't skip too many beats this year.

"I knew the car was going to be fast because we were fast yesterday. I wasn't sure how the wind changing around was going to affect everyone else. You could definitely feel the wind blowing. We don't want to mess the car up so we're not going to participate in happy hour. I've actually never done the happy hour practice in any speedway race. They tend to wreck a couple of cars in that practice and I don't want to risk it."

Buescher, the defending race winner, is competing in the same chassis he won last year's Lucas Oil Slick Mist 200 in.

Mikey Kile, in a Venturini Motorsports Toyota, starts on the outside front row (49.653 seconds/181.258 mph). The Westlake, Louisiana, native was fastest among 60 ARCA Racing Series teams who participated in ARCA's three-day open test in December.

"I've probably run over 1000 laps in my mind in between the December test and this race weekend," said Kile. "We were hoping for a pole award today but with our qualifying draw and the wind and everything this is the way it worked out. We worked really hard during the off season and this qualifying result is a direct result of that hard work. The car drafts well and drives well so I'm looking forward to getting the race started. We might go out there and make some single car runs later (during the limited-impound afternoon practice session) but we don't want to draft. We watched the Cup practice yesterday and we don't want to risk messing up our best piece. It's just not worth it."

Joey Coulter starts third in the No. 16 Rip It Energy Fuel Chevrolet.

"I think we all thought we were going to be a little bit quicker but we are thrilled with the way we ran," said Coulter. "It was consistent with our practice session yesterday and anytime you can keep consistent that's good. I'm definitely looking forward to tomorrow because I think my car will probably race better than it qualified--at least that's the goal. We'll probably just run a few laps in drafting practice later today."

Dakoda Armstrong qualified fourth followed by Bryan Silas, Mark Thompson, Nelson Piquet, Jr., Bobby Gerhart, John Wes Townley and Steve Arpin.

A record six females qualified for Saturday's race (Danica Patrick, Alli Owens, Leilani Munter, Jill George, Milka Duno, Jennifer Jo Cobb).

Teams will participate in a final practice session from 5:40-6:30 p.m. where Patrick and others will get the chance to shake down their cars in the draft before Saturday's race, which is live on SPEED beginning at 4:30 p.m. Eastern.

Check arcaracing.com and arcanation.com for exclusive coverage of the ARCA Racing Series' portion of Speedweeks 2010, including live timing and scoring and a live audio feed of on-track activity.

Starting Grid

2010 ARCA Racing Series by RE/MAX and Menards Event #1
Daytona Int'l Speedway, Daytona Beach FL, 2-6-10
Lucas Oil Slick Mist 200

February 5, 2010 / 1:02 PM

POS	NO	DRIVER/HOMETOWN	TEAM & CAR	TIME	SPEED
1	51	James Buescher/Plano TX	Phoenix Construction Toyota	49.575	181.543
2	25	Mikey Kile/Westlake LA	TAG Heuer Eyewear Toyota	49.653	181.258
3	16	Joey Coulter/Miami Springs FL	Rip It Energy Fuel Chevrolet	49.770	180.832
4	22	Dakoda Armstrong/New Castle IN	Cunningham Motorsports Dodge	49.782	180.788
5	11	Bryan Silas/Stuart FL	Rockingham Speedway-American Custom Yachts Ford	49.952	180.173
6	66	Mark Thompson/Cartersville GA	Phoenix Air Toyota	49.956	180.159
7	6	Nelson Piquet/Brasilia Brazil	ESR Toyota	49.966	180.122
8	5	Bobby Gerhart/Lebanon PA	Lucas Oil Slick Mist Chevrolet	50.029	179.896
9	35	John Wes Townley/Watkinsville GA	Zaxby's Toyota	50.036	179.870
10	55	Steve Arpin/Fort Frances ON	Venturini Motorsports Toyota	50.043	179.845
11	60	Patrick Sheltra/Indiantown FL	PowerTrac Machinery Dodge	50.059	179.788
12	7	Danica Patrick/Roscoe IL	GoDaddy.com Chevrolet	50.059	179.788
13	44	Frank Kimmel/Clarksville IN	Ansell-Menards Ford	50.064	179.770
14	4	Ricky Carmichael/Tallahassee FL	Monster Energy Toyota	50.065	179.766
15	32	Justin Marks/Rocklin CA	Construct Corps Toyota	50.075	179.730
16	1	Nick Igdalsky/Long Pond PA	ModSpace Ford	50.096	179.655
17	52	Bill Baird/Sturgis KY	Saturn Machine Chevrolet	50.101	179.637
18	29	Jesse Smith/Wildwood MO	Hormel Foods-Child's Tire Dodge	50.174	179.376
19	15	Alli Owens/Daytona Beach FL	ElectrifyingCareers.com Chevrolet	50.227	179.186
20	09	Grant Enfinger/Fairhope AL	BeasleyAllen.com-Roush Yates Performance Ford	50.241	179.137
21	30	Terry Jones/Amherstburg ON	Jones Group Dodge	50.303	178.916
22	68	Steve Blackburn/Prestonsburg KY	Harley-Davidson & Honda of Prestonsburg Dodge	50.338	178.791
23	77	Tom Hessert/Cherry Hill NJ	Cunningham Motorsports Dodge	50.345	178.767
24	0	Butch Jarvis/Blountville TN	Steris Corporation Dodge	50.361	178.710
25	59	Leilani Munter/Rochester MN	GREENandSAVE Dodge	50.402	178.564
26	83	Sean Corr/Goshen NY	Empire Racing LLC Ford	50.410	178.536
27	28	Chris Cockrum/Conyers GA	Accu Tech-Mohawk Cable Chevrolet	50.453	178.384
28	95	Tommy Joe Martins/Como MS	Tommy Joe Martins Racing Ford	50.506	178.197
29	12	Russ Dugger/Owasso OK	Accell Construction Chevrolet	50.514	178.168
30	14	Chase Mattioli/Long Pond PA	Big Machine Records Ford	50.761	177.301
31	58	Chad Hackenbracht/New Philadelphia OH	Tastee Chocolate Apples Chevrolet	50.775	177.253
32	36	Robb Brent/Shelby Township MI	Orchard Chrysler Dodge Jeep Dodge	50.780	177.235
33	81	Craig Goess/Greenville NC	Greenville Toyota of NC Toyota	Provisional
34	31	Tim George Jr./New York NY	RCR Development Chevrolet	Provisional
35	23	Frank Wilson/St. Marys WV	Drug Testing Centers of America-Lifeguard Medical Chevy	Provisional
36	34	Darrell Basham/Henryville IN	Anti-Monkey Butt Powder Chevrolet	Provisional
37	26	Brad Smith/Shelby Township MI	ApplianceZone.com Ford	Provisional
38	48	Jill George/Cedar Falls IA	Radon.com Dodge	Provisional
39	06	Barry Fitzgerald/Sykesville MD	TheBusPlace.com Ford	Provisional
40	17	Hal Martin/Galliano LA	Mark Gibson Racing Dodge	Provisional
41	90	Milka Duno/Caracus Venezuela	Stringer Motorsports Toyota	Provisional
42	21	Jennifer Jo Cobb/Kansas City KS	Bowsher-Mooi Motorsports Chevrolet	Provisional
43	99	Josh Richards/Shinnston WV	Presta Chevrolet	Provisional

Notes and Quotes: Daytona Thursday Practice

DAYTONA BEACH, Florida (February 4, 2010)-The ARCA Racing Series presented by RE/MAX and Menards officially opened the stock car racing on-track portion of Hershey's Milk and Milkshakes Speedweeks 2010 with a practice session that lasted just shy of five hours on Thursday.

More than 50 teams used the on-track session to prepare for Saturday's Lucas Oil Slick Mist 200, but IZOD INDYCar Series star Danica Patrick drew most of the media attention. A large contingent of print, radio and television media gathered outside of her garage area for most of the day. Patrick will make her stock car debut in Saturday's Lucas Oil Slick Mist 200 (live on SPEED at 4:30 p.m. Eastern) and Thursday's practice session provided valuable on-track time for the Roscoe, Illinois, native. She was 17^th of 53 drivers posting time with a 180.484 mph/49.866 second lap around the 2.5-mile speedway.

"I think today's practice was a success," said Patrick. "I felt that the #7 GoDaddy.com car got stronger and more comfortable the more runs I made. We have been working hard to get to this point, so hopefully tomorrow's qualifying run goes well."

Defending Lucas Oil Slick Mist 200 race winner James Buescher posted the fastest time of the day (49.355 seconds/182.352 mph) early during the four hour, fifty minute practice session in the same chassis he won last year's edition of the race in. Following Saturday's ARCA Racing Series Lucas Oil Slick Mist 200, Buescher will return to the World Center of Racing to participate in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series' Daytona season opener one week later.

Mikey Kile and Mark Thompson, two of five Venturini Motorsports entries this weekend, were second and third fast, followed by Joey Coulter and Dakoda Armstrong.

Nine-time ARCA Racing Series Champion Frank Kimmel, who has finished second at Daytona twice but does not include a Daytona victory among his 74 career ARCA wins, was eighth overall in the Ansell-Menards Ford Fusion (181.240 mph/49.658 mph). Five-time Daytona ARCA race winner Bobby Gerhart was 18^th overall (179.971 mph/50.008 seconds)

Spotted in the Garage Area

Owensboro, Kentucky native and former ARCA Racing Series driver Bobby Watson, a well-regarded former ARCA driver with several series wins and a second-place points finish to Benny Parsons in 1969, was in the Garage Area Thursday assisting fellow Kentucky native Steve Blackburn (No. 68 Harley-Davidson & Honda of Prestonburg Dodge).

Fast Females

A total of six female drivers participated in the Thursday practice session, including Danica Patrick (No. 7 GoDaddy.com Chevrolet-17^th quickest), Alli Owens (No. 15 ElectrifyingCareers.com Chevrolet-13^th quickest), Leilani Munter (No. 59 GREENandSAVE Dodge-32^nd quickest), Milka Duno (No. 90 Stringer Motorsports Toyota-44^th quickest), Jennifer Jo Cobb (No. 21 Bowsher-Moooi Motorsports Chevrolet-47^th quickest) and Jill George (No. 48 Radon.com Dodge-50^th quickest).

Another fast female in Daytona this weekend is ARCA's Matriarch, 96-year-old Mildred Marcum. Marcum helped found ARCA with her husband John in 1953 and attended ARCA's first Daytona race in 1964. On Monday, she met with NASCAR Media Group for an intensive interview in which she relayed her days of working as a NASCAR Official alongside the France Family during the sport's early years. Marcum still works in ARCA's Temperance, Michigan home office on a fulltime basis.

Indiantown, Florida Native Sheltra Sixth Fastest

Patrick Sheltra, a native of Indiantown, Florida, was sixth overall during Thursday's practice with a 49.612 second/181.408 mph lap late during the session.

"Our PowerTrac Dodge is really good," said Sheltra. "We didn't have to play with it a whole lot today. The car handles well all by itself and the little drafting we did today, I didn't have one complaint. We're going to qualify somewhere between eighth and 12th, I think tomorrow but come race day, we're going to have a shot at winning this thing. I just have to thank Jon (Wolfe, crew chief) and all of the guys for working real hard. I'm really looking forward to the rest of the weekend."

Menards Pole Qualifying presented by Ansell Friday

The 43-car starting field for Saturday's Lucas Oil Slick Mist 200 will be determined Friday, in part by Menards Pole Qualifying presented by Ansell. Bobby Gerhart and Justin Marks are both former pole sitters in the ARCA Racing Series at Daytona entered for this year's race.

The 2010 ARCA Racing Series presented by RE/MAX and Menards kicks off with the Lucas Oil Slick Mist 200 at Daytona Int'l Speedway on Saturday, February 6, 2010. The race is live on SPEED beginning at 4:30 p.m. Eastern.

Check arcaracing.com and arcanation.com for exclusive coverage of the ARCA Racing Series' portion of Speedweeks 2010, including live timing and scoring and a live audio feed of on-track activity.

Practice Results

2010 ARCA Racing Series by RE/MAX and Menards Event #1
Daytona Int'l Speedway, Daytona Beach FL, 2-6-10
Lucas Oil Slick Mist 200

February 4, 2010 / 2:35 PM

POS	NO	DRIVER/HOMETOWN	TEAM & CAR	TIME	SPEED
1	51	James Buescher/Plano TX	Miccosukee Gaming & Resort Toyota	49.355	182.352
2	25	Mikey Kile/Westlake LA	TAG Heuer Eyewear Toyota	49.381	182.256
3	66	Mark Thompson/Cartersville GA	Phoenix Air Toyota	49.423	182.101
4	16	Joey Coulter/Miami Springs FL	Rip It Energy Fuel Chevrolet	49.488	181.862
5	22	Dakoda Armstrong/New Castle IN	Cunningham Motorsports Dodge	49.527	181.719
6	15	Alli Owens/Daytona Beach FL	ElectrifyingCareers.com Chevrolet	49.568	181.569
7	1	Nick Igdalsky/Long Pond PA	ModSpace Ford	49.597	181.463
8	52	Bill Baird/Sturgis KY	Saturn Machine Chevrolet	49.611	181.411
9	60	Patrick Sheltra/Indiantown FL	PowerTrac Machinery Dodge	49.689	181.127
10	81	Craig Goess/Greenville NC	Greenville Toyota of NC Toyota	49.692	181.116
11	30	Terry Jones/Amhurstburg ON	Jones Group Dodge	49.697	181.097
12	35	John Wes Townley/Watkinsville GA	Zaxby's Toyota	49.750	180.905
13	44	Frank Kimmel/Clarksville IN	Ansell-Menards Ford	49.760	180.868
14	43	Kyle Martel/Lebanon PA	Hanover Cold Storage-Finish Line Express Chevrolet	49.826	180.629
15	5	Bobby Gerhart/Lebanon PA	Lucas Oil Slick Mist Chevrolet	49.828	180.621
16	55	Steve Arpin/Fort Frances ON	Venturini Motorsports Toyota	49.840	180.578
17	4	Ricky Carmichael/Tallahassee FL	Monster Energy Toyota	49.850	180.542
18	11	Bryan Silas/Stuart FL	Rockingham Speedway-American Custom Yachts Ford	49.898	180.368
19	68	Steve Blackburn/Prestonsburg KY	Harley-Davidson & Honda of Prestonsburg Dodge	49.933	180.242
20	6	Nelson Piquet/Brasilia Brazil	ESR Toyota	50.004	179.986
21	09	Grant Enfinger/Fairhope AL	BeasleyAllen.com-Roush Yates Performance Ford	50.088	179.684
22	36	Robb Brent/Shelby Township MI	Orchard Chrysler Dodge Jeep Dodge	50.091	179.673
23	7	Danica Patrick/Roscoe IL	GoDaddy.com Chevrolet	50.096	179.655
24	32	Justin Marks/Rocklin CA	Construct Corps Toyota	50.099	179.644
25	28	Chris Cockrum/Conyers GA	Accu Tech-Mohawk Cable Chevrolet	50.104	179.626
26	12	Russ Dugger/Owasso OK	Accell Construction Chevrolet	50.152	179.454
27	0	Butch Jarvis/Blountville TN	Steris Corporation Dodge	50.163	179.415
28	83	Sean Corr/Goshen NY	Empire Racing LLC Ford	50.165	179.408
29	95	Tommy Joe Martins/Como MS	Tommy Joe Martins Racing Ford	50.230	179.176
30	99	Josh Richards/Shinnston WV	Presta Chevrolet	50.248	179.112
31	77	Tom Hessert/Cherry Hill NJ	Cunningham Motorsports Dodge	50.267	179.044
32	59	Leilani Munter/Rochester MN	GREENandSAVE Dodge	50.270	179.033
33	29	Jesse Smith/Wildwood MO	Hormel Foods-Child's Tire Dodge	50.378	178.649
34	42	Scott Stenzel/Alexandria MN	Yellow Stripes Making The Driver Ford	50.382	178.635
35	58	Chad Hackenbracht/New Philadelphia OH	Tastee Chocolate Apples Chevrolet	50.502	178.211
36	17	Hal Martin/Galliano LA	Mark Gibson Racing Dodge	50.628	177.767
37	85	Lance Fenton/Tyler TX	Team Gill Racing Dodge	50.638	177.732
38	14	Chase Mattioli/Long Pond PA	Big Machine Records Ford	50.656	177.669
39	38	Greg Sarff/Powell OH	Great Dane Trailers Dodge	50.728	177.417
40	97	Matt Lofton/Mooresville NC	Strutmasters.com Chevrolet	50.762	177.298
41	90	Milka Duno/Caracus Venezuela	Stringer Motorsports Toyota	50.996	176.484
42	31	Tim George Jr./New York NY	RCR Development Chevrolet	51.023	176.391
43	76	Jerick Johnson/Faribault MN	American Legion-David Law Firm Dodge	51.091	176.156
44	75	Chuck Walker/Stanley NC	Bob Schacht Motorsports Chevrolet	51.400	175.097
45	21	Jennifer Jo Cobb/Kansas City KS	Bowsher-Mooi Motorsports Chevrolet	51.450	174.927
46	23	Frank Wilson/St. Marys WV	Drug Testing Centers of America-Lifeguard Medical Chevy	51.596	174.432
47	80	Brad Lloyd/Napa CA	Stadelhofer Construction-Matt Cardeiro Enterprises Ford	52.060	172.877
48	48	Jill George/Cedar Falls IA	Radon.com Dodge	53.175	169.252
49	06	Barry Fitzgerald/Sykesville MD	TheBusPlace.com Ford	54.708	164.510
50	26	Brad Smith/Shelby Township MI	ApplianceZone.com Ford	55.104	163.328
51	10	Mike Holt/Snow Camp NC	Casite Chevrolet	55.951	160.855

2010 ARCA Racing Series by RE/MAX and Menards Event #1
Daytona Int'l Speedway, Daytona Beach FL, 2-6-10
Lucas Oil Slick Mist 200

February 4, 2010 / 4:53 PM

POS	NO	DRIVER/HOMETOWN	TEAM & CAR	TIME	SPEED
1	25	Mikey Kile/Westlake LA	TAG Heuer Eyewear Toyota	49.379	182.264
2	66	Mark Thompson/Cartersville GA	Phoenix Air Toyota	49.513	181.770
3	16	Joey Coulter/Miami Springs FL	Rip It Energy Fuel Chevrolet	49.537	181.682
4	22	Dakoda Armstrong/New Castle IN	Cunningham Motorsports Dodge	49.549	181.638
5	35	John Wes Townley/Watkinsville GA	Zaxby's Toyota	49.552	181.627
6	60	Patrick Sheltra/Indiantown FL	PowerTrac Machinery Dodge	49.612	181.408
7	6	Nelson Piquet/Brasilia Brazil	ESR Toyota	49.631	181.338
8	44	Frank Kimmel/Clarksville IN	Ansell-Menards Ford	49.658	181.240
9	55	Steve Arpin/Fort Frances ON	Venturini Motorsports Toyota	49.671	181.192
10	11	Bryan Silas/Stuart FL	Rockingham Speedway-American Custom Yachts Ford	49.694	181.108
11	15	Alli Owens/Daytona Beach FL	ElectrifyingCareers.com Chevrolet	49.728	180.985
12	81	Craig Goess/Greenville NC	Greenville Toyota of NC Toyota	49.759	180.872
13	52	Bill Baird/Sturgis KY	Saturn Machine Chevrolet	49.808	180.694
14	7	Danica Patrick/Roscoe IL	GoDaddy.com Chevrolet	49.866	180.484
15	29	Jesse Smith/Wildwood MO	Hormel Foods-Child's Tire Dodge	49.880	180.433
16	09	Grant Enfinger/Fairhope AL	BeasleyAllen.com-Roush Yates Performance Ford	49.956	180.159
17	32	Justin Marks/Rocklin CA	Construct Corps Toyota	49.973	180.097
18	5	Bobby Gerhart/Lebanon PA	Lucas Oil Slick Mist Chevrolet	50.008	179.971
19	28	Chris Cockrum/Conyers GA	Accu Tech-Mohawk Cable Chevrolet	50.011	179.960
20	83	Sean Corr/Goshen NY	Empire Racing LLC Ford	50.072	179.741
21	77	Tom Hessert/Cherry Hill NJ	Cunningham Motorsports Dodge	50.094	179.662
22	43	Kyle Martel/Lebanon PA	Hanover Cold Storage-Finish Line Express Chevrolet	50.097	179.651
23	12	Russ Dugger/Owasso OK	Accell Construction Chevrolet	50.108	179.612
24	0	Butch Jarvis/Blountville TN	Steris Corporation Dodge	50.184	179.340
25	30	Terry Jones/Amherstburg ON	Jones Group Dodge	50.189	179.322
26	95	Tommy Joe Martins/Como MS	Tommy Joe Martins Racing Ford	50.250	179.104
27	58	Chad Hackenbracht/New Philadephia OH	Tastee Chocolate Apples Chevrolet	50.323	178.845
28	59	Leilani Munter/Rochester MN	GREENandSAVE Dodge	50.452	178.387
29	36	Robb Brent/Shelby Township MI	Orchard Chrysler Dodge Jeep Dodge	50.485	178.271
30	17	Hal Martin/Galliano LA	Mark Gibson Racing Dodge	50.504	178.204
31	76	Jerick Johnson/Faribault MN	American Legion-David Law Firm Dodge	50.515	178.165
32	42	Scott Stenzel/Alexandria MN	Yellow Stripes Making The Driver Ford	50.518	178.154
33	99	Josh Richards/Shinnston WV	Presta Chevrolet	50.519	178.151
34	31	Tim George Jr./New York NY	RCR Development Chevrolet	50.638	177.732
35	38	Greg Sarff/Powell OH	Great Dane Trailers Dodge	50.645	177.708
36	14	Chase Mattioli/Long Pond PA	Big Machine Records Ford	50.683	177.574
37	85	Lance Fenton/Tyler TX	Team Gill Racing Dodge	50.684	177.571
38	97	Matt Lofton/Mooresville NC	Strutmasters.com Chevrolet	50.710	177.480
39	90	Milka Duno/Caracus Venezuela	Stringer Motorsports Toyota	50.902	176.810
40	75	Chuck Walker/Stanley NC	Bob Schacht Motorsports Chevrolet	51.257	175.586
41	06	Barry Fitzgerald/Sykesville MD	TheBusPlace.com Ford	51.393	175.121
42	21	Jennifer Jo Cobb/Kansas City KS	Bowsher-Mooi Motorsports Chevrolet	51.502	174.751
43	23	Frank Wilson/St. Marys WV	Drug Testing Centers of America-Lifeguard Medical Chevy	51.785	173.796
44	80	Brad Lloyd/Napa CA	Stadelhofer Construction-Matt Cardeiro Enterprises Ford	52.005	173.060
45	48	Jill George/Cedar Falls IA	Radon.com Dodge	52.364	171.874
46	34	Darrell Basham/Henryville IN	Anti-Monkey Butt Powder Chevrolet	53.436	168.426
47	26	Brad Smith/Shelby Township MI	ApplianceZone.com Ford	58.516	153.804

Race Results

Starting Grid

Practice Results

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