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[/media-credit]Cale Gale
No. 33 Rheem Chevrolet Silverado
Rockingham (N.C.) Speedway
Good Sam Roadside Assistance 200
April 15, 2012
No. 33 Rheem Chevrolet News and Notes
Gale Returns to The Rock… While Rockingham (N.C.) Speedway (The Rock) may be a new challenge for many drivers in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series (NCWTS), Cale Gale will actually take on The Rock for the second time in his career on Sunday, April 15, 2012. The driver of the No. 33 Rheem Chevrolet Silverado raced in the Championship Auto Racing Series (CARS) Pro Cup event at The Rock last fall. Gale rolled off 18th in the field of 19 cars and fought motor problems throughout the race. After 150 laps of competition at the historic oval, Gale picked up 10 positions to cross the finish line in the eighth position. Gale will also benefit from the experience of crew chief Jerry Baxter, who is familiar with Rockingham Speedway from working in the NASCAR Nationwide Series over the last 12 seasons. ESR Shows Strength On Track… After purchasing the assets of two Kevin Harvick Inc. teams over the winter, Eddie Sharp Racing (ESR) took off running when the green-flag fell on the 2012 season. The Denver, N.C.-based operation competes in multiple series from the NCWTS to the Automobile Racing Club of America (ARCA) Racing Series and late model series across the Southeast. With fast trucks at Daytona (Fla.) International Speedway and Martinsville (Va.) Speedway, Cale Gale has been the top ESR qualifier in each of the first two NCWTS events, while teammate Justin Lofton has been the organization’s top finisher and is tied for second in the series’ standings. Gale earned his first victory of the season at Mobile (Ala.) International Speedway in the ARCA Racing Series, and was poised to record his career-best NCWTS finish at Martinsville Speedway before a flat-tire brought him down pit road during the final eight laps. Meet Cale… Come to Rockingham Thunder Fest on Friday, April 13th to meet Cale Gale, teammate Justin Lofton, and ESR development drivers Brandon Jones and Will Gallaher. All four drivers will be participating in an hour-long autograph session on Harrington Square in downtown Rockingham at 7:00 p.m. ET. Also be on the lookout for Gale’s No. 33 Rheem Chevrolet Silverado which will be on display throughout the day. Admission to Thunder Fest is free to all ticketholders for Saturday and Sunday’s events at Rockingham Speedway. Additionally, Gale, Lofton, Jones and Gallaher, will join Richard Childress Racing drivers Ty Dillon, Joey Coulter and Tim George, Jr. in a Rheem Racing autograph session at the Rheem tent in Rockingham Speedway’s Fan Zone on Saturday, April 14th. Stop by from 12:30 p.m. to 1:00 p.m. ET for your chance to meet the Rheem Racing drivers. Follow Cale… Follow Cale Gale, driver of the No. 33 Rheem Chevrolet Silverado, on twitter @CaleGale and Facebook (facebook.com/CaleGale), and check out the new CaleGale.com for the latest news and updates. Get the Inside Scoop… Follow Eddie Sharp Racing on Twitter or become a fan on Facebook to get real-time updates and behind the scenes information: @TeamESR or facebook.com/teamesr. Watch and Listen… NASCAR will make its return to Rockingham Speedway with the NCWTS in the Good Sam Roadside Assistance 200 presented by Cheerwine on Sunday, April 15. Catch all the action with live broadcasts on SPEED, MRN Radio and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio, channel 90, at 12:30 p.m. ET on Sunday afternoon. Fans can also watch final practice (11:00 a.m. ET) and qualifying (3:35 p.m. ET) from The Rock on Saturday, April 14.
From the Driver’s Seat
Cale Gale Quotes… On returning to Rockingham Speedway:
“I’m really excited to go back to Rockingham Speedway-both for the history of the track and to be a part of NASCAR making its return to The Rock. It’s unlike any other track on the circuit-it’s tough to get around and requires you to really manage your tires. The tires wear quickly and fall off quite a bit, so you need to be aware of that and manage them throughout the run. I think we’ll probably see a lot of cycles throughout the day; someone will be quick at the start of the race and as their tires fall off another driver will take over the top position. I expect there to be a lot of tough competition, but I think it will be a great, entertaining race.”
On the progression of the 2012 season…
“We’ve had really fast trucks and all the guys have done a great job. Our trucks have been capable of great finishes both weekends, but bad luck got us. I feel like we will continue to be fast all season-the guys are doing everything they can to provide great equipment for both Justin and me. I’m ready to get out and go racing; I’m looking forward to being able to get in the rhythm of racing every week or every other week. Again, I can’t thank Rheem enough for coming on board this season and giving me the opportunity to race fulltime in the NCWTS. We have the equipment and momentum that we need to be successful this year, now we just need a little luck.”
From the Pit Box
Jerry Baxter Quotes… On what to expect in Rockingham:
“I believe this weekend’s race at Rockingham Speedway will be a race where the tires fall off a lot and tire management will be key. There are not a lot of those tracks left on the NCWTS circuit anymore, so getting back there is a good thing. The track is really rough. Getting your truck to be compliant-to go across the bumps and continue to handle well will be huge.”
On tire management at The Rock:
“Tire management is going to be extremely important throughout the entire weekend-not just during the race. As a team, we need to manage our tires during practice on Friday and Saturday. The tires fall off so much and we only have two sets to burn up during practice on Friday. We need to make sure that we’re making the most out of every set of Goodyears that we have.”
On preparing for Rockingham:
“We took the Rheem Chevrolet to the wind tunnel and seven-post to prepare for the truck series’ return to The Rock. Everything has gone really well; we think we have a good baseline to start with when we roll our No. 33 Silverado off the hauler on Friday morning.”
Cale Gale By the Numbers
Cale Gale’s NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Career Stats
Races
Wins
Top-Fives
Top-10s
Poles
Money Won
12
0
0
2
0
$135,174
Cale Gale at Rockingham Speedway
Series
Date
Race
Start
Finish
Laps
Status
USAR Pro Cup
11/5/2011
American 200
18
8
149/150
Running
Total / Average
1 Race
18.0
8.0
149/150 ( 99.3%)
No. 33 Rheem Chevrolet Silverado Truck Information
The No. 33 Rheem Chevrolet team will compete at Rockingham Speedway with chassis No. 46 as their primary truck. The chassis was built by Kevin Harvick Inc. and last raced at Las Vegas Motor Speedway in October 2011 when Cale Gale drove the truck to a 20th-place finish after getting caught up in an on-track incident during the final 25 laps.
No. 33 Rheem Chevrolet / Eddie Sharp Racing Team
Driver: Cale Gale Crew Chief: Jerry Baxter Owner: Eddie Sharp
Truck Chief / Rear Tire Changer: Ray Holm Gasman / Hauler Driver: Ben Smith Motor Tuner: Howie Frazier
Rear Tire Carrier: Manning Gregory Pit Crew Coach: Nick Sutton Spotter: Rick Carelli
Front Tire Changer: Joey Forgette Shock Specialist: Jeff Keller PR Rep: Ashleigh Aungst
Front Tire Carrier: Greg Powell Mechanic: Justin Peiffer
Jackman: Joshua Pech Mechanic: Beau Wilkes
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