Michigan International Speedway

Rick raced his first ARCA/REMAX race at Michigan International Speedway on June 9, 2001.

Rick qualified 22nd, for a starting position of 11th row outside. We felt his qualifing time could've been better if we would've geared a little deeper. At the end of the back straight away his RPM was 7700, and it should've been 8400. This made him about six miles/hour slower than if we would've geared deeper.

The Flagstar 200 was set to start at 1:45 p.m. eastern time. Rick got off to a excellent start. After completing his first pit stop he came out of the pits in 9th position. He held on to that position until he felt a vibration. The Crew Chief and Spotter decided that he should make a green flag pit stop, knowing it would put him laps down. Rick came in for a four tire change, track bar adjustment & fuel. Just as the jack went up a caution came out on the speedway. Meaning, only him and one other car made a green flag pit stop, giving all other cars the advantage to pit on the caution. After looking at the right front tire and finding a separation, we knew we made the right call. If the tire would've blew he could've hit the wall at a high rate of speed. He ended up finishing the race 17th. Which we felt was an excellent finish for Rick's first ever ARCA race.

Rick would like to thank his Crew Chief: Richard Thompson, Spotter: Dave Thoennes, Jack/Gas Man: Tom Hills, Tire Changers: Richard Thompson & Craig Berglund, Tire Carrier: Kyle Baker, Fabricator: Dave Piekarski, Scorer: Jenny Thoennes, Marketing Manager: Larry Olson, and all his fans for their support.

Also, a special thanks to John Perino, Loren Schroeder & everyone at Glenwood Bridge, John Strand & everyone at ParkerStore.