daveblaney.com
LOUDON, N.H. – Crew chief Tommy Baldwin and the Caterpillar Racing crew had high hopes for the weekend at New Hampshire Motor Speedway after capturing the pole at the track last season. But things didn’t go exactly as planned, and the team struggled throughout the weekend. After qualifying in the 41st position, driver Dave Blaney drove to a 33rd-place finish.
The No. 22 Bill Davis Racing team was the 19th of 45 teams to take to the track for qualifying Friday afternoon. The team wrestled with the setup of the car somewhat in practice and qualifying proved more of the same. Blaney posted a speed of 126.374 mph during his two-lap run around the 1.058-mile oval, which earned the team the 41st starting position for Sunday’s event. A brief rain shower halted qualifying for over an hour, but NASCAR officials worked diligently to dry the track and allow all of the competitors to make their qualifying runs.
The team made wholesale changes to the Caterpillar Racing Toyota prior to the start of the race. The green flag waved for the start of the event that afternoon, and Blaney communicated to his crew that the car was better compared to the day before, but handled really tight in and off the corners. Unfortunately, the race started with a long green flag run, and the No. 22 Bill Davis Racing machine went one lap down to leader Dale Earnhardt Jr. on lap 58 of the scheduled 301-lap event. Baldwin called Blaney into the pits for the first pit stop of the day on lap 68, and the team changed all four tires, put fuel in the tank and made a left rear wedge adjustment.
Baldwin planned for a second pit stop, which would include tires and an additional wedge adjustment, for which Blaney drove down pit lane to the attention of his awaiting crew on lap 137. Several laps later, before most teams had completed their stops, the yellow flag waved again, leaving the No. 22 Camry another lap in arrears. Blaney lined up in the 39th spot for the ensuing restart.
From that point on, it was just a matter of racing the few competitors on the same lap as the Caterpillar team. Baldwin made adjustments to the car during the remaining stops, and the changes to the car helped the handling during the final 100 laps of the event. Several on-track incidents in the closing stages of the race helped the team gain positions, and Blaney held the 33rd spot when a rain shower moved into the area and soaked the track. NASCAR officials quickly made the decision to call the race before the end of its scheduled distance, and Blaney was credited with a 33rd-place finish.
The Caterpillar Racing team will return to Daytona (Fla. ) International Speedway next weekend for the Coke Zero 400.
