Here we are at the end of another season. All in all, 2009 was an OK season for our No. 24 Zachry Toyota Tundra team. When we started out, our expectations were really high. I had a great owner in Jim Harris, a great crew chief in Jason Miller, an excellent engineer we called Slash, …
In the three races since my last diary, we’ve had very mixed results on the track. Our Wednesday night race at Bristol was awesome. My Zachry Toyota Tundra performed really well and my crew chief Jason Miller and all of the guys on my HT Motorsports team did a great job. Our truck wasn’t very …
It’s been two months since my last diary, and I have to say, I am really excited about the way my Harris Motorsports team has been performing over the last couple of months. Jim Harris put together such a great team, and I have to give a bunch of credit to my crew chief Jason …
The last several weeks have been real exciting for myself and the whole HT Motorsports team. On a personal note, I got a very, very special gift from a big group of my fans when we raced back home at the Texas Motor Speedway. They honored me by purchasing a brick for the new NASCAR …
I’ve been very busy since the last time I updated you. Not only have I been busy working with my HT Motorsports team and David Starr Racing, but I’ve also been spending a lot of quality time being a dad. Being with my son, David Starr Jr., and my wife Kim has just been awesome. …
It’s been a while since my last diary and I apologize for keeping you waiting, but as many of you know, I’ve been a little busy. On March 12th, my wife Kim and I welcomed our son, David Jr. into our lives and it’s been a little crazy since. Even though we don’t sleep much, it’s all worth it. Being a dad is unbelievable and an awesome experience, and I can’t believe I didn’t do it sooner. It’s been tough, but the joy definitely outweighs all of the sleepless nights.
Another racing season is underway, and once again, I am excited about the year ahead. The offseason was a bit difficult, leaving Red Horse Racing after another year together, but in this business, change is inevitable. The way the economy is right now, it’s hard on everyone. We raced nearly two years together without a sponsor, and were very fortunate and grateful to have Zachry come on board at the end of last season. This season, they wanted to continue getting their feet wet as a sponsor in NASCAR, but only wanted to do primary sponsorship for about half of the 2009 season. Unfortunately, my owners and friends Tom DeLoach and Jeff Hammond couldn’t make it work again this year without a full-year commitment.
So, here we are, at the end of another season in the Craftsman Truck Series! It’s only been two races since my last entry. The race at Phoenix was just OK for us and we struggled a lot with front grip. Our Zachry Toyota Tundra wasn’t too bad, but right there at the end, Kyle Busch and about four or five other drivers pitted for tires, and then we had a caution that hurt us a little, too. We probably would have finished ninth or 10th, but we lost some spots at the end to the guys with newer tires. At Homestead, we decided to try something new set-up wise, and it wasn’t very good. We really struggled. We were moving forward and making some progress, but it wasn’t enough to get us the finish we wanted. When you try new things for a race, you learn a lot of stuff – sometimes good, sometimes bad. But in the end, that’s what will help us next year.
Since the last diary, there have been a lot of changes for our Red Horse Racing team. At the end of September, Zachry Holdings Inc. joined our team as our primary sponsor for the rest of the 2008 season. I am so excited to have them on board. Zachry Holdings Inc. is an engineering construction company that is dedicated to the planning, building and renewing of our world’s most critical industrial facilities. They have over 25,000 employees nationwide and are just a really great, family company. Everyone at Red Horse Racing is excited to have them as a part of our family, and to have their name on our No. 11 Toyota Tundra. What’s really cool for us is that their No. 1 goal is their commitment to safety, and that really fits what we do in the Craftsman Truck Series. Obviously we are always trying to beat our competitors and get that extra edge, but one of the top priorities is safety.
The fifth edition of NASCAR’s Chase has three clear favorites: Kyle Busch, Carl Edwards, and Jimmie Johnson. But in a system where 12 drivers are separated by just 80 points, anyone could come out on top in a playoff race that seldom goes according to plan. With so many drivers and so much at stake, how do you sort out the mess? Well, your Frontstretch favorites have given you a head start. All your favorite experts have submitted their Chase picks, giving you their take on the good, the bad, and the ugly for the next 10 weeks.
At Bristol, it was a matter of being in the wrong place at the wrong time. We were running seventh and making our way to the front when an accident ahead of us took us out, too. At Gateway, it was another strong run for my Toyota Tundra and I feel I definitely had a top-five truck. Basically, it was just hard racing between myself and Rick Crawford. He had the momentum so he was a little bit ahead of me. Coming off of turn 2, at the last minute he seemed to come off the corner and off the wall, and touched the front of my truck just slightly.
One of the other exciting things that has been happening recently, as far as our Red Horse Racing team, is that we may finally be getting close to a possible second Craftsman Truck Series team. While there hasn’t been an announcement yet, it’s been no secret that we have been trying to expand our organization. Rick Gay has been hired by Red Horse Racing, and while he’s already a huge help for our No. 11 team, he has also been getting people hired for the possible second team. I’m sure there will be an announcement pretty soon, but right now they are just trying to get everything in place and situated. It’s a cool thing for me because I’m excited to have a teammate, and I think it’s going to be awesome for everyone at RHR.
