RETURNS TO STATE OF MONTANA

SNOHOMISH, Wash. (August 8, 2002) – Kevin Hamlin, the current Raybestos Brakes Northwest Series, NASCAR Touring points leader and defending champion, has had two consecutive top-5 runs at Kalispell’s Raceway Park (2000 and 1999).

This year he is hoping for a top-3 or even a win as the series heads into the Rumble In The Rockies IV, Coors Light 125 presented by Miller Lite Racing and the Rainbow Bar & Casino. Continuing his 2002 performances with the American Dream Motorsports Chevrolet is a big factor in achieving his fifth victory of the year Hamlin said.

“Any race we run our team wants to do our best for American Dream and the people who support us,” Hamlin said. “We’ve got the car prepared this week, the guys worked real hard like they always do and we’re looking forward to going back to Kalispell and putting on a good show.”

Hamlin’s last race, held in Tenino, Wash. was a crowd thriller. He and eventual winner Gary Lewis raced side-by-side for the last 10 laps, each trading the lead while the fans were on their feet roaring in approval. The 23-year old defending champion hopes for a repeat performance this weekend in Montana.

“This is a big show for us and the city of Kalispell,” he said. “The community offers itself up for us and the fans love it. We have missed not going out there since 2000. The last race pumped us up for this week, going into a big race like the Coors Light 125 makes me more excited. We almost had that fifth win last weekend, it’s like a carrot being dangled in front of our team.”

The Coors Light 125 is short track racing at its best according to Hamlin. He may not have had the fastest car around the .250-mile oval in recent years but, he says handling and horsepower is a key to victory. “We try to stay out of trouble when we’ve gone to Kalispell. The last time we went out there we lost a cylinder late in the race and finished on only seven (cylinders) but, the handling on our car was real good and the lost cylinder seemed to help us got off the turns a little better late in the race.”

Since the July 6 series event, Hamlin’s points lead has been shrinking as drivers behind him have begun to pick-up victories. He said that drivers like Lewis, who sits in second place in the points standings, and the fans may see more pressure on his team to perform this weekend, to him it is just the opposite for the competition.

“Gary has joked that the pressure is on us and that his team is coming on,” Hamlin said. “I say that the pressure really is on all of those teams behind us that have to figure out a way to catch up to our team. We’ve run nine races with eight top-5 finishes, you can’t beat that performance, nobody is perfect, we’re just going to keep doing what we do and not worry about the rest of the teams. If we keep getting top-5 runs, the points race will still go our way.”

American Dream Motorsports will have two drivers in this weekend’s Coors Light 125. Up and coming Northwest driver, Travis Bennett, will be making his fourth start of the season behind the wheel of the No. 53 Chevrolet. Hamlin and Bennett have different driving styles but, having a second car at the race track could prove valuable in a points race according to Hamlin.

“Travis and I have completely different driving styles. This will only be his fourth start on the series this season so we have not had a lot of note sharing going on between the two teams,” Hamlin said. “The biggest advantage we have for this weekend is just knowing that if our team has a problem and we need to use a back-up car, we could go to Travis’s race car if I need it for the points. We hope that is not the case, our main focus is for Travis to have some fun in Montana and get some laps in at Raceway Park in preparation for going back there in the future.”

For ticket and other information concerning the Rumble In the Rockies IV, Coors Light 125 presented by Miller Lite Racing and the Rainbow Bar & Casino, call (406) 257-7223, or log onto Kalispell Raceway Park’s website at: www.montanaracewaypark.com

View the Northwest Series on NASCAR.com with Results - Standings & Driver Profiles