HAMLIN ON TRACK FOR RAYBESTOS BRAKES

NORTHWEST SERIES HISTORY HEADING

INTO 2002 SEASON FINALE

SNOHOMISH, Wash. (September 25, 2002) – With one race remaining in the 2002 Raybestos Brakes Northwest Series, NASCAR Touring season, Kevin Hamlin is on the verge on adding to an already impressive list of accomplishments in his short NASCAR racing career.

By taking the green flag in the Northwest Racing Enterprises 150 at Wenatchee Valley’s Super Oval on September 28, Hamlin will become the second driver, and youngest in series history, to capture back-to-back championships. Adding to the consecutive title run, is the fact that Hamlin led wire-to-wire for his 2002 crown.

In a year where the Snohomish, Wash. native has established a new record for consecutive laps led, this latest opportunity to leave another mark on the series has been humbling for the 23-year old driver.

“Leading the points standings all year, and for more than a whole calendar year (he took over last season’s points lead in June) was actually pretty shocking for us,” Hamlin said. “At the end of the last season, we talked about not expecting this season to go as well as 2001 did. We thought we could do just as good but, we didn’t want to be let down if we couldn’t pull this off.”

Hamlin put the challenge of repeating the championship in his American Dream Motorsports Chevrolet in perspective. “We needed to stay focused and not loose site on what we were out to do. After all, there was only one way to go and that was down.”

As the youngest driver in series history to win an event, and now the youngest back-to-back titleholder in addition to continuing on as the youngest champion, Hamlin hopes that his remarkable run has caught the eye of NASCAR team owners in the Craftsman Truck Series or higher for an opportunity to audition for an open seat.

“It’s been great to get my name in the record books a couple of times but all that stuff is just a bonus for me,” he said. “The thing that matters to me and my guys is winning races and winning championships. If you do that well, maybe you can break a couple of records along the way and hopefully an owner will take notice. We’ve talked to some owners in the Craftsman Truck Series and the Busch Grand National series and I really hope that’s the next step for me. Only time will tell.”

As the series shifts to Wenatchee Valley’s Super Oval, Hamlin has won three events at the tight .250-mile speedplant since last year. The facility is one of his favorite race tracks but, Hamlin is at a lose to explain the team’s success in East Wenatchee.

“I’m not sure what it is about Wenatchee but we just run well there. We don’t do anything special at that track that we do at any other track we run,” Hamlin said. “I like the place just as much as I like other tracks. It’s a fun place to run and we enjoy going there, Garrett (Evans, the facilities owner and fellow Northwest series racer) has done an excellent job with the track.”

For the weekend’s event, Hamlin acknowledges that qualifying and track position could be keys to a potential victory.

“Track position is important and so is getting off the corners. It’s a tight .250-mile and the car needs to be pretty good in order to pass there,” he explained.

After achieving his fifth victory of the season last weekend to virtually lock up his second championship, Hamlin dedicated the win to his crewmember, Steve Bergman’s daughter Ashley who was killed last April. Hamlin indicated that he has felt her presence with him during this exciting season.

“I’d like to think so,” he said of Ashley riding along for his second championship. “Ashley was a racer at heart and she comes from a racing family. Steve and my dad raced together before I was born, and Steve was actually a partner in my first late model race car I drove when I was 16 years old. Steve drives the team to all of the races in his motor home, the ‘Miss Ashley Anne’, and he refuses to take gas money for it from us. His wife Terri and their son Seth have been around quite a bit too. They are a great family and have been through a lot the past year and have been a huge addition to the team this season. We’re always thinking of Ashley at the track. Always!”

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