Casey Mears, #41 Target Dodge, Pocono 500 Advance
RACE INFORMATION: EVENT: Pocono 500 (race 14 of 36) TRACK: Pocono Raceway QUALIFYING: Friday, June 6, 3:05 p.m. ET RACE: Sunday, June 8, 1:00 p.m. ET BROADCAST: FOX television and MRN radio TARGET TEAM FACTS: -Chassis: Team Target will race chassis #308 in the Winston Cup race at Pocono. This is the same car that raced in The Winston Open and the Coca-Cola 600 in May. -Casey on #308: "In the wind tunnel the numbers that we got were great and it should be a good car, but it hasn't really proven it to us yet. At the Open we ran okay. At the same time we feel like we can work on it and get it better." -ARCA: Casey Mears will run in this weekend's ARCA race at Pocono Raceway. He will pilot the No. 77 Target Dodge in a partnership with Braun Racing. -Testing: Casey Mears tested at Pocono Raceway on May 28 and 29 in his No. 77 Target Dodge. Mears was preparing for his upcoming ARCA race at Pocono. -Raybestos Rookie: In the first race of 2003, Mears became the first rookie to lead a lap and the only rookie to lead a lap in the Daytona 500. Mears is currently third in Raybestos rookie of the year standings. JIMMY ELLEDGE QUOTES: How did the Pocono test go? "The test at Pocono went well. The main objective was to get Casey familiarized with the racetrack. We had a good starting setup from what the 40 car had here last year. We just basically spent most of our time getting him familiar with the racetrack. We ran through some really off the wall stuff that we wanted to try. Worked on some qualifying stuff and did some long runs as well. Of all the places we've been to, Pocono is the track he has adapted to the fastest. I was very impressed with how fast he went on his very first lap on the track." Have you seen Casey develop over the past three weeks since you've added Busch Series and ARCA races to his schedule? "I think it's very strange how the finishes are worse, points are falling and we're getting in wrecks and doing things that we shouldn't be doing. But I really, really feel like we're better. We're communicating better and our cars our better but obviously the finishes aren't there to show it. We're just going through the learning curve that you're going to go through with a rookie driver. But, I really feel like we've made progress with him learning the cars and learning what he wants in the cars." TEAM TARGET CREW: Name Crew position Race shop duty Hometown Casey Mears Driver Driver Bakersfield, California Jimmy Elledge Crew Chief Crew Chief Redding, California Andy Graves Team Manager Team Manager Syracuse, New York Tony Glover Team Manager Team Manager Kingsport, Tennessee Al Shuford Team Trainer Team Trainer Shelby, North Carolina Darren Wolfe Front Tire Changer Front Mechanic Fletcher, North Carolina Marty Forcier Front Tire Carrier Paint Shop Superior, Wisconsin Randy Cox Rear Tire Changer Car Chief Trinity, North Carolina Heath Cherry Rear Tire Carrier Race Day Only Belmont, North Carolina Mark Jacobs Jack Man Race Day Only Ft. Walton Beach, Florida Les Huntley Gas Man Suspension Specialist Renwick, Iowa Todd Anderson Catch Can Man Chassis Setup Jewell, Iowa Doug Spees Windshield Tire Specialist Toledo, Ohio Andy Graves Spotter Team Manager Syracuse, New York Russ Bales Engine Specialist Engine Specialist Sandy Springs, Georgia Chris Coxon Engineer Engineer Cheboygan, Michigan Paul Clapprood Pit Support Front Mechanic Stafford Springs, Connecticut Trevor Lynse Pit Support Test Team Fergus Falls, Minneapolis Dave Shano Pit Support Truck Driver El Cajon, California Bill Henderson Pit Support Rear Mechanic Brookfield, Massachusetts Roger Parkinson Pit Support Shocks San Diego, California Melissa Zeno Scorer Race Day Only Lynchburg, Virginia