Bourque Upbeat Despite Dover Setback
Bourque Upbeat Despite Dover Setback DOVER, Del. (September 23, 2006) - - NASCAR Busch rookie Pierre Bourque woke up Friday morning overlooking Dover International Speedway, anxious to make his “Monster Mile�?? debut. Leading up to race day, Bourque competed in two practice sessions, placing 27th of 36 cars entered. The Fast Track Racing (FTR) team made several changes to the No. 10 Chevrolet Monte Carlo hoping to secure the only full-time Canadian NASCAR driver into the field. Bourque went out sixth and turned a lap of 25.343 seconds or 142.051 mph. "I was really hoping for a top 15 start to this race", he said, "I went out sixth and had third fastest time. Then, fifth of 10, then seventh of 14, then 10th, 11th, and so on right down to 28th of 35 cars as the track got faster through the balance of the qualifying session." But as Bourque made it back to the infield, he soon found out that only the top-25 cars would make the show on time. The remaining five slots would be filled by provisionals based on the championship owner point standings. "Unfortunately for us", said Bourque, "the fifth provisional went to the 26 car, with which we were tied in points for 15th place in the Championship, and who I beat in qualifying. I appreciate that series administrator Lee Roy and his colleagues dusted off the NASCAR rule book to determine what to do and, though disappointed, I am confident the rules were adhered to. The end result was I was bounced from the starting line-up." So Bourque packed his bags, said his goodbyes and left the track, returning to his hotel room overlooking the track, which is where he watched the race, merely feet away from his racing competitors. “To say that Friday was a frustrating day is the understatement of my racing season. A pity really, because our lack of points at Dover all but eliminates us from the season-ending East-West Toyota All Star showdown out in California. The team was really looking forward to it, particularly given we had been moving up in the Championship and we all felt the Showdown was within our grasp.�?? Bourque dropped five spots in the championship standings from 15th to 20th. He’ll look to regain as many positions as possible in his NBES road course debut at Lime Rock next weekend. In the meantime, Bourque is ready to move on and is looking forward to his ARCA RE/MAX Series test at Talladega Superspeedway on Monday. “I’m really looking forward to getting on the Talladega track,�?? he said. “I’m making my Talladega debut in the ARCA Series in two weeks and this test will really allow me to get some experience on the track and in the draft.�?? Following Talladega Monday, Bourque will hop an evening flight from Atlanta to Hartford, Connecticut in time to test his Busch East Series car at Lime Rock Speedway on Tuesday in preparation for his final NBES race of the season at Lime Rock Speedway on September 30th. In addition to running the full NASCAR Busch East Series in 2006, Pierre Bourque and Fast Track Racing are making limited starts in the ARCA RE/MAX Series. Bourque also made three CASCAR Series races with Wyoming, Ontario's Whitlock Motorsports. For further insight on Canwest-Global and its associates please log onto _Driving.Ca_ (http://www.driving.ca/) , _Canada.com,_ (http://canada.com/) _Working.com, _ (http://www.working.com/) and _Dose.Ca_ (http://www.dose.ca/) For more information on Full Metals Minerals, please visit _http://www.fullmetalminerals.com_ (http://www.fullmetalminerals.com/) For additional input on Pollara Strategic Public Opinion, please logon to _http://www.pollara.ca_ (http://www.pollara.ca/) To learn more about Pierre Bourque please click onto _http://www.pierrebourque.com_ (http://www.pierrebourque.com/) ### CONTACT: NAME: Chris Knight, Bourque Racing PHONE: 734-660-2333 EMAIL: _Knight849@aol.com_ (javascript:parent.ComposeTo('Knight84 9@aol.com',%20'');)