Travis Kvapil
No. 5 International Truck/Monaco RVs Toyota Tundra
Martinsville Speedway – Kroger 250
April 2, 2011
No. 5 Randy Moss Motorsports International Truck/Monaco RVs Toyota Tundra News and Notes
* This Week’s Tundra. The No. 5 International Truck/Monaco RVs Toyota Tundra team and driver Travis Kvapil will race MDM-118 in Saturday’s 250-lap NCWTS race at Martinsville Speedway. The truck was last utilized by RMM in 2009 at The Milwaukee Mile where the team recorded a seventh-place finish. * Meet Travis… Fans at the track in Martinsville, Va., will have the opportunity to meet Travis Kvapil in the hours leading up to the race on Saturday, April 2. The driver of the No. 5 International Truck/Monaco RVs Toyota Tundra will join other drivers in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series to meet fans and sign autographs during the NCWTS autograph session. The session will be held in the display area at Martinsville Speedway on Saturday morning from 9:00 a.m. – 10:00 a.m. EST. * Pit Stop in the Music City. Travis Kvapil stopped in Nashville, Tenn., on Tuesday to promote the upcoming Bully Hill Vineyards 200 at Nashville Superspeedway. The day kicked off with several interviews with area radio and television stations. That afternoon, Kvapil joined NASCAR Nationwide Series regulars Reed Sorenson and Ricky Stenhouse, Jr., to meet fans and give a few lucky guests a ride around the concrete track as the Richard Petty Driving Experience provided a free rides to attending season ticket holders. Country music stars Bucky Covington and Carter’s Chord also attended the event drawing media from the music industry. * Follow Travis. Fans are invited to follow Travis Kvapil, driver of the No. 5 International Truck/Monaco RVs Toyota Tundra, on twitter http://www.twitter.com/traviskvapil @TravisKvapil and on http://www.facebook.com/traviskvapil Facebook (facebook.com/TravisKvapil). Fans can also check out http://www.traviskvapil.com http://www.traviskvapil.com for news, updates, and photos throughout the week. * Watch and Listen.The Kroger 250 from Martinsville Speedway will be broadcast live on SPEED, MRN Radio and Sirius-XM NASCAR Radio, channel 128, at 1:30 p.m. EST on Saturday, April 2. Final practice will be aired on Friday, April 1 and 2:00 p.m. with qualifying shown on Saturday, April 2 at 10:30 a.m. EST. Both broadcasts will be televised on SPEED Channel.
Travis Kvapil on driving at Martinsville Speedway
“Martinsville [Speedway] is one of my favorite tracks that we go to. It just fits my driving style-I’ve always run really well there, and I’ve had some really competitive trucks there over the years. Martinsville [Speedway] is also a very special track for me because it’s where I made my first [NASCAR Sprint] Cup Series start. I’ve been close to winning in a truck at Martinsville [Speedway] a few times, but we just haven’t quite been able to get it done. I’m excited to go back and optimistic that we’ll be able to finish up front this weekend.”
Crew Chief Rick Viers on racing at Martinsville Speedway
“Martinsville [Speedway] is a great place; it’s a fun track with a lot of history. Knowing Travis’ background there makes this a race that the International Truck/Monaco RVs Toyota Tundra team is really excited about. We’ve had a lot of time to prepare for this weekend; we’ve spent a lot of time on the pull-down rig and at the seven post. I think this race will be a good opportunity for us to bounce back from the first three races. We’ve had a lot of bad luck, so we’re focusing on the things that we can control to run back up front where we belong.”
Travis Kvapil
Driver Bio
Birthdate: March 1, 1976 Hometown: Janesville, WI Residence: Mooresville, NC Status: Married to Jennifer Children: Kelsey, Carson, Caden
With the 2003 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series championship highlighting his resume, Travis Kvapil is sure to be an asset to the No. 5 International Truck/Monaco RVs Toyota Tundra team throughout the 2011 season at Randy Moss Motorsports. Over the last decade, the Janesville, Wis., native has established himself as a tough competitor in the top levels of motorsports and a mainstay in the NASCAR arena. In 2011, Kvapil will take over the wheel of the No. 5 machine to chase his second NCWTS title in his young career.
Growing up working on cars in his dad’s garage, racing was a natural progression for Wisconsin-native Travis Kvapil. Kvapil first got behind the wheel of a racecar at the age of 14, competing at Rockford Speedway and sharpening his skills on the Midwest short track circuits. By 18, Kvapil won the American Short Tracker division track championship, and then moved up the ranks to race Super Late Models at Madison International Speedway. “Wisconsin’s Fastest Half Mile” couldn’t slow down Kvapil, who earned Rookie of the Year honors in 1995 in his first season of competition. Kvapil returned to the track the following year, earning the championship and becoming the youngest Super Late Model track champion in Madison International Speedway’s history.
In 2001, Kvapil made his debut in the NASCAR ranks, earning a ride in the No. 60 Addington Racing entry in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series. Kvapil posted his first top-10 when he finished runner-up in his just his second NCWTS start at Homestead-Miami Speedway that February. Kvapil would ultimately score 11 top-five and 18 top-10 finishes in 24 races that season, finishing fourth in the NCWTS driver standings as a rookie. Kvapil earned his first win in the series at Texas Motor Speedway and took home the NCWTS Rookie of the Year title.
After signing with Xpress Motorsports, Kvapil drove the No. 16 truck in 2003. Kvapil added another win to his stats after taking the checkered flag at Bristol Motor Speedway, and completed all but one lap that season, earning a 99.9% lap completion rate. With 13 top-five and 21 top-10 finishes in the first 24 starts of the season, a sixth-place finish at the season-ending race at Homestead-Miami Speedway would allow Kvapil to edge out Dennis Setzer by nine points to win the 2003 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series championship.
In 2004, Kvapil brought his talents to Bang! Racing, driving the No. 24 truck for Alexander Meshkin. During that season, Kvapil gave Toyota its first win in one of NASCAR’s top-three series at Michigan International Speedway, and then earned his second win of the season at New Hampshire Motor Speedway. Kvapil earned his first career pole and totaled six top-five and 10 top-10 finishes, finishing in the top-10 in driver points for the fourth consecutive season. Additionally, near the end of the 2004 season, Roger Penske invited Kvapil to drive the No. 06 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series entry for Penske Racing for three races. Kvapil qualified fifth in his NSCS debut, finishing 21st.
Roger Penske was so impressed by Kvapil’s performance in the three races he completed that he signed him to drive the No. 77 for the 2005 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series season. Despite earning two top-10 finishes, the No. 77 team closed its doors at the end of the season. Kvapil got behind the wheel of the No. 32 Tide Chevrolet for PPI Motorsports in 2006.
Kvapil received a huge opportunity when Jack Roush, owner of Roush Fenway Racing, offered him a seat in the No. 6 Ford F-150 in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series in 2007. Kvapil had a landmark season, collecting four wins, three poles, eight top-five and 12 top-10 finishes, ending the season sixth in the driver standings.
Since 2008, Kvapil has been a mainstay in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series garage while racing for Yates Racing and Front Row Motorsports. With a handful of top-ten finishes and a pole award from Talladega Superspeedway (Oct. 2008) in the Sprint Cup Series, Kvapil returns to Randy Moss Motorsports with the hope of winning his second NCWTS title.
