Race: O’Reilly Auto Parts 250 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series: 8 of 25 Track: Kansas Speedway Date: June 4, 2011
Johanna Long will race the No. 20 Panhandle Grading & Paving Toyota Tundra at Kansas Speedway on Saturday, June 4 as the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series (NCWTS) takes on the Kansas City track alongside the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series. Coverage of the O’Reilly Auto Parts 250 will begin at 1:00 pm CDT (2:00 EDT) on SPEED and at 12:45 pm CDT (1:45 EDT) on MRN Radio.
Kansas Speedway – Although this will be Long’s first career NCWTS start at Kansas Speedway, she has raced at similar 1.5-mile ovals, including Chicagoland Speedway and Las Vegas Motor Speedway.
Last Race Recap – Long’s last NCWTS race was at Charlotte Motor Speedway two weeks ago. Long avoided incident in the caution-filled N.C. Education Lottery 200, her first race at Charlotte, and earned her third top-20 finish of the season.
Teaming Up with Johnny Benson – Although Johnny Benson originally signed on to work with the No. 20 Panhandle Motorsports team only at Dover and Charlotte, the former NCWTS championship driver will again serve as a driver coach for Long at Kansas. Benson, a veteran driver in the NCWTS, will use his experience to help Long quickly learn how to get around Kansas Speedway.
The Birthday Girl – During the NCWTS off-week, Johanna celebrated her 19th birthday. Long commemorated the occasion by racing with her father, Donald Long, at Five Flags Speedway, their home track in Pensacola, Fla.
Keeping Up with Jo – Keep up with Johanna on Twitter at http://twitter.com/johannalong or on Facebook at http://tinyurl.com/JohannaLongFB.
Johanna Long Quotes:
On Kansas – “I’m really excited about getting back in the truck this weekend at Kansas. I learned a lot at Charlotte, and I look forward to building on that and gaining more experience at Kansas. I also am really glad that Benson is going to be helping our team at Kansas. I really enjoy working with him. He is so knowledgeable about all aspects of racing. He has helped me tremendously in the last couple of weeks and being able to work with him is an honor.”
On Turning 19 – “I had a really fun birthday weekend, especially since my dad fulfilled my birthday wish! He stopped racing a few years ago in order to help me fulfill my racing dreams, but I told him all I wanted for my birthday was for him to race with me. It was really special to see him get back behind the wheel, and we had a lot of fun racing together.”
NCWTS Race Schedule: (All Times CDT)
Friday, June 3
Practice: 11:20 am – 12:20 pm Final Practice: 2:00 – 3:20 pm Autograph Session: 4:30 – 5:30 pm
Saturday, June 4
Qualifying: 9:40 am Driver Intros: 12:30 pm Race: 1:00 pm
About Johanna Long: Johanna Long, one of the youngest drivers in the elite NASCAR Camping World Truck Series, races the No. 20 Pan Handle Grading & Paving Toyota Tundra for family-owned Panhandle Motorsports. The 19-year-old began racing at the age of eight, quickly moving from go-karts to Legends cars to a Late Model. She made history, becoming the youngest driver and only female to win a track championship at Five Flags Speedway. She went on to win the prestigious Snowball Derby at the track in 2010. For more information on Johanna, please visit www.JohannaLong.com.
