Drivers from NASCAR's top three series were at Bristol Motor Speedway Tuesday for a closed-session tire test to help Goodyear determine the best compounds for the upcoming August races.
NASCAR Sprint Cup Series regular Casey Mears tested tires for the Aug. 22 Sharpie 500, while Jason Keller and Steve Wallace ran laps on behalf of the Nationwide Series competitors who will race in the Aug. 21 Food City 250. Past Camping World Truck Series champions Todd Bodine and Ron Hornaday were on hand representing that series.
After spending the morning hours working rubber into the track, the drivers began to get a feel for what to expect in August.
"They (Goodyear) want a tire to rubber the track up a little more like we used to see," said Keller, a former Nationwide Series winner at BMS. "It will make the racing racier all over the track.
"We all want the racing to be side-by-side with those side-by-side battles. From a fan standpoint, from a racer standpoint, we want to see the same thing. We want to get side-by-side and put on a good show for the fans."
Mears echoed Keller and said fans are in for a tremendous show when August race week arrives in Bristol.
"It is always a good event," he said. "It is packed. It is a huge race. It is one of the best races out there.
"We are looking to be good when we come back. We have been pretty good in the past. Hopefully, we can come back here and be competitive and do well."
Bodine, the 2006 Camping World Truck Series champion, explained Goodyear's motives behind the truck portion of the test.
"The main thing with the trucks, with our new pit stop rules," he said, "sometimes you have to leave the tires on. We want to make sure the tires will last more than one fuel run and not wear out and blister. They decided to come here with a different tire and try it. So far, so good.
Rick Campbell, Project Manager for Goodyear's NASCAR Development Program, said his team was in Bristol to learn more about the track surface and how the tires react to it.
"Bristol is so unique," he said. "The surface is different and all the operating conditions are so different. I look for very competitive racing with specifically tuned tires for the three series. They keep getting further and further apart and the tire requirements are different and that is why we are here to see what those requirements need to be.
He acknowledged that, not only are the August events important races on the NASCAR calendar, they provide important testing conditions for the Goodyear engineers.
"With all three series being involved in that race weekend, it is a good opportunity for us to evaluate the requirements at the same time and under the same track conditions. It helps us understand what we need to do, and having a Cup car here helps us get a head start on next year.
Ticket packages for the Sharpie 500 and the Food City 250 are currently available, starting at only $145. Tickets also are on sale for the Wednesday night doubleheader - the UNOH Perfect Storm 150 and the O'Reilly 200 - for $30 and tickets for the Food City 250 begin at $45.
Anyone purchasing a package for the Sharpie 500 and Food City 250 will be eligible for the buy one, get one free Wednesday night ticket.
Tickets may be purchased by calling the BMS ticket office at (423) BRISTOL (274-7865), 423-989-6900 or by visiting www.bristoltix.com.
