Park, 15th in his only NASCAR Camping World Truck Series appearance at the 1.5-mile superspeedway, continues to battle for a top-10 position in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series championship.

Park, ranked 11th, trails two time Las Vegas winner Jack Sprague (No. 16 Chevy Trucks Chevrolet) by 64 points entering Saturday’s Las Vegas 350.

Just as important to Park, however, is performing on a par with the team’s former driver Brendan Gaughan.  And that won’t be an easy task. All Gaughan did in 2003 was win the Bud Pole and the Las Vegas 350. Gaughan led 106 of 146 laps – the most ever by a series winner at the track.

“The Las Vegas race has significance because it is the home of Orleans Racing,” said Park of his team, whose shops are located on the Las Vegas Motor Speedway property. “I know how much it means to the team and the guys being home. It really isn’t a hometown race for me … but the guys keep me pumped up.

“Their enthusiasm rubs off on me.”

Park, a New Yorker, doesn’t really need that additional motivation to finish off the 2004 season with a flourish. It hasn’t been the best of years for Orleans Racing, although Park did enjoy a stretch in mid-summer in which he posted four finishes of 10th or better in the span of five races.

The team’s best performances, a pair of fourths, came back-to-back at The Milwaukee Mile and Kansas Speedway. Park led 18 laps of last week’s event at New Hampshire International Speedway before finishing 14th.

“We have struggled this season but it isn’t over,” said Park, who twice has finished fourth at LVMS, in the NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series and the NASCAR Busch Series. “We want to break into the top 10 and we are very close. It would be great to get our first win of the season at Las Vegas but right now I’m more concerned with getting that win.

“I will be very disappointed if we do not win this season.”

Orleans Racing, as it did a year ago, will field a second truck for defending NASCAR Grand National, West Series champion Scott Lynch (No. 61 Orleans Dodge). Lynch finished 12th at LVMS in 2003.

Lynch is coming off a victory in Sunday’s NASCAR West Series stop in Roseburg, Ore.

“It’s a great opportunity to be Steve Park’s teammate,” said the 24-year-old Burley, Idaho native. “He has so much more experience than I can ever imagine. To be able to communicate with him is a big advantage. I think for someone at my level and so young, it is important to learn as much as you can.”

NEWS & NOTES, PART II

Title race tightens for fall finish … You might say Bobby Hamilton (No. 4 Square D Dodge) has been waiting for his rivals to catch up, and that’s exactly what they’ve done over the past two races. Hamilton, who enjoyed a 96-point lead after last month’s race at Bristol Motor Speedway, is up by just 30 over Dennis Setzer (No. 46 Chevrolet Silverado Chevrolet). Carl Edwards (No. 99 Superchips Ford) is 39 behind in third. In fact, the top six are separated by 188 points in a battle that figures to go down to the wire as it did in 2003. Since winning Aug. 16 at Nashville Superspeedway, Hamilton has finished 12th, 26th and 15th – his longest stretch without a top 10 since joining the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series fulltime in 2003.

Etc. … Last weekend’s event at New Hampshire International Speedway marked the first time in 2004 that three NASCAR Camping World Truck Series champions have finished among the top 10 in the same race. Travis Kvapil (No. 24 Toyota Tundra Toyota) won with Sprague second and Mike Skinner (No. 5 Toyota Tundra Toyota) 10th. … Rick Crawford (No. 14 Circle Bar Motel & RV Park Ford) was in Washington, D.C., Tuesday to attend the 2004 “Secretary of Defense Employer Support Freedom Award” dinner hosted by Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld. Lisa Karnes, daughter of Circle Bar Racing owner Tom Mitchell, accompanied Crawford. The event recognizes employers who provide exceptional support to their employees who serve in the National Guard and Reserve. … Edwards figures to get equal amounts of racing and flying time this week as he competes in the Las Vegas 350 and Sunday’s NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series MBNA America 400 at Dover International Speedway. Edwards will qualify the Roush Racing No. 99 Ford on Friday, fly west for Saturday’s LVMS event then return to Dover for Sunday’s race. … Jack Roush is the only active owner to win two NASCAR Craftsman Truck races in Las Vegas. Joe Ruttman won in 1997; Greg Biffle in 1999. Rick Hendrick also has two victories with Sprague. … Ruttman led the fewest laps by any winner – three. … Every Las Vegas winner has finished fifth or higher in that season’s championship standings. None, however, has won the title. Four – Ruttman, Sprague, Ted Musgrave (No. 1 Mopar Dodge) and Biffle – have finished second. … Todd Bodine (No. 30 Germain-Arnold Toyota) won the 2001 NASCAR Busch Series Sam’s Town 300. He’ll be making his first NASCAR Craftsman Truck start at LVMS … NASCAR West Series veteran Brandon Miller is slated to drive the Ultra Motorsports No. 2 Team ASE/Carquest Dodge this week. Ricky Bogart, a veteran of the same series, will take the controls of the ThorSport No. 13 Washington Mutual Chevrolet.

ON THE RIGHT TRACK

Three have victories at Las Vegas … Sprague, Musgrave and David Starr (No. 75 Spears Manufacturing Chevrolet) count a combined four victories at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. Sprague (1998) and Starr (2002) won from the Bud Pole. Also, Sprague wrapped up his first championship with a second place finish in the 1997 edition of the Las Vegas 350. He has never finished worse than fifth in six Las Vegas appearances. Sprague’s $310,200 is the most money won by any series driver at a single track.

QUOTEBOOK

“We are going to go at these last seven races as if we need to win every single one of them. Forget points racing. We are on a mission now.” – Matt Crafton, No. 6 GM Goodwrench Chevrolet, fourth in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck championship standings.
“We didn’t make a whole lot of laps out there in March but when you’re a rookie, any time you get additional experience can only help you.” – Shane Sieg, No. 07 Auto-Air Colors Chevrolet, who competed earlier this year in the NASCAR Busch Series Sam’s Town 300.

“Everyone asks how you can concentrate on a race while in Vegas. There are a lot of things to do and see. It’s a fun town but when we come to race, we come to race.” – Shane Hmiel, No. 15 Billy Ballew Motorsports Chevrolet, a top-10 finisher in four of his last six series starts.

“When you have a bad couple of weeks, all it takes is one good race to feel better. It takes only one bad race to make you feel bad.” – Raybestos Rookie of the Year leader David Reutimann, No. 17 NTN Bearings Toyota, who followed up a 30th-place finish at Richmond with a fifth at New Hampshire International Speedway.

FROM THE ARCHIVES

The Las Vegas 350 has been scheduled at three distances – 175 laps (1996-97), 167 laps (1998-99) and the current 146 laps (2001-present). The 1998 race was extended two laps by caution for the only green-white-checker finish at LVMS.

Fast Facts

What:  Las Vegas 350 (Race No. 19 of 25).
Where:  Las Vegas Motor Speedway, Las Vegas, Nev.
When:  7 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 25.
Track layout: 1.5-mile paved.
Race length:  350 kilometers/219 miles/146 laps.
Posted awards: $476,706.
TV:  SPEED Channel, 10 p.m. ET.
Radio: MRN, XM Satellite.
2003 winner:  Brendan Gaughan.
2003 polesitter: Brendan Gaughan.

Pre-race schedule (all times local): Saturday – Practice 10:30 a.m. – 1 p.m. Qualifying 3:30 p.m. Trucks impounded after qualifying.