Dexter Bean Looking To Continue Top-10 Streak At Talladega

Topics:  Dexter Bean, ARCA RE/MAX 250

Chris Knight
BlackJack Racing
October 1, 2007

Talladega, Ala. (October 1, 2007) - - With just two races left on the 2007 ARCA RE/MAX Series (ARS) schedule, Dexter Bean is looking to keep his BlackJack Racing team in the spotlight with Friday’s ARCA RE/MAX 250 at Talladega Superspeedway.

For the third time in his career, Bean will tackle the breathtaking 2.666-mile oval where he is hopes to capture his third straight top-10 finish. In his two previous attempts at Talladega , which came in 2005 and 2006, Bean started 21st and finished 10th. While both efforts were good, Bean knows that his 2007 season has been excellent so far and he would like to see his No. 6 Five Star Telecom Chevrolet take the trophy on Friday.

“I’m looking forward to going back to Talladega , it’s one of my favorite events on the schedule,” said the 20-year sophomore ARS driver. “We’ve worked hard on our restrictor plate program and it has shown here in the past. As a team, we’re heading into the race with the mindset that we can go out there and run like we have in the past.”

Bean continued, “ Talladega is a crucial race. It’s a race that you can’t just think you are going to go out and run well. All of the components have to come together. You have to bring a good car, a stout motor and of course, your team has to be on top of their game. There’s no doubt in my mind that we’ll have our ducks in-a-row on Friday and we’ll challenge for our 11th top-10 of the season.”

Crew Chief Chris Bires has elected to bring the same Chevrolet that the team raced in the season-opener at Daytona International Speedway in February. The BlackJack Racing team has made drastic changes to their Monte Carlo SS in preparation for the final Superspeedway event of the 2007 ARS season.

“We have a pretty good piece for this weekend,” added Bean, a native of Westby , Wisconsin . “Chris has spent a lot of time and effort on this car and it should play to our advantage. We had a good car in Daytona, just got tied up in someone else’s mess. Tesar has given us great motors this year. Their restrictor plate motor will be no slouch either, so we’re coming fully prepared.”

Bean currently sits third in the Championship Point Standings heading into the 45th ARCA race held at Talladega Superspeedway, and he knows that another good effort will help him secure a podium finish with only one event after Talladega; the season finale at Toledo Speedway on October 14th.

“We’ve had a great season, no complaints,” said Bean. “However, Talladega is a race that can make a huge dent if you get swept into the “big one.” We’ve been fortunate to stay out of the mess the last two years and I know that if we keep ourselves in the lead draft on Friday that our chances of being involved in a wreck diminish. But you have to be prepared. You can be good at Talladega , but you have to be lucky too.”

The NASCAR bound driver also included, “We had a great car at Salem a couple weeks ago, but we lost a right front tire and Justin (Allgaier) was able to make some ground up in the standings. We don’t want to have a bad race, but we know that it’s a possibility. We’ve picked up the pieces from Salem and now aiming all of our concentration on Friday’s race.”

With no primary sponsorship locked for Talladega , BlackJack Racing is glad to have local longtime supporter Five Star Telecom (FST) on board as an associate sponsor. Since their beginning in 1973, FST has become one of the largest interconnect companies in the Upper Midwest , with multiple locations serving the tri-state area.

In addition to FST, BlackJack Racing will also have support from The Redmont Hotel. The Redmont Hotel and Residences is a 14 story, 114-room hotel, residence and conference center located on the corner of 5th Avenue North and 21st Street in Birmingham , Alabama . The Redmont, named after Birmingham 's Red Mountain , is the oldest hotel in Birmingham still in use. The Redmont, which was built in 1925, will host Dexter Bean and the BlackJack Racing team. In turn, Bean’s Chevrolet show car will be on display at the hotel between 4-6 p.m. on Tuesday, October 2nd. In addition, Bean will be on-hand to sign autographs for one hour, starting at 4:30 p.m.

Entering Talladega , Dexter Bean has 49 ARCA RE/MAX Series starts to his credit with five top-five finishes and 16 top-10 efforts. He holds a career best finish of second at Salem Speedway and Pocono Raceway (April 2007 and June 2007). He owns the 2006 ARCA SIM Factory pole award at Salem Speedway (September 2006) while hoisting a career-best speedway time trials effort of fourth at Pocono Raceway (June 2006). Bean has also led 138 laps in six races.

BlackJack Racing is still seeking additional primary and associate sponsors for the remainder of the season and for 2008. For sponsorship inquires, please contact BlackJack Racing at 608.634.4242.

The ARCA RE/MAX 250 (94 laps/250 miles) is the 22nd of 23 races on the 2007 ARCA RE/MAX Series schedule. The 45th ARCA race held at Talladega Superspeedway is a two-day show. Practice begins Thursday, October 4th with a two-and-a-half hour practice session planned from 9-11:30 a.m. ARCA SIM Factory pole qualifying is set for later in the day at 3:30 p.m. A “Happy Hour” final practice has been scheduled on Friday, October 5th for forty-five minutes from 10:05-10:50 a.m. The event will take the green flag on October 5th, shortly after 4 p.m. The race will be televised live on SPEED with additional race coverage online at arcaracing.com. All times are local.

For more on Dexter Bean and BlackJack Racing, please visit DexterBean.net

Dexter Bean, BlackJack Racing, Talladega Superspeedway,

Notes of Interest:

· Dexter Bean will make his third career start at Talladega Superspeedway. In both 2005 and 2006, Bean started 21st and drafted to two successful 10th place finishes.

· Crew Chief Chris Bires is the brother of NASCAR Busch Series driver Kelly Bires and the brother in-law to NASCAR Nextel Cup Series driver Johnny Sauter and NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series driver Tim Sauter.

· Dexter Bean has set a new personal record this year excelling past his 2006 ARCA RE/MAX Series stats after posting three top-five and 10 top-10 finishes after 21 races this season. Last year, Bean had recorded two top-fives and five top-10s.

· Dexter Bean will be on-hand to sign autographs for fans at The Redmont Hotel in Birmingham , Alabama between 4:30-5:30 p.m. on Tuesday, October 2nd, 2007. In addition, Bean’s Chevrolet show car will also be on display. For more information, please call The Redmont Hotel at 205.324.2101.

· Dexter Bean is scheduled to attend the third annual ARCA Fan Fest at Toledo Speedway next Friday, October 12 for an autograph session at Toledo Speedway from 5:00-6:30 p.m.

MEDIA CONTACT:
NAME: Chris Knight, BlackJack Racing
PHONE: 239.834.9797
EMAIL: Knight849@aol.com