Dexter Bean Looking To End Record Season On High Note At Toledo

Topics:  Dexter Bean, Hantz Group 200

Chris Knight
BlackJack Racing
October 10, 2007

TOLEDO, Ohio (October 10, 2007) - - It’s been a terrific season for sophomore ARCA RE/MAX Series driver Dexter Bean and his BlackJack Racing team. But there is still one obstacle the team is looking to conquer, a win. They will have one final chance to make turn that dream into a reality in Sunday’s Hantz Group 200 presented by Belle Tire, the season finale at Toledo Speedway.

And while Toledo hasn’t been the kindest to Bean, he is looking to change that statistic. Bean along with crew chief Chris Bires went back to the drawing board and believe they’ve come up with a setup that will reward them with their fourth top-five or 11th top-10 of the season while also hopefully collecting their first ever win.

“ Toledo hasn’t been one of my favorite race tracks,” offered Bean. “But that can change this weekend. We were running the best we ever had earlier this year and were taken out with a handful of laps left. We think our race day setup from May will help us tremendously this weekend.”

Bires and Bean have both given the nod to bring the “black” No. 6 Five Star Telecom Chevrolet Monte Carlo to the half-mile bull ring this weekend. In the car’s last outing, the team collected a seventh place finish at Chicagoland Speedway after starting 22nd.

The team has only run the machine at tracks of a mile and a half or greater, so the organization is optimistic about bringing it to Toledo , but they feel with the heavy amount of practice on Saturday and their prior success on the short tracks this season, the team will be near the top.

“We destroyed our good short track car when we blew the tire at Salem ,” offered Bean. “The team has worked hard since Salem to transfer this car from a speedway machine to a short track car. I think it will pay off. We were awarded with our first top-10 with this car at Chicagoland last month and there’s no doubt in my mind that we can go out there this weekend and back that performance up.”

He continued, “Short track racing isn’t all about skill, it’s about luck too. You can be at the right place at the right time and the bad luck will strike. You just have to go into each race with a positive outlook and the notion to win and that’s exactly what we’re going to do this weekend.”

With no primary sponsorship locked for Toledo , 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.

Entering Toledo , Dexter Bean has 50 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.

Before turning all of his attention towards making his fourth career Toledo ARCA RE/MAX Series start, Bean will join a host of drivers at the third annual ARS Fan Fest at Toledo Speedway on Friday, October 12 from 5:00-6:30 p.m. local time.

The Hantz Group 200 presented by Belle Tire (200 laps/100 miles) is the 23rd of 23 races on the 2007 ARCA RE/MAX Series schedule. The 62nd ARCA race held at Toledo Speedway is a two-day show. Practice begins Saturday, October 13 with an hour and-a-half hour practice session planned from 12:30-2:00 p.m. ARCA SIM Factory pole qualifying is set for later in the day at 3:30 p.m. The event will take the green flag on October 14th, shortly after 2:00 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, Toledo Speedway Notes of Interest:

· Dexter Bean will make his third career start at Toledo Speedway Sunday. In the fall event last year, Bean started 17th and finished 24th. Earlier this year, Bean started 15th and finished 17th after being spun out late in the event.

· 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 22 races this season. Last year, Bean had recorded two top-fives and five top-10s.

· 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