Another top-10 finish for surging Schrader
By Tim Packman, Turner Sports Interactive
June 18, 2001
10:43 AM EDT (1443 GMT)
LONG POND, Pa. -- Longevity, experience and persistence are three factors that can make for a successful career as a racecar driver. If that's the case, Kenny Schrader is enjoying a resurgence of late.
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Ken Schrader has three top-15 finishes in his last five races.
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The driver of the No. 36 Pontiac started third and finished ninth in Sunday's Pocono 500 at Pocono Raceway.
That was on the heels of a 14th-place effort at Michigan one race ago. Through the last few events, the driver with 16 years of racing under his belt has been padding his statistics.
"We were good, but we had a carburetor problem or something," he said. "It would come at the very worst time. It would stay a couple of laps then go away. It never went completely away, but when we got on old enough tires it didn't make any difference."
What has made a difference lately is the 1985 Winston Cup rookie of the year's performance. He was soldiering along, running in the top five in the 600-mile event at Charlotte, three races prior to Pocono.
However, loose lugnuts near the halfway point forced him pit-side. The end result showed a misleading 21st-place finish.
It's incidents like that which can cost a team dearly. Schrader seems to feel he's now headed in the right direction.
"Everybody did a good job today," he said. "We're definitely gaining."
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Ken Schrader's third-place start at Pocono was his best of the season.
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His Pocono start was the best of the season, not a coincidence considering he is the all-time Bud Pole Award winner at the 2.5-mile trioval. Sunday's ninth-place finish gives him five top-10s and moved him up three positions to 19th in the points.
Last season, the St. Louis, Mo., native had two top-10s and finished 19th in points. Schrader has four career wins, 64 top-fives and 175 top-10 finshes.
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