Ken Schrader: Brickyard 400 preview

The thoughts of Schwan's Home Service Dodge driver Ken Schrader heading into Indianapolis:

"The Brickyard seems to get bigger and bigger every year... and rightfully so. There is something about this place. I'm sure part of it is the history and thinking back to all the names who have not just won here, but raced here. Being from the Midwest, everybody pointed to Indy as the track they wanted to visit. Growing up you could only dream about having the opportunity to race at Indy one day.

"There was a time when NASCAR could only dream about racing at Indy, but now it's arguably the most popular event at the track. I'm not saying the Brickyard 400 is more prestigious than the Indy 500, but the crowd that turns out for the Brickyard weekend takes a back seat to no one, because they really fill this place up. That just shows how far NASCAR has come in a relatively short period of time. In 1990 NASCAR didn't even race here and now it's such a huge draw for the track and the sport.

"This has definitely become a 'major' in the NASCAR Nextel Cup Series. The Sunday walk onto the starting grid at Indy is kind of like what golfers describe Sunday's walk out to the first tee at Augusta to be, or going on the field for the first game of the World Series. With all of those fans right there on top of you, from both sides, it's a pretty cool deal. As a racer, you want to win or be the fastest every time you strap yourself into a race car. But, Indy has become one of the handful of tracks on the Cup circuit that every driver dreams about winning. They'll likely be more cars at Indy trying to make Sunday's race than at any track we've been to or will go to the rest of the year. It's a huge race for the competitors and owners.

"Did I say owners? This is one of, if not the biggest race of the year for our owner Beth Ann. She spent part of her childhood around Indianapolis and used to come to a lot of the races here at Indy. Even before she had ever seen a stock car or heard of NASCAR, she used to come to Indy. She's passionate about racing and about Indy. Sunday will actually be the second race of the year at Indy for Beth Ann. Not a lot of people know this, but Beth Ann did 'the double' this year. She was there at Indy until the long rain delay, then flew to Charlotte and was on top of the Schwan's pit cart for the start of the Coca-Cola 600. Like some other folks, rain ruined Beth Ann's chance for the 1100-mile double.

"To have a good run at Indy would mean the world to Beth Ann and give this whole Schwan's Home Service team a huge shot of adrenaline. Everyone in the garage works hard and this team is no different. We've been close to having some really good finishes over the past month, but for whatever the reason, something has happened to keep us from cashing in on our efforts. I can't think of a better place to turn that luck around than at Indy, and bring home a good finish for the boss."