Crocker has eventful weekend at Gateway

Called to official ARCA hauler; posts career-best Busch finish

It was a weekend of firsts for me at Gateway International Speedway in Madison, Ill.

I got called to the ARCA hauler for the first time on Friday night and finished in the top 20 [19th] in a Busch Series race for the first time on Saturday night.

Getting called to the hauler isn't something you should be excited about, but it was kind of cool.

	Erin Crocker drives the No. 98 Dodge in the Truck Series. Credit: Autostock
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The call came because of I got into bit of a tangle with Bobby Gerhart with a few laps to go. We were battling all race and I accidentally got into the back of him and took him out.

I kind of feel bad. He's in a close race with Frank Kimmel fighting for the ARCA championship. But I was a lot faster and he was driving as if he had to stay in front of me to win the championship.

Honest to God, I didn't mean to take him out. When I took off on a restart I had a good run on him. He started driving me down toward the infield. By the time we got to Turn 1, which is real tight, I was there and couldn't do anything to avoid him.

He had a few choice words to say to me after the race. I understand he was frustrated and mad. He has every right to be. He's running for a championship.

At the same time, when you know somebody is faster you can't be driving in your rearview mirror all the time. This sport is give and take, a matter of respect.

I didn't get a chance to apologize he was so fired up. Yes, it got a little heated.

I definitely had some frustrations built up, too. I'm not going to get myself in the middle of a points race. You're not going to earn respect that way.

But you've got to respect me. Pick a lane and race me fairly. Give me some room to work. That's all I'm asking for.

That wasn't the first time somebody has come after me, so it wasn't intimidating. With my crew around, I really feel protected, which is great. As I'm pulling off the track they're, "All right. Where are you?" And they meet me wherever I stop.

They were nearby when Bobby came to the passenger-side window and started yelling. It was a bit childish. He was driving by my pit crew on pit road lighting up the tires and flipping them off.

It was definitely some excitement for the ARCA race. And I definitely said some things I shouldn't have said. I've got to speak up for myself. I have just as much right to be on the track as he does.

I hope it doesn't carry over. I'll try to call him before the next time we race, because in the heat of the moment no one can sit down and have a square conversation.

If he gives me a chance to talk to him he'll know what I did was not intentional.

The ARCA officials were really, really nice. They had watched the incident and knew it was a racing incident. The thing they wanted to talk to us about was their spotter said that our spotter had told him we were going to take him out.

Erin Crocker 2006 Truck Series stats Race Start Finish Daytona 24 27 California 33 27 Atlanta 30 26 Martinsville 34 25 Gateway 30 22 Charlotte 2 18 Mansfield 25 28 Dover 25 24 Texas 12 33 Michigan 11 24 Milwaukee 33 25 Kansas 12 16 Kentucky 34 27 Memphis 34 30 Average 24.2 25.1 2006 Busch Series stats No. Site Start Finish 8. Nashville 19 37 17. Milwaukee 25 28 22. Gateway 21 19

We definitely had words, but it wasn't like we're going to take you out. The officials just wanted to make sure there wasn't anything intentional.

They were fine about the accident. They were actually complimentary to myself and my driving, so it was fine. But it was kind of neat to be called to the trailer, not that I want to be the bad girl of stock racing.

I don't want to make a fool of myself. I also don't want to be out there wrecking people, especially when they're running for a championship. But somehow you've got to earn respect.

Bobby still ended up in the top 15. He didn't come out of there much further behind Kimmel than he did going in.

The Busch race was good for my confidence and the confidence of the team.

We had a pretty good car in practice, and then got a hole in the oil pan so we didn't get to do a qualifying setup. We still qualified 21st and ran a good race.

We did two green-flag stops, and I hadn't done many of those. It's pretty tricky with the access road getting onto pit road, but I did it without losing any spots.

The run came at a good time. We'd struggled in the last few truck races and my confidence was down a bit.

We're only running six Busch races, so I haven't had much experience in that car. There's definitely a lot of difference in the ARCA and Busch car.

In general I'm learning how to feel the bigger cars more than I used to. When I first started I was afraid to let them move around much. They'd get tight and I'd kind of panic or get a little bit afraid. I just wasn't used to heavy cars moving around on me.

The good thing is there's no pressure. When you're not running it full time you can go in there without expectations, whereas in the Truck Series running full time your expectations are higher.

We had kind of gotten in a slump with the trucks, and it was nice to jump into something different. It's kind of like you get a fresh start for the weekend. Sometimes you need that to boost your confidence.

The pit guys for the Busch car are the same as my truck ride, so they were pretty excited.

My morale is up, and the crew feels better, too. No one wants to work on a car or truck that's running in the dumps. It was good for them to see me passing cars and being competitive.

Having the week off before that was good for everybody, too. It wears on you when you're not running well. You're traveling a lot and you try your hardest not to get frustrated.

The team in general needed a break. Now we had a good week in the Busch car and the ARCA car, and everybody is excited to get back at it in the truck.

Erin Crocker is stepping up a program that she hopes will land her in a full-time Nextel Cup ride by driving in the Busch, Truck and ARCA series for Evernham Motorsports. Through staff writer David Newton, she shares weekly the ups and downs of her life on and off the track.