HAMPTON, Ga. -- Timothy Peters relaxes inside a nondescript white hauler parked near the tail end of the pecking order that makes up the Camping World Truck Series garage. But if his No. 17 Toyota team continues what its started so far this season, that hauler will find itself in a much more prominent position very soon.

With a sixth-place effort at Daytona, followed by a ninth at California, Peters is fourth in the points, which would move Premier Racing up into one of the premier parking spaces once the current season owners' points go into effect after Martinsville. And Peters, for one, is excited at that prospect.

Peters

"I can't wait," Peters said. "That's one of my goals: to be on the other side [of the garage]. It's kind of like people fighting to be on the left side of the board. You want to be on that side. And I feel like we belong over there. There's a right time and a right place for everything. Hopefully, the time and the place is now."

At California, Peters ran all but 16 laps in the top 15, incredibly impressive for a team that wasn't sure it would answer the bell for the season-opener. He's hoping to continue that momentum in Saturday's American Commercial Lines 200 at Atlanta Motor Speedway.

In Friday's first practice, Peters' fastest lap was 172.185 mph, almost three miles an hour slower than Ron Hornaday. But as Peters has proven, just being at the track every week is a bonus.

"Before December, we didn't think we could even make it to Daytona," Peters said. "We have commitments through the first four [races]. After Martinsville, we're going to kind of have to think about how we can to go the rest of the year, but man, we're off to a great start."

For Peters, the uncertainty was frustrating.

"It was very stressful," Peters said. "It's not a fun feeling to know what you have is only going to get you through the first four [races of the season]. But I'm very fortunate to be at the first four. When you think it's really bad, it is. I know past champions sitting at home, wishing they had my seat."

Peters drove in seven races for Premier in 2008, breaking into the top 10 at Martinsville. But he said the real turning point came at the season's final race, when the team made a manufacturer change.

"We switched to Toyota at Homestead and we were fast right out of the trailer," Peters said. "We qualified decent, ran in the top 10 all night. I probably should have stayed out, but I got a little greedy, wanted some tires and ended up with a 14th-place finish. But we knew the way we ran, we felt like we could go and race well. And Daytona and California is just a product of what we started there."

Even so, the offseason provided lots of contemplation for Peters and the ownership group. The final decision? Run the first four races and then reassess things. But no one could have imagined the pleasant quandary that now faces the team.

"After the last race at Homestead, where we ran really well, we were just kind of sitting there and wondering what we were going to do, due to the economy," Peters said. "Here we are. Our plan was to run the first four races, see how we were in points and the way we've been performing, and then go from there. After Daytona and California, with two top-10s and sitting fourth in points, it's going to be hard to swallow if we get to Martinsville and figure out what it will take to get to Kansas."

So what will it take to complete the season?

"Obviously, the almighty dollar," Peters said. "Strutmasters is committed to me. We just all have to come together as a company and try to make sure that we get the people helping us now their value and just try to put that deal together to try and go farther."

Peters ran portions of two full seasons with Bobby Hamilton Racing, starting in 2005, recording three top-10s in 33 starts. He wound up getting to share Richard Childress' Nationwide Series car in 2007, with a top finish of 13th in seven appearances. But with the lack of results, the offers began to dry up.

That left Peters wondering about his future, but with a better idea of what he needed to be successful.

"I've been very fortunate to be with Bobby Hamilton Racing and Richard Childress Racing over the years and it's definitely made me a better person on the business side and behind the wheel," Peters said. "When this team formed last year, and I was able to be a small part of the ownership, by far it's been the best deal I've ever been a part of. Some of the circumstances in the past are different now."

The biggest difference is the confidence that comes with consistent efforts. Back-to-back top-10 finishes have a tendency to do that.

"It's a feeling of confidence, but it's always one of those deals where you have to put up or shut up," Peters said. "I felt like the first four races are the most important of my career, and the company's career. Not to say that I feel like I'm on the hot seat, but when you've got the fundamentals there to work with, it makes my job easier and the crew chief's job easier. Everybody around the team builds off the confidence.

"If we can keep that going, once the top-10s come, then the top-fives come and the wins come. ... When we get that win, the check will get signed and we'll probably be at Homestead."

And Peters hopes that means the view from his hauler will be a whole lot better.