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Where In The World Is Ken Schrader? ... If it has gas, four tires and faces a
green flag, Ken Schrader (No. 21 Little Debbie Ford) will hop in the cockpit
and drive it. The NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series' oldest -- and arguably the
busiest -- competitor just can't resist racing, driving in a variety of
series each season, despite the inherent demands of NASCAR's top series.

The chart below illustrates the hectic nature of Schrader's schedule thus far
this year. This week, in addition to the USG Sheetrock 400, he was scheduled
to race July 4th at Highland (Ill.) Speedway; July 5th at O'Reilly Raceway
Park in Clermont, Ind.; and July 7th at Kankakee (Ill.) Motor Speedway.
Additionally, on July 6th, Schrader is scheduled for a Little Debbie
appearance at the Sears/Kmart Headquarters in Hoffman Estates, Ill.

Schrader's 2006 race totals to date
NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series -- 17
NASCAR Busch Series -- 6
Budweiser Shootout -- 1
Copper World -- 2
Short track (dirt, late-model, etc.) -- 27

From The Archives: Chicagoland Speedway Begins Its Sixth Season ...
Chicagoland Speedway opened in 2001, hosting the first NASCAR NEXTEL Cup
Series event to be staged in the Chicago area since 1956. That event was held
at legendary Soldier Field. A flat, half-mile track was laid out around the
football field and had been in use for several years by a local group led by
motorsports star Andy Granatelli. The NASCAR-sanctioned event was 100 miles
and 200 laps in length and featured a field of 25 cars. NASCAR legends such
as Lee Petty, Fireball Roberts, Speedy Thompson and Buck Baker, along with
local heroes like Sal Tovella, Joy Fair, Tom Pistone and a very young Fred
Lorenzen also competed.

Billy Myers took the pole position with Herb Thomas starting outside on the
front row. Roberts started in the third spot and jumped into the lead at the
green flag. He went on to lead every lap and pick up his third career win.

This Week's Sidebars ... Will Ferrell, star of the upcoming Columbia
Pictures' NASCAR-themed film -- "Talladega Nights -- The Ballad of Ricky
Bobby," will serve as the Grand Marshal for this Sunday's race. Ferrell's
co-stars in the film -- John C. Reilly, Michael Clarke Duncan and Leslie Bibb
-- will be honorary guests at the race. The film will be released Aug. 4.

A host of NASCAR NEXTEL Cup and NASCAR Busch Series drivers will join former
Chicago Bears Super Bowl champion quarterback Jim McMahon in the "Racin' the
Bases Celebrity Softball Challenge" on Thursday at Silver Cross Field in
Joliet, Ill. The charity event begins at 6:15 p.m. Proceeds from the game
will benefit Victory Junction Gang Camp -- one of NASCAR's recognized
charities.

NASCAR NEXTEL Cup drivers will travel to Indianapolis early next week to
participate in their fifth official scheduled test of the season. The
three-day test is set for July 10-12 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Drivers
may test on two of the three days. NASCAR Public Relations will release an
interview schedule later this week. The final NASCAR NEXTEL Cup test session
is set for Oct. 16-18 at Homestead-Miami Speedway.

On Deck: LENOX Industrial Tools 300 at New Hampshire International Speedway
... The NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series begins the season's second half on July 16
with the running of the LENOX Industrial Tools 300 at New Hampshire
International Speedway in Loudon, N.H. TNT's telecast begins at 1:30 p.m.
(EDT), with the start of the race set for 2:10 p.m. (EDT). Tony Stewart is
the defending champion. Brian Vickers (No. 25 GMAC Chevrolet) is the
defending pole winner.

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