No. 31 crew up to challenge

Thursday, May. 14, 2009

When it came time to win the NASCAR Sprint Pit Crew Challenge Thursday night, the No.31 Caterpillar Chevrolet team decided to go where no other team had gone.

Straight to the record book.

And with Kim Burton – Jeff's wife – in the driver's seat.

Topping a record-setting semifinal time, the No. 31 team captured the championship over the No. 43 Air Force Dodge with an event-record time of 22.115 seconds at Time Warner Cable Arena.

The Caterpillar team won the finals by 1.724 seconds over the Air Force team.

In a racing season cluttered with pit-road problems, the Caterpillar team was essentially flawless Thursday. Other than a minor violation in an early seeding round, the team went penalty-free in winning.

The victory had more than near perfect execution.

The team painted Kim Burton's name above the driver's window when she agreed to sit in the car – and basically stop it after it crossed the finish line each round.

“The guy we were going to have drive it, his 180 pounds to her maybe 100 pounds, she won the battle real quick,” tire changer Dan Blizzard said.

On Wednesday, a day before the competition, the Caterpillar team added rear-tire changer Terry Spalding to its roster, changing its lineup with no significant practice time.

“I knew there might be a spot available and I jumped at the chance to maybe be part of this,” Spalding said.

Not unlike the racing season to this point, penalties played a key role in determining the outcome. Just when it appeared the No. 14 Old Spice/Office Depot team had advanced to the finals, it was penalized three seconds for a rear-tire violation, allowing the No. 43 team to reach the finals.

The Caterpillar Chevrolet gained its spot in the finals when a front-tire penalty nullified an apparent victory – and event record – by the No. 11 FedEx team. The Caterpillar team, owned by Richard Childress Racing, posted an event-record time of 22.411 in its semifinal victory.

The night got off to a spirited beginning when in a first-round match-up, the crew for the No. 88 National Guard Chevrolet appeared to eliminate the defending champion No. 83 Red Bull Toyota team, bringing a big cheer.

However, a five-second penalty was assessed to the 88 team, costing it a spot in the second round.

A few minutes later, the top-seeded crew – the No. 18 M&Ms Toyota – appeared to have an easy victory over the No. 43 Air Force Dodge. Driver Kyle Busch was slapping hands with his crew members after they pushed the car across the finish line.

It didn't last, however, as penalty time was added to the No. 18 team, knocking it out in the second round.

There was some good news for the 18 team as rear tire changer Jake Seminara of Steubenville, Ohio, and rear tire carrier Kenny Barber of Hoosick Falls, N.Y., won the individual championship in their specialties.

Other individual champions were jack man Jeff Kerr, gas man/catch can man Preston Cordell and Eric Hoyles and front-tire changer/carrier Dennis Terry and Shannon Keys, all from the No. 1 Bass Pro Shops car.

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