Cook Looking To Avoid Bristol Truck Series 'Big One'

While much of the conversation heading into the O’Reilly 200 at Bristol Motor Speedway is about the track’s new concrete surface, veteran NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series driver Terry Cook knows that earning a good finish will still be predicated on staying out of trouble on the .533-mile high-banked oval.

“Bristol is a mini-Talladega and to do well there, you have to miss ‘the Big One,’ said Cook, who will pilot the No. 59 HT Motorsports Toyota Tundra in the event. “You can get caught up in somebody else’s wreck pretty easily. You’re going way fast around that place and there isn’t much room for error. If two or three trucks get sideways in front of you, you can get swept up in it instantly. It’s the kind of place that the people immediately behind the wreck don't get in trouble, it’s the people farther behind who pile in on top. You’re on the hammer for so long, so when you lift for a wreck, you usually get run over from behind. You really have to be aware of your surroundings at all times, not just with the trucks in front of you, but the trucks behind you too.”

Cook has had first-hand experience with the Bristol ‘Big One’ crashing out in two of his seven Truck Series starts at the track. In fact, the Sylvania, OH native, an owner of six career Truck Series wins and 92 Top-10 finishes, has never finished on the lead lap in those seven Bristol NCTS starts.

“Typically, I’ve qualified pretty well at Bristol but I have never had much racing luck there,” Cook stated, noting his best NCTS finish at the Mountain Empire track is a 14th in the 1998 event. “Unfortunately, I’ve had more than my share of DNF’s (did not finish) there. We’ve done everything from wreck to have broken wheel studs. I always enjoy racing there, but I’ve just never had the finishes to back up my qualifying efforts.”

Based on the results of an open Truck Series test a couple of weeks ago, this might be the year Cook finally breaks through at Bristol. Cook’s Harris Trucking Toyota was among the fastest trucks throughout the eight-hour marathon test eventually posting a fast lap of 16.09 seconds, the second-best time of the test and just a eyelash behind the best time of 16.08 posted by fellow Toyota driver Ted Musgrave.

“We were very happy with the Bristol test,” said Cook. “We were the first vehicles on the new concrete surface and it seemed like it took a little while to get going. Once we got some rubber laid down on the track, we had a very good driving truck. Knowing that NASCAR and Goodyear are going to have us back for another four-hour test the day before the race, we’re pretty confident we can improve on our truck even more.”

And as for the new concrete surface, the first repaving of the facility since 1992, Cook had this assessment.

“The track is completely different than it used to be,” said Cook. “You’ll attack it different, you’ll race it different. A lot of the mind set you used to have in preparing to race at Bristol is changed. I think it’s going to be a better racing surface and provide the fans a lot of great racing. If we can get out of there with a Top-10 finish at a place that’s as tough as Bristol, that will be a good day’s work.”

The O’Reilly 200 at Bristol Motor Speedway will take the green flag on Wednesday, August 22 at 8 p.m. Eastern Time. The event will be televised live on The SPEED Channel and will be broadcast by Motor Racing Network (MRN) and Sirius Satellite Radio.

For more information about Terry Cook, please log on to www.terrycook.com.

To access information about HT Motorsports and the No. 59 Harris Trucking Toyota Tundra team, please log on to www.htmotorsports.com