Montreal, Canada (August 30, 2009)— Eric McClure and the Rensi-Hamilton Racing team headed to Montreal for the NASCAR Nationwide Event at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve hoping to improve on their results in the previous road course event at Watkins Glen. Qualifying in the 41st position, after spinning out early in the qualifying session and having a foggy windshield due to the inclement weather, Eric McClure was set to use the race as a way to continue to move forward on his learning curve. After struggling with the transmission during the season’s first road race at Watkins Glen, the Hefty® Racing™ team changed the type of transmission used heading in to the weekend, hoping to give the Virginia driver more confidence with his shifting during the race. With each lap completed, the handling of the Hefty® brand Ford was favorable to the driver and the lap speeds continued to get quicker. The Rensi-Hamilton Racing team was scored in the 29th position at the halfway mark, and advanced to 24th by the time the rain began to fall on lap 60.
As the weather worsened and rain began to fall heavier on the track, all teams came to pit road for rain tires and windshield wipers in order to complete the race. When the race resumed, McClure continued to battle his way through the field. With only a few laps remaining and running in the 19th position, several cars began spinning ahead of the No. 24 Ford, causing McClure to jam on the brakes. Despite missing the multi-car accident McClure suffered front-end damage on the No. 24 Ford and would lose three positions in the final two laps, which placed the RHR team in the 22nd position at the conclusion of the NAPA Auto Parts 200.
“I had a great time today. Montreal is a great place to visit and the track is outstanding. It was definitely different practicing and qualifying in rain and I spun getting up to speed during my qualifying run and had a foggy windshield so I wasn’t able to see, so we qualified very poorly. But the car was good during the race and I was able to gain speed with each lap and actually started getting the hang of it when I stayed on course. We kept spinning tires so we lost some spots we had gained during the rain. This was my first time at Montreal and only my second road race, so I was still learning. The more I do this I will be able to continue to focus on technique and help the team with adjustments needed for the car. Everyone on the team made sacrifices for us to just be here so we could keep our full-time status in the series and earn as many points as possible. We far exceeded the goals we had set for ourselves.”
