PROSPECT, PA (May 29, 2001) – Nashville, Tennessee, also known as Music City, USA, is the site of the next ASA ACDelco Series event. Many country music artists have seen their careers advance because of a trip to Nashville. Ryan Hemphill and Hemphill Racing hope to see their ASA efforts advance this weekend with their own trip to the 'Country Music Capital of the World'.

In the Hemphill's last race, the Actionline 300 at Montgomery Motor Speedway, he led eighteen laps before brake problems forced his retirement from the event. Having been to Nashville Speedway USA before in Legacy cars, some basic track knowledge will most definitely help the team get up to speed this weekend.

"I have a lot of confidence. We haven't been the greatest in all the other races. We think we found a bunch of stuff wrong, which is really good for us. Usually when we find something wrong we end up doing pretty well," said Hemphill. "Being there in a Legacy car, it was like a superspeedway in those cars. But it'll be just another short track in these ASA cars. I didn't really run the greatest at all when I was there, so that wasn't good. But I'm always optimistic about every track I go to and usually do pretty well."

Nashville has always been a track that is difficult to find a consistent setup for. When the NASCAR Busch Series ran at the facility, it was not uncommon to see some of the major teams struggle to gain the handle on the track. This being ASA's second visit in the spec engine and radial tire era, as well as the first night race since the introduction of the ASA Vortec 5700 and BFGoodrich Traction T/A Radials, there will not be much for the experienced teams to draw on in terms of notes. But more than likely, the track's characteristics will remain the same.

"If it's really hot out, the track might tighten up a bit. We'll have to work on our setup for race time. If we run the qualifying race, we might be able to get a good baseline idea of what the actual race is gonna be like," explained the driver of the unsponsored No. 02 Vortec-powered Chevrolet. "But if we qualify well and make the race without running the qualifying race, we might have to do a little work on our setup for the actual race. We're gonna try to test at Clearfield (Pennsylvania) tomorrow just to see if our car is running the way we'd like it."

More than anything, Hemphill will be testing the structural soundness of the front suspension. During the St. Augustine event in February, Hemphill was involved in an early altercation with Scott Fraser and Mark Cole that damaged the left front of the car. Since that time, the team has had difficulty in getting the car to turn in the middle of the corner. This tight condition prevented Hemphill from planting the throttle and getting out of the corner and down the next straightaway properly, which ultimately resulted in slower lap times.

"We hope to see if our car is going to actually steer. We've been having a lot of problems with the car turning in the middle, which it shouldn't do. All of our cars usually turn pretty well in the middle. We think we corrected what we found wrong right off the bat," elaborated the nineteen year-old Hemphill. "We found a bent left front spindle and a bent lower left A-frame. That's about it. It's been there since St. Augustine because that's where we got hit hard on the left front. Our team usually changes stuff and looks for that stuff, but for some reason we just overlooked it, or didn't think anything was wrong with it. So that's hurt us a lot."

With one of the major gremlins that has haunted the team eliminated, the stage should be set for a better performance this weekend in the Luxaire 300 presented by Hecht's Department Stores. Nashville is the place where some of the biggest underdogs in the recording industry have inked a deal that has taken them to superstardom. Why should racing should be any different?

"We've been running pretty well off and on. If we can just find a little consistency with myself and the car, I think we'll be pretty good," replied Hemphill. "We definitely hope to finish, hopefully with a top twenty, or even better, with a top ten. I want to go and improve my learning curve and make progress on that and make progress all around. If we can do that, I'll be happy wherever we finish."

The Luxaire 300 presented by Hecht's Department Stores will be aired live on The National Network (TNN) at 9pm Eastern Time on June 2. Friday's activities include ASA practice, qualifications, 100-lap qualifying race, and Nashville Speedway USA practice and feature events following the ASA qualifying race. Saturday's schedule includes the ASA-exclusive pre-race on-track autograph session and the 300-lap feature event. Ticket information is available by calling 1-888-ASA-1020.

Without full-time primary sponsorship, Hemphill Racing could possibly be unable to remain in ASA for a full 2002 season. The team is still searching for primary sponsorship for both their 2001 and any 2002 ASA endeavors. Unless a full-time primary sponsor is found, the team will be running a limited eight-race effort this year. More information about Ryan Hemphill and Hemphill Racing can be found at http://www.ryanhemphill.net.