After competing in the World Series of Poker at The Rio in Las Vegas, Nevada, Jason White returned to another of his true talents, the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series. After an announcement that Jason, a NASCAR Veteran with a career in the sport spanning over a decade, would drive for NTS Motorsports at Pocono Raceway, he met with his new crew chief, Ryan McKinney, to prepare for the infamous and always tricky triangle. Arriving with the team on Fr iday morning for the first round of practice, White was confident in his ability to make his way to the front and was confident in his team to give him a strong Chevrolet Silverado for the event. As the track was opened for the first time, it was evident that Long Pond, Pennsylvania was not going to make it easy on the Kernersville based team.
Working through the first 80 minute session on track, Jason radioed into his crew that the truck was too free getting into all three corners of the track and needed it tightened up. Searching for speed, White and McKinney made major changes to the truck during and after first practice. Running 25 total laps, White would sit 21st on the leader board with a fast lap time of 55.712. With on-track activity for the day winding down after the second and final round of practice, Jason White was acclimating himself to the truck and the team. Never faltering in their dedication to finding speed and making the truck better, McKinney and his driver guided the team through a wide range of changes to prepare for knockout qualifying the following morning.
Arriving for race day on Saturday, the No.9 NTS Motorsports Autism Speaks team worked to complete their adjustments going into the first round of qualifying, as the garage opened bright and early at 7:00AM. Three hours later the track was opened 25 minutes for round one to determine the fastest 24 qualifiers. After the first round, both driver and crew chief knew their adjustments had made the truck stronger. White would advance to the second round with a time of 55.879. During the second session, McKinney would send his driver out quickly, and in traffic, White laid down a fast lap of 54.969 and would secure a starting spot of 16th for The Pocono Mountains 150 later that afternoon.
After driver introductions in Victory Lane, White strapped in for 60 miles around The Tricky Triangle and prepared to implement a strategy to make his way to the front by the end of the event. Through the first 21 laps White was silent on the radio, but had maintained his position as he came down pit road for the first time for four fresh tires, fuel, and adjustments. Restarting in 19th, White could quickly tell that his Chevrolet Silverado had responded positively to the changes. “It feels a lot better and I think we have something for them, guys”, White radioed into his crew after making his way into the top ten by lap 35.
After the final pit stop of the day at lap 47, Jason White began picking his way through the field to capitalize on a truck that was proving to be strong at the end. Missing wrecks in front of him and racing three wide through multiple restarts, the new NTS Motorsports driver had made his way to 16th , with only seven laps until the race reached its scheduled distance. A final caution on lap 58 would force the event into overtime and a green-white-checkered finish. In 12 laps to find the checkered flag, Jason White would pass nine competitors on his way to an eleventh place finish and a great end to a weekend where he and his crew chief never stopped digging. The next event on the schedule for NTS Motorsports in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series will come on August 16th, at Michigan International Speedway.
Jason White’s Post-Race Thoughts: “When I joined NTS Motorsports for the race at Pocono, I knew I was going to the track with great equipment. We struggled a bit through practice on Friday but by the end of the day, Ryan McKinney really knew what I needed and he the guys on the team worked to give me a strong Chevrolet Silverado for Saturday. We stuck to our strategy and saved our stuff for the end and came home with a strong run. I am very proud of our results from Pennsylvania. I have to say thank you to Dwayne Gaulding and Bob Newberry for this great opportunity.”
Ryan McKinney’s Post-Race Thoughts: “Our weekend at Pocono proves that hard work really does pay off. The NTS Motorsports No.9 team worked hard to get us to where we needed to be by the time we took the green flag and we came home with a strong finish. It was my first time working with Jason (White) and he showed a lot of dedication and really gave us the feedback we needed to get to the front. I’m proud of him and all of our guys at the shop. I am looking forward to getting another great result at Michigan in a couple of weeks.”
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