I wanted to personally THANK YOU for the beautiful flowers you sent me for my birthday last week - and the chocolate ( which I think I got 1 1/2 pieces of before Mike found them to eat with his red wine! ) You all are very thoughtful and the BEST fans in NASCAR by far - you stick with us no matter what and we notice all of your wonderful actions and loyalty! 

We have been enjoying the couple weeks at home - Mike had to fly to California for some Toyota business, but being home on the weekend is great this time of year! 

Mike will test next week in Datyona for Red Bull at Daytona International Speedway then we fly onto Charlotte for the next truck race! Mike is also continuing consultant work with Red Bull drivers Aj Allmendinger and Scott Speed, so keep an eye on those drivers and root then on!

>BILL DAVIS RACING’S TRUCK STABLE STILL 
  RUNNING STRONG

HIGH POINT, N.C. (April 30, 2008) - Bill Davis Racing’s Toyota Tundra trio, Mike Skinner, Johnny Benson and rookie Scott Speed, are on a mission this season. A Bill Davis Racing team has finished second in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Championship standings the past two seasons, and all three teams are vying for a shot at the title this year.

Bill Davis Racing’s Craftsman Truck Series success is truly a team effort. All three teams finished in the top-10 last week at Kansas Speedway. It was the third time in Bill Davis Racing history all three teams had finished in the top-10, with the most recent occurrence coming at California Speedway in February.

“We definitely didn’t start the year like last year,” said Skinner, who won three of the first four events in 2007, including two poles. “But we seem to be back in the game and once Jeff (Hensley, crew chief) and the boys get rolling, there is no stopping them. Last year our bad luck came at the end of the year. This time it has been at the beginning of the season. Hopefully it’s all gone and we can get back to the top, which is where we should be.”

Bill Davis’s Craftsman Truck Series teams have historically been strong and the team leads almost every series statistical category. The team holds the record for most poles in a single season (11) with Mike Skinner. The team holds the same record with the same number of poles in the NASCAR Nationwide (then Busch) Series. Jeff Gordon helped Bill Davis Racing achieve that record.

“Bill Davis’s truck program has proven to be the one to beat week in and week out over the years,” said Benson, who finished second in NCTS points in 2006 and third in 2007. “This year, Bill Davis Racing as an organization has a goal and that is to bring Bill Davis his first NASCAR Championship. We will do everything in our power to make that happen.”

After completing its 300th truck race this past weekend at the Kansas Speedway, Bill Davis Racing has accumulated 17 wins, 79 top-five finishes, 123 top-10 finishes and 32 poles in Truck Series competition. These accomplishments lead all teams in the Craftsman Truck Series over the past two seasons.

The increasingly popular Bill Davis Racing truck teams are proving once again that they are the force to reckon with in the Craftsman Truck Series garage. With all three teams gaining momentum as the series rolls into a seven-week stretch, Bill Davis Racing is sure to be in contention for the championship entering the season finale at Homestead Miami Speedway in November. Hopefully, one of the teams will bring the championship back to High Point.

> Mike Skinner - Toyota Tundra Racing Post Race Report

Race: O’Reilly Auto Parts 250 (Race 5 of 25) - Track: Kansas Speedway
Date: Saturday, April 26, 2008 - Started: 18th - Finish: Fifth - Laps Completed: 167
Total Laps: 167 - NCTS Points: 11th

Mike Skinner entered Kansas Speedway looking to run strong and get back in the game in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series. Qualifying on the pole the last two years as well as finishing fifth both years, Skinner and his No. 5 Toyota Tundra team were looking to run well at the 1.5 mile track.

With practice getting underway on Friday morning, Skinner and his crew led by crew chief Jeff Hensley started out running near the top of the speed charts. With Skinner finishing out the first practice session in the sixth position, the Tundra crew was looking forward to the final practice session of the day. Having to make many changes to the No. 5 Tundra, Skinner and crew would round out the day in the fifth position, but both driver and crew chief hoped to have more time on the track.

With Saturday’s qualifying session getting started, Skinner would have his attempt near the back of the order due to his qualifying draw. With an average starting position of 3.5 in the four races he has ran at the Kansas Speedway, Skinner was hoping to have another good start in 2008. However, when Skinner hit the track running for his attempt, he would only muster a 32.156 second lap, putting him in the 18th position for the start of that night’s race.

With the green flag waving over the 36-truck field, Skinner immediately began working his way forward. Getting his self into the 11th position right before the first caution flag would wave on lap 25; Skinner would dive down pit road with the rest of the field for four tires and fuel. With an incredibly fast pit stop, Skinner would restart in the seventh position on lap 31.

Maintaining his position well, Skinner would fight to keep his solid position on the track for the next 20 laps. As another caution would wave on lap 51, Skinner would once again come to pit road, this time for fuel only.

Moving his self into the third position immediately, Skinner would soon feel a right front vibration. With the help of yet another caution on lap 65, Skinner would come to pit road for four tires and fuel, making sure there were no problems with the right front.

Having to now work his way through the field again, Skinner would buckle down and move his way back into the top-five by lap 90. With the eighth caution of the race coming out on lap 107, Skinner and the rest of the field would come to pit road. Taking four tires and fuel, but having a small mishap on pit road, Skinner would lose some ground and would restart in the 25th position.

Having to now fight his way through a very tough field, Skinner remained calm and showed his talent as he vaulted his way to the front. Picking off positions one by one, Skinner would find his No. 5 Toyota Tundra back within the top-10 with 17 to go.

Driving hard and fast, Skinner would finish out the race in the fifth position. Gaining valuable points for the championship point standings as he moved himself into the 11th position.

With Skinner's great finish, all three Bill Davis Racing's Toyota Tundra's finished in the top-10 for just the second time in history.

Skinner and the rest of the Craftsman Truck Series will race again in a few weeks at Lowe’s Motor Speedway. The race will be televised live Friday, May 16th on the SPEED Channel.

It was billed as "the fast and the famous" and it lived up to expectations, as ESPN pit reporter Jamie Little held off NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Champion Mike Skinner by .324 seconds in race-modified Scion tCs to take the checkered flag first in the 32nd Annual Toyota Pro/Celebrity Race. Skinner is a repeat winner in the Pro Category. "When you interview a winning driver after the race, they always tell you how they just try to get through that last lap," gushed Little. "Well, now I know exactly what they're talking about."

"It has been exciting to see Jamie develop from a reporter into a bona-fide race car driver," said Les Unger, Toyota Motor Sales USA national motorsports manager. "All the celebrities came prepared for the challenge and it was a relatively clean race. Their focus, both on the track and off, demonstrates exactly what the Toyota Pro/Celebrity Race is all about."

Little and Drew Lachey -- the second-season winner of Dancing with the Stars who came in fourth among the celebrities - were picked as favorites to win among the field of 18 stars of film, television and sports by world-renowned Las Vegas handicapper Anthony Curtis who'd been analyzing the drivers for weeks. [The odds were presented solely for entertainment purposes. There was no actual wagering on the outcome of the race.]

The last-lap duel between Little and Skinner brought the crowd to its feet. As Skinner made contact with Little coming out of the treacherous hairpin turn on the 1.97-mile street circuit through the downtown streets of Long Beach to pull side-by-side, Little was able to get back on the gas and pull in front of Skinner as the two came to the finish line.

"That was fun!," exclaimed Skinner. "Knocked a little paint off my car and had a blast!"

Pixar producer/director Brad Lewis, the PEOPLE pole winner, led the first eight laps and appeared to be on the way to victory before going into the tire wall as he attempted to hold off Little and Skinner. He finished ninth overall and fifth among the celebrities.

Seventeen of the 18 drivers completed all 10 laps. Only Basketball Hall of Famer Nancy Lieberman was unable to finish, getting stuck in the tire wall on Lap 6.

"You go into the event with everyone out here wanting to help raise money for charity and have fun," said Little, who will give UCI Reeve/Irvine Center in California the $5,000 donated by Toyota on her behalf, for spinal cord injury research done by Dr. Hans Keirstodt. "But when the race starts, the competitive juices take over and everyone wants to win."

In the Professional category, Skinner never gave up the lead. After starting :30-seconds behind, he quickly made up ground and caught up with the tail-end of the celebrities by Lap 3. He then maneuvered through traffic, catching the leaders with just two laps remaining.

The race wasn't nearly as clean for the rest of the Pros, all of whom were involved in incidents except for NHRA Funny Car Champ Tony Pedregon who finished second in the Pro Category and fifth overall. Olympic Gold-Medal cyclist Marty Nothstein started on the outside of the front row, yet saw his chance of victory fall away when he made contact with Whit Bazemore. Drag racer Bazemore eventually finished third in the Pro category, followed by Nothstein, off-road racer Beccy Gordon, and fine jewelry designer and part-time Grand Am driver Sarena Traver, who earned her spot with the Pros by pledging $80,000 in the Boys and Girls Club Annual Charity Auction.