Chuck Hossfeld

Chuck campaigned the #20 Jerry Gradl Motors sponsored modified for car owner Jerry Gradl Jr. in the 38th Annual World Series of Asphalt Stock Car Racing at New Smyrna Speedway in Samsula, Florida. The World Series of Asphalt Stock Car Racing is held annually on the 1/2 mile, 18-degree banked oval and consists of nine straight nights of racing.

The day we arrived in Florida it was cold and overcast, but that would soon change.

The #20 modified was not an unfamiliar seat to Chuck as he had driven it to victory previously in the 2001 U.S. Open at Lancaster Speedway and to a second place finish in the 2001 Sunoco Race of Champions 2000 at Oswego Speedway. After being inactive for some time, the car did need to be refitted for race duty and was prepped in the weeks before the race by Chuck and the #22 DeLange Racing Team.

After the car was ready, the team was eager to leave the snow in Buffalo behind and headed out for the long drive to sunny Florida. The #20 team consisted of a mix of crew members from several teams, including the #22 DeLange Racing Team and Jerry Gradl Jr.'s #2 Lancaster Sportsman team. Experienced crew chief Jim Rudolph was flown down to oversee operations and ensure that the #20 could run competitively. The crew roster was as follows:

Tuesday February 14th
Each day of racing featured an average of three practice sessions, followed by time-trials for qualifying (no heats), and the feature event. Field sizes were on average over twenty-five cars strong. Our first race occurred on Tuesday Feb. 14th, which was Night 5 of the World Series. With the modifieds having the previous night off, this meant that our competitors had the benefit of three additional nights of racing and put us slightly behind the learning curve. Night 5 was a 25 lap sprint race in which we qualified 16th. Chuck's friend and former employer Randy LaJoie was on-hand and filled in as spotter for the race. LaJoie, a two-time Busch Series Champion and television commentator was in town to compete in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series race to be held Friday at nearby Daytona International Speedway. Being our first day on the track, we had some bugs to work out on the car and wound up finishing 11th.


Dave Harris (left) would spend much of his time in Florida working with the tires. Car Owner Jerry Gradl Jr. (right) observes as Dave mounts one of many sets to be used this week.	Dave Harris (left) and Chuck Hossfeld (right) discuss the tire situation.

Wednesday February 15th
We arrived at the track early the next day, realizing we had some work to do to get the #20 Jerry Gradl Motors car more competitive. Crew chief Jim Rudolph called the shots as we had progressively better practice sessions throughout the day. A miscue in qualifying resulted in a 19th starting spot, but Chuck was able to work his way through the field. Car owner Jerry Gradl Jr. took over as spotter for the evening, and the remainder of the week, and helped guide chuck through a few late race cautions as some of the leaders mixed it up. This helped propel Chuck to the front and we walked away with a 5th place finish and some added confidence going into the next two races.

Thursday February 16th
After some more thrashing under the guidance of crew chief Jim Rudolph, the car again showed great progress through the practice sessions. All week the car just never seemed to be there for qualifying, but Chuck managed his best qualifying performance of the week with a 12th place start. The 25-lap feature event was riddled with cautions. Chuck was making gains and working through the field when we were involved in a incident where Chuck climbed another car with the right-side and came down hard enough to cut down the right rear and break the right side nerf bar. The #20 team went over the wall and quickly changed the flat tire. While the car was fast, with so few laps left, Chuck was only able to work his was back up the 7th for the finish. A respectable finish for the night, considering having to pit, and Chuck and Jim both remarked that they thought we would have a stout car for Friday night's race.


The #20 Jerry Gradl Motors modified.	The crew takes a rare break from the action.

Friday February 17th
Friday night's feature would be the Richie Evans Memorial 100. Chuck qualified the car 17th, but despite starting from deep in the field Chuck felt good about the car and his chances in the feature. Greg Schroder, the crew chief from the #4 Mystic Missile, Chuck's NASCAR Featherlite Modified Series ride, was on-hand in the pits and took over the role of rear tire carrier for pitstop. With car owner Jerry Gradl Jr. spotting and crew chief Jim Rudolph calling the shots atop the hauler, the team was set to begin the race. From the drop of the green Chuck drove steadily through the field. Lap times were consist with the leaders and we all felt confident that if we could get to the front we'd have a shot at the win. After a few early cautions, the race went green for quite awhile. A late race caution before lap 80 saw the #20 Jerry Gradl Motors machine coming down pit road with most of the leaders. The #22 crew pulled off a decent pitstop, considering we had no practice except for a rear tire change on a previous night, and Chuck was back on the track running in the top ten. With less than 20 laps to go on the restart, and an additional caution afterwards, Chuck charged hard to get up to the front. As the checkers fell, Chuck crossed the line 5th, a little short of where we had hoped to be, but nonetheless a great run for the #20 team, and a great way to finish off our World Series racing activities.


Crew Chief Jim Rudolph makes some adjustments on the car.	Henry Ketch jokes before the start of the Richie Evans Memorial 100.

The next event for Chuck will be the season opening Icebreaker 150 at Thompson International Speedway April 3rd, 2004 on the NASCAR Featherlite Modified Series tour. We will be posting the complete 2004 schedule shortly once it has been completed.