Eddie Horne knows the tire industry inside and out, but he won’t have to lift a finger March 27 as Mario Gosselin’s team members swarm around the TireMonkey.com truck changing spent tires during the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Kroger 250 race.

As a drawing winner at the North Carolina Tire Dealers & Retreaders Association’s annual convention, the Liberty Tire owner now possess two highly coveted Martinsville Speedway pit passes. Horne plans to bring his college buddy, Ronnie Garris, into the monkey pit with him.



“It’s great,” Horne said Tuesday. “I’ve never been to a truck race, and my store, Liberty Tire, runs a stockcar on Saturday nights. But I’ve never been to a truck race. I’m really excited.”

And the Kroger 250 truck race holds special significance for Horne because this NASCAR fan loves the short track race experience. The Martinsville Speedway features a .526-mile-long oval track and seating for 65,000 spectators.

“Short track races are way better than the Superspeedway races to me because you can see the (trucks or cars) up close,” Horne said.

Tracy Meinert, an Atlantic Tire Distributors sales consultant, helped run the TireMonkey.com drawing at the March 7 conference in Raleigh. She said the drawing was an evening highlight for the 40 or so people who attended the event.

“It was received quite well,” Meinert said. “For the most part, everyone put their name in the drawing.”

TireMonkey.com, a leading online tire retailer, is the official sponsor of Mario Gosselin, celebrated driver of the No. 12 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series truck. The Martinsville Kroger 250 is the third truck race of the 2010 season.

Labels: Eddie Horne, Kroger 250, Liberty Tire, Mario Gosselin, Martinsville, North Carolina Tire Dealers and Retreaders Association, TireMonkey.com, Tracy Meinert, Virginia