Trevor Williams

The NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series has been known to develop drivers like Greg Biffle, Kurt Busch and Kevin Harvick. It has also been a place for veteran drivers to establish their own legacies, such as three-time champion Ron Hornaday.

Two veteran drivers, both having raced in the truck series for over a decade and having Texas ties, are once again in the hunt for their elusive first Texas Motor Speedway victory today in the Sam’s Town 400k.

Rick Crawford, who drives the No. 14 Power Stroke Diesel by International Ford F-150, is currently first in points. Crawford, an Alabama native, drives for Circle Bar Racing. The team’s headquarters is in Ozona, a town between San Antonio and El Paso, but its daily operations shop, like nearly all NASCAR teams, is in the greater Charlotte, N.C., area.

David Starr, who drives the No. 11 PIT-now.com Toyota Tundra, was born in Houston and lives in Flower Mound. He sits eighth in points, driving for Red Horse Racing.

Besides their Texas connections, both drivers were teammates last season and have blogs at Frontstretch.com. Starr, who couldn’t secure a full-time ride with Red Horse in 2007, landed at Circle Bar, which was looking to add a second truck to its team. When Red Horse asked Starr to rejoin them in 2008, Starr accepted their offer.

Both drivers found that — whether teammates or rivals — it’s about driving hard during the race but being affable off the track.

“I consider all the drivers in the Craftsman Truck Series friends of mine. We go up and down the highway together, competing week in and week out,” Crawford said. “But we’re highly competitive on the track.”

“We’re competitors during the race,” Starr said. “When they drop the checkered flag and the race is over, then we’re back to being friends.”

Coming into Texas, Crawford and Starr are motivated by external factors in looking to notch their first win at TMS.

Starr has been involved with the track since its inception. His uncle Mike Starr is the president and owner of the Team Texas High Performance Driving School, which uses the Fort Worth track for instruction. Starr has helped his uncle in various aspects with the school, including some instruction.

The Flower Mound resident also has his own company, David Starr Racing, that is based near the track. Speaking at companies like Dr Pepper and Big Red, Starr talks about themes like being “fast and efficient.”

“You want to make your pit stops fast, but if you make them too fast, you’re going to make a mistake and then you’re not efficient. You want to do it right the first time,” Starr said, explaining how processes in racing could be applied to business.

When asked what a Texas victory would mean to Starr, he replied, “Man, it would be a dream come true if I could ever win that race. We’ve been close so many times. It’s just been tough. If we put ourselves in the top 5, we can have a shot at winning.”

For Crawford, his quest for a Texas win is tied to his loyalty to team owner Tom Mitchell. Mitchell, who owns several businesses in Ozona, including the Circle Bar Truck Corral, is known as a very hands-off owner. He stays away from the garage and the track, having never seen Crawford race.

While Starr has driven for several teams in his career, Crawford has remained with Mitchell for 17 years, predating the truck series. Crawford attributes their long-standing relationship to communication and loyalty. The two talk on a regular basis — at least once a week over the phone. Crawford describes that his team is run as if Mitchell was present.

“The Mitchell family is second to none. They give you what you need and talk about what you want. … Tom Mitchell treats me like a son,” Crawford said. “When we come to Texas, the whole team steps up. We don’t need incentives, but we really want to win Texas bad because of the boss.”

While Crawford is first in points, he has yet to win a race this season. Despite his truck’s consistency, Crawford doesn’t feel the team has reached its potential.

“Every race car driver wants to qualify well, lead laps and win races. Until we do that, we are not at our potential,” Crawford said. “Performance is just coming there at the end of the race. We’ve got to be better prepared when we get to the racetrack. And I think that’s coming.”

Starr also has been winless this season. He came tantalizingly close two weekends ago at Mansfield, Ohio. Having the lead with four laps to go, Starr’s right front tire began to go flat.

With rookie Donny Lia and veteran Todd Bodine on his tail, Starr fought to keep his lead. On the last lap in Turn 2, Lia got into Starr. The contact caused Starr to fight to keep control of his truck, slowing down the Tundra and allowing the racers to go three-wide into Turn 3. Lia completed the pass and took the win.

While Bodine was incensed and vocal about Lia’s actions, Starr has taken the high road.

“Was it a little dirty? Yeah, you say could it was, but I’m not one to complain. Was I disappointed? I was very disappointed,” Starr said. “On the good side of things, we were very fortunate that the tire held up long enough to get us to the start-finish line.”

Crawford also had a run-in at Mansfield when he was flagged for aggressive driving by racing officials. Instead of getting frustrated, the F-150 driver took it in stride.

“For a 49-year-old driver to get an aggressive driving charge against him, I was proud of that and I think my team was too,” Crawford said with a laugh. “I appreciate NASCAR for keeping an eye on me and watching out for me on the racetrack.”

With both drivers in middle age, their window of opportunity of making it to Sprint Cup is likely coming to a close. For Starr, he never found the right fit. The Flower Mound resident preferred being competitive in the truck series to joining an underfunded Cup team.

“It’s a tough decision — I want to be part of the big show, but I didn’t want to be part of the show and running around in the back,” Starr said. “That being said I’m living the dream by being a driver in the Craftsman Trucks Series.”

In Crawford’s case, moving to Cup was never on his radar as Mitchell wanted to concentrate on trucks. Driving trucks is part of their lifestyles, especially with Mitchell’s work in Ozona.

While in middle age, Crawford bristles at being called “old school.” He’s adopted a different description — “All-American cultural icon.”

Crawford explained how at a Detroit auto show this year to introduce the 2009 Ford F-150, he was introduced with country music star Toby Keith and professional bull riding champion Justin McBride with that designation.

“I’d rather be called an ‘All-American cultural icon’ than ‘old school,’” Crawford said.  “I don’t like the word ‘old.’ I’m still having fun and I feel young.”

TREVOR WILLIAMS can be reached at 940-566-6874. His e-mail address is twilliams@dentonrc.com .