No. 24 National Guard Team Seeking Success at Vegas

LAS VEGAS (March 7, 2007) - In Saturday's NASCAR Busch Series race at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, Casey Mears' No. 24 Chevrolet will honor the National Guard's 41st Infantry Division based in Tigard, Ore. The 41st Infantry Division was nicknamed the "Jungleers" after being the first division trained in jungle warfare and serving 45 months overseas following the attack on Pearl Harbor. Members of the Jungleers are currently deployed in Kabul, Afghanistan. The National Guard team is hoping to do the Jungleers proud at one of Mears' best tracks on the NASCAR circuit. Mears has competed in one Busch Series race and four NEXTEL Cup races at Las Vegas, where his lone Busch start produced an 18th-place finish. He he has posted three top-10 efforts in the Cup Series and averages a result of 11.2 at Vegas in his combined five starts. Crew chief Chad Walter has selected Hendrick Motorsports Chassis No. 405 as the primary option for Vegas. It's the same car that finished second at California Speedway last month. "We know, as a team, that we're capable of winning races," Walter said. "Running second in California proved that to us, and, hopefully, to Casey. "We may not win every race, but when you're a team that can be in the position to win every race, that's a good thing."