NASCAR driver Travis Kvapil won the ARCA RE/MAX Pocono 200 at Pocono Raceway June 11, 2005. (Photo: Nick Laham/Getty Images) » More Photos

Travis Kvapil, Darnell's teammate at Roush Fenway Racing won the Craftsman Truck Series race from Michigan on Saturday. During the 2005 season, Kvapil driving for Penske Racing was able to win an ARCA event at Pocono Raceway. And, Stephen Leicht who clinched victory in ARCA last season at the Nashville Superspeedway stunned a Kentucky Speedway audience on Saturday night as he beat out several Nextel Cup Series regulars and won the Busch Series event.

Finishing second at Kentucky was Joe Gibbs Racing development driver Brad Coleman. Also no stranger to the ARCA RE/MAX Series, Coleman joins Leicht as a winner during the 2006 ARCA season.

While each one of these competitors have moved on and are finding success in NASCAR, each has contributed to the history of the ARCA RE/MAX Series and will forever have the title ARCA winner.

In my opinion, driver development is one chapter of the ARCA RE/MAX Series story. These examples show how different drivers share a common bond by utilizing the ARCA RE/MAX Series as a learning tool to develop their skills to achieve a higher goal.

To this day it still amazes me to watch the drivers take the green flag, especially at Michigan International Speedway last weekend. With each flag dropped, history is in the making as new drivers are found and developed.

Development and experience starts right here in the ARCA RE/MAX Series. And, the lesson to owners, drivers, sponsors and race fans alike is a simple one. With the proper amount of polishing finding diamonds in this series could be as simple as watching who is coming off turn four.

Mike Harper is an ARCA RE/MAX Series contributor for SPEEDtv.com, and host of Inside the ARCA RE/MAX Series radio show on RaceTalkRadio.com.

ARCARacing.com

RaceTalkRadio.com