With six weeks until he's racing at New Hampshire Motor Speedway, NASCAR Xfinity Series driver Ryan Truex visited the Granite State on Thursday, making pit stops at the Seacoast School of Technology in Exeter and NH1 Motorplex in Seabrook Truex spoke with Automotive Technology students at the Seacoast School of Technology and raced go karts with fans and media members at NH1 Motorplex.

"I always love visiting New Hampshire," said Truex, driver of the number 11 Phantom Fireworks Chevrolet Camaro for Kaulig Racing. "Being able to speak with high school students who share my passion for cars and racing and then being able to race go karts with my New Hampshire fans was a lot of fun. I can't wait to come back next month!"

Truex started the day at the Seacoast School of Technology, where he spoke to more than 50 high school students enrolled in Automotive Technology and other programs. He used the NHMS racecar as a model and talked about his experiences at NHMS and his journey to NASCAR.

Truex is no stranger to the speedway, as two generations of drivers in the Truex family have won in different series on "The Magic Mile," including Ryan (NASCAR K&N Pro Series East in June and Sept. 2010), Ryan's father Martin Truex Sr. (NASCAR Busch Series North in July 1994) and Ryan's older brother Martin Truex Jr. (NASCAR Busch Series North in July 2000 and July 2003 and NASCAR Xfinity Series in July 2005).

"The Truex name carries a lot of weight in New Hampshire," said David McGrath, executive vice president and general manager of New Hampshire Motor Speedway. "Our track is the only one in the country where all three Truex drivers have won a NASCAR race, so they obviously know success here in New England."

The next stop on Truex's trip was NH1 Motorplex, where he met with fans and members of the local media. Everyone jumped into their own go kart and tried their luck at beating the NASCAR Xfinity Series driver, who ended the day with a best lap time of 26.260 seconds. Shawn Gammel from Franklin, N.H. came out on top in the Fan Challenge with a best lap time of 27.611 seconds, and Andy Austin from WOKQ took first place in the Media Challenge with a best lap time of 27.761 seconds. Each walked away with a trophy and bragging rights.

Truex and the entire NASCAR Xfinity Series race into New Hampshire Motor Speedway on July 21 for the Lakes Region 200.

For ticket information on all 2018 events at New Hampshire Motor Speedway, including the July 20-22 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race weekend and the September 21-22 Full Throttle Fall Weekend, please stop by the ticket office, visit the speedway website at www.nhms.com, or call Fan Relations at (603) 783-4931.