Sprague, NetZero Racing Team Disappointed at California Speedway

FONTANA, CA (April 28, 2003) - Disaster struck early for Jack Sprague and the NetZero Racing team at California Speedway Sunday as an early encounter with the outside retaining wall relegated the team to a 39th-place finish in the Auto Club 500.

"We were really good right off the truck and had a good qualifying run, so we had pretty high expectations for ourselves this weekend," said Sprague, who crashed on Lap 8 of the NASCAR Winston Cup event. "The NetZero Pontiac was loose at the drop of the green flag and I just couldn't hold on to it. I almost had it saved, but wound up hitting the wall. It's disappointing and frustrating, but at least we had a good starting spot and I know we're making progress. I've had a lot of success at this track in the past and really wanted to put something together today, but I guess it just wasn't meant to be."

Friday's qualifying laps turned out to be the highpoint of the weekend as Sprague timed in at an impressive 185.366 miles per hour average speed, good enough for 12th in the 43-car starting field.

The team's good fortune didn't last long as Sprague's NetZero Pontiac suffered significant front-end damage after the tangle with the Turn 2 retaining wall. The incident forced Sprague to the garage area for repairs before returning to the event and eventually rolling to a 39th-place finish.

"There's no quit in this team," said Sprague. "Even though everyone is disappointed we crashed, the team totally busted to get us back in the race so we could get the best finish possible. Sooner or later, our luck is going to turn and all the effort everyone has put in is going to be rewarded."

With the California race in their rearview mirror, Sprague and the NetZero Racing team will spend two days testing at Lowe's Motor Speedway near Charlotte, N.C. this week before heading to Richmond (Va.) International Raceway for the running of the Pontiac Excitement 400 Saturday, May 3. Qualifying for the event will take place Friday, May 2, with the race taking the green flag at 7 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time Saturday. The event will be telecast live on FX and will be broadcast worldwide by MRN Radio.

ABOUT NETZERO
NetZero is a United Online company. United Online is a leading provider of value-priced Internet access services through its NetZero, Juno and BlueLight Internet consumer brands. The company's services are offered at less than half the standard prices of its major competitors and are available in more than 5,000 cities across the United States and Canada. The company is headquartered in Westlake Village, Calif., with offices in New York City, San Francisco and Hyderabad, India. United Online's common stock is traded on the Nasdaq National Market under the ticker symbol "UNTD." For more information about NetZero and United Online, visit http://www.unitedonline.net. To obtain a NetZero CD, please call 1-800-DEFENDER.