Billy Gerhart telephoned St. Joseph auto racer Doug Keller with a wild idea last weekend.

Keller knew how much of a sacrifice funding even one race can be.

“We talked about a month ago about doing this,” Keller said, “but we kind of blew him off because business was way too slow, and I didn’t want to ask my sponsors. Some gave me the answers I expected. Times are tough.”

But with a little prodding, Gerhart convinced Keller to drive in today’s Kansas Lottery 150 ARCA/ReMax series race at Kansas Speedway.

Keller entered his personal car — a Chevrolet Monte Carlo modified from a Pontiac — but takes Gerhart’s No. 7 to help earn Gerhart racing owner points. In the second-to-last race of the season, Gerhart wants to stay in the top 40 in points to remain in the field for next year’s series opener at Daytona International Speedway in case of a qualifying rain-out.

Gerhart’s No. 7 currently sits in 40th.

Keller basically runs the race with his own money and a mishmash crew that includes long-time crew chief Dave Bridgeman of Altamont, Mo.

A veteran of NASCAR’s Camping World Truck Series, Keller has made fewer and fewer starts as sponsorships dried up, forcing him to fund and run his own team. He has made 24 ARCA starts since 1998 but only four on non-dirt tracks.

Keller wons three top 5s, eight top 10s and has led five races for a cumulative total of 57 laps.

“This is my only ARCA car right now,” said Keller, who has not started an ARCA race this year. “Everything suspension-wise had to be changed for dirt to asphalt. But as far as the car and body, it’s the same.”

Keller’s only start at Kansas Speedway came in 2001 when he finished 17th in a different car. He also ran one lap in Norm Benning’s car in 2003 to earn last-place points and money for Benning’s team.

Since 2001, Keller helped Gerhart’s brother Bobby with his No. 5 car when ARCA made its annual stop at the 1.5-mile tri-oval. Keller spent time on the pit box calculating fuel mileage and monitoring other team’s pit stops and served as tire changer and spotter during his five-year relationship with the Gerharts at Kansas Speedway.

Keller’s name came as potential fill-in driver for Bobby Gerhart in 2006 when he was battling illness at Kansas.

Funding continued to be the biggest obstacle to driving his own car at Kansas Speedway for Keller, 36, in a series driven by young drivers with money coming from owners in larger series. With some monetary support, Billy Gerhart hinted that Keller could be the driver next year in Daytona, where the Gerharts have won five times.

“(Billy Gerhart) has a lot of faith in me when he offered to let me drive (in 2006),” Keller said. “It’s a shame that people have raced their whole life and don’t have the funding to do what some of these young guys do.”

Qualifying for the race starts at 1 p.m. today with green-flag racing set for 4. Speed Channel provides live coverage on Cablevision Channel 62.

Keller’s car has run twice at Kansas Speedway, once apiece under Jennifer Cobb and Rick Sanders, but even Keller doesn’t know what to expect today.

“Just got to see what happens and have fun. No pressure,” Keller said.