Exclusive Interview with the Runner-Up of The Great Food Truck Race

Lone Star Chuck Wagon

Team Lone Star Chuck Wagon's Lance Kramer, Rachel Young and Andrea Chesley wait for the announcement of the winner from Host Tyler Florence in Key West, as seen on Food Network's The Great Food Truck Race, Season 5.

Photo by: Jeremiah Alley ©2014, Television Food Network, G.P. All Rights Reserved.

Jeremiah Alley, 2014, Television Food Network, G.P. All Rights Reserved.

Going into the Season 5 finale of The Great Food Truck Race, the remaining two teams, Lone Star Chuck Wagon and Middle Feast, both had what it took to win. Both teams placed first twice before. Both knew their brand and the customer base they were marketing to. And throughout the seven weeks of competition, both teams honed their menus to the best quality they could offer. But in the end only one team could win their own state-of-the-art food truck and $50,000 in prize money to jump-start their culinary dreams.

Lone Star Chuck Wagon

Team Lone Star Chuck Wagon's Lance Kramer, Rachel Young and Andrea Chesley wait for the announcement of the winner from Host Tyler Florence in Key West, as seen on Food Network's The Great Food Truck Race, Season 5.

Photo by: Jeremiah Alley ©2014, Television Food Network, G.P. All Rights Reserved.

Jeremiah Alley, 2014, Television Food Network, G.P. All Rights Reserved.

In the end Lone Star Chuck Wagon didn't pick up the momentum needed to bring home the win for Texas. Although they succeeded in many of the challenges with which Tyler had roadblocked the teams, they failed to make enough sales and ran out of product. And those are two strikes no food truck team wants to have leading up to the finale. Although it wasn't in the cards for Lance, his wife, Rachel, and their friend Andrea to win it in Florida, that doesn't mean it's the end of the line. The future still holds many possibilities for this trio of former restaurant servers with an entrepreneurial spirit.

What did your team think of partnering up with Middle Feast in Naples? Do you think you could have earned more sales on your own?

Lone Star Chuck Wagon: Initially we thought it would be great to partner with Middle Feast to earn our seed money. But when we saw the ingredients, we knew we would have an advantage. We probably could have made more on our own, but we were happy that we started on an even playing field.

What did it feel like when Middle Feast won the cooking challenge in the Everglades? Going into it you guys seemed really confident about the dish.

LSCW: Congrats to Middle Feast for beating us in the cooking challenge. We were incredibly proud of the dish we prepared. We thought outside of the box and really adapted two difficult proteins into one dish. We tried to transform the ingredients into a winning dish, but we were edged out. We wish we could have tasted Middle Feast's winning dish, to see what we were missing.

Lone Star Chuck Wagon

Photo by: Jeremiah Alley ©2014, Television Food Network, G.P. All Rights Reserved.

Jeremiah Alley, 2014, Television Food Network, G.P. All Rights Reserved.

Rachel and Andrea got in a tiff over the burger buns selling out, and Andrea wanted to sell a burger wrap. Lance, do you think that continuing to sell the item as a burger wrap was a good decision? Or might Rachel's idea have worked better?

LSCW: At the end of the day, we got really good feedback on the burger wrap. We used what we had on hand and adapted in a stressful situation. Maybe one day you will see that dish on one of our menus!

Was the $184.50 in seed money a disadvantage from the beginning?

LSCW: The lack of seed money was a huge disadvantage. Then when Middle Feast doubled their seed money, we were even deeper into the hole. Every second, and every sale, counted in the finale, and running out of ingredients definitely contributed to our downfall.

At one point, Lance, you said "it's a relief most of all" for the race to be over. What were all of you feeling once Tyler called the end of the race?

LSCW: When Tyler ended the race, we all had a sigh of relief. This was the hardest weekend by far, on an already difficult seven-week journey. We learned a lot about ourselves and stretched our limits further than we knew possible. We were thrilled to have made it to the end and went out with a fight. There were no regrets, and we are proud of our showing.

Lone Star Chuck Wagon

Host Tyler Florence says good bye to Team Lone Star Chuck Wagon's Lance Kramer, Rachel Young and Andrea Chesley in Key West, as seen on Food Network's The Great Food Truck Race, Season 5.

Photo by: Jeremiah Alley ©2014, Television Food Network, G.P. All Rights Reserved.

Jeremiah Alley, 2014, Television Food Network, G.P. All Rights Reserved.

At elimination Tyler encouraged you to go out and get your products ready for what could possibly happen next. What is next for your BBQ sauce and rub company?

LSCW: Big things are in store for Kramer's BBQ! Our award-winning sauce and rubs can be purchased online, and they will be hitting store shelves soon. We will continue to release fantastic products that will help everyone, from gourmet chefs to the backyard griller.

Will you guys try the food truck business again? What are your future plans?

LSCW: This is only the beginning for us! Whether it will be a food truck, a restaurant or even another TV show, you haven't seen the last of Lone Star Chuck Wagon or Kramer's! Thanks to everyone for your support and encouragement through this whole process. We can't wait to see what the next chapter will be.

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