GRISSOM SHATTERS RECORD IN QUALIFYING FOR HICKORY RACE

                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: SUNDAY, February 23, 1992                   TAG: 9202230129
SECTION: SPORTS                    PAGE: C11   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: HICKORY, N.C.                                LENGTH: Short
GRISSOM SHATTERS RECORD IN QUALIFYING FOR HICKORY RACE
Steve Grissom of Gadsden, Ala., shattered the Hickory Motor Speedway track qualifying record Saturday in winning the pole position for today's Mountain Dew 500 NASCAR Busch Grand National Series race.
Grissom, driving an Oldsmobile, toured the .363-mile track at a speed of 89.354 mph, breaking the record of 88.659 set last year by Chuck Bown.
Seven other drivers also beat the previous record.
"It's always good to start up front," said Grissom, who won one race last year and never has won at Hickory. "I knew I had run a good lap, but I didn't think it would be that good."
NASCAR Winston Cup driver Ken Schrader, taking advantage of an open weekend on that series' schedule, qualified second at 89.214 mph in a Chevrolet, with defending NASCAR Grand National champion Bobby Labonte of Corpus Christi, Tex., third at89.116, also in a Chevrolet.
Bown, from Portland, Ore., qualified fourth at 89.062 in a Pontiac, with Ward Burton of South Boston, Va., fifth at 89.037 in a Buick.
Rounding out the top 10 qualifiers in the 30-car field were Robert Pressley, Darrell Waltrip, Mike Wallace, Butch Miller and Jack Sprague.
Schrader and Waltrip are two of the four NASCAR Winston Cup drivers competing in the race. Jimmy Spencer qualified 12th, and Ernie Irvan was 22nd.
Keywords:
AUTO RACING

by Bhavesh Jinadra by CNB