Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: THURSDAY, January 14, 1993 TAG: 9301140047
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C4 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: BOB ZELLER STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: CHARLOTTE LENGTH: Medium
SHORTENING RACES GETS ATTENTION
Protests rang out early last year when NASCAR officials floated the idea of shortening some of the long, four-hour plus Winston Cup races.So the idea was shelved, for the time being.
But there are plenty of supporters of shorter races. And two of them, car owner Felix Sabates and New Hampshire International Raceway owner Bob Bahre, were blunt about their dislike of long races while talking at a seminar on the cost of racing Wednesday during Charlotte Motor Speedway's annual preseason media tour.
Bahre said when he signed his agreement with NASCAR President Bill France Jr. for a Winston Cup race in New Hampshire this July, "I told him right off the bat that I didn't want a 500-miler. I think it's too damn long for any track less than a mile and a half."
Bahre's July 11 New Hampshire 300 will be 300 laps, or 317.4 miles on his 1.058-mile oval.
"For us to go to Martinsville for 500 laps - that's punishment" said Sabates, who owns Kyle Petty's car. "Your neck gets sore," he said, from following the cars around the .526-mile oval.
"I spend less money on tires running the Coca-Cola 600 [at Charlotte] than at Martinsville," he said. "Last fall, we finished third there [actually fourth] and won $9,000.14. Our tire bill was $14,000."
And while Petty has dominated at North Carolina Motor Speedway in the past few years, Sabates had no kind words for The Rock's 500-mile races, which routinely last more than four hours.
If those races were shortened, and NASCAR fans knew they could go to Rockingham and "not go to sleep for two and a half hours, they would probably pay $10 more for a ticket."
\ BIG BUCKS PROJECT: Charlotte Motor Speedway President Humpy Wheeler said he wants add 100,000 more seats to the 117,000-seat facility by the year 2000, but it will require a a $2.2 million road-widening project by the state. Wheeler said the speedway will add 3,000 more seats in the first turn of the 1.5-mile track by May and will build a new infield garage by May, 1994.
But a 10,400-seat fourth turn terrace and another project to add thousands of new seats outside the second turn and backstretch are contingent upon the state improving two roads outside the speedway.
\ ANOTHER GIBBS: J.D. Gibbs, 23-year-old son of Washington Redskins coach Joe Gibbs, hopes to become the left side tire changer for his father's NASCAR team this year.
"At least for maybe a couple of years, I'd like to do something like that," he said. The 1991 William and Mary graduate said he has been practicing tire changes on driver Dale Jarrett's Chevrolets, but crew chief Jimmy Makar has not yet told him if he's got the job.
\ WINSTON CUP NEWS: Car owner Bobby Allison said he and driver Jimmy Spencer finally landed a major sponsor for 1993. Meineke Mufflers has agreed to expand from its intended role as an associate sponsor, he said.
The Nashville Network has purchased the rights to televise the July 11 New Hampshire race.
The annual Winston Cup preview is from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday at Lawrence Joel Memorial Coliseum in Winston-Salem. Almost all the drivers will make appearances. Tickets are $10, with proceeds benefiting the Brenner Children's Hospital.
Lake Speed plans to run 10 of the first 16 races this season with sponsorship from Purex.
\ DAYTONA TESTING: In the fourth and final day of GM testing at Daytona International Speedway, Michael Waltrip drove his Pontiac to a fast lap of 189.474 mph, vastly improved on the 185 mph times he was turning during December testing. Ricky Rudd (189.354 mph), Rick Wilson (189.274), Rusty Wallace (188.206) and Darrell Waltrip (188.009) all turned good laps.