Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: WEDNESDAY, October 19, 1994 TAG: 9410190035
SECTION: CURRENT PAGE: NRV-3 EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY
SOURCE: M.J. Dougherty
DATELINE: RADFORD LENGTH: Long
The green flag drops on the year's biggest Late Model Stock Car race at 3 p.m.
The race is big for many reasons. The purse is the biggest of the year: $31,500 plus another $1,000 in qualifying and special awards. The winner gets almost one-third of that: $10,000.
The race is expected to draw the biggest field of the season. Last year, 43 cars attempted to qualify for the race. This year, at least 50 entries are expected, including top regular competitors, the biggest names from other tracks throughout the region and drivers from as far away as New York and Florida.
And, of course, the race will be broadcast live on WDBJ -TV (Channel 7).
"It should draw some cars," said track promoter and co-owner Ronnie Snoddy. "There's been a lot of interest in it. At Martinsville, we've talked it up ... I think it will be big."
Last year, Johnny Rumley of Winston-Salem, N.C., won the inaugural 250-lap event. This year, Rumley has won twice at NRVS while racing on the Busch Grand National circuit most of the time.
"I guess you have to be lucky," said Rumley. "I seem to have all the luck there, and I don't seem to have any here [Martinsville Speedway]."
Also among the favorites will be Jeff Agnew. The track champion from Floyd drove to victory 11 times this season.
"We [New River drivers] have a little bit of an advantage," said Agnew, who has won the track championship three times in the last four years. "We know the way to drive it. But I'm not going to say that someone else couldn't win. You never know. I've seen drivers win their first time at a track. So anything is possible."
Another driver to watch out for is Barry Beggerly. The two-time Mid-Atlantic Region champion and 1993 National Winston Racing Series champ is considering making the trip from Pelham, N.C., to New River.
Beggerly has experience winning on tracks where he doesn't have experience. He clinched his national Late Model title with a win on his first visit to Hickory (N.C.) Motor Speedway.
"If I race, I'll get down there Friday for practice," said Beggerly. "I've been down there a couple of times, but not enough to get a feel for the place. If I am going to have a chance to win, I'll have to do some testing."
The race will feature a 10-minute pit stop at the halfway point, during which the crews will be allowed to perform normal service on the cars, including changing any two tires.
The gates open at 9 a.m. Practice begins at 11. Qualifying starts at 1 p.m and will determine the top 20 starting positions. Two heat races will be held to fill starting spots 21-30. The green flag drops at 3 p.m.
Tickets are $12 for adults and $1 for children 12 and under.
After the Late Model race, the Pure Stocks will get their moment to shine.
A final 50-lap shootout is scheduled. The race will be $500 to the winner - more than double the prize for a regular race.
Clay Campbell is scheduled to join Mike Stevens in the broadcast booth for the race. Campbell served as promoter of NRVS for 1992 and 1993. This season, he has driven a few races there in the Limited Sportsman division.
Air time is 3 p.m.
Friday is practice day. The track will be open for testing from 2 to 9 p.m. Admission for spectators to the grandstand is free.
MARTINSVILLE REPORT: Area drivers probably would like to forget about the Advance Auto Parts 500 that Beggerly won.
A couple of part-timers at NRVS managed top-10 finishes.
After sitting on the pole, Rumley held on to finish fourth. A bad tire stagger left him with an ill-handling Chevrolet.
Mike Porter of Princeton, W.Va., moved from heat race qualifier to eighth-place finisher. Porter raced mostly at Lonesome Pine International Raceway in Coeburn, where he won five races and placed fifth in points. But his several appearances at NRVS allowed him to finish 19th in points.
Meanwhile, only two of the drivers who made more frequent trips to NRVS were running at the end. Tony McGuire of Roanoke, who got the last starting spot awarded through time trials, finished 12th. Rick Sigmon of Rocky Mount, who got the last starting spot awarded through the heat races, finished 14th, one lap down.
Agnew appeared headed for a top-10 finish when something broke in his engine on lap 181. He ended up 20th.
A handling problem put Salem's Dicky Wilson into the wall and out of the race in 21st place.
Engine problems forced Ray Young of Bassett out. He ended up 22nd.
Tink Reedy of Roanoke blew an engine on his Chrysler and ended up in the wall just before the halfway point. That meant the only non-GM driver in the field came home 26th.
A multicar pileup on lap 27 took out four cars, including Hurt's Stacy Compton (32nd) and Salem's Kenny Prillaman (35th).
At least those drivers were lucky enough to make the race. Those who did not qualify or make it in through the heat races included Chad Harris of Stuarts Draft, Michael Ritch of High Point, N.C., Kenny Wagner of Roanoke, Ronnie Thomas of Christiansburg, Bobby Radford of Ferrum, Frankie Pennington of Lexington, Randy Ratliff of Oakwood and Billy Daniel of Rocky Mount.
Ritch made the field in the Busch Grand National race and was running on the lead lap until his hood came loose on lap 70. While being fueled, his car turned into a fireball, sending two members of his pit crew to the hospital with burns.
Thomas was shaken up in an accident during his qualifying race. He was treated and released from a Martinsville hospital.
When they didn't make the race, several other drivers packed up and went to Franklin County Speedway. Radford was the most successful, picking up the win there Saturday night.
BUSY DRIVERS: Sigmon will accomplish a unique double. He is a top-10 driver at two tracks that run on the same night: NRVS and FCS.
Sigmon came in ninth in the points at NRVS. He stands 10th late in the season at FCS. Sigmon accomplished this feat by running - and running well - at FCS on nights NRVS didn't race. He spent off nights, holidays and rainouts in Callaway and ran the full schedule in Radford.
South Boston Speedway track champion Compton also had an eighth-place-in-points performance at New River to his credit. But since South Boston only runs every other week and NRVS had three Sunday dates with twin Late Model races (meaning twice as many points available), Compton's performance is explainable.
M.J. Dougherty covers community sports and racing for the Roanoke Times & World-News' New River Valley bureau.
Keywords:
AUTO RACING
by CNB