Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: WEDNESDAY, December 14, 1994 TAG: 9412140088
SECTION: CURRENT PAGE: NRV-3 EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY
SOURCE: M.J. DOUGHERTY
DATELINE: LENGTH: Long
But there are half a dozen cars speeding around a track in Radford.
How can this be?
They're competing at Race Place in Radford - that's how.
For the cars are not full-sized vehicles. Rather, they are 1/24th- and 1/32-scale slot cars.
But the racing action is just as fast and furious as at any racetrack.
"We have a lot of fun with it," said DEBBIE EPPERLY, who, with her husband, Larry, operates the Race Place. "We have points championships like the big guys, too. We want to give people something to shoot for."
The Race Place opened in August 1993. Before that, racers had to travel to Lynchburg, West Virginia or North Carolina to find a race after a facility in Salem closed a few years back.
It was on such a trip, over Memorial Day Weekend in 1993, that LARRY EPPERLY found what he needed to turn his idea of a slot car track in the New River Valley into a reality. While Epperly and TERRY LAWSON were taking in some dirt car races at Princeton (W.Va.) Speedway, Midway Race Track gave away a slot car as a prize. So Epperly and Lawson decided to venture to the track. And once they got there, Epperly discovered the owner had a used track for sale.
"I had to think about it," said Epperly. "I knew right then I'd either have to go through with it or forget about it. Eventually, I ended up buying it."
The track was built in the 1960s. It is an eight-lane, 80-feet "American Yellow." Epperly resurfaced it last summer and is working to upgrade the lap counter.
Since their track opened, business has been good. The winter is the best racing season, when many race drivers and crew members are eager to go fast.
"It's a whole lot cheaper and it's a lot of fun," said JERRY GODBEY, a Late Model Stock Car driver at New River Valley Speedway who has been bitten by the slot car racing bug. "There's still a lot of little boy in all of us. And we have to have something to do in the off-season."
The Race Place is a full-service racing center for the enthusiast who likes to tinker. Everything from tires, tools, testing and time on the track can be purchased. Beginners can take a 15-minute test drive for $2.50. Kits, which include car and controller, begin under $50.
But the most fun comes in taking to the track. Formal races are held on Fridays, Saturdays, Sundays and Tuesdays. Different classes of body styles and scales are held at different days and times, although Sunday is set aside for novices.
Racers qualify their cars by seeing how many laps they can complete in 30 seconds. That sets the order for choosing starting lanes. But every racer must run every lane. So the race is broken into two-minute segments before the cars are switched to the next lane. The races are stopped to put cars back on the track when they fly off, but not for repairs.
As expected, the biggest trick is keeping the cars on the track. Many of the racers have figured out how its done because they have raced slot cars for so long.
"It takes a lot of practice," said RICK LAWSON of Christiansburg, who won both NASCAR and Super Truck races last weekend.
The Race Place, at 202 Third Ave. in Radford, is open Tuesday-Thursday from 5 to 10 p.m., Friday from 5 to 11 p.m., Saturday from 2 to 10 p.m. and Sunday from 1 to 8 p.m. For more information, call 639-2809.
SCHOLASTIC SPORTS NRV: The Gateway Christian girls' volleyball team participated in a pair of invitational tournaments this fall.
Gateway won the Pipestem, W.Va., Christian Academy tournament in November. The squad was led by co-captains JODI BURKE and CINDY DOWER.
Earlier, Gateway was in the Old Dominion Association of Christian Schools tournament in Salem. Burke, Dower and LORI MARTIN were named to the all-tournament team.
SPIKES AND SETS SCENE: Spots/Sanico won the regular season but Volley Rats took the tournament crown in the Christiansburg Coed Open Volleyball League.
Both teams finished the regular season at 27-3.
In the tournament, Spots/Sanico fell in the semifinals to the Smashers, 13-15, 15-11, 15-12. Then the Volley Rats beat the Smashers for the championship 15-13, 15-4. The Volley Rats reached the final with a 15-10, 15-8 win over Ideal Refrigeration.
St. Paul I (24-3) held a commanding lead in the Coed Church A League in Christiansburg.
Despite losing a match to United Methodist, St. Paul I was seven games in front of second-place St. Paul/Old Brick (17-10). St. Paul/Old Brick also has had its troubles of late, going just 4-5 in three matches.
Cambria Baptist I (23-4) was clinging to a two-game lead in the Coed Church B League in Christiansburg.
Second-place Mount Tabor (24-6) won the match when the two teams met in late-October, 16-14, 15-14, 14-16, to pull within one game of first place. Since then, Cambria has gone 6-0 while Mount Tabor dropped one of six games.
HELP WANTED: The Montgomery County Parks and Recreation Department is seeking youth basketball coaches. Help is needed at all levels for programs at Auburn and Shawsville High Schools. To volunteer or for more information, call TIM COONEY at 382-6978.
FOR YOUNG FANS: The "Little Highlander Club" is looking for youngsters ages 5-13 who want to root for the Radford University women's basketball team.
For a $10 fee, club members will receive a pass to all women's basketball home games, an RU basketball T-shirt, a pizza party with the team, basketball clinics, a membership card and other benefits to be announced.
One parent or guardian accompanying the club member to games also will receive free admission, while a second one will get in for just $2.
For more information about the "Little Highlander Club," call assistant women's basketball coach TRICIA CULLOP at 831-5123.
INFORMATION, PLEASE: If you have an item for the Community Sports Notebook, you can get it to us three ways:
By mailing it to Roanoke Times & World-News, New River Valley Bureau, P.O. 540, Christiansburg, VA 24073.
By fax at 381-1656.
Or in person at the New River Valley Bureau.
When sending information, please include first names of all persons and a telephone number in case of questions.
Please be aware that because of publication deadlines, notices of upcoming events (such as camps and registrations) should be sent two weeks in advance to ensure their publication.
Also, please remember to send in the results of events that have been publicized in advance in this column.
If you have any questions, please call me at 381-1664.
by CNB