Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, June 4, 1995 TAG: 9506060070
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: E8 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: BOB ZELLER STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
\ Facing a major crisis with tire durability on the new concrete surface at Dover Downs International Speedway, Goodyear Tire Co. and NASCAR scrapped thousands of tires Saturday and made emergency plans to bring in different rubber.
NASCAR also scheduled an unprecedented Sunday morning practice to test the new tires, which were being rushed by truck from Akron, Ohio, and Concord, N.C. And NASCAR asked teams to bring leftover tires they might have around the shop to the track today.
Goodyear was able to guarantee that each team would have six sets of tires for today's 500-lap race. There was hope, but no assurance, that each team would get more than six sets. Considering teams typically use a dozen or more sets for a full race at Dover, six sets of tires appeared to be far fewer than needed.
The problem blossomed into a full-fledged crisis Saturday afternoon as numerous cars blistered tires during the Goodwrench 200 Busch Grand National race. Large chunks of rubber began coming off the tires during the race as the compound heated to the melting point before the tread wore out.
``We tested tires here three times, and each time we got a lot of severe wear,'' said Leo Mehl, Goodyear's racing director, who was on hand to steer the company through the troublesome weekend. ``So we were convinced that the heavier tire [with additional tread] was the way to go, so we could run 70 or 80 laps before a normal pit stop.
``And suddenly yesterday [Friday] afternoon, after those 80 cars had been out there running, the track rubbered in and stopped wearing the tires out. Hence, the heat problem.
``It's a tough situation, but it's not unique,'' Mehl said. ``By ourselves, Goodyear has six sets per car of right-side tires and more left-side tires. And when the teams get done finding more rights, I don't think there will be a problem. We think we can run the race on six sets anyway.''
Goodyear brought 3,800 tires for the three days of practice, qualifying and competition. And because of the unusual wear, the normal restrictions on tire use in the Grand National race were lifted and some of the tires for today's race were used Saturday.
But Mehl withdrew the rest, and there were no plans to use them as backups.
The substitute tires will be a mixture from past races. The left-front tires will be the same ones used at Charlotte in May 1994. The left rears were used at Dover a year ago. The right-side tires were used at Darlington in April.
Goodyear has 500 right-side tires and 600 left-side tires and was hoping at least some teams had leftovers from Darlington.
``It would sure be nice if you could bring some of your own,'' Winston Cup director Gary Nelson told crew chiefs and drivers in an unusual meeting before Saturday's final Winston Cup practice session. ``Call your shops. See if you can have people bring them up.''
Mike Helton, a NASCAR vice president, said teams will have to share their extra tires. Even though teams might own a number of extra tires, they will not be allowed to hoard them, he said.
Nelson announced a special practice beginning at 8 a.m. - the first Sunday morning practice in anyone's memory - and said teams will have exactly 30 minutes to test. The practice will close the track-level crossovers into the infield and is expected to complicate traffic problems for fans.
The tire problem wasn't the only concern for today's race. Most of the drivers are expecting only one groove to develop on the track, making passing difficult.
So in spite of the new concrete surface, which was supposed to improve driving conditions, most drivers were expecting a typical Dover race with lots of crashes and frustration and little racing.
``They did a fine job of cementing,'' Dale Earnhardt told Chevy's Ray Coopersaid. ``It's smooth, as far as that goes. But you can't run side by side, so what's the use in having it? They're defeating their purpose of racing when they create a race track you can't run but one lane on.''
In other news, Helton said he expected the suspension part NASCAR confiscated from Jeff Gordon's team, which prompted a record $60,000 fine to crew chief Ray Evernham, would be displayed today. Helton said the part was not made of any ``exotic'' metal and that electronics, such as traction control, ``was not an issue.''
Keywords:
AUTO RACING
by CNB