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

DATE: THURSDAY, June 29, 1995                   TAG: 9506290129
SECTION: CURRENT                    PAGE: NRV-3   EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY 
SOURCE: M.J. DOUGHERTY STAFF WRITER
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Medium

THAT'S PHILIP MORRIS SMOKING ON NRV TRACK

Philip Morris is used to being near the top of the points when he runs the same track week-in, week-out. But for the former dirt-track racer from Ruckersville, it has been a while between appearances on the leader board.

Morris hasn't been on top since winning back-to-back Late Model championships at Eastside Speedway, a dirt track in Waynesboro, in 1991 and 1992. But after two years of dabbling at different places, Morris has found a home at New River Valley Speedway.

Through June 24, Morris is the top rookie in the prestigious Late Model division. He stands sixth overall with 400 points.

"We'd only run here twice before this year - both times in TV races," said Morris. "We just had to get some laps in, get some seat time. This is our first real attempt at running asphalt."

It hasn't take Morris long to figure things out. Through nine starts, his best finish is fourth place. He has three top-five finishes and seven top-10s. His recent qualifying runs have had him starting consistently on the first couple of rows. And all the while, Morris hasn't looked as if he is trying to sling the car around a track the way it's done in the rough-and-tumble world of dirt track racing.

"A lot of successful drivers have started on dirt, they practiced their skills and then moved up to asphalt," Morris explained. "It's a big adjustment; it's not easy. One thing that is an advantage [coming from dirt] is that if the car gets loose, you don't panic. That's the way you're used to driving on dirt because it's the quickest way around the track."

Getting around the track quickly is something that Morris has proven very good at, no matter what the surface. But first, his Chevrolet Camaro had to be capable of going fast.

"We're setting the car up completely different this year," said Robbie Morris, Philip's younger brother and crew member. "Once we got everything dialed in, Phil knew how to drive the car. We just had to get the car right for him."

Making Morris' transition even more extraordinary is that distance prevents him from getting to the biweekly open-track practices on a regular basis. His weekly 31/2-hour haul is about the longest among the Late Models from shop-to-track.

There were other tracks for Morris to choose from. He had races sporadically at Southside Speedway in Richmond. Just last Friday, Morris won the pole for the Late Model race there, but was involved in an early race accident. After traveling to different tracks, the level of competition, the facility and the professionalism at the track led Morris to decide to drive to New River Valley Speedway.

To help cut down-time, Morris brings his trailer to the track on Friday nights. And Morris, the trailer sales manager at Ruckersville Motorsports, tries to combine his trips to the track with business deliveries. Once at the track, the team is all business.

"We have to take a whole day off [from business]; it takes a commitment to do that," said Morris. "Some guys come here and all they do is shake their car down during practice. We're trying to learn things. We'll run a few laps and change a shock. We might try four or five different shock combinations during a practice session."

Then there is all the preparation that Morris does before he ever gets to the track.

"Philip always does his homework," said Junior Shiflett, who joined the team as crew chief this year. "He reads and reads. His whole life is racing - that pretty much sums it up. That's what he does and what he likes to do."

Morris feels all that preparation leads to the winner's circle before the end of the season. And the 30-year-old driver, husband, father and business owner hopes it will lead him somewhere after that.

Already, Morris has added the backing of Calvin Spencer to his race team, owned by his father, Julius. And he has a long-time relationship with the most recognizable sponsor at the track: Burger King. Franchises from the Shenandoah Valley sponsored Morris during his title run at Eastside and, along with the restaurants in this region, continue to sponsor him now.

"I'm almost too old but I think I have a future in racing," said Morris. "I do think in the end this is going to lead to something."

Keywords:
AUTO RACING

by CNB