Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: WEDNESDAY, August 16, 1995 TAG: 9508160111
SECTION: CURRENT PAGE: NRV4 EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY
SOURCE: CHRIS KING
DATELINE: LENGTH: Long
Much of the focus on President Clinton's proposed ban on cigarette advertising at sporting events has focused on the national impact of such legislation. If Clinton's proposed ban comes to pass, the fans of NRVS will notice.
R.J. Reynolds, which makes Winston cigarettes, has been the primary sponsor of NASCAR racing for 25 years. The proposed ban could sever the relationship between NASCAR and Winston. When asked to asses the potential impact of the proposed legislation, NRVS co-owner Ronnie Snoddy was pessimistic.
``Devastating,'' he said.
As a member of the Winston Racing Series, NRVS enjoys the benefits that come with NASCAR sanctioning.
Evidence of Winston's presence at the track is everywhere. The walls, stairs and press box sport the red and white colors of Winston, which provides paint to all its sanctioned speedways.
Winston also provides assistance with scoreboards, road signs and a portion of the purse money the track champion receives. But most important is the legitimacy Winston sanctioning provides the track.
``It would be hard for another company to pick up after Winston,'' Snoddy said. ``Without their support, I don't know if racing would be where it is today.''
In a sport that values intense loyalty from both fans and participants, the loss of Winston as a sponsor could be wrenching on a number of levels. When determining how inextricably linked NASCAR and Winston are, remember stock car racing's major league is called the Winston Cup Series. Both the series winner's trophy and check for more than $1 million are provided by the cigarette manufacturer.
Should R.J. Reynolds be forced to halt its involvement with the sport, the move would figure to be unpopular with both participants and fans.
``I think we have enough problems to worry about,'' Late Model Stock driver Ray Young said. ``We have people who are homeless and starving. Why don't we take care of them before we start worrying about cigarette advertising?
``I don't smoke, and don't really like to be around it. But it isn't my job to tell [smokers] what to do. I just wish they would leave auto racing alone. If [Clinton] wants to be re-elected, he isn't going about it in a very good way.''
Though any government action would not be directed solely at auto racing, it might appear that way to a sport that is so reliant on tobacco sponsorship money.
``It is hard for me to believe it would pass,'' Snoddy said.
The auto racing world, and NASCAR in particular, certainly hope Snoddy's assessment is correct.
CHANGING PLACES: Car owner Kelly Kidd has turned over the wheel of his No. 49 Late Model Stock Car to Robert Davis.
Davis replaces Bob Komisarski, a dirt-track specialist who struggled to make the adjustment to driving on a paved surface.
For Davis and Kidd, this a reunion of sorts. In 1989, Davis drove a Kidd-owned car to the Modified Mini championship. Though he hasn't driven at NRVS since, Davis is hoping this ride with Kidd will be as successful as the last.
In his LMSC debut, Davis struggled to a 14th-place finish.
In another change in the LMSC field, Boyd Sult and Noel Turner, the owner of the Wicker Basket team, are joining forces for the remainder of the season.
The move was necessitated by an accident two weeks ago in which Sult's car was destroyed. The gauges were the car's only salvageable parts after the accident in Turn 4. NRVS veterans said Sult's accident was as violent as any they had witnessed at the track. Sult walked away uninjured.
MOORE NEWS: Mini Stock driver Wayne Moore had his fine increased and his suspension reduced for a recent incident involving a dispute with track officials.
Moore's fine was raised to $300 for conduct detrimental to racing, but he was allowed to return to the track a week early. Moore reportedly threatened track officials with bodily harm and was verbally abusive.
He sat out one race for what began as a two-race suspension. Moore didn't miss a beat on his return, capturing his seventh straight race and his ninth of the season.
DISABLED LIST: Mini Stock racer Marty Moore, Wayne's brother, was injured in a single-car accident away from the track Friday night and was forced to miss Saturday's race.
Marty Moore was hospitalized at Radford Community Hospital with internal bleeding, said track spokesman Morris Stephenson. It was unclear when Moore would resume racing.
Tim McGuire was forced out of action for the second straight week because of a concussion suffered after an accident at the track two weeks ago.
McGuire was knocked unconscious briefly. He took the week off under doctors orders but is expected to return to the track this week.
ON DECK: This week at NRVS is the Craftsman Tools 300, which features a 150-lap LMSC race and the last appearance of the season for the Mid-Atlantic Modified tour at NRVS. The MAMs will run 50 laps.
There will be a 35-lap Limited Sportsman race and 25-lap Mini and Pure Stock races.
Gates open at 1:30 p.m.; practice starts at 3:30. Qualifying begins at 6. The first race starts at 8.
Keywords:
AUTO RACING
by CNB