ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1997, Roanoke Times
DATE: Sunday, March 16, 1997 TAG: 9703180028
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C2 EDITION: METRO
DATELINE: MARTINSVILLE
SOURCE: CHAD WILLIS THE ROANOKE TIMES
David Hyder becomes the first Late Model Stock driver to break the 90-mph barrier at Martinsville Speedway during qualifying for the Miller 300.
Stock car racing is a sport best characterized as one in which applied science and driver skill come together to overcome aerodynamic resistance and the dreaded clock. The objective is simply to get back to the start-finish line, and get back there as quickly as possible.
David Hyder found a new path to the top of the heap Saturday, throwing conventional racing wisdom into the blustery Martinsville Speedway wind and winning the pole of the Miller 300 Late Model Stock race - simply by parking his car.
Actually Hyder had little choice in the matter. He was forced to sit still while NASCAR officials tinkered for 40 minutes with a faulty timing system. During that time, clouds filled what had once been a clear late-afternoon sky and sent the mercury plummeting.
The end result was a lightning-fast track and a Martinsville Speedway Late Model qualifying record as Hyder shattered the previous standard of 89.426 mph, set in 1989 by Christiansburg's Ronnie Thomas, and became the first driver in the series to turn a sub-21 second circuit at the 50-year-old facility.
``Normally, when the weather gets colder at an asphalt track, speeds get slower,'' Hyder said. ``But for whatever reason, this track always seems to get quicker when it gets cooler.
``I feel, and I think that I can speak for most drivers, that when I get in a car I want to just go. To have someone standing there telling me to wait is tough. I got a little nervous sitting in the car waiting for my turn.''
Whatever hesitation he may have felt disappeared as quickly as Thomas' record. Hyder's circuit was clocked at 90.227 mph and took a mere 20.987 seconds, nearly two-tenths faster than runner-up Jeff Agnew's 21.103-second effort.
``I've been racing for a long time,'' said Hyder 29. ``I started racing go-karts when I was 6 or 7 against 600 to 700 other people. But that was nothing like trying to qualify against 100 cars at Martinsville. Any time you're two-tenths of a second faster than the field, you've got to be happy. This is the hardest race I've ever had to qualify for.''
After turning his fastest practice times of the week Saturday morning, Hyder said he experienced some difficulty with his Ford's setup as the noon time temperature rose.
``I took the car back out on the track and something just didn't feel right to me,'' Hyder said. ``So, we changed to sticker tires, and that made a big difference. The second time out the car felt perfect.''
While some may have been surprised Hyder was able to surpass Thomas' mark with relative ease, Agnew said the signs were there for a strong run.
``Hyder has been a good two-tenths of a second faster than the rest of us since we got here,'' Agnew said. ``I don't think that means he's going to run away with the race [today], but he's running good.''
Agnew's best lap also bettered the previous record, but a slight error on the Floyd driver's part may have cost him the pole. After crossing the stripe on his first qualifying lap, Agnew tapped the breaks with thoughts of entering the pits. That was before he saw the white flag waving, signaling he still had one circuit to go.
Agnew's teammate and former NASCAR Mid-Atlantic champion Johnny Rumley qualified third, Nathan Buttke was fourth and Greg Marlowe completed the top five.
Positions 21-32 will be filled with the top three finishers from each of four 25-lap heat races to be held before today's 200-lap feature. The final four positions in the grid will be filled with track provisionals.
Defending champion Donnie Apple, as well as former Martinsville Speedway Late Model winners Tony McGuire, Jay Fogleman and Bugs Hairfield, missed the 20-car cut and will have to attempt to qualify via the heat races.
The green flag falls on the first heat race at 12:30 p.m. The feature is to begin approximately 30 minutes following the conclusion of the final heat.
LENGTH: Medium: 82 lines ILLUSTRATION: PHOTO: 1. ERIC BRADY THE ROANOKE TIMES Drivers line up as theyby CNBwait out a long delay Saturday during qualifying for today's Miller
300 Late Model Stock race at Martinsville Speedway.
2. chart - Miller 300 lineup KEYWORDS: AUTO RACING