THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Saturday, April 8, 1995 TAG: 9504080375
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C5 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY BOB ZELLER, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: NORTH WILKESBORO, N.C. LENGTH: Medium: 61 lines
The driver of the week in Junior Johnson's No. 27 Ford Thunderbird this weekend at North Wilkesboro Speedway is Jeff Purvis.
Hut Stricklin, in the car last weekend at Bristol, has resumed his consulting work with Steve Kinser.
Mike Hill, team manager and crew chief on the No. 27 Ford, told reporters Purvis had the ride for this weekend only and ``we're still trying to find us a full-time driver.''
Purvis was 40th-fastest after Friday's first round of qualifying and was in danger of not making Sunday's 36-car field.
Stricklin, who failed to qualify at Bristol, said it wasn't a good experience.
``That was not fair to Steve or me last weekend,'' Stricklin said. ``I couldn't do either (job) very well. I'll never do that again. All I'm doing this weekend is helping Steve get into the race.''
Kinser was the slowest of the 45 drivers who made qualifying runs Friday. He had ignition troubles and was more than three seconds slower than anyone else.
NEW PITS: Competitors who qualify in the back of the First Union 400 field no longer will have to double up on pit stalls at this 5/8-mile track.
The pit area has been extended further around the fourth turn, and a new inside wall has been built. The new pit entrance has been moved to the end of the backstretch from its original position in the fourth turn. The speedway now has enough pit stalls to accommodate 40 or more cars.
But in another respect, North Wilkesboro is more crowded than ever.
With 45 cars trying to qualify for Sunday's race, space was at a premium in the relatively small garage. Not only was the garage filled Friday, but the overflow area on the east side also was packed with cars. It was so crowded, in fact, that Kenny Wallace's team set up shop just outside the media center, more than 100 yards from the garage and completely outside the fenced-in garage area.
Wallace and his team are back in the series after skipping Bristol.
``We just skipped the Food City 500 to get some things done that we needed to get done in order to make this team more competitive,'' Wallace said.
SHELMERDINE OUT: Kirk Shelmerdine has been replaced by Johnny Rumley as the driver of the No. 25 Big Johnson Chevrolet Grand National car, car owner Don Beverley has announced.
Rumley had a pole and two top-10 finishes in his two starts for Beverley in 1992. Although he's never been a full-time Grand National division driver, he has one career victory at Hickory in 1993.
DILLON'S LATE MODEL POLE: Mike Dillon of Clemmons, N.C., driving a Chevy owned by his father-in-law, Richard Childress, won the pole for today's Lowe's 150 for late model stock cars with a speed of 113.636 mph. Stephen Grimes of Siler City, N.C., won the outside pole at 113.447 mph.
Others in the top 10 of the 29-car field include Nathan Buttke of Randleman, N.C., who was third-fastest, Jeff Agnew of Floyd, Va., who was fifth-fastest and Ronnie Thomas of Christianburg, Va., who will start sixth in the 150-lap race. by CNB