DATE: Sunday, September 14, 1997            TAG: 9709140235

SECTION: SPORTS                  PAGE: C2   EDITION: FINAL 

SOURCE: BY BOB ZELLER, STAFF WRITER 

                                            LENGTH:   67 lines

FOR NASCAR CREWS, THE GRIND JUST GOT WORSE THE EXPANDED WINSTON CUP SCHEDULE FOR '98 IS SEEN AS BAD NEWS, AT A BAD TIME.

The announcement last week of the 1998 NASCAR Winston Cup schedule, with the new Las Vegas race and a second race in Japan, had the psychic effect, for many crewmen, of a lead balloon landing on freeze-dried flowers.

The announcement came between races five and six of the infamous late-summer stretch, which this year is 11 in a row. From August through mid-October, the series runs every weekend without a break. And in the midst of that, the road map for next year's grind is released, and it's even worse.

``I think we reached the limit a long time ago,'' driver Rusty Wallace said. ``It's killing us. We love it, but the toll it takes back at the shop and on your home life is really bad.''

The 1998 schedule will feature 37 races, including 33 points events. Just five years ago, the total was 31, with 29 points races. That's a loss of six off weekends since 1992.

And there's no letup in sight. Homestead, Fla., wants a race. The new California and Texas tracks want second dates. Gateway, near St. Louis, wants a race. New tracks are in the works. And the rumors have not died about track owner O. Bruton Smith's purported intention of scheduling a $5 million outlaw race at Texas on one of the Japan weekends.

You don't see the effects of the long grind on television every Sunday, but the stress was reflected in Robin Pemberton's voice Tuesday as he eloquently explained how bad it has become.

``You get in here Monday morning and everybody is really tired,'' he said. ``It doesn't matter if you win the race or finish last. You're all tired anyway. It takes a day or two longer to get guys motivated.

``It's not fun. If you talk to most people, even the people who win races, whether it be Ray Evernham or any of the other top crew chiefs, there's not one of us really having any fun.

``We dread the schedule getting any longer. But we just have to do it. I've got to believe we've got the worst professional sports schedule in the history of mankind.''

It used to be more fun for Pemberton, when he was a kid fresh out of upstate New York, living in North Carolina with no money and no responsibilities beyond working on Richard Petty's race cars.

``My kids will probably go to some of the best schools,'' Pemberton said. ``My wife has a nice house. And it's nice to be asked to do something like this for 11 months out of the year.

``But it's the time of the year when people are kinda really drug out and really tired. It can be fun. It has its moments on Sunday. Being competitive and winning races and running well, we all look forward to that. But if the truth be known, a lot of people are not happy with the extended schedule.

``I might be the only one foolish enough to talk about it, but I'm not the only one. A lot of people are in the same boat and feel the same way.''

Pemberton said one way to reduce the pressure is to cut back on the number of days spent at some tracks, which can be as many as five. The long weekends, he pointed out, are a relic of the days when promoters extended the show to try to generate more publicity and sell more race-day tickets.

``I think we're beyond that now,'' he said. ``The most important thing is just the race itself. I think Saturday and Sunday would probably be a good (race) weekend for us. I don't think we need to be places more than two days to put a race on. And I think there's an opportunity for more Saturday night races.''

As it is now, the road crewmen are working 100 hours a week and the only way they're surviving is because it's like they have two full-time jobs, Pemberton said.

``When the guys get on the road, we get to start the week over,'' he said. ``We push the reset button and go after it at the track. It's like you can't work one job 100 hours, but it's easier to work two 50-hour-a-week jobs.''

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