Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: FRIDAY, March 30, 1990 TAG: 9003300815
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B1 EDITION: EVENING
SOURCE: RANDY KING SPORTSWRITER
DATELINE: DARLINGTON, S.C. LENGTH: Medium
"I don't think anybody knows what to do here, or for that matter, what's going to happen here," said Ford driver Alan Kulwicki.
Already dealing with one major unknown - the cars are running radial tires here for the first time - the NASCAR teams got a surprise Thursday.
"Rain. We didn't need this, not this week," said Chevrolet driver Darrell Waltrip.
Persistent showers washed out practice time - which is at a premium this week because of the different tires - and first-round qualifying. Time trials were rescheduled for today, but the weather forecast promises an encore performance.
If qualifying isn't completed today, Winston Cup director Dick Beaty said Sunday's starting lineup will be determined by car owners' points.
Although most of the top teams tested Goodyear's radials here last week, many drivers said a lack of practice time could turn Sunday's 500-miler into a four-hour crapshoot.
"It's anybody's guess at this point," Kulwicki said. "Right now, I don't think anybody has a great deal of confidence about this weekend. I wouldn't know who to predict is going to do well.
" . . . It's up in the air. And for the guys who haven't tested, it's a hit-or-miss proposition."
You can put Waltrip in that camp. His team chose not to test here, instead saving one of its allotted test sessions for later in the season.
"We felt like we were better off staying away and coming in here cold turkey," said Jeff Hammond, Waltrip's crew chief. "Of course, NASCAR's new test limit had something to do with it. We decided to save one of ours until later."
Geoff Bodine, who said the radials felt great underneath his Ford in testing, felt he was one of the lucky ones.
"I'd hate to be here if I hadn't tested," he said. "If I hadn't come here and tested the radials, I'd be nervous.
"I'd be asking a lot of questions, that's for sure. You've got to make the necessary adjustments on the car, and this rain is going to make that very difficult to do.
"I'm just glad we're all set. We're ready to race now."
The radial is composed of harder rubber than the bias-ply tire. Ideally, the radial is supposed to wear more consistently and more slowly than the bias-ply tire.
Kulwicki said the radials could have either one of two effects in Sunday's race.
"The radials tend to be a little more sensitive than the bias-ply tires, and Darlington is one of the most treacherous tracks we run. So the two of them together . . . well, we could be in for a rough time.
"Then again, everybody seems to be more cautious on the radials. Therefore, we could have a clean, safe race.
"Like I said, it's anybody's guess."
After Darlington, the Winston Cup tour heads to Bristol (Tenn.) International Raceway for the Valleydale 500 on April 8.
"Talk about some real fun. Just wait till we get to Bristol," said crew chief Tim Brewer, tongue firmly planted in cheek.
Brewer said his driver, Geoff Bodine, was one of several who wasted a day last week at the high-banked .533-mile oval.
"They put that asphalt sealer on there again and it's unbelievably slick," Brewer said. "It was totally ridiculous. We just packed the car up and headed home."
NASCAR spokesman Chip Williams said such complaints are routine.
"We hear the same stuff every year . . . stuff like they're going to have to call off the race," Williams said. "The sealer will wear off after the cars run some laps and things will be fine. There will be a race at Bristol."
\ LUGNUTS: If today's time trials are rained out, Dale Earnhardt will start on the pole but will not be eligible to claim the Unocal pole-race sweep bonus. . . . NASCAR's Busch Grand National cars also are scheduled to qualify today for Saturday's Pontiac 200. If GN trials are postponed, all of the Winston Cup drivers entered - except Earnhardt and Harry Gant - in Saturday's race will not qualify for the field. . . . Driver Davey Allison was in Phoenix last week to film a Texaco commercial with Indy-car driver Michael Andretti and Bob Uecker. Asked to describe Uecker, a grinning Allison replied simply: "The guy's nuts."
by CNB