Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: THURSDAY, February 13, 1992 TAG: 9202130190
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: BOB ZELLER SPORTSWRITER
DATELINE: DAYTONA BEACH, FLA. LENGTH: Medium
ROAD RACER JUST HOPES TO SURVIVE TWIN 125S
The most unlikely front-row starter in today's Twin 125 qualifying races at Daytona International Speedway is Dorsey Schroeder, the lanky, bright-eyed road racing star.Seeing Schroeder's collar-length hair, his flashing blue eyes and his quick smile and considering his 1990 IMSA GTO championship and his 1989 Trans-Am title, an observer might conclude Schroeder is pretty cocky about stock-car racing.
He isn't.
"It's going to be a pretty hairy situation," Schroeder said of his outside pole position in today's 50-lap second race. "I'll be looking for a place to hide."
Schroeder, driving Junie Donlavey's Ford, may have won his spot on the front row fairly in Sunday's Daytona 500 qualifying, but he isn't expecting to keep it.
Bill Elliott is on the pole, next to Schroeder. Davey Allison and Brett Bodine sit right behind the 39-year-old Missouri native. The 28-car field also includes Ricky Rudd, Geoff Bodine and Darrell Waltrip.
"I have absolutely no problem with them getting through," he said. "What I don't want to do is make a rookie mistake and jeopardize Ford's chance for the race."
The first 125-mile qualifying race begins at 12:30 p.m. and features Daytona 500 pole sitter Sterling Marlin and Mark Martin on the front row of a 29-car field.
The twin races will be taped by CBS and telecast at noon Saturday.
Schroeder was as surprised as anyone when he was fourth-fastest in Sunday's time trials at 191.404 mph.
Before he went out, everyone was talking about the stiff backstretch wind. In practice, Schroeder had blown two engines. He didn't want to plug in his two-way radio - too much of a distraction. In short, he said, he was "absolutely scared to death."
Schroeder kept telling himself: Be smooth. Don't jerk the steering wheel going into the high bank of turn 1.
"I just bit my teeth and held on. I was as tense as you can be," he said.
And when it was over, his surprising performance brought tears to his eyes. He was so exhilarated that he could hardly sign his autograph. His hand was shaking too much.
Schroeder has been racing 21 years, but none of his experiences prepared him for the idiosyncrasies of flat-out superspeedway stock car racing.
"You run wide open," he said. "You never lift. You can't stop the car like you can in road racing. You can't run off an escape road. And these guys live with the reality that if there's a crash in front of them, they're going to be in it.
"Those things are frightening."
Last year, nobody would draft with him except other rookies, Schroeder said. Every time he tried to hook up with a pack of veterans, they pulled off the track and left him by himself.
Schroeder had done a lot of talking before the 1991 Speedweeks about how he was going to be the busiest driver at Daytona - competing in the 24-hour race, the IROC and ARCA races and the Daytona 500.
But he blew a good chance to win the ARCA race and never made it into the 500. Schroeder crashed in last year's 125-mile qualifier.
"I came here last year and was so badly humbled," he said. "I was so depressed."
The highs are higher in the big leagues, and the lows are lower.
Schroeder said he has gained more acceptance this year. After the disappointment at Daytona, he competed in the Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte and at Watkins Glen, as well as the IROC series. He flipped in the IROC race at Talladega last May.
As he looks toward today's qualifier, he says: "Without question, this is the biggest single race in my career. At this point in my career, this is where I belong. Really, this is the mecca of American racing."
Keywords:
AUTO RACING