Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: FRIDAY, April 21, 1995 TAG: 9504210126
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B-5 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: BOB ZELLER STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: GALAX LENGTH: Medium
``They said they'd probably make a change before the Charlotte race, so let's hope something happens,'' he told a group of employees at the Sara Lee Knit Products factory during an appearance here in advance of Sunday's Hanes 500 at Martinsville Speedway.
Wallace later said he doesn't know what NASCAR plans to do, but thinks it may alter the rear spoiler on the all-powerful Chevrolet Monte Carlos to reduce rear downforce.
But the consensus in the garage in recent weeks has been that NASCAR won't take anything away from Chevys, even though many Ford folks have been lobbying to force the Chevys to reconfigure the rear deck-lid area and return the shape of the Monte Carlo's rear closer to the production model of the car.
NASCAR has made spoiler changes in the past couple of years, but they have been across the board for all three makes - Ford, Chevy and Pontiac - in efforts to slow the cars.
As the defending champion of the race, Wallace was tapped by Hanes for its annual pre-Martinsville plant tour. Wallace spent the morning touring the huge factory here and another large facility in Hillsville that produce Hanes products.
Workers at both plants were delighted to see him.
In Hillsville, where 650 employees - mostly women - turn out 13,500 dozen T-shirts a day, Wallace cheerfully posed for dozens of photographs as he wandered the aisles of the plants. The plant normally plays country music on the public-address system, but it played ZZ Top - Wallace's favorite rock group - Thursday morning.
In Galax, a welcoming committee cheered as he arrived and then took him on a meticulously organized tour of their plant, which turns raw cotton, mostly from Texas, into cloth.
Wallace, who himself sells hundreds of T-shirts each weekend at the track, was genuinely impressed with the tours.
``This is amazing,'' he told the workers here. ``I think I can make a T-shirt now. I just can't believe that many people in the world need T-shirts.''
Wallace's Thursday, which concluded with a lunch at the Galax Country Club, came on the heels of an extraordinarily busy Wednesday. He taped four episodes of his new TNN show ``Win'' in Charlotte and then flew to Philadelphia, where he appeared on the QVC network until midnight. He was back home at 3 a.m. before flying into Hillsville at about 9:30 a.m.
Now it's back to racing. Practice at Martinsville begins at 11 a.m. today. Qualifying for the first 20 starting positions in Sunday's race is at 3 p.m.
``I've won three of the last four at Martinsville, so I've got to feel pretty good about that,'' said Wallace, who, along with every other Ford driver, is winless this season. ``I've just got to believe that real soon we'll get going. It seems like the midpoint of the season is when we really get going and win races.''
Keywords:
AUTO RACING
by CNB