
                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: TUESDAY, October 3, 1995                   TAG: 9510030094
SECTION: SPORTS                    PAGE: B3   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: TOM HIGGINS CHARLOTTE OBSERVER
DATELINE: CHARLOTTE, N.C.                                 LENGTH: Short

IRVAN WILL NOT RACE AT CHARLOTTE

NASCAR driver Ernie Irvan demonstrated immeasurable courage Sunday when he finished sixth in the Tyson Holly Farms 400 at North Wilkesboro Speedway, his first Winston Cup race since suffering life-threatening injuries 13 months earlier.

It's the opinion of Charlotte Motor Speedway president Humpy Wheeler that Irvan showed equal courage Monday when he decided not to enter Sunday's UAW-GM Quality 500.

The speedway is one of the fastest on the circuit, with straightaway speeds of almost 200 mph. Speeds that high are still a concern for Irvan, Wheeler said.

``Ernie is a racer, this is his home track now, and I know there's nothing he would have loved more than to get in his car and go at it again,'' Wheeler said. ``But he has elected not to run this week, and we support him 100 percent.

``Of course, we'd loved to have had him.

But sometimes you have to take off your promoter's hat and put on your human hat, and that's what we've done at the speedway.

``We're more interested in Ernie as a human than a driver.''

So where will Irvan race next?

Possibly North Carolina Motor Speedway in the Oct. 22 AC Delco 500, if a test there next week goes well. Or maybe at Phoenix Raceway in a 500-kilometer race Oct. 29.

Keywords:
AUTO RACING

by CNB