Dover II: Scott Riggs preview

RIGGS HOPES TO BE AS SUCCESSFUL ON TRACK AS HE WAS IN CORN MAZE

DOVER, Del. (Sept. 21, 2005)-- Between his exciting weekend at New Hampshire and his upcoming visit to Dover International Speedway, Scott Riggs found time to visit The Maze at Hector's Creek (near Raleigh, N.C.), a nine-acre corn maze that resembles the No. 10 Valvoline Chevrolet.

Riggs hopes he will be able to find his way to Victory Lane in Dover as easily as he found his way Tuesday through the twists and turns of the Valvoline car.

"I've never been in a corn maze, and I've definitely never been in one shaped like a racecar," said Riggs. "When they told me about it, I figured it would be the side of a car, or just a head-on shot, but this is like a three-dimensional looking image. It's really cool."

As Riggs walked through the eight-foot corn stalks, he tried to pinpoint where he was on the path, using landmarks like headlights and fenders as clues.

"I know the word Valvoline is in here and that it's near the Chevy bow-tie," he continued. "I think we're standing in the small headlight now. I think--maybe not.

"I'll tell you one thing, I could never get out of here if I didn't have Pam with me."

Pam Griffin, who owns the farm, decided to build a corn maze when the decline in tobacco forced her family to rethink its way of life. She hired a specialist from Missouri who spent two days using a global positioning system to map and cut the maze, which offers visitors about a mile and a half of paths.

"Sometimes you have to think outside of the farming box," said Griffin. "Hopefully we'll be presenting everyone with a fun challenge."

Riggs' next challenge will be this weekend when the Valvoline team visits Dover International Speedway for the NEXTEL Cup event. "We've had some good runs at Dover in the past, so maybe we can find another one this weekend," offered Riggs. "Right now, this team is looking for any kind of luck it can find. So if we have a solid finish this weekend, the whole team may be heading up to Hector's Creek before Talladega next week."

Sunday's event will be broadcast live on TNT beginning at 12:30 p.m. ET.

-mb2m-