BUSCH: Watkins Glen Saturday notes

Lysol 200 Saturday Notebook Shawn A. Akers

WATKINS GLEN, N.Y. (June 27, 1998) Some notes and quotes Saturday surrounding Sunday's NASCAR Busch Series Grand National Division Lysol 200 at Watkins Glen International:

Several familiar race cars have unfamiliar faces behind the wheel for this weekend's activities at Watkins Glen International. Jack Baldwin, Ashton Lewis, Boris Said, Ron Fellows, Dave Rezendes and Jack Sprague all drove their respective cars for the first time competitively in an attempt to qualify for the Lysol 200.

A regular on the United States Road Racing Championship's GT-1Series, Baldwin, with a reputation for being one of the premier road racers in the country, is subbing for Robert Pressley in the No. 59 Kingsford Charcoal Chevrolet. Pressley is in Sonoma, Calif., with the No. 77 Jasper Engines NASCAR Winston Cup team.

Lewis, a Late Model Division driver from Chesapeake, Va., is driving the No. 9 Roush Racing Ford normally driven by Jeff Burton (at Sears Point). However, Burton's sponsor, Track Gear, was not on the car this weekend.

Said, a NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series regular and prolific road racer, was behind the wheel of the No. 12 Zippo Chevrolet owned by Jimmy Spencer (at Sears Point). The NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series has an off-weekend this weekend.

Sprague, the defending NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series champion and current points leader in the series, is using his off-weekend to get in a little NASCAR Busch Series experience. He's driving the No. 40 ChannelLock Chevrolet, normally piloted by Kevin Lepage (also out at Sears Point).

Rezendes, a former regular in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series, is subbing for still-injured Jimmy Foster in the No. 50 Dr. Pepper Ford.

Fellows, another prolific road racer and part-time NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series participant, is driving the No. 87 BellSouth Chevrolet in place of Joe Nemechek, who's out in California as well with the NASCAR Winston Cup Series. Fellows, who won the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series race at Watkins Glen last year, made his presence known early on Saturday morning when he topped the list in the first practice session with a fast lap of 117.125 mph. That was more than one full mph better than Said's second-place speed of 116.072 mph.

Fellows then went out in the second practice Saturday morning and earned the top spot again with a quick lap of 117.544 mph. Said was once again second behind Fellows, closing the gap a bit while turning a quick lap of 116.961 mph. The field for Sunday's Lysol 200 will be without any female competitors. Both Patty Moise and Kat Teasdale failed to make the field during Bud Pole Qualifying for the road course event on Saturday. Moise, a series veteran, managed only a lap of 112.480 mph in her No. 14 Rhodes Furniture Ford, making her 45th fastest. Teasdale, with a new five-race sponsorship from IGA (Independent Grocers Association), qualified 42nd in her Chevrolet with a lap of 113.158 mph.

Only six times in NASCAR Busch Series history has two female drivers qualified for the same race -- and all six times done by the same drivers. Moise and Shawna Robinson both qualified for two races in each of 1991, 1994 and 1995.

There has been talk that Robinson, who last drove a NASCAR Busch Series race in March of 1995, could possibly return to the series next year. That would make for a possibility of three female drivers qualifying for a race, which would be a historical event.

After Teasdale failed to make the field for Sunday's event, her sponsor announced they will take on primary sponsorship duties for Jason Keller's No. 57 Chevrolet in the Lysol 200. J.D. Gibbs, in the No. 44 Carolina Turkey Pontiac, was forced to go to a backup car after wrecking his primary car in the second practice session Saturday morning.

His backup car was a Chevrolet. Gibbs qualified 49th overall, but was given a provisional running under the Joe Gibbs Racing banner. Six NASCAR Busch North Series drivers attempted to qualify for Sunday's Lysol 200 -- Bryan Wall, Eric Bodine, Dale Quarterley, Ted Christopher, Rick Bell and Mike Olsen. Bodine, an area favorite, is a cousin to NASCAR Winston Cup drivers Geoff Bodine, Brett Bodine and Todd Bodine.

Wall was the fastest among the Busch North Series drivers, qualifying 14th with a lap of 115.710. Olsen, Christopher and Bodine all made it into the field with Busch North provisionals, considering the event is a combination event. Quarterley and Bell failed to qualify for the race. Kendall Motor Oil is helping Watkins Glen International celebrate its 50th anniversary this season as one of three official sponsors for the track this year. The others are Zippo Manufacturing and Gargoyles, Inc.

Kendall has had an association with WGI since 1957. It is sponsoring Bud Pole Qualifying Day as part of the Bud at the Glen NASCAR Winston Cup event in August. Kendall will also mark the milestone with a promotional sweepstakes entitled, "Throw the Green at the Glen," which runs from July 10 through July 31 at participating Monro Muffler/Brake & Service locations.

Ten grand prize winners will be chosen to be honorary starters for the Bud at the Glen Pole Qualifying Day event to be held August 7.

Source: NASCAR Online