The Charlotte Observer from Charlotte, North Carolina • 48

IP FRIDAY OCTOBFR 5 2001 MOTORSPORTS THE CHARLOTTE OBSERVER a MOTORSPORTS Spencer 2nd pole seizes of year Thursday Mght was difficult for Richard Childress Racing While rookie star Kevin Harvick qualified 14th in the No 29 Chevrolet the other two Childress cars failed to qualify Robby Gordon who took over in the No 31 Monte Carlo last week at Kansas failed to get that car in the field with a speed of 180307 mph the first time since MicM-gan in 1998 the No 31 car has failed to qualify Jeff Green in the No 30 Chevy on a part-time basis preparing for a full season in 2002 ran 180856 mph and also will not be racing Sunday feel real bad for those Harvick said Kenny Wallace driving the No 1 Chevrolet in place of injured Steve Park was third Ryan Newman the pole-winner for the Coca-Cola 600 here in May and the fastest in practice will start fourth Two of the Petty Enterprises-owned Dodges driven by Kyle Petty and Buckshot Jones also failed to make the race But Carl Long driving a Dodge as part of research and development for the Petty team ran 30th and will be in field So too will Stuart Kirby who will make his Winston Cup debut this weekend Jimmie Johnson also will make Ms debut in a Chevrolet owned by Jeff Gordon and Rick Hendrick Qualifying Results ft Deaths 1964 all drivers unless How Died 2 months after 600 crash Killed in tire test crash Killed in National 400 race Killed in pits after jet dragster crash Killed in pits after jet dragster crash Killed in motorcycle race Killed in Sportsman race Killed in Sportsman race Killed in Sportsman race Killed during driving school Killed during IRL race Killed during IRL race Killed during IRL race Killed in ARCA race Kerry car slides down event at Motor Speedway ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO the frontstretch on its roof with four laps left in Thursday Automobile Racing Club of America Blaise Alexander Jr also was involved in the wreck and was pronounced dead at the infield care center Alexander Jr dies in closing crash Bodine makes it a sweep on front row for Haas-Carter team By David Poole StaffWriter Jimmy Spencer won his second pole of the season Thursday night at Motor Speedway running a lap at 185147 mph to edge teammate Todd Bodine for the top starting spot in UAW-GM 500 It was the third pole of Winston Cup career He won the pole for the Brickyard 400 at Indianapolis in August but went away disappointed because the track give him any hardware was an embarrassment for Indianapolis Motor Speedway not to give me a Spencer said holding up the crystal award he got in Victory Lane at the Charlotte track heck with the check what all about right there This is going on my Spencer fended off questions about his Winston Cup future after leading the Haas-Carter Motorsports sweep of the front-row spots He told team owner Travis Carter last weekend he will leave the No 26 Fords at end apparently to move to the No 01 Dodges owned by CMp GanassL might not leave Spencer joked in concrete right? I never signed anything I just made a handshake deal never gone back on my word but a first for everything For now Spencer is looking to give his team something by wMch to remember him going to try to finish the year on a Mgh he said feel we can be in the top 10 in points excited about tMs Spencer and Bodine also shared the front row for the inaugural race at CMcagoland Speedway in July with Bodine getting the pole that day had totally different setups there and the same Bodine said Jimmy likes in the race car and what his team does ever fit what we need to do so we get to the same point by doing different Motor Speedway People killed at the speedway since Name Date Fireball Roberts Sept 1964 Jimmy Pardues Sept 22 1964 ARCA Tragic End Blaise Alexander Jr was killed in a crash with Kerry Earnhardt coming out of Turn 4 with four laps to go 3 Recent Speedway Tragedies On May 20 2000 107 people were injured when a pedestrian bridge across US 29 by Lowe's Motor Speedway collapsed after the running of The Winston all-star race On May 25 1998 a helicopter leaving the track flown by John Thomas Elliot of Lawndale dropped low enough in the fog to clip a power line jerk forward and smash into US 74 Elliot Craig Goodman Rudolph of Charlotte Alexandra Johanna Schiffers of Matthews and Kevin Ryan Dadey and Pamela Nicholson Dadey both of Charlotte were killed On May 1 1999 a fiery three-car crash in the VisionAire 500 Indy Racing League race sent a tire and other parts shooting over a fence into the Turn 4 seating area Randy Dale Pyatte of Connelly Springs Jeff Patton of Hickory and Dexter Barry Mobley of Statesville were killed Eight other spectators were injured schedule Dean Lopardo was a member of crew which operated out of a shop near the Mooresville Dragway was just a regular down-to-earth Lopardo said as he stood at the rear of the hauler loved racing tell you he have been happy with second place tonight You come to these races with every intention of winning every one you go to just the way he Lopardo said the accident was fault was just a racing he said out there racing just as hard as we are I hope he beat himself up a heck of a nice torsports in this Winston Cup race and qualified fifth Thursday Mike Wallace left the team Wednesday to take over the No 12 Fords the rest of the year Lepage said he and owner Jim Smith will sit down after the weekend and talk about the rest of the season Lepage was released Monday from Morgan-McClure Motorsports JU Winston Cup driver Todd Bo-dine has agreed to drive the No 11 Chevrolet for Highline Performance Group in Little Trees 300 He has 13 Grand National victories with the past two coming at Rockingham and Las Vegas this season JU coverage of the inaugural Winston Cup race from Kansas Speedway on Sunday generated a 47 national rating11 share according to Nielsen Media Research This represents the Mgh-est national rating ever for any auto race in competition with professional footbalL ARCA from 1C the required a foam device designed to restrict the movement of the head in an accident The collar was manufactured by Simpson Performance Products and there was no apparent failure of the collar Alexander wearing any other head-and-neck restraint system Drager characterized the accident as a by car ARCA officials have inspected the car and returned it to team father Blaise Sr and brother Adam were in pit during the race They were returning to Montoursville Pa Thursday night to be with family Alexander was the 1996 ARCA Rookie of the Year and won the Michigan 200 in July one of his four top-five finishes this season Earnhardt crawled from the wreckage unharmed Earnhardt is the oldest son of the late Dale Earnhardt who died in a last-lap accident dining Daytona 500 Kerry Earnhardt was taken to the infield care center He later returned to the facility and found Norris The two went inside to be with family Earnhardt left in a golf cart with team official Don Hawk and track security personnel Earnhardt faced backward and stared blankly unfortunately knows their Norris said of the Alexander family In the 42-year history of Motor Speedway this is the 14th fatality and the seventh stock-car driver fatality Alexander is the first ARCA series driver to be killed at Charlotte He is the first driver killed at Alexander's car to a rest on infield grass He cut out of his and rushed to infield care where he was pronounced dead GRAND NATIONAL Kenseth hopes to continue in pole qualifying By Jim Utter Knight Ridder The success Matt Kenseth been able to accomplish in the Winston Cup series this season he has found in the Grand National series Kenseth driving for Robbie Reiser-owned No 17 Chevro-lets has won once (Bristol in March) with three poles 10 top-five and 12 top-10 finishes in 19 starts Kenseth has one top-five and five top-10 Winston Cup finishes He will be looking for more success in Little Trees 300 at Motor Speedway (noon TNT) Qualifying is 1 pm today you race you want to run well and when you run well no matter what MOTORSPORTS NOTEBOOK Jarrett recall all of Kansas event Earnhardt's car continued down the track on fire He was able to climb out of the car after it came to a stop JACOB PIERCY-STAFF ARCA and Sportsman races feature less-experienced drivers in cars similar to those used in the Winston Cup series race was called after the accident and Earnhardt declared the winner having led the last completed lap Alexander was credited with second Gappens said he anticipate any changes to this week- in the No 88 Ford pits tMs week in case Jarrett needs a relief driver Notes Mickey Stavola who along with his brother Billy owned Buicks driven by such drivers as Bobby Allison and Bobby Hillin died from an apparent heart attack near his home in Kinston NJ last weekend Mickey Stavola had been deer hunting When he show up for work Monday the family looked for him and found him dead in a com field near their farm DP Michael McSwain crew cMef for Ricky Rudd broke Ms left arm Thursday morning while leaving his motorhome in the infield of Motor Speedway McSwain has a half-cast and is expected to get a full cast next week JIM UTTERKNIGHT RIDDER Kevin Lepage has agreed to drive the No 7 Ford of Ultra Mo- After making contact with Earnhardt Alexander's car hit the outside wall almost head-on spun and hit Earnhardt causing car to flip onto its roof SOURCE NEWS REPORTS the speedway since Russell Phillips of Mint Hill who died when the roof of his car was sheared off during a multicar accident Oct 6 1995 That accident came in a Sportsman Series race the last time that circuit ran at Charlotte The ARCA series replaced Sportsman races among companion events for Winston Cup weekends at Charlotte kind of said to myself is probably going to and then like somebody cut a switch off I remember anything until I woke up at the Jarrett suffered a concussion and broken rib on Ms left side I was knocked out somewhere between a minute and two he said I came to and was telling them not to cut the roof off because that would worry my Jarrett got home Sunday night and watched on tape how he walked to the ambulance have no recollection of that he said had to ask my brother Glenn how we got to the hospitaL There are still parts when I came to in the hospital that I was kind of in and out It was like I really wanted to Jarrett said he was sore and bruised in several places Rick Mast will be standing by came the was car the center doing you feel a little better about he said been race to run the (Grand National) series I would defimtely be a lot more miserable if I running it for Kenseth second in May race will be among a group ofWinston Cup drivers in event Others include Kevin Harvick the Grand National points leader Joe Neme-chek Todd Bodine Jimmy Spencer and Robby Gordon Harvick has lost considerable ground in the points race Back-to-back wins by reigning champion Jeff Green have cut the lead from more than 300 to 167 Jim Utter covers NASCAR for ThatsRacincom part of the Knight Ridder Digital network Craig Dollansky Mark Kinser holds a 51-point lead over second-place Lasoski in the standings Stevie Smith who has six wins since mid-July is the hottest driver on tour Mark Kinser claimed the first main event in the Dirt history in May 2000 with Sammy Swindell winning the preliminary feature Tickets for event start at $15 if purchased in advance Call 1-800-455-FANS for ticket information AT DIRT TRACK World of Outlaws Series races will be run tonight Saturday Chunk of 45 minutes after crash missing from memory By David Poole StaffWriter Dale Jarrett says a 45-minute hole in his memory of what happened to him Sunday at Kansas Speedway remember getting the he said of the crash in the Protection One 400 that began with contact from Bobby Pontiac remember spinning and standing in the gas trying to keep from hitting the wall but then realizing it By Cason Bufe StaffWriter The World of Outlaws Series returns to The Dirt Track Motor Speedway today for the preliminary feature of the OdoBan Outlaw Champion-sMp Qualifying begins at 7:15 pm The A-feature is Saturday and the total purse for the two-day event is $112445 Points leader Mark Kinser will compete against other top-five drivers Danny Lasosid Steve Kinser Danny Schatz and.