NASCAR WCUP: Wallace and Schrader 'Survive' at Sears Point; Gearing up for Daytona
30 June 1999
CHARLOTTE, N.C. - Seven caution flags for 26 laps and one red flag for 20 minutes. Surviving, let alone finishing Sunday's Save Mart/Kragen 350k at Sears Point Raceway was a feat in itself.Square D Chevrolet driver Kenny Wallace accomplished that feat, finishing the 112-lap event in 14th place.
"It was a solid day for us," said Wallace. "We ended up 14th and we were lucky to survive. We flat-spotted a tire there at the end and the car had a real bad vibration. I felt like we could've finished eighth."
While Wallace would have liked to have finished eighth, many of his fellow competitors didn't finish at all. Included in that group was Ken Schrader, Wallace's teammate at Andy Petree Racing. Coming out of turn one, Schrader's Chevrolet spun off course and into the tire barrier, catapulting his red and white Monte Carlo into the air. After a few barrel rolls, Schrader landed upside down. Despite the wild ride, the Skoal pilot emerged from the wreckage unscathed. As he walked across the race track, Schrader gave an "I'm okay" wave to Wallace.
"I'm just glad my buddy Kenny's okay," said Wallace. "I about wrecked right before he did. Man, he had a violent hit. That seemed to be the story of the day."
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It's no longer the inaugural nighttime running of the Pepsi 400 at Daytona (Fla.) International Speedway, but racing under the lights at Daytona still carries plenty of mystique for Square D Chevrolet driver Kenny Wallace.
"I like living life to its fullest," said Wallace, "and being a part of that first night race felt great. It was so much different. Practicing at night, knowing all the fans were staying late to watch us - it made us feel special. Everyone knew it was a special event."
In addition to creating some prime-time excitement, moving the Pepsi 400 to nighttime gave drivers relief from the stifling Florida heat and humidity.
"NASCAR hit a home run when they moved the Pepsi 400 to night," said Wallace. "It didn't matter how good of an athlete you were. It didn't matter how many muscles you had. Nobody could stand 130 degree heat inside their race car while in a 20-car draft."
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