PORTLAND, Ore. (April 22, 2000) - Steve Petty of Alamo, Calif., had a hunch about the weather and it paid off in a big way. Counting on the showers shortening the Raybestos Brakes Northwest Series, NASCAR Touring Oregon 100 at Portland International Raceway April 22, Petty did not make the pit stop he planned to make on lap 20 of the 52-lap event. The decision helped him find his way to victory lane as the race was shortened to 36 laps due to the weather. Totem Travel Rookie of the Year candidate Matt Kelley followed the same strategy to finish second. Bud Pole winner Jim Inglebright was the first of those who pitted to cross the finish line, claiming third. Bill Lawrence and 1998 series champion Gary Lewis rounded out the top-five.
The weather forecast was not good for the Saturday afternoon race, but sunshine greeted the drivers and fans in the morning and early afternoon. The NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series event went off at noon under sunny skies. As the Raybestos Brakes Northwest Series cars took to the grid, dark clouds began to obscure the West hills of Portland. A heavy shower fell during the initial parade laps, delaying the race by over an hour. Once the track was dried, the field got under way. Inglebright, Petty, and Lewis ran close together in the early stages of the race. Petty overtook Inglebright on lap 15 to claim the lead.
When a caution came out on lap 17 for an off course excursion by Rick Allison, most of the field ducked into the pits for fuel and tires. Petty, Kelley, and Lawrence all stayed on the track. At lap 21, the skies opened up again, bringing out the red flag for 1 hour, 35 minutes. The cars were brought back onto the track for several caution laps to finish drying the track, then a dash to the checkered flag.
On the last couple green flag laps, Inglebright was able to work his way back up from eighth to claim third. Petty was able to drive his own line, pulling out to a 1.8-second margin of victory.
For Petty, the win was extra special. After suffering through a miserable season last year on the Featherlite Southwest Series, culminating with two broken wrists last October at Irwindale, the win represents the start of a comeback. "I'm not used to not doing well," said the veteran Trans-Am driver. "We haven't done well the last couple years. Now we can go to Sears Point with more confidence. I'm good on the roadcourses, but the ovals have given us trouble."
"It was a roller-coaster weekend," said a smiling Kelley after the race. "We were 35th fastest in the first practice, then qualified 31st. We changed the set-up and were 10th fastest in Happy Hour. We were thinking 'all right, we have a chance,' then the rains came. We are happy we got to run as much as we did today. This was fun."
"I wish we could have run the whole deal," said Inglebright. "It is a shame. NASCAR did everything they could to get this one in under the circumstances. But I think I had the car to win."
The next race for the Raybestos Brakes Northwest Series is the G.I Joe's 150, at Portland Speedway on April 29. This will be the final Series event at the speedway in its current configuration.
NOTES OF INTEREST:
The top three qualifiers, Inglebright, Petty, and Lewis, all broke the old track record held by Lance Hooper. Hooper set the old record in 1996 with a time of 1 minute, 16.433 seconds. Inglebright's new mark is 1 minute, 16.078 seconds or 92.274 mph.
Totem Travel Rookie of the Year candidate Rod Schultz, trying to better prepare for the roadcourse, went to a roadcourse driving school during the week before the race. Instead of learning new skills, Schultz ended up with is arm in a cast for a broken wrist. The injuries came thanks to one of Schultz' classmates.
PIR Story
Bill Lawrence, one of the drivers who did not pit, indicated that if the race had gone any further his team would have been in trouble. It seems they had fuel for just one more lap.
The Raybestos Brakes Northwest Series returns to Portland International Raceway June 24, for a combination event with CART.
