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Pennzoil Dodge Racing Preview: Raines Heads for Martinsville

23 September 1997


Raines Has Test Session and Benson to Draw from at Martinsville


   Pennzoil Dodge driver Tony Raines enters this week's NASCAR 
Craftsman Truck Series race at Martinsville with two notable benefits: 
 one, he has tested there, and two, his teammate will be sophomore 
Winston Cup driver Johnny Benson.  

   As a series rookie, Raines has been forced to get most of his 
education during race weekend, visiting many tracks for the first time 
in his career.  But a two-day Roehrig Motorsports test earlier this 
month, coupled with Benson's experience on the challenging half-mile, 
should provide Raines with valuable information heading into 
Saturday's 250-lap event.

Raines on...

...working with Johnny Benson:

   "I'm looking forward to it because of Johnny's experience.  It will 
be beneficial for me to double-check everything I see, feel and say.  
Johnny is going to be giving Kurt (Roehrig) feedback, and he may 
notice something that I don't, and I'll benefit from that.  I want to 
be able to watch and listen to what he is doing because he has a lot 
of laps at Martinsville and a lot of laps in a truck.  

   "It will also give me something to shoot at within our own system.  
If I can have the Pennzoil Dodge running competitively with him, 
qualify right with him and run lap times the same, that will be a big 
boost for me.  I want to try to use it to my advantage.  It will be 
fun if I can race with him or ultimately out-pace him.  I know Johnny, 
and I know he is going to come in and run as hard as he can, so we'll 
have a lot of fun with it."

...the importance of testing for a rookie:

   "Those are invaluable days for us.  We're able to take our time, 
analyze each thing we do and then back it up.  They are `no-pressure' 
laps in the sense that you aren't in a practice window where you have 
to get it done and get ready to qualify all at the same time.  You 
have time to put 90 laps on a set of tires and then throw a set of 
stickers on to see what you've learned.  It's an expensive venture, 
but it's definitely worth it."

...his impressions of Martinsville:

   "There are a lot of things there that can work against you.  You're 
going to have to be able to pace yourself and not burn your brakes 
off.  It's very slow in the middle of the corners, but it also has 
some seriously long straightaways that you can get hustlin' on.  It's 
a simple-enough track to drive that I think you'll see a really tight 
field.  It's going to be a place where you learn a lot.  It'll be 
tough, no doubt about that."

For More Information
Contact: Al Larsen
Cohn & Wolfe
(404) 880-5267
al_larsen@cohnwolfe.com