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NASCAR to Use a Competition Yellow at 25 Laps in NAPA 500

16 November 1997

HAMPTON, GA - In the interest of competition, NASCAR will throw a caution on 
or near the 25-lap mark of tomorrow's NAPA 500 at Atlanta Motor Speedway. 

Today's Happy Hour practice session was halted before it had barely begun due 
to rain and, according to NASCAR spokesman Kevin Triplett, the decision to 
utilize a competition yellow was made after a meeting with representatives of 
the Goodyear Tire Company. 

"We were getting a pretty good read on tire wear," explained Triplett, "but 
we don't know what (the most recent rain shower) will do to the race track 
regarding the rubber that was put down during the ARCA race. Due to that 
fact we've gotten a little conservative and we felt like at the the 25-lap 
mark tomorrow we may know more. It's something we've done in the past and 
it's something we're willing to do again."

Inclement weather forced NASCAR officials to cancel first round qualifying 
yesterday and teams had only 90 minutes of practice time this morning before 
the rescheduled time trials began. 


Lori Vizza -- The Auto Channel