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It's Bigley for Second Week in a Row

Greenville, S.C. - August 14, 1999 - For the second week in a row, and the
fourth time this season, Naples, Fla.'s Billy Bigley, Jr. deposited his
Peerless Woodworking Chevrolet Monte Carlo in victory lane in Slim Jim All
Pro Series, NASCAR Touring competition. This time the series veteran
earned the winning laurels by besting 33 other drivers to win the $44,900
Upper State Fair 200 at Greenville-Pickens Speedway. The win was worth
$7,900 to the 37-year-old driver.
    Bigley had to dodge several on-track incidents before seeing the checkered
flag. "We were in amongst a couple of lead lap cars and they got together
and spun right in front of me. I mean my dad did a fabulous job of
spotting on the radio for us, the guys did a great job in the pits. I
don't know…two in a row is like a dream come true," stated the winner in
victory lane. "Greenville's been good to me, we've been fast we've just
never had any luck here, maybe we've broken the streak," he added.
    Thirty-six cars were on hand to vie for the 34 available starting spots
and Greer, S.C.'s Steven Howard came away with the Bud Pole Award. The
driver of the Dick Brooks Automotive/Greer Flooring Center Chevrolet, and
the 1996 NASCAR Winston Racing Series Blue Ridge Region Champion, turned a
lap of 19.920 seconds at an average speed of 90.361 mph to grab the top
starting position. It was his second career pole position as well as
second of the year for the 1996 Greenville-Pickens Speedway track champion.
Narrowly missing the pole position was outside front row starter Scott
Kilby. He missed the top qualifying position by 0.088 seconds and earned
the opportunity to start on the outside of the front row.
    Howard took off at the drop of the green flag as if he was shot out of a
rocket. A few early cautions kept the drivers from getting a good rhythm
going. After being involved in a six-car get together in turn two on lap
10, Kilby shredded a right rear tire
on the lap 21 restart and crippled his hold on the fifth place points
position, after going down several laps for repairs.
    It seemed that the competitors just couldn't seem to produce any long
green flag runs. During the first half of the race there were six caution
periods. When the fourth caution period occurred on lap 71, as a result of
George Ingole's Chevrolet coming to rest on the backstretch, most of the
leaders, except Howard, Wayne Anderson and Robert Burroughs, all barreled
into the pit area to complete the race's mandatory pit stop and tire change
requirements. Green flag racing resumed on lap 78 only to be interrupted
again on lap 92, and again on lap 100. Howard stayed on the track, and in
the lead, from lap one to 100, finally pitting when the caution was again
displayed after Tina Gordon spun in turn two and collected Hal Goodson and
Lee Tissot.
    Howard, Anderson and Burroughs pitted at this point handing the lead to
rookie Brian Smith. Smith made the most of his first time at the front in
Slim Jim All Pro Series competition by capturing the $400 Gatorade Front
Runner Award on lap 109, for leading the fifth consecutive green flag lap
after the race's halfway point, lap 100, was under caution. The
Mooresville, N.C. driver continued to set the pace until lap 116 when he
was spun out of the top spot after Colleyville, Tex.'s Patrick Lawler made
contact with the leader while the duo were racing side-by-side on a lap 116
restart.
Cincinnati, Oh.'s Jeff Fultz blazed to the front in his Multiple Tool
Chevrolet and appeared to be headed to his first victory of the year. But
Bigley, being fortunate and patient, dodging the various accidents that
never seemed to go away, ran down Fultz and overtook the leader on lap 174.
From that point forward Bigley had to survive one restart, and point
leader Wayne Anderson on his rear bumper, to record his seventh career win.
Bigley pulled away during the final green flag stretch to win by 2.169
seconds while Anderson recorded his 12th top five finish in 14 starts as he
settled for second. Fultz held on for third while David Reutimann and Ron
Young rounded out the top five. Howard rallied to take the sixth position,
and the balance of the top 10 went to rookie drivers, Rodney Childers, Ken
Weaver, Mike Franklin and Shane Sieg. The top 10 finishers were the only
cars to complete all 200 laps.
    With the 14 caution periods consuming 80 laps the race was run in one
hour, 52 minutes and 38 seconds with Bigley's winning average speed being a
slow 53.270 mph. There were three lead changes among four drivers.
    With his win Bigley closed to within 112 points of leader Anderson with
two races left on the 1999 Slim Jim All Pro Series schedule. After making
repairs to his Nortel Networks Chevrolet Goodson returned to the track many
laps down and wound up 22nd. The Darlington, S.C. driver remains in the
third points position while Howard moves from sixth to fourth in the points
after his sixth place finish. Ronnie Burkett dropped from fourth to fifth
in the point standings.
    Bigley's father Bill, Sr. earned the $300 Jasper Engines & Transmissions
Crew Chief-of-the-Race Award and moved to within 12 points of Anderson's
team leader Augie Grill for the annual award.
    With Smith grabbing the Gatorade Front Runner Award, and being followed at
the time by Fultz and Weaver, nothing changed amongst the leaders for the
annual Gatorade payoff. Goodson continues to lead Howard by three points
with Anderson three behind Howard.
    The best point race in the series is in the Rookie-of-the-Year category.
Childers takes over the top spot from Coy Gibbs after he wheeled his
Cleaver Brooks/C&C Boilers/Honeywell Chevrolet to Rookie-of-the-Race
honors. The Mooresville, N.C. resident now leads Gibbs by two points while
Lawler trails Gibbs by three points.
For the second time in 1999 Slim Jim All Pro Series teams will race at
Lanier National Speedway in Braselton, Ga. on Saturday, September 4. The
Oral B 200 represents the 15th of 16 races on the 1999 series schedule.
Bud Pole qualifying will get underway at 6:00 p.m. with the racing program
getting the green flag at 8:00 p.m. On June 19, Naples, Fla.'s Billy
Bigley, Jr. grabbed the victory at Lanier.

Greenville-Pickens Results