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Racin' deals

By JOANNE KORTH, Times Staff Writer

© St. Petersburg Times, published April 27, 2002


PRETTY IN PINK: Chocolate fiends worldwide can vote on the next color -- aqua, purple or pink -- to permanently join packages of M&Ms candies. As a bonus, the No. 36 Pontiac of Winston Cup driver Kenny Schrader, sponsored by M&Ms, will be painted the winning color for the night race at Bristol Motor Speedway in August.

PRETTY IN PINK: Chocolate fiends worldwide can vote on the next color -- aqua, purple or pink -- to permanently join packages of M&Ms candies. As a bonus, the No. 36 Pontiac of Winston Cup driver Kenny Schrader, sponsored by M&Ms, will be painted the winning color for the night race at Bristol Motor Speedway in August.

But here's the best part: Schrader's racing suit will match, too, which means the 46-year-old veteran could become the first NASCAR driver to wear a pink racing suit.

"That's okay," Schrader said, "I think I look good in pink."

Vote at www.mms.com.

KING PIN: When four-time Winston Cup champion Jeff Gordon wants to relax, he opts for low-intensity activities. Like bowling. Gordon hit the lanes Tuesday in Daytona Beach to promote the July 6 race at Daytona International Speedway.

He arrived toting his own ball, nicknamed The Dominator. On his first roll, Gordon baby-stepped to the line, released the ball with spin and watched it curve ... into the gutter. A good sport, Gordon merely shrugged. A fierce competitor, he converted the spare on his next ball.

FEED A FEVER: On his way to California for this weekend's Winston Cup event, Mark Martin planned to drop off some reading material for owner Jack Roush, who remains hospitalized in Birmingham, Ala. Roush was critically injured April 19 when the small plane he was piloting crashed.

"As inappropriate as it may seem, I think I am going to bring him some airplane stuff to read," said Martin, a fellow pilot. "His life is racing and airplanes. And I know Jack, that's not going to change."

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