s in drag racing itself, timing is everything in race promotion. The rain gods, who have been laughing at drag racing since last year, got together with Jack Frost and decided to dump snow on the Mid-Atlantic states just in time for Rockingham Dragway's Winter Test-Fest. Anywhere from eight to 11 inches of the lovely white stuff fell, snarling traffic on highways and airports, making it difficult to get to the Rockingham, NC track.

Track owner Steve Earwood was committed to putting on the event despite overwhelming odds. He delayed the event, originally scheduled for Thursday through Saturday. After another round of snow on Friday, he personally piloted the jet dryer. After 500 gallons of kerosene spent in the jet dryer and a tireless track crew hand cleaning the ice off the track, engines were fired approximately 3 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 28, and the bracket cars began to make runs down this incredibly smooth surface.

The snow in the concrete bleachers started to melt off and filled the water table giving the track crew fits as they couldn't prevent water from seeping through the cracks. About 6 p.m. the bracket race was called off and re-scheduled for Sunday as safety was a primary concern.

With the temperature falling at an extremely rapid pace, the track was secured at 6:30 p.m. with the track crew continuing to work through the night to remedy the problem.

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At 4:30 a.m. Sunday, the following statement was released by the track: Due to the melt off from eight inches of snow that fell last week on Rockingham Dragway, the Rock Racing Battery Winter Test-Fest event was cancelled Sunday by track owner Steve Earwood.

"We fought it all day Saturday and had an engineer out Saturday night who told us that there really was no way to overcome the problem," Earwood said, "we would continue to have water accumulation from the melt (throughout the day Sunday)."

"It's a real shame to have 180 racers in the pits and be unable to complete the event, particularly with a forecast of sunny skies and 70 degree weather," said Earwood.

"The reality of the situation is that the track needs two more days of dry weather to completely melt the snow and to lower the water table to a level that would allow us to dry the track," said Earwood.

Earwood said his decision was based primarily on safety.

"I hate the inconvenience for the racers who were here, but our number one priority at Rockingham Dragway is safety," Earwood said. "Our main goal is to take every safety precaution possible."

The right lane, however, was usable and many of the pro teams opted to use it for testing.