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Stuck at zero Mast still searching for his first NASCAR victory
Posted: Thursday May 20, 1999 01:54 AM
(AP) -- Forever the answer to a trivia question as the polesitter for the first Brickyard 400, Rick Mast probably is the only racer to get his first horsepower from a cow. It was 1973, and the 16-year-old Mast had a prized Black Angus steer. But he wanted to drive, so he sold it for $575 and bought a 1957 Chevrolet with a blown motor -- his first race car. With help from friends, Mast repaired the old Chevy and began racing at Natural Bridge Speedway in Lexington, Va., near where he grew up. He won in just his sixth start and promptly used the prize money to help pay off his first speeding ticket. "A city cop in Lexington got me going 41 in a 25-mph zone, dad gum him," said Mast, now a Winston Cup driver. "Nobody liked that guy anyhow. I think they finally strung him up." The victories kept coming for Mast, first in Hobby and Sportsman races. He won nine times between 1987-90 in NASCAR's Busch Grand National series. "My whole career, I've been able to work out how to win," Mast said. But in stock car racing's premier division, his only distinction is the Brickyard pole in 1994. His best opportunities to win have ended in mechanical failure or driver error. Driving for seven different owners since his 1988 debut, Mast is 0-for-286 in Winston Cup. It's the third-longest drought at the start of a career among current series drivers, and the fourth-longest winless streak. Twice in Rockingham, N.C., Mast has lost comfortable late-race leads because of blown engines. It's been more of the same in Concord, N.C. -- with engine problems and an accident the culprits -- Richmond and Martinsville, Va., and Long Pond, Pa. But Mast says the failures only encourage him. "If I hadn't had any races like that, I wouldn't still be doing this stuff," he said. "You have to put too much of yourself into it, plus all the guys that work on your team." This year, after the two worst seasons of his career while driving for Butch Mock Motorsports, Mast is with Cale Yarborough. He has no primary sponsor, but it's not the first time. He finished sixth in the 1989 Daytona 500 without major sponsorship, and is making this work, too. His team has no money for wind-tunnel testing and very little for on-track testing. Still, Mast is 21st in the series standings after 11 of 34 races. He says his team has rallied, even thrived, in the face of such adversity. There have been no defections in a sport rife with them. "They've all had good offers and none of them have left," he said. "They realize something's going on here a little bit special. "It's kind of an us-against-them syndrome." Crew chief Mike McSwain did leave earlier this month, but his resignation had been expected. Now, Jerry Pitts is calling the shots. Pitts says he and Mast began discussing a possible union last season. They got to know each other well, making the change easier for the crew chief and driver. Still, it takes a while to get up to speed. "I've still got to learn what he wants in a race car and that's going to take us a little bit of time, but I don't think it will be too bad," Pitts said. The chemistry has Mast thinking for the first time in three years about ending his drought and getting that elusive Winston Cup victory. He thought he had another chance two months ago in Fort Worth, Texas -- until someone plowed into him. It was another mishap that convinced Mast that victory will come. But don't expect the celebration to last long. "It's going to be a lot of fun," he said. "But when it happens, we'll get done with everything and go on home and get ready for next week."
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