Drivers invited to visit the USS George Washington: On Jan. 30-31, for approximately 24 hours, the US Navy has invited Winston Cup, Busch and Craftsman drivers to visit the men and women of the aircraft carrier USS George Washington as it undergoes flight training off the coast of North Carolina. The invitation came to NASCAR after Langley Speedway — the Dodge Weekly Racing Series track in Hampton, Va. — heard that the GW wanted to host some drivers before heading to the Middle East. Langley did a similiar trip in December of 1996, taking several NASCAR drivers and an NHRA driver to the USS Enterprise as it sailed to Norfolk from Bermuda en route from the Middle East. Drivers will spend an hour or so in Norfolk on Jan. 30, then fly out andland on the deck of the GW. They’ll spend 24 hours aboard, watching daylight and nighttime flight operations from the “buzzards’ nest” and the flight deck itself. Around noon on the 31st, they’ll be catapulted off the deck and flown back to Norfolk. The lineup of drivers hasn’t been set, due to testing and pre-Daytona 500 obligations. Among those invited: Rick Mast, Brett Bodine, Joe Nemechek, Dave Marcis, Todd Bodine, Ricky Rudd, Ashton Lewis, Ward Burton and team owner Junie Donlavey. And Cup, Bush or Craftsman driver interested in making the 24-hour visit can go to the Langley Speedway site for contact info(1-22-2002)
