Speed Channel reporter Rick Mast, whose NASCAR racing career was ended last year by carbon monoxide poisoning, believes the new catalytic converters recently made available to drivers should be mandatory. The devices, which NASCAR says reduces carbon monoxide inhaled by drivers by 75%, are optional. ”Believe me,” Mast said, ”most drivers will be using them.” Mast, who reported from the pits during last night’s Chrome 300, still experiences problems from the poisoning. ”I can’t be in the garage when the motors are running,” he said. ”Even out in the open I have to be careful. I can tell if I’m getting too much exposure.” Mast, noted for his sense of humor during his racing days, won the inaugural Brickyard 400 pole at Indianapolis. He began joking with the media about trading a milk cow for his first race car, ”and that story has kept growing and growing. Everywhere I go somebody asks me about it.”( Tennessean )(6-8-2003)
