|| *Comments on the 1997 Gateway 300:* View the most recent comment <#26> | Post a comment <#post> Tweet 1. MOST posted: 05.07.2006 - 5:39 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) it was like 595 degrees that day, the track actually started to crumble. 2. Beast posted: 07.27.2006 - 9:40 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Actually, it only reached about 100 degrees, but that was by far the hottest day of what was an overall mild summer in St. Louis. The pavement crumbling in Turn 2 was just one of many snafus that occured during the track's first time hosting a major NASCAR event. This is the only race I've ever attended... 3. FHgrad99 posted: 08.26.2007 - 5:52 am Rate this comment: (1) (0) It was a very hot day at Gateway that day. The air temp was 95 or so and the track temprature was 140+. This race was more like survival. A lot of good cars wrecked while running up front. This was also Joe Bessey's first Busch Series pole. 4. RaceFanX posted: 01.12.2008 - 1:07 am Rate this comment: (1) (0) Because of all the problems and cautions, this was the longest Busch race (in time) ever. Kenny Wallace was severely disappointed when his #12 Graybar/Buss Fuses Ford DNQed for the very first NASCAR race in his home area. It looks like Dale Shaw picked up his sponsorship 5. Dave in OKC posted: 03.13.2008 - 7:21 am Rate this comment: (1) (0) This is the only race to date in any of the top three Series that both drivers starting on the front row were from the state of Maine. 6. Jon posted: 08.10.2009 - 8:40 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Many drivers wished the race had been stopped after the track started coming apart. It was embarrassing. 7. 18fan posted: 08.31.2009 - 1:20 am Rate this comment: (1) (0) The 2009 Montreal race broke the record by almost a minute. 8. Josh C posted: 10.25.2010 - 7:42 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) pretty darn high amount of DNF's 9. 10andJoe posted: 02.29.2012 - 11:21 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) #84 owner: James Porter 10. Andre posted: 07.16.2012 - 2:31 pm Rate this comment: (1) (0) This was the day Bobby Labonte crashed and said "I won't ever be coming back to this track... and you can take that to the bank!" As far as I know, he made good on that promise! haha 11. ericthenau posted: 10.13.2012 - 9:54 pm Rate this comment: (1) (0) Also that day, after Dale Earnhardt, Jr. fell out of the race because of his lap 62 crash, he returned to the race as a relief driver for the #99 car of Glenn Allen, Jr. 12. numbah10hatah posted: 02.05.2014 - 7:47 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Why did Randy Porter run #84 in this race? He was #48 in other BGN races in '97... 13. Dodge posted: 11.22.2014 - 6:52 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) While looking at the sponsor for the 84 of Randy Porter, I believe it is to match it with the sponsor since it appears 84 Lumber is the only time to sponsor him. 14. Big Mac Fan posted: 09.01.2015 - 9:09 pm Rate this comment: (0) (3) Probably the most DNFs I've ever seen. Pretty much 15th on back had some sort of problem. 15. DMc. posted: 12.22.2017 - 10:46 pm Rate this comment: (5) (0) While the temperature may not have been all that excessive, the so-called heat index, which takes the humidity into account, maxed at 109.5 degrees. So yeah, it was incredibly hot. We bailed during about the 8th caution for a wreck caused by the track coming apart. On the way to the car, I bought a bottle of water, I immediately poured it over my head, I was dry by the time we got to the car. We drove back to our hotel in Collinsville and there had been so many caution laps, I watched the last 60 laps on TV in air-conditioned comfort. The next year this was a night race. I think in October! 16. Luke posted: 07.13.2018 - 12:36 pm Rate this comment: (2) (0) I'm surprised this hasn't been mentioned yet, but this was the only time the Busch race at Gateway was 300 miles. After the first year, it was reduced to 250 miles. 17. Altracing posted: 11.23.2018 - 9:37 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) First career Busch series pole for Joe Bessey 18. Altracing posted: 11.24.2018 - 8:29 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) Final career Busch series top five finish for Dale Shaw 19. Altracing posted: 11.24.2018 - 10:05 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) Joe Nemechek led the most laps in this race but on lap 128 on a restart as he was trying to get the lead back he got loose coming out of turn 2 and hit the wall hard enough to end his day 20. Altracing posted: 11.24.2018 - 10:47 am Rate this comment: (1) (0) This was the only race in his championship season that Randy LaJoie did not finish 21. Jimnsimforever posted: 01.20.2019 - 5:33 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) @11 I saw a video with Dale Jr, Dale Jarrett and somebody else, cant remember. They were talking about relief driving and how it used to happen several times every race then slowly phased out and doesnt happen at all anymore because of advances in keeping the driver cool in the car most of all. Dale Jarrett told a disgusting story of relief driving for Michael Waltrip at Bristol one time when Michael was sick and had thrown up inside the car. Dale Jr told the story about the first time he ever relief drove, this race. He said he didn't have much money at this point. He got knocked out of this race early. For whatever reason Glenn Allen Jr's crew asked him to relief drive and he did and said he helped get the car to a good solid finish and did a good job in it. After the race Glenn Allen came up to Dale Jr all excited and was thanking him and said Dale just helped him win 4,000 more dollars than he would've otherwise and said he was going to split the 4 grand with him. Junior said he was all excited that he was going to get 2 grand and then Glenn Allen just never paid him after saying that, lol. 22. SweetRich posted: 02.16.2020 - 6:47 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) The Commentators For The Race Were Ken Squier, Ned Jarrett And Buddy Baker. The Pit Road Reporters Were Dick Berggren And Ralph Sheheen. 23. MSportRev posted: 03.03.2020 - 2:33 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Order of the DNQs: 43. Kenny Wallace 44. Jeff Krogh 45. Bobby Hillin, Jr. 46. Scot Walters 47. Michael Waltrip 48. Doug Reid III 49. Mark Day 50. Perry Tripp 51. Brad Payne 52. Bill Hoff Source: Ultimate Racing History 24. Jimnsimforever posted: 03.04.2020 - 4:09 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Dale Earnhardt Jr's crew chief for this race- Wesley Sherrill 25. Onion posted: 04.29.2020 - 10:43 am Rate this comment: (1) (0) Strangely, despite most of the field having tons of trouble, the top 10 isn't too different from what you could see in a regular race that season. There is no driver scoring their only top 5 or top 10 in it and runner-up Jason Keller is the sole car in the entire field to score their best 1997 finish in this race. It could have went the other way for a number of underdogs though. Johnny Chapman got wrecked out from the lead lap with 35 to go while racing eventual top 5 finishers, Mike Dillon was running 2nd when he put it in the wall for the final caution and even Brad Teague was looking good for a top 10 when he crashed out. (I'm assuming these people would have been able to finish in the top 10 seeing how Setzer got 10th by the virtue of not wrecking, despite being very slow all race.) 26. Z posted: 09.19.2020 - 8:18 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) Phil Parsons' CC: Gene Nead (per Parsons himself, during broadcast of 2002-04 Trucks around L48) Parsons was running in the T10 when he wrecked out. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ *Post a comment:* Your comment may not appear immediately - all comments must be approved by the moderator. Name: Comment: