At one time there were over 100 cars on the track Saturday.

It’s too bad the Guinness Book of Record folks weren’t at Martinsville Speedway Saturday afternoon. There was a show worthy of an entry in the book of records.

 At one point there were 102 race cars on the track in a race to get the track dry in time to roll up some practice laps for Sunday’s Bailey’s 300 before darkness fell. It was the most race cars ever to run together on the historic half-mile, albeit at a much reduced speed.

 It rained off and on all day, dousing several attempts by track personnel to dry the racing surface with jet dryers. At about 4 p.m., with the cloud cover lifting, competitors were asked to bring their race cars on the track to help with the drying process. Almost all of the 115 Late Model Stock cars on hand wound up helping with the track drying.

 “It was unusual, that’s for sure,” defending Bailey’s 300 champion Dennis Setzer said of the teamwork used to dry the track. “It’s not something I’ve ever seen before, but it makes sense that a hundred cars out there at the same time would do better than the two jet driers.

 “Initially, I wasn’t sure it was going to work, but the track came in nice and we were able to get some practice laps in.”

 Qualifying was delayed to Sunday morning, though, with cars set to take to the track at 8 a.m. for their two laps under the clock. The garage will open at 7 a.m. with the fan gates opening at 8 a.m.

 The rest of the day will follow the original race day schedule with the first of the four 25-lap heat races set to begin at 12:30 p.m.

 The fastest 22 drivers in qualifying will earn starting positions in the Bailey’s 300. The remaining 20 spots will be filled through the four, 25-lap heat races.

Tickets for the Bailey’s 300 are $20 for adults, children 6-12 $5 and under 6 free. Tickets may be purchased by calling 877.RACE.TIX or by visiting www.martinsvillespeedway.com online.

 HOT LAPS: Brad Brinkley of Sanford, NC, was fastest in practice with a quick lap of 20.444 seconds (92.624 mph). That was off of the track record of 20.395, set by Davin Scites last year. Wayne Ramsey was second quickest with a 20.482, followed by Brandon Butler, Stacy Puryear and Jamey Caudill.

 KILLING TIME: There’s nothing like a long, rainy day at a race track for folks to come up with innovative ways to pass the time.

 And there was a lot of time to pass at Martinsville Speedway Saturday. Most was spend in bull sessions in car haulers, but there were several games of coin toss spotted, along with a couple of card games.

 Much time was spent watching weather radar on line or at the NASCAR hauler.
 But the hit of the day was the new, huge video scoreboard in the middle of the infield. By mid-afternoon, the North Carolina-Miami game was showing high atop the scoreboard and all eyes were glued on the finish.

SOFT TIRES, EARLY EXIT: There wasn’t any action on the track early Saturday morning, but there was some action in the pits.

 A member of  B.J. Mackey’s team was escorted from the infield by authorities after it was discovered he had used an illegal substance on a set of race tires.

 In racing terms, it’s known as “soaking” tires, and it’s highly illegal.

In simple terms,  any one of various chemicals are applied to soften the tires. The softer the tires, the better they stick to the track and the faster the cars goes. And that’s why it’s illegal.