NASCAR'S MOVE TO THE PITS HELPS BOOST CRAFTSMAN TRUCK SERIES

          The NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series has added "live pit
     stops" to its races in an effort boost "declining" TV
     ratings "slumping" attendance, according to Tarik El-Bashir
     of the N.Y. TIMES.  The old format, which included a pause
     midway through the race when drivers were allowed to take
     their trucks to the garage for fuel and adjustments, was
     becoming "marked by predictable results and repeat winners." 
     Stacy Compton, driver of the No. 86 RC Cola Ford: "We were
     real concerned. The ratings looked bad, the crowd looked bad
     and the media wasn't coming out anymore."  But in the five
     races since the live pit stops were added, attendance
     figures and ratings have increased "slightly."  To continue
     their "recent resurgence," NASCAR "will devote" more money
     to promoting the series next season and "streamline" its
     broadcast schedule from five networks, CBS, TNN, TBS, ESPN
     and ESPN2, to possibly one cable carrier (N.Y. TIMES, 9/10).