June 23, 1999


   LAGASSE RACING LEGACY CONTINUES AT ST. AUGUSTINE SPEEDWAY


ST. AUGUSTINE, FLA .- Scotty Lagasse, Jr. is continuing the Lagasse family
racing legacy by honing his racing talents this year at St. Augustine
Speedway, Fla. in the NASCAR Winston Racing Series Snap-On Sportsman
Division. But it's not all about racing for this 18-year-old
second-generation driver. Scotty understands that life in the "fast lane" is
a fickle friend that will leave you even more quickly than it arrived. So,
just in case circumstances, for some reason, don't work out in the racing
world, this young man is preparing himself with the tools he needs to trade
in the horsepower and make use of some good, old-fashioned brain power.

Scotty is already accustomed to using that brain power, having graduated
with Honors from St. Joseph's Academy in St. Augustine this past spring. His
outstanding high school scholastic record earned him the prestigious Florida
Academic Scholarship, which will all but totally, pay for his college
education. The Scholarship covers the total cost of tuition for four years,
plus a $600 allowance per semester to cover the cost of books and other
expenses. Scotty plans to put that scholarship to work this fall in pursuit
of a Business Degree at the University of Central Florida in Orlando. But
don't worry race fans, Scotty still plans to be racing on weekends.

Why, you might ask, does an exceptionally bright young man like this
choose to hurtle himself around a paved half-mile oval at breathtaking
speeds? The answer is simple. It's in his blood. "It just feels like a very natural thing to do," says Lagasse. "But I  don't know that I could have done it without Dad. He's taught me so much this  year. He's really helped speed up and flatten out the learning curve. I feel  like I've got a pretty good sense for what the car's doing on the racetrack,  I just don't have the experience or the knowledge yet, as to how to make it  better. That's one area where Dad's experience has been a great help this
year."

"He's taught me even more about life's lessons and the business aspects
of operating a racing team. Things like personnel, sponsorship
responsibilities, scheduling, budgets, personal appearances, marketing, these
are all things you need to build a successful program. He's very good at that
too."  "So much of racing, and life in general these days, is about focus. You
have to concentrate and stay focused. And if there's one thing Dad's real
good at, it's keeping you focused."

This talented teenager is obviously a quick study on the racetrack, as
well as in the classroom. In only his second season in a full-bodied racecar,
he has already become a local favorite at the St. Augustine Speedway, scoring
two wins in the last three outings.

Much of Scotty's racing ability is, most likely, the result of just the
right mixture of genes. But much of his talent is also the result of
consistent exposure to the sport. For as long as he can remember, he's been
around racing, tagging along with Dad, Scott Lagasse, Sr. to racetracks
across the country.

The elder Lagasse, at 40 years of age is a veteran of the racing world
whose youthful appearance belies his vast experience. Watching these two
standing on the tailgate of a racecar hauler deep into a discussion of shock
or spring combinations, carburetion settings, or any of the other mysterious
subjects racers love to talk about, you would easily mistake them as brothers
rather than father and son. But don't be deceived by looks. Scott Sr. has
seen many different sides to this sport and from many different angles.

"We've been very fortunate to have accomplished as much as we have in
racing over the past 14 or 15 years," said Scott Sr. But I wouldn't have
missed this year being here at home with the family for anything. It's been
good, quality time and it's been fun. I've had the time to spend with Scotty
in the shop working on the car, and teaching some of the subtleties of the
racing. And then, we still have time to go play on the water and do some of
the things you wouldn't normally have time to do when the racing operation's
in Charlotte, for instance, and the family's in St. Augustine. It's been
great."

 Scott Sr. will return to the drivers seat this weekend for a one race
deal, piloting the Duralube / Indian No. 25 in the NASCAR Bush Series Grand
National Division's Lysol 200 at Watkins Glen International, N.Y.  The Ed
Rensi owned Chevrolet, usually driven by Kenny Wallace, came available to
Lagasse due to a scheduling conflict that has Wallace in Sears Point, Calif.
over the weekend.
    

"Ed called me to see if I was available for this weekend. Since I'm
pretty comfortable in a stock car on a road course, and this is a good,
competitive ride, I said, "sure". I get a lot of offers, but they're usually
start-up programs that really don't have all the right personnel in place and
you end up spending most of your time and energy trying to get everything up
to speed. But this is a solid operation and it's a deal that I can step into
at the last moment and go fast. And, it's in an environment that I'm very
comfortable with. So sure, let's do it. I just hate that I'm going to miss
Scotty's race in the S.A.R.A. event here at St. Augustine this weekend."
    

The S.A.R.A. race Scott refers too is the first ever appearance of the
Southern Automobile Association's Key Bank and Trust Late Models at St.
Augustine Speedway this Saturday night, June 26. In this event Scotty will be
tested by some of the biggest names in Florida Late Model racing in the
Central Mobile Homes 100 starting at 7:30. But at least he won't have to miss
Dad's race, the Lysol 200 from Watkins Glen, which will be televised live on
ESPN at 12:00 noon on Sunday, June 27.

There's no doubt that there's a wealth of talent coursing through the
veins of these two racers and the younger Lagasse knows that learning the
ropes, the subtle intricacies of a sport where an advantage is measured in
thousandths of a second takes time. But for both, it's time well spent
building the Lagasse legacy.