No. 19 crew doles out free gas in Allstate promotion (cont'd)

And the gang agreed a safe driving bonus might have a place in NASCAR, as well.

"I think that kind of takes care of itself," Spaulding said. "If you're not a safe enough driver, you're not going to finish races and you aren't going to finish up towards the front, so if you're a safe driver your paycheck at the end of the day is going to be bigger because you're going to be finish closer to the front."

"I think there's a place for the safe driving bonus, because if you're out there beating up that car, particularly if you're at a superspeedway you've got to be racing clean and have a clean car [to compete]," Morrell said. "And if you make another driver mad out there, you might not finish that race. A safe driver is definitely a good thing to have, but you've got to race hard, too."

Maybe that's why the mood was so high-spirited on East Henrietta. The traffic might've been heavy, but it wasn't moving too quickly.

This was the second promotion carried off by the Safety Patrol, with the previous one coming near Scranton, Pa., earlier this season in conjunction with a Pocono Raceway event.

And it was not just a typical day at the gas store, according to A Plus Mini Mart manager Fran Dicesare.

"This NASCAR was an incredible event, and being around the guys on the pit crew was like being with your friends," said Dicesare, proprietor of a gas stop that on this day was pushing $3.89 a gallon. "At first I didn't know what to expect, but then I saw the line, and word just spread like crazy.

"We're probably one of the cheaper stations around, but this market is real competitive. But I've never seen anything that was non-stop like this. When they said they needed security, I looked at 'em funny, but now I know why they needed it."

Actually, it was networking at its finest. The guy in the Earnhardt cap was an obvious fan, as were those whose cars -- no matter how crookedly they rolled in -- proudly wore a variety of NASCAR bumper stickers.

But there's no doubt the cat that got out of his car to pump his fuel in his slippers and pajama bottoms either came from the Rochester branch of the Playboy Club or was prompted by a buddy to get up, come down and get his free gas.

Seven minutes before the deal was scheduled to end, a young lady was screaming into her cell phone at someone to "come and get free gas."

Patience was at a premium, as the location had eight pumping stations on either side of the building, but only four lanes being served by Sadler's guys. At its height, each of the four left side lanes was six-to-eight cars deep; while the right side had no waiting -- but no free gas, either.

To the organizers' credit, it didn't appear anyone went away disappointed. The event was scheduled from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m., but it was about 12:15 when the crewmen slid into the Mini Mart to change into street clothes. And the gas cards were passed out until they were gone; as the "associates" took over for the last 20 minutes, washing windshields and applying tire shine until 12:30.

In the end, the most amazing thing, especially since the event was sponsored by an automobile insurance company, was that considering the glut of cars, the lack of real estate and security having to back 'em up six deep onto East Henrietta -- a four-lane main road there were no accidents.

At least here; as there was one reported bumper-banger in Scranton, that resulted in no reports being filed.

That's another safe driving bonus potentially saved.