Marlin Plans Civil War Pit Stop on His Way to Richmond

RICHMOND, Va. (May 1, 2007) — Sterling Marlin plans to make a pit stop on his way to Richmond International Raceway for Saturday night’s Nextel Cup event.

A known Civil War buff, Marlin will use this weekend’s Jim Stewart 400 as an excuse to make a side trip to Cold Harbor, one of the many parts of Richmond National Battlefield. Cold Harbor was the site of a Civil War battle from May 31-June 12, 1864.

Marlin, who has always had a fascination with the Civil War, began collecting artifacts from that time period years ago. This weekend, he hopes to add to his extensive collection after hunting on these grounds for the first time.

“I know a guy that owns a farm out there that hasn’t had much hunting done on it, if any,” said Marlin. “So I thought I’d take the opportunity to go and see what I can find since I’m on my way to Richmond anyway.”

“I’ve been up there to that area before,” added Marlin. “But this land is new to me so it should be interesting.”

Marlin expects to find small things such as bullets, but hopes to discover something more unique, which he’s been fortunate enough to do in the past. His collection includes a vast array of items including buttons, swords and pieces of guns. One of his favorite artifacts is the sheath for a sword, known as a scabbard.

Marlin admits that as much as he enjoys hunting for the relics a lot of the items in his collection have been gifts.

“I love going out and looking for this stuff, but I don’t have the time to really get into it as much as I’d like,” offered Marlin. “Friends and fans give me some pretty neat things because they know I really enjoy it.”

“The best thing anyone ever gave me was General Custer’s gun,” continued Marlin. “It was a guy I knew that was kin to Custer. He said he didn’t have any kids to hand it down to, so he passed it along to me. He knew I’d like it and that was pretty neat.”

After his day of searching the old Civil War grounds, Marlin will make his way to the racetrack, where he hopes to better the 16th-place finish he earned during last week’s event at Talladega Superspeedway.

“It’s a nice, relaxing way for me to enjoy the day before I get down to business,” said Marlin. “We brought the No. 14 Waste Management Chevy across the finish line in the top 10 last spring at Richmond (9th). Hopefully we’ll be able to do the same on Saturday.”

The 400-lap, 300-mile event will be broadcast live on FOX beginning with a prerace show at 7 p.m. ET.