A Day Late But........November 20th, 1983 - Bill Elliott Racing History - Western Winston 500

Cody Dinsmore
@cody-dinsmore
11 years ago
589 posts

I was honestly too busy yesterday, however, I hope you all enjoy my first foray this "Racing History Minute" scene.

It was November 20th, 1983 at Riverside, California. During the mid 80's, Riverside was known as the season finale. For most of the track's life, two Cup races were ran per year, with the exception of 1981, when Riverside was tackled three times throughout the season - the season opener, a mid-season race, and the season finale.

Big notables for this race was.....

  • Eventual winner, Bill Elliott had signed on a multi-year contract with Coors Brewing Company to sponsor the Elliott's family operated #9 Ford. For the last couple of races that year, a small Coors decal had been place on the quarter panel. The whole deal worked out well, since it had just a year or so that Coors had now been available east of the Mississippi. They (Coors) wanted to promote themselves as a family company and what better spokesmen than the Elliott family.
  • Neil Bonnett would be leaving the RahMoc #75 Monte Carlo in an effort to join Junior Johnson's team as a second car (#12) in addition to current driver, and then two time cup champion, Darrell Waltrip, driving #11. Both cars were to be painted identical red and white with Budweiser decals and gold numbers. Bud would leave Terry Labonte. It was unique for it's time, but later in the 1984 season, the two teammates came down to a last lap battle, in which both thought they won; that's for a later story
  • Dale Earnhardt and Ricky Rudd were essentially trading seats for the upcoming season. Rudd, who for 1983, was driving #3 at RCR, was switching with Earnhardt, who for the past two years had been driving the Bud Moore Engineering #15 Ford. Earnhardt, who had a contract with Wrangler Jeans also had a commitment to Bud Moore's team. The only logical solution was to allow Earnhardt to drive a Wrangler #3 Chevrolet for RCR, while Rudd jumped on board to fulfill Wrangler's other commitment to Bud Moor Engineering. This is one of the only, if no the only time the same sponsor was on two different cars.
  • This was the last race for Richard Petty under his family owned company, Petty Enterprises. Life was great for Petty until he was fined after a post-race inspection at Charlotte a month before found Petty had an oversized engine by 30 cubic inches. Richard was leaving to independent Mike Curb with essentially the same car as before - same paint, sponsor, number, etc. Kyle Petty would now be the lead driver for the team. For this race, he was in a Green & Orange Pontiac, but for 1984, KP would switch to Ford and debut a new Red, White & Blue paint scheme.

Now onto the actual race.....

Darrell Waltrip would take the pole position in his Pepsi #11 Chevrolet, starting alongside would be Ricky Rudd in the Piedmont Airlines Chevrolet, the same car that won Ricky his first Winston Cup race at the same track earlier that year.

This race was known for Winston West drivers to enter and get seat-time alongside Winston Cup regulars. One notable was Jimmy Insolo, driving a #12 for Digard (same team as Winston Cup champ that year, Bobby Allison) according to the stats, Insolo qualified his Miller High Life Buick (I'm assuming identical scheme to Allison) in 19th place, completed one lap, and quit, finishing in last place. I'm assuming that Digard wanted a back-up car for Allison to gain points in (back before teams brought 2-3 to the track), should Bobby wreck his #22.

Another notable was the champ's brother, Donnie, who was driving Cliff Stewart's #88 Gatorade Pontiac. For most of the 1983 season, Geoff Bodine was driver, however, Donnie would finish the last two events of the season in the car. Donnie would enter just two more Winston Cup races after this event.

In the closing laps of the race, a young red-head from Dawsonville would find a battle with Benny Parsons, in the Copenhagen #55, who coincidentally enough, was one of the main reasons that Elliott hooked up with carowner, Harry Melling. The two would battle door-to-door in the closing laps. Behind them, Alabama native, Neil Bonnett was holding off the hard charging cars of Earnhardt, Richmond and Waltrip, who lead the most laps in this race.

As rain started to fall under the white flag, cars were sliding through the 'esses', but as they came back around, it was a 28 year old from North Georgia that held the likable veteran to claim the 'Western Winston 500'

Bobby Allison would finish 9th, just enough to score his only Winston Cup Championship. During the 1981 & 82 seasons, Waltrip wound up the champion with Allison being runner-up in points. Allison knew his team needed to be stronger on the short tracks. They worked hard all year long and this year, positions 1 & 2 in points were switched. While Allison celebrated his year-long battle, Waltrip settled for second.

The finishing order from that day -

Fin St # Driver Sponsor / Owner Car Laps Money Status Led Points
1 10 9 Bill Elliott Melling Oil Pumps ( Harry Melling ) Ford 119 26,380 running 5 180
2 5 55 Benny Parsons Copenhagen ( Johnny Hayes ) Chevrolet 119 13,225 running 33 175
3 11 75 Neil Bonnett Hodgdon ( RahMoc Enterprises ) Chevrolet 119 18,375 running 0 165
4 9 15 Dale Earnhardt Wrangler ( Bud Moore ) Ford 119 13,725 running 4 165
5 26 27 Tim Richmond Old Milwaukee ( Raymond Beadle ) Pontiac 119 8,930 running 31 160
6 1 11 Darrell Waltrip Pepsi / Burger King ( Junior Johnson ) Chevrolet 119 19,200 running 34 160
7 3 44 Terry Labonte Budweiser ( Billy Hagan ) Chevrolet 119 6,110 running 0 146
8 22 04 Hershel McGriff M. Bloome / Antioch Speedway ( Gary Smith ) Buick 119 4,700 running 0 142
9 6 22 Bobby Allison Miller High Life ( DiGard ) Buick 119 10,850 running 1 143
10 8 43 Richard Petty STP ( Petty Enterprises ) Pontiac 118 8,650 running 10 139
11 16 47 Ron Bouchard Race Hill Farm ( Jack Beebe ) Buick 118 5,030 running 0 130
12 29 71 Dave Marcis Miller Brothers ( Dave Marcis ) Oldsmobile 118 9,650 running 0 127
13 32 7 Kyle Petty 7-Eleven ( Petty Enterprises ) Pontiac 117 4,620 running 0 124
14 20 88 Donnie Allison Gatorade ( Cliff Stewart ) Pontiac 117 4,410 running 0 121
15 25 87 Randy Becker Becker Trucking ( Randy Becker ) Buick 116 1,950 running 0 118
16 40 52 Jimmy Means Broadway Motors ( Jimmy Means ) Chevrolet 115 5,125 running 0 115
17 41 17 Sterling Marlin Hesco Exhaust ( Roger Hamby ) Pontiac 115 4,465 running 0 112
18 39 13 Doug Wheeler W & W Machine ( Matt Puskarich ) Buick 115 2,755 running 0 109
19 35 83 Sumner McKnight McKnight Racing ( Sumner McKnight ) Chevrolet 114 2,415 running 0 106
20 15 21 Buddy Baker Valvoline ( Wood Brothers ) Ford 113 1,675 running 0 103
21 17 78 Jim Robinson Hammer Security Systems ( Lois Williams ) Oldsmobile 112 2,305 running 0 100
22 12 51 Scott Miller MDB Systems ( Scott Miller ) Pontiac 112 1,575 running 0 97
23 37 67 Buddy Arrington Arrington Grocery ( Buddy Arrington ) Dodge 109 3,195 wheel 0 94
24 23 48 Trevor Boys Hylton-McCaig ( James Hylton ) Chevrolet 101 3,135 drive line 0 91
25 18 38 Don Waterman St. John's Auto Parts ( Don Waterman ) Buick 101 1,425 running 0 88
26 34 64 D.K. Ulrich Sunny King Ford & Honda ( Elmo Langley ) Ford 101 2,325 differential 0 85
27 31 41 Ronnie Thomas McCord Gaskets ( Ronnie Thomas ) Pontiac 96 1,275 differential 0 82
28 33 03 Glenn Francis Francis Race Cars ( Trent Francis ) Pontiac 89 1,225 shifter 0 79
29 42 35 Pat Mintey AFR Signs ( Pat Mintey ) Chevrolet 73 1,175 engine 0 76
30 38 70 J.D. McDuffie McDuffie Racing ( J.D. McDuffie ) Pontiac 66 2,150 rocker arm 0 73
31 7 33 Harry Gant Skoal Bandit ( Hal Needham ) Buick 61 8,925 engine 0 70
32 36 91 John Krebs Coca-Cola ( John Krebs ) Oldsmobile 60 1,100 engine 0 67
33 27 2 Morgan Shepherd My Car ( Jim Stacy ) Buick 42 8,675 engine 0 64
34 21 90 Dick Brooks Chameleon Sunglasses ( Junie Donlavey ) Ford 38 2,050 engine 0 61
35 13 93 Jim Bown Wholesale Truck Parts ( John Kieper ) Buick 37 1,025 throttle 0 58
36 14 74 Roy Smith Edgett Excavating ( John Edgett ) Buick 36 2,025 ignition 0 55
37 2 3 Ricky Rudd Piedmont Airlines ( Richard Childress ) Chevrolet 32 1,900 running 1 57
38 24 66 Ron Esau McDonald's ( Jack Lee ) Buick 32 875 ignition 0 49
39 28 08 Rick McCray Coors ( Rick McCray ) Pontiac 29 850 engine 0 46
40 30 73 Bill Schmitt Mountain Dew ( Bill Schmitt ) Chevrolet 13 840 engine 0 43
41 4 98 Joe Ruttman Levi Garrett ( Ron Benfield ) Pontiac 12 1,840 engine 0 40
42 19 12 Jimmy Insolo Miller High Life ( DiGard ) Buick 1 840 quit 0 37

Back in Dawsonville, on a closed-circuit in the famous Dawsonville Pool Room, half of town went crazy! They had to figure out somekind of celebration like driving around the courthouse backwards and blaring their horns or something like that. Owner of the Pool Room and friend of Bill Elliott, Gordon Pirkle (Now CEO of the Georgia Racing Hall of Fame) went and found an old Fire Department Siren that someone had given him. They stood outside and hooked up the "si-reen" to a 12V battery and blared it for a good while when the local law came rolling around and asked what was going on. Gordon tried to explain that Bill Elliott had just won is first race! The deputy replied with something like 'ok, but start winding it down'. About another 10 minutes of blaring the 'si-reen', the same deputy came back and asked them to stop, and they were disturbing the peace. Gordon replied back with once again "Don't you understand, Bill Elliott just won a NASCAR race!!" Sooner or later the police chief called Gordon and asked what was going on, after Pirkle explained, the chief came down and celebrated himself! In 1984, Elliott won three more races. Mid-way through 1985 (when he set the world on fire) Gordon decided to mount the siren on a pole, high above his Pool Room. Gordon hasn't blared it since 2003, when Bill earned his last victory in Rockingham. Since his son Chase has came along, Gordon has got an even louder siren that he blares whenever Chase earns a victory somewhere across the U.S! It's especially funny when tourists in town hear this siren and start looking around like there's a tornado coming!

Thanks to TMCChase for suggesting this to me in honor of Bill Elliott's 30th Anniversary of his first win!

Hope everyone enjoyed this little piece...... ok, not so little, but I have to get the information across, don't I?

-Cody


updated by @cody-dinsmore: 12/05/16 04:00:58PM
Devin
@devin
11 years ago
619 posts

Very nice! Thank you.

TMC Chase
@tmc-chase
11 years ago
4,073 posts

Found 4 video segments for the race on YouTube and created a playlist from them.




--
Schaefer: It's not just for racing anymore.
TMC Chase
@tmc-chase
11 years ago
4,073 posts

From RR member Scott Baker's website, here is Jimmy Insolo in the second DiGard Buick. And Scott has scads more on his site from practice and the race here: http://bakerracingpix.com/1983-ww500-1.html




--
Schaefer: It's not just for racing anymore.
TMC Chase
@tmc-chase
11 years ago
4,073 posts

And Bobby Allison finally put together that complete season that allowed him to earn his one and only Cup title.




--
Schaefer: It's not just for racing anymore.
bill mcpeek
@bill-mcpeek
11 years ago
820 posts

great story....thank you so much for all you do.....

RockHillWill
@will-cronkrite
11 years ago
167 posts

Nice Job Cody!

Scott Baker
@scott-baker
11 years ago
69 posts

If my memory serves, the Digard car that Jimmy Insolo drove was the car that Bobby raced at Atlanta in the event preceding the WW500. The team had a heck of a time trying to get a "left turn" car to turn right

Tim Leeming
@tim-leeming
11 years ago
3,119 posts

Awesome post Cody!!!! Man, we are really making this site a history reference source for the ages. How wonderful for future fans to find such historically significant posts. Thanks!




--
What a change! It's been awhile since I've checked in and I'm quite surprised. It may take me awhile to figure it our but first look it's really great.

Dave Fulton
@dave-fulton
11 years ago
9,137 posts

Good job, Cody. Really nice writeup. Now we will be expecting more!

I remember there was a huge rain deluge at the end of this event and that desert dust turned to gumbo that stuck all over my western boots. When we left the track, most of us were soaked through and shivering.

This was back before everybody had those huge team jets and even before the old Piedmont Airlines starting offering some special charters for the teams. Many crew personnel opted to take the 11:00 pm "red eye" out of LAX Sunday night after Riverside races to get back to the east coast and their shops as soon as possible.

I had to hustle straight from Riverside Raceway in my soaked through blue & yellow Wrangler shirt to the Disneyland Hotel in Anaheim for that Sunday night's American Motorcyclist Association (AMA) banquet. I was seated that night next to Dale Singleton ("The Georgia Pig Farmer") who, as usual, had a baby piglet in a crate under our banquet table. Dale would later perish, along with Marvin Panch's son, Richie, when their plane went down in a thunderstorm leaving Darlington.

The 7th place on the lead lap performance by Terry Labonte was outstanding, considering he suffered one of the wort crashes in Riverside history the previous year. Terry's experience and thoughts are described below by Mike Hembree in his NASCAR book, The Best NASCAR Stories Ever Told :




--
"Any Day is Good for Stock Car Racing"
Dave Fulton
@dave-fulton
11 years ago
9,137 posts

Wrangler had determined that we wanted to help motorcycle racer and Dalton, Georgia pig farmer, Dale Singleton (the fellow I ate with at the Disneyland AMA banquet on Sunday night of this 1983 Elliott win at Riverside) get a toe hold in stock car racing if he wanted to continue because he was such a personable competitor.

Dale had twice beaten the factory teams as a "privateer" in 1979 and 1981 to win America's most prestigious motorcycle race - the Daytona 200 .

Dale Singleton with his pig "Elmer" in Daytona Victory Lane

Dale had run in one NASCAR Bud Series LMS event in 1982 at Martinsville and really hoped to transition. He and Richie Panch had become great friends and it's easy to see why. Both had infectious smiles and senses of humor.

Take a look at the little clip below of Dale Singleton with Elmer and you'll see how he could have become another of NASCAR's "Clown Princes:"




--
"Any Day is Good for Stock Car Racing"
Dave Fulton
@dave-fulton
11 years ago
9,137 posts

Georgia's Dale Singleton: Would he have been as Nascar big as Dale Earnhardt Sr?



Dale Earnhardt Sr and Dale Singleton: Both motor sport racing winners who died too young.
Jamie Squire/Getty Images

Just saying Dale Earnhardt Sr 's name and Nascar in the same sentence produces instant recall, especially during Nascar's 53rd Annual Daytona 500 race this week , also known as " The Great American Race ", according to the Daytona International Speedway.

But another Dale was as instantly recognizable in the State of Georgia during the late 70s and early 80s and that was Dale Singleton, who won the Daytona 200 in 1979 and 1981, along with the 1981 AMA Road Championship for motorcycle racing.

And if Dale Singleton had lived it is highly likely he would have given Dale Earnhardt, Sr . a run for his money, as Singleton was known as the fastest motorcycle racer of his time, partially due to the fact that he built his own bikes.

But how would a motorcycle racer have been a competitor against legend stock car racer Dale Earnhardt Sr., you may ask?

While Singleton was a force to be reckoned with on the motorcycle, and garnered attention in the U.S. and Europe -- where he raced as well -- recent racing enthusiasts may not realize he had left motorcycle racing at the top of his game and had veered into stock car racing shortly before his fatal plane crash.

In fact, Dale Singleton had left a stock car race with fellow pal Richie Panch - the Daytona Beach, Florida stock car racer -- and was a passenger in Panch's Piper plane when they encountered a storm so bad the plane fell apart, sending them and other passengers aboard to their deaths.

Racing enthusiasts the world over lost the first Dale to racing back then, in September of 1985. They would go on to lose the second Dale -- Dale Earnhardt Sr. -- almost two decades later, and actually while in a race.

Dale Singleton and Dale Earnhardt Sr both exit at top of game

Like Dale Earnhardt Sr., Dale Singleton was fast on the tracks, attributed he said to his unique approach to racing.

"Most of my advantage at Daytona is the fact that I got to the level I'm at by doing my own thing mechanically. I know the inside of the bike's engine like the back of my hand."

And, indeed, he did, building his own bikes in lieu of using factory made motorcycle racing bikes.

The AMA Motorcycle Hall of Fame says Singleton was so knowledgeable about the mechanics of motorcycle bikes that he not only once -- but twice -- played "David" to the factory racing team's "Goliath" on the track, whipping them at their own high-dollar game.

When Dale Singleton exited motorcycle racing for stock car racing instead, he did so with the same intent as racing motorcycles: to win.

Singleton's untimely death prohibited us ever learning what he would have accommplished on the Daytona track in a stock car, but this fearless racer would have surely been pitted against another Dale eventually.

As it is, Dale Singleton and Dale Earnhardt Sr . both exited the professional arena of motor sports at the height of their respective careers, and the latter will be officially remembered on the 10th anniversary of his death during the 53rd Annual Daytona 500 race this weekend.

Dale Singleton, on the other hand, didn't live to be in the "Great American Race" in Daytona, but I'm confident his showing would have been just as spectacular if he had. For more about the family this Dale left behind read " NASCAR: Two deaths, two anniversaries - Dale Earnhardt, Sr. and Dal... ."

References: Daytona International Speedway , AMA Motorcycle Hall of Fame Website and Singleton Family




--
"Any Day is Good for Stock Car Racing"
Dave Fulton
@dave-fulton
11 years ago
9,137 posts




--
"Any Day is Good for Stock Car Racing"
Cody Dinsmore
@cody-dinsmore
11 years ago
589 posts

For the last couple of years, Singleton has been on the ballot for our Georgia Racing Hall of Fame, but hasn't yet made it in.....maybe soon.

Cody Dinsmore
@cody-dinsmore
11 years ago
589 posts

Thanks everyone for the positive comments! I enjoy writing about something I'm passionate for!

Scott Baker
@scott-baker
11 years ago
69 posts

Scrambling out of the grandstands, soaking wet, just wanting to get to the travel trailer and get warm and dry,

I hopped up on the fence and did a 'point & shoot" as the 9 car went by on the "cool down" lap after Elliott had received the checkered flag. Blurry but........

Dave Fulton
@dave-fulton
11 years ago
9,137 posts

He needs to be in Georgia Racing Hall of Fame. Perhaps the most noted worlwide racer to ever come out of Georgia.




--
"Any Day is Good for Stock Car Racing"
Dave Fulton
@dave-fulton
11 years ago
9,137 posts

Still a really nice shot, Scott.




--
"Any Day is Good for Stock Car Racing"
RockHillWill
@will-cronkrite
11 years ago
167 posts

Not much to add, but two small things:

We 're-skinned' this car when it got back on the east coast. I still have the small piece of metal that they closed in the bottom of the gas filler hole.

Dale Singleton drove my car for me at Atlanta, with unhappy results. I cannot find the big picture but here is a link to my website that shows the damage. It is the last picture on the right of the top row of pics. He was fun to be around.

http://www.mantiquesresto.com/aboutus/NascarPics/NascarPhotos08.html

Dave Fulton
@dave-fulton
11 years ago
9,137 posts

Will, I'm "guessing" the photo is from the Nov. 1985 ARCA race at Atlanta. I'm also seeing Dale in the #96 at Daytona ARCA in Feb. 1985. Do you recall if Dale Singleton drove any other events for you?




--
"Any Day is Good for Stock Car Racing"
RockHillWill
@will-cronkrite
11 years ago
167 posts

Dave, I am not a great deal of help on this one. I did not keep personal records while I was 'involved', and am not much at research on this stuff either, but I do not remember entering any ARCA races. This wreck may have been done in practice or qualifying at an Atlanta NASCAR event.

Dave Fulton
@dave-fulton
11 years ago
9,137 posts

This was the box score I saw on the Ultimate Racing History site prompting my guess:

Georgia 150

ARCA Stock Car race
Atlanta Motor Speedway, Hampton, GA
March 16, 1985
99 laps on 1.522 mile paved oval; 150.678 miles

Fin St Driver # Owner Car Laps Money Status Laps Led
1 5 Kirk Bryant 12 Darrell Bryant 1985 Pontiac Grand Prix 99 5,200 running 31
2 Lee Raymond 1 1985 Buick Regal 99 running 0
3 David Simko 51 1985 Buick Regal 99 running 0
4 Bob Brevak 34 1983 Pontiac Grand Prix 99 running 0
5 Philip Duffie 94 1984 Buick Regal 99 running 0
6 Bill Venturini 1985 Chevrolet Monte Carlo 98 0
7 Davey Allison 23 1981 Pontiac LeMans 98 0
8 Don Marmor 1985 Pontiac Grand Prix 98 0
9 Walt Bohland 1984 Ford Thunderbird 97 0
10 Bill Ingram Buick Regal 96 0
11 Bosco Lowe 1985 Chevrolet Monte Carlo 96 0
12 John McFadden 45 1984 Buick Regal 96 0
13 Gary Weinbroer 1984 Buick Regal 95 0
14 Scott Stovall 1985 Chevrolet Monte Carlo 93 0
15 Ken Ragan 77 1985 Chevrolet Monte Carlo 93 0
16 Rich Hampton Pontiac 91 0
17 Jim Ingalls Chevrolet 87 0
18 Bob Schacht Pontiac 86 0
19 Glenn Sears 61 1981 Pontiac LeMans 85 engine 61
20 Joey Sonntag Chevrolet 75 0
21 Michael Waltrip Buick 51 0
22 Burgess White Chevrolet 49 0
23 Stuart Lyndon Ford 42 0
24 Mark Gibson 90 Pontiac 35 0
25 Dennis DeVea Buick 33 0
26 Howard Rose Buick 28 0
27 Bob Dotter 83 Pontiac 17 0
28 Rick Wilson Chevrolet 10 7
29 Billie Harvey 31 Chevrolet 9 0
30 Bob Penrod 95 Chevrolet 7 0
31 David Sosebee 81 Pontiac 7 0
32 K.C. Spurlock 18 Chevrolet 7 0
33 Bobby Jacks 71 Oldsmobile 7 0
34 Dale Singleton 96 Buick 7 0
35 Joe Booher Buick 6 0
36 Danny Kelley Pontiac 6 0

Time of race: 01:15:46
Average Speed: 119.323 MPH
Pole Speed: 32.763 seconds
4 cautions for 22 laps




--
"Any Day is Good for Stock Car Racing"