BLUEGRASS 300 1969

BLUEGRASS 300

Owensboro, Ky. April 20, 1969

The 4th Grand Touring race of 1969 was held at Ellis Speedway and was 300 laps on the 1/4 mile paved oval. T.C. Hunt started on the pole and led the first 186 laps. Charlie Blanton then took over the lead thru lap 236. T.C. Hunt led laps 237 thru 292 then Blanton went back out front on lap 293 and stayed there to the checkers. Blanton ended up with a lap on the field when Hunt ran out of gas in the later stage of the race. The first four races of 1969 had four different winners. There were 5 cautions for 19 laps and only nine cars were running at the finish.

Fin Srt Car # Driver Car Laps Reason out

1 3 10 Charlie Blanton 68 Camaro 300 Running

2 1 88 T.C Hunt 68 Camaro 299 Running

3 9 87 Buck Baker 68 Camaro 298 Running

4 4 44 Ken Rush 68 Camaro 294 Running

5 2 25 Pete Hamilton 68 Camaro 294 Running

6 5 16 Tiny Lund 68 Cougar 289 Bln Eng

7 11 08 Billy Yuma 68 Camaro 288 Bln Eng

8 6 37 Bill Hemby 68 Camaro 284 Bln Eng

9 14 97 Mike Adams 67 Mustang 279 Bln Eng

10 13 21 Frank Sessoms 68 Camaro 276 Out gas

Character limits force me to add the remaining finishers as a reply.

Fin Srt Car # Driver Car Laps Reason out

11 16 41 Richard Childress 68 Camaro 273 Running

12 17 22 Larry Wallace 68 Camaro 271 Running

13 7 9 Stan Starr, Jr. 68 Camaro 265 Running

14 10 28 Russell Nelson 68 Camaro 260 Clutch

Character limits force me to add the remaining finishers as a reply.

Fin Srt Car # Driver Car Laps Reason out

15 20 72 Darrell Waltrip 68 Camaro 251 Running

16 12 4 Joe Childress 68 Camaro 196 Oil Press

17 8 0 Martin Sharp 68 Camaro 155 Wrecked

18 15 19 Al Lemmons 67 Chevy II 108 Steering
19 9 17 C.B. Gwyn '68 Mustang 83 Transmission

20 18 74 Al Srtaub '69 Mustang 27 Water Pump

The race result shows Darrell Waltrip finishing 15 ^th in a Camaro but I think he was driving this 67 Mustang owned by Al Straub. Al drove the 69 Mustang #74 seen in the truck bed. Al would put other drivers in his car on many occasions.

From Spokesman Review

Do you have any pictures of CHARLIE BLANTON in GA cars ?

Sorry Johnny I don't. Wish I did. I hope someone on RR will post some.

I recall Charlie's GT / Grand American #10 Camaros when I saw them as being very pale yellow. This " may" be a Charlie Blanton car at Vermont's Catamount Stadium in 1970:

Ladabouche photo from the page below:

http://catamountstadium.com/NASCARGrandTouring.html

From 1970 Daytona program

Bump

Surfaced this article today from the April 22, 1969 archives of The Messenger-Inquirer of Owensboro, KY.

Waltrip's GT Racing Debut Darkened By Two Blown Tires

By DAVE CALLAHAN

A pair of blown tires cast a light shadow on the race that launched Darrell Waltrip's GT racing career Sunday, but a bright horizon appears to be shining in the future for the young Owensboro driver.

The 1968 Mustang which Waltrip piloted to the 15th spot in the NASCAR-sanctioned Bluegrass 300 at Ellis Speedway looked a little out of place. Its dark gray coat of primer paint and lonesome "72" on the doors contrasted with all the other shimmering, brightly colored GTs, which were covered with names of drivers, crew members and the all-important sponsors. But the hometown boy, in his just-completed machine, showed that he could stay with them.

Waltrip held the ninth position through most of the race against the nation's top Grand Touring Division cars and drivers, but a blown tire on the 178th lap set him 20 circuits behind the leaders. Waltrip was in the race for only 34 laps before his right front tire blew again and this time it cost the local boy 26 laps.

"I think if we had not had the tire trouble, we would have finished at least fourth," Waltrip said following his first Grand Touring race. "It wasn't really the fault of the tires. We had some suspension trouble because we didn't have time to test the car out. You see, this is the first time the car has ever been on the track. We've been building the car for the past week and a half and just got it finished last night," Waltrip, who at 22 is the youngest driver on the NASCAR circuit, said.

Working with three shifts, 24 hours a day, Waltrip's crew finished the car just hours before race time. "I'm not at all disappointed," Waltrip stated. "If we had had another day of work, I believe we would have been up there with the best of them. The only problem we had, other than with the tires, was that the car was not geared correctly. Because of this, we didn't have the needed power out of the corners. But this, as with the problem with the suspension, was due to our not checking out the car."

In the early going, it looked as though Waltrip was going to show the big boys up before the local crowd of 3,000. Starting from dead last (because he didn't have the car prepared in time for Saturday's time trials), Waltrip quickly moved in and out of traffic during the first two Laps, passing seven cars to take the 13th spot.
Where will Waltrip go from here? "From now on, I'll go to most all the races on the GT circuit. I'll miss a few in the North, but I'll go to all the ones in the South."
Waltrip will be in the Maryville 200 at Maryville, Tenn., on May 3. "Before Maryville, we'll paint the car and make all the necessary adjustments in the suspension and gear ratio," Waltrip concluded.