Dick Hutcherson

R.L. Hutcherson Jr. (Hutch)
@rl-hutcherson-jr-hutch
13 years ago
3 posts
Hi everybody, I'm Dick Hutchersons son, Hutch. I am interested in talking with people who remember seeing Dad race, maybe has some video footage or just some stories of dads racing career. Im a new member to this site and want to say kudos!! Its a great site and I look forward to being a part of it for many years to come!!
updated by @rl-hutcherson-jr-hutch: 12/20/16 04:03:54PM
Robert Turner
@robert-turner
13 years ago
88 posts

I enjoyed watching your dad race and thought his '66-67 Fairlane was one of the sharpest racers of the era:

Pete Banchoff
@pete-banchoff
13 years ago
279 posts
Hi Hutch, first welcome to racers reunion. I don't remember too much about your Dad's driving career, but my all time favorite car was David Pearsons #17 Holman Moody Ford. Your Dad was the crew chief on that car for both championships ('68 and '69) and I remember a story one time at a race where it was so hot Dick Hutcherson poked his head in Pearsons car during a pit stop and he could'nt breathe. He asked David where he was and David said somewhere in Carolina and it's really hot. Your Dad hit the switch and told David to get out of the car, day's done. He was General manager I think of Holman Moody before he started building cars as Hutcherson-Pagen. He was a great chassis builder, crew chief and driver. You must be very proud.
R.L. Hutcherson Jr. (Hutch)
@rl-hutcherson-jr-hutch
13 years ago
3 posts
Thanks for the post Pete! Davids championship car is my 2nd favorite car all time....can you guess which is my all time favorite? haha.....Yes I am extremely proud of everything dad accomplished in his racing, professional and personal life!! I never heard that story of dad taking Pearson out of the car...those are the kinds of stories that I love hearing! I have tons of pics of dads cars but I dont have a good one of the 17 car, would you have some that you could share with me? Thanks again for all your kind words
R.L. Hutcherson Jr. (Hutch)
@rl-hutcherson-jr-hutch
13 years ago
3 posts
Thank you for your reply Robert! I wish I was old enough to remember seeing him race. I was born 5 days after his first NASCAR win.....
Billy & Barbara Scott
@billy-barbara-scott
13 years ago
52 posts

Hi Hutch, and it's good to have you on RR!!We remember your dad and wasaround him at race tracks for a while, but never made any photos,etc until he helped build and was crew chief on the "Big Chance Special" whichwe were priviledged to drive two years in a row, at Charlotte Motor Speedway for Richard Howard. If you will pull up our pictures and look for the #1 in the World 600, I believe you will see a couple,at least, of your dad. Just in case you aren't sure how to find them, follow these instructions:

1. Go to the top of this page, as you move the cursor over "Photos/Videos/Events" a drop down box

comes down, click "Photos".

2. Scroll down to pictures and in the "Search Box", on the left, type in "Billy Scott"..

This will bring up all of Billy's pictures and you can look for articles and pictures of the # 1 Big Chance Special. You can get copies of anything you may see which you want.Will also look in our scrapbooks to see if thereis more about him. Believe there are more newspaper clippings about him. May take me a while since there are 9 four inch thick books.

God bless and we love you,

Billy and Barbara Scott

Ernest Sutton
@ernest-sutton
13 years ago
181 posts
Hi, Hutch - I saw your dad race several times...........Daytona, Atlanta, etc. I don't remember all the details, but I never saw him drive anything but Fords (Holman/Moody, I believe). I do remember that he was very good and usually among the frontrunners. Ibelieve I saw him drive a NASCAR dirt track race in Valdosta, GA, in the mid-'60s (Cale Yarborough's 1st NASCAR win). He was one of the real racers, always very competitive. I wish we had more like him in today's racing.
Dave Fulton
@dave-fulton
13 years ago
9,137 posts
Hutch, the first time I recall seeing your dad was March 7, 1965 in the NASCAR Richmond 250 at the Richmond half-mile dirt venue. He somehow managed to turn over that big ole #29 '65 Ford down in turn 1. That race happened to be telecast as one of the segments on ABC's Wide World of Sports (probably the first and maybe last time a 1/2-mile dirt track was featured) and your dad's crash was an integral part of the telecast. There was a famous photo in Southern Motorsports Journal of your dad clinging to the top of the board fence as the field passed. Many years later in the 80's I ghost wrote all NASCAR factory news releases for the Oldsmobile teams and your dad warehoused the Olds sheet metal for the teams at Hutcherson-Pagan. If I remember correctly he was into raising horses at that time. I remember him as an exceptionally talented dirt tracker and remember his brother, Ron at the tracks with the Hutcherson-Pagan rig.


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"Any Day is Good for Stock Car Racing"
Leon Phillips
@leon-phillips
13 years ago
626 posts
Hi Hutch your dad was Mr Cool great guy i think he had the best looking car in Nascar when he drove hope to see you at some RR shows this year Thanks Leon aka Joe Fan
Pete Banchoff
@pete-banchoff
13 years ago
279 posts

Hutch, there are quite a few pictures here on Racers Reunion of the blue and gold #17. Search the photo section under David Pearson. My pride and joy is a print done by John Bach in 1969 for Holman Moody that is 16X20. It's a color cutaway of the 1969 Ford Torino Talledega that is beautifully done (I've seen some pictures that show the cutaway with parts and pieces labeled...this one doesn't have that). I had it signed by David in 1983 and always hoped to get your Dad to sign it too. Unfortunately our paths never crossed and it's too late now. I found my print at a swap meet in 1980 in Dearborn Mi. and paid $7.00 for it and if I see another one I'll get it to you. I don't know if someone could copy this because it is Copyrighted by Holman Moody. If I can get it copied with great quality, I'll send it to you if you don't already have one. Like I said, it's beautiful and very detailed for a drawing. if I find the article where your Dad shut off the car I'll let you know. One thing I remember is Dick couldn't even breathe when he stuck his head through the window. It's here somewhere.lol

Pete


R.L. Hutcherson Jr. (Hutch) said:

Thanks for the post Pete! Davids championship car is my 2nd favorite car all time....can you guess which is my all time favorite? haha.....Yes I am extremely proud of everything dad accomplished in his racing, professional and personal life!! I never heard that story of dad taking Pearson out of the car...those are the kinds of stories that I love hearing! I have tons of pics of dads cars but I dont have a good one of the 17 car, would you have some that you could share with me? Thanks again for all your kind words
Tim Leeming
@tim-leeming
13 years ago
3,119 posts

Welcome Hutch. It is great to add you as a member. I was making most of the races from the 50s through 2004. I saw your Dad race many times on many different tracks. May even have some footage on home movies if I can ever locate a working Super 8 camera. I remember him as being a very calm individual in a race car and in interactring with fans. I would almost bet I have his autograph somewhere in this filing system of mine. I am hoping you will share your memories for your Dad is truly one of the early pioneers who built the sport.

Tim




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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.

Jeff Gilder
@jeff-gilder
13 years ago
1,783 posts
Next Tuesday night June 21, 2011 we'll be doing a tribute to Dick Hutcherson on Racing Through History.


--
Founder/Creator - RacersReunion®
Dave Fulton
@dave-fulton
13 years ago
9,137 posts

Regarding Dick Hutcherson and Racing Through History, there is a very interesting piece on the Virginia International Raceway website regarding the 1962 stock car race promoted on that Danville, Virginia - area road course by Curtis Turner during his suspension from NASCAR. Turner promoted the race on April Fool's Day in direct competition against the NASCAR race on the same date at Richmond. The third place finisher at Turner's event was Dick Hutcherson, who was persuaded by Turner along with some other midwest stock car stars to race for him at VIR. Here's the recap on theVIRsite:

VIR - April 1, 1962 Stock Car Race
Virginia International Raceway - April 1, 1962

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STOCK CAR RACING AT VIR - by Phil Allen
On April Fool's Day 1962, NASCAR-style stock car racing came to Virginia International Raceway. 'The American Road 250' was the brainchild of NASCAR superstar Curtis Turner. Turner was promoting the VIR race under the sanction of the Midwest Association for Race Cars (MARC).

A NASCAR veteran since that organization was formed in 1949, the hard-driving businessman and racer had recently built Charlotte Motor Speedway and had encountered unexpected costs that caused him extreme financial hardships. He expected to have to remove some rock from the construction site but his crews had encountered a large formation that cost him an extra $500,000 that was not in his budget. Desperate to avoid financial ruin, he borrowed against his successful lumber business and leaned heavily on his investors and traditional motor sports money interests such as Champion Spark Plug Company. Finally, in a last ditch effort, he sought a loan from the Teamsters' Union in exchange for his attempt to organize NASCAR drivers into a union. The reaction was strong and swift. NASCAR founder and czar Bill France banned Turner and two time champion Tim Flock from the sport for life in 1961.

Turner turned to the less popular Midwest stock car racing formats. Under the USAC stock car racing banner he competed at the Pike's Peak Hill Climb and the companion road race at nearby Continental Divide Raceway from 1961 to 1963. He finished second in the Hill Climb in 1961 and won the event in record time in 1962.He joined and became a vice president of MARC in 1962.

Perhaps misjudging his star power and ability to draw a crowd, Turner recruited enough of his Midwest friends to field a race and moved back to the Southeast in the spring of 1962 in an attempt to compete head to head with NASCAR. He scheduled a stock car road race at VIR for April 1 in direct competition with the regular event at Richmond the same day. Most of the NASCAR regulars either chose to compete at Richmond or were afraid to incur the wrath of Bill France by entering Turner's event. In addition to Turner, Tim Flock who had been NASCAR Champion in both 1952 and 1955 was entered along with three times NASCAR Convertible Champion Bob Welborn. Future Holman Moody star Dick Hutcherson entered from the Midwest. Hutcherson was later to hone his road racing skills as co-driver with Ronnie Bucknam in the Holman Moody Ford Mark II at the 1966 24 Hours of Le Mans, finishing third in the famous Ford 1-2-3 photo finish. Hutcherson also later became a NASCAR super-star for Holman Moody.

Turner's pre-race promotions billed the contest as the beginning of a new age in American racing. He publicly predicted a crowd of 50,000 fans and issued statements about widening the access road entering the track to three lanes to accommodate the traffic. He also indicated that grandstand seats for 1500 to 2000 fans had been ordered. Privately, his predictions were less optimistic. In later years track operator Col. E. Paul Rembold often recalled Turner's comments to him as race day approached. He told Rembold, " Paul, I'm not going to have enough money to pay them boys purse money unless I win the race and earn top money. If I see that I'm not going to win, I'm going to stop over there on the backstretch where my airplane is parked. When you see me take off and bank over the pits as I leave then you'll know that paying them is your problem."

The public comments had generated much excitement in the Danville area. Local newspapers were quoting area fans as expecting the success of the race to lead to the building of an oval track on the premises and greater expansions in the future. Local newspaper columnists were predicting an exciting, crash-filled race as the heavy stock cars with their drum brakes attempted to master the art of road racing. John Fowler, in his 'Hotrods' appearing in the Commercial Appeal commented that he didn't think Danville had enough wreckers or ambulances to take care of a road race at VIR. Eddie Allgood agreed in his column in the Danville Register.

Perhaps Turner's comment to Rembold about not being able to pay the purse came as the weekend approached because a low-pressure weather system had settled over the area and by Friday rain settled in. Qualifying had been scheduled for both Friday and Saturday afternoons. Friday's session was cut short after Tim Flock took the pole position with a best lap of 74.1 mph and Midwest drivers Harlan Richardson and Dick Hutcherson managed to post their times before the rains came. Saturday's sessions were more of the same. Dick Freeman and Greensboro's Bob Welborn managed to complete their runs but when Turner took to the track for his warm-up lap the wet weather returned and he spun two times before starting his timed run. The remainder of the field agreed to draw lots for starting positions. On Sunday morning the weather continued to threaten but the sun broke through just after noon .The race was only slightly delayed from the scheduled 1:30 start time.

Flock jumped to an early lead from his pole position but his success was short-lived. His engine blew after only a lap and a half. Turner soon charged to the front and remained there for the balance of the contest except for a brief spell when Bob Welborn took over the top spot during Turner's pit stop for gas and tires. Turner won and escaped the riot that he predicted would have followed if his prize money checks had bounced. Welborn finished second after a lengthy pit stop for his crew to repair his failed brakes. Dick Hutcherson was third.

Pre-race predictions of a demolition derby did not come true. The entire 250-mile race saw only one yellow flag when Jack Basser rolled his 1962 Ford coming down the hill from Oak Tree Turn. He was unhurt but both car and driver were a mess when trackside mud filled the interior. In general, fans were treated to an entertaining show as the oval track drivers struggled to control their heavy cars with inadequate brakes. The starting field included three drivers, Turner, Wellborn and Flock who later were inducted into the National Motorsports Press Association Hall of Fame. Turner started the race lapping near the 73/74 mph qualifying times but had slowed by 5 mph by race end. There were 13 finishers out of a starting field of 16.

Veteran racing publicist Bill Fishburne attended and remembers the weekend. "I was a student at N.C. State at that time and several of us headed up to VIR to watch the stock car boys have at it. My pals and I were recruited as corner workers in the esses up the hill from the drive-over bridge. We had no training or experience. We just stood there and waved at Curtis and his pals as they drove by. Since they ran the course counterclockwise the cars came by us downhill in what we always describe as the 'uphill esses'. They had to run the course backwards because the cars were set up to turn left and also because they dumped gas out their fuel tank vents when they tried to turn right."

Turner's vision of using his fame to attract 50,000 paying spectators turned out to be an April Fool's joke on him. The local papers on Monday morning estimated the crowd at 6,000. His bright spot was winning the race and being able to pay the $12,500 purse.

Turner returned to VIR for his final appearance on July 31, 1966 when he co-drove the Cocoran Ford Mustang with Trans Am regular Peter Lake in the VIR 400 Trans Am race. That contest featured a number of NASCAR regulars recruited to serve as co-drivers with the Trans Am teams in hopes of attracting the NASCAR fan base that predominates the VIR area. Once again Turner was able to defeat his fellow stock car rivals by limping home with a hole in the side of the block of his blown engine. He and Lake were driving the last car running at the finish but Turner was the highest placed NASCAR driver.

RESULTS: American Road 250- Virginia International Raceway -April 1, 1962

1-Curtis Turner (1962 Ford)
2-Bob Welborn (1962 Pontiac)
3- Dick Hutcherson (1962 Ford)
4-Jim Washburn (1961 Ford)
5- Iggy Katona (1962 Ford)
6- Clyde Parker (1961 Chevrolet)
7- Phil Cronin (1961 Ford)
8- Dick Freeman (1961 Chevrolet)
9- Curley Mills (1960 Ford)
10- Bob Bachler (1961 Ford)
11- Harold Smith (1962 Ford)
12- Ernie Derr (1962 Pontiac)
13- Jack Price (1961 Plymouth)
14- Harlan Richardson (1962 Ford)
15- Harold Dunlaw (1960 Ford)




--
"Any Day is Good for Stock Car Racing"
Frank Craig
@frank-craig
13 years ago
71 posts
I was at the races your dad raced at and won at Hillsborough ,NC. Check out historicspeedwaygroup,org Please give me a call @919-604-2292,Thanks Frank Craig
LAVERNE ZACHARY
@laverne-zachary
13 years ago
117 posts

We have several pictures and video of your Dad at Occoneechee-Orange Speedway.He won two races there in 1965 and 1966.Would like to talk to you about our upcoming event there on Nov

5TH.If you would call me at 919-563-9615 I will be glad to talk to you.

LAVERNE ZACHARY

HISTORIC SPEEDWAY GROUP

jim morris
@jim-morris
13 years ago
7 posts

I thought of your dad a lot this weekend while watching the 24. He and your uncle Ron came back to Keokuk for A Racers Reunion and we were sitting in the Sportsmans having a cool drink when He started talking about racing the 24. When that audi hit that slow car in the middle of the night it reminded me of that conversation. He said the two things that bothered him were racing in the rain and passing those slow cars, with the little tail lights, at night when there was about 100 mph difference in speed. I saw your dad race at Donnelson and Des Moines in IMCA. He brought his 67 Fairlane up for the race in Des Moines. Ron was racing a 49 ford with a 427 in it at Keokuk and Memphis. Dick came to Memphis with with Ron to shake down the Fairlane. He ran some laps between the heats and then before the feature he and Ron both went out at the same time. Ron's 49 Ford was painted gold and he ran under the number 29. The fans loved it.

Roger Jewell
@roger-jewell
13 years ago
7 posts
I saw your dad race the first time he came down south to Greenville Pickens Speedway and immediately gave the likes of Ned Jarrett, Richard Petty & etc fits on the half mile dirt track. I was a fan from that day forward and I always felt Hutch retired way too danged early.
Jeff Gilder
@jeff-gilder
13 years ago
1,783 posts
Hey folks, just a reminder that tomorrow night Tuesday June 21st we'll be doing a tribute show for Dick Hutcherson. David Pearson will also be joining us to talk about his championship runs with Hutcherson as crew chief.


--
Founder/Creator - RacersReunion®
Jeff Gilder
@jeff-gilder
13 years ago
1,783 posts
Tonight...David Pearson, R.L. "Hutch" Hutcherson Jr, Barry Dodson and the Racing Through History crew will pay tribute to Dick Hutcherson.


--
Founder/Creator - RacersReunion®