Racing History Minute - August 14, 1963

It is always fun for me to add a Minute about a race at The Piedmont Interstate Fairgrounds in Spartanburg. One reason for that fun is that I attended more than one race there in the early s17 ixties and enjoyed them all, although I probably got dirtier there than almost any other track. The other reason is because Spartanburg was such a huge contributor to NASCAR history thanks for folks like Bud Moore and Cotton Owens. So, today, we travel back to that venue for a 100 mile race on that half-mile dirt track on an August day in 1963.

Joe Weatherly honored hometown owner Bud Moore by putting the Bud Moore Mercury on the pole with a speed of 64.958 mph. Ned Jarrett would start second, Richard Petty third, David Pearson fourth and Jimmy Pardue fifth.

The Spartanburg fans of Bud Moore were disappointed on lap 33 when the number 8 Mercury had engine problems and forced Joe Weatherly out of the race, relegating him to a last place finish in the 17 car field. David Pearson, a hometown boy driving the Cotton Owens Dodge was next to experience problems and parking the number 6 after 43 laps with an oil line issue. Not such a good start for the Spartanburg locals. Joe had led all 33 laps he was in the race but that was little consolation.

Buck Baker led most of the event before first Richard Petty, then Ned Jarrett swapped around first place. Near the end of the race, Ned was able to grab the lead for good although he had to fight off a hard charging Petty. In the end, it was Jarrett, Petty, and Baker, all on the lead lap. It was the 6th win of the year for Ned Jarrett, hoping to repeat his 1961 Championship run.

One big headline of the event was the return of Cotton Owens to the driver's seat. Owens had been the owner/mechanic/crew chief and head honcho for David Pearson and, at times, Wade Younts while saying that he was "retired" from driving. However, the 39 year old veteran decided his home track was a great place to return to driving. He was competitive but a late race crash put him out, but he is still credited with an 8th place finish. Billy Wade salvaged a fourth place finish for the Cotton Owens team.

Top five finishers were:

1. Ned Jarrett, Burton-Robinson Ford, winning $1,000.00

2. Richard Petty, Petty Engineering Plymouth, winning $600.00

3. Buck Baker, Baker Pontiac, winning $400.00

4. Billy Wade, Cotton Owens Dodge, winning $300.00

5. Cale Yarborough, Herman Beam Ford, winning $275.00

Sixth through tenth were Neil Castles, G.C. Spencer, Cotton Owens, Bobby Keck and Stick Elliott. Eleventh through seventeenth were Jimmy Pardue, Curtis Crider, Roy Mayne, Bobby Isaac, Wendell Scott, David Pearson and Joe Weatherly.

For several years my work would often take me to Spartanburg to meet with Judges at the Spartanburg County Court House and then travel on over to the Sheriff's Department with signed Court Orders. My drive between the two places often took me by the Fairgrounds and more than once my mind would drift back to those days when I made the trip to see a race there. It looked so much different then, but I suppose that's what happen when the magic of racing is gone. Just my opinion.

Honor the past, embrace the present, dream for the future.

The race was originally scheduled for Tuesday night, August 13th. Mother Nature had a different agenda, however, and rains forced the postponement of the race until the 14th.

Race preview from Spartanburg paper

Rescheduled information from Spartanburg paper

Race report from Spartanburg paper

I found this column by Jim Foster to be really interesting. He was looking to the future of racing and openly doubted the future of dirt. Turns out he was pretty much on point with dirt specifically, short-tracks in general, a move towards asphalt, and consolidation of track ownership - FIFTY years ago. A trivia nugget I spotted in Foster's column is one I hadn't heard before - that Curtis Turner was rumored to be planning a 1-1/2 mile track in Indiana. Obviously, that rumor didn't become fact. But I found it interesting nonetheless.

Source: Spartanburg Herald

Chase, I got a big kick reading the Jim Foster column you posted because of his reference to the upcoming inaugural race at the new West Virginia International Speedway. That would be the Mountaineer 300, held on August 18, 1963 and won by "Fearless" Fred Lorenzen.

Paul Sawyer's one time partner and longtime Vice President, Marketing at Richmond, the late Kenneth Campbell , drove the NASCAR pace car at the inaugural West Virginia event, which is listed as Huntington by Racing Reference, but most often referred to as the Ona, West Virginia track - a 3/8th mile layout.

Campbell could never keep a straight face when he described that first West Virginia race. According to he and Sawyer, a very inept job of paving had been performed, without a proper base under the asphalt.

Once the green flag dropped, the groove started moving... literally - because the asphalt in turn 1 started sliding toward the outside of the turn. The whole track, in fact, was moving !!!

Campbell said he had never before or since driven a pace car where the turn was in a different place every lap!!!

The August 18, 1963 edition of the Charleston, SC newspaper carried a UPI preview story of the West Virginia race and mentions a crack opening in the asphalt. Seems efforts to alleviate the problem were about as successful as the efforts to fix the Daytona 500 pothole recently.

Please note I have not attempted any jokes here such as asking how many West Virginians it takes to pave a race track ??!!

Ironically, last year our own RR member, Bill McPeek wrote an excellent column for our RR Home Page describing how he attended this very Ona, West Virginia race and pulled for racer Jack Anderson of Pearisburg, Virginia driving for Emanuel Zervakis of Richmond. Bill reunited with Jack in Florida at an old timers gathering.

Here is a link to Bill McPeek's story: http://racersreunion.com/introduction-to-a-saturday-night-hero-jack-anderson-by-bill-mcpeek-with-pattykay-lilley/

and a story earlier this year about the Ona, WV track opening for its 50th Anniversary:

Ona Speedway prepares to open for 50th season

May 19, 2013 @ 12:30 AM

RICK McCANN

The Herald-Dispatch

ONA -- Ona Speedway, the 7/16-mile asphalt oval where NASCAR legends such as Richard Petty once raced, opens Saturday, May 25, for its 50-year anniversary season.

West Virginia's only asphalt stock car track first opened on the weekend of Aug. 17-18, 1963 with the Mountaineer 300 on the NASCAR Grand National (now Sprint Cup) circuit. Petty, Ned Jarrett, 1963 series champion Joe Weatherly and the race winner, Fred Lorenzen, put on a show for a crowd estimated at 16,000 spectators.

David Pearson, Benny Parsons, Gary Bettenhausen, Donnie Allison, Buck Baker and Junior Johnson also raced at Ona.

"When this place was built it was part of the fully sanctioned NASCAR circuit," said Steve Chapman, a volunteer doing public relations work for the speedway.

Ona Speedway's new manager, David Hughes of Hughes Motorsports, and a lot of volunteers have been working to get the facility in shape.

Chapman said people are helping because they want to see the speedway be successful. They've been busy with such things as mowing, painting, power washing seats, replacing roofs on buildings and pouring concrete to fix some erosion under the track.

"The place is 50 years old and needs some tender loving care," he said.

A "soft opening" was held Saturday with drivers on the track for practice, Chapman said.

Stock car classes racing at Ona Speedway this year are Any Car (6 cylinder), U-Car (4 cylinder), Hobby Stock, Classic Car, Elite Modified, Late Model and Sport Mod. The car count across all division is up to about 80 with the bulk of those (35) in the U-Car class, a beginner's venture that's the least expensive.

The season opener is Vernon Craddock Memorial Race Night. Craddock was a U.S. Air Force veteran who served in the Korean conflict, real estate developer and NASCAR fan from Barboursville. He passed away in January 2012.

Fan gates open 5 p.m. Racing begins 7 p.m.

Grandstand admission is $10 for adults, $7 for children age 11-17 and free for kids age 10 and younger. Pit admission is $20 for adults and $18 for children age 11-17. All-Access passes (grandstand and pits) are $30 for adults, $20 for children age 11-17 and free for kids age 10 and younger.

ARCA Series Truck Racing comes to Ona on June 15 featuring Bobby Dale Earnhardt of Charleston, the oldest grandson of the late Dale Earnhardt.

Ona Speedway can accommodate crowds of about 4,000 spectators, Chapman said. Parking is free. Concessions including BBQ sandwiches from AJ's Pig Pickin in Ona are available.

Beer isn't sold at the races. "The promoter said he doesn't know if it's the right thing economically, but it's the right thing for the families," Chapman said.

For information about racing at Ona Speedway check the website, www.hughes-motorsports.com .