Dargan Watts
The DAY The Lights Went Out At Rockingham
It was very unusal to have to halt Grand National qualifying in mid-afternoon due to darkness, but it happened at North Carolina Motor Speedway near Rockingham in March, 1970. Elmo Langley was on the track when the moon completely blocked out the sun and the Mercury Vapor Lights started to come on as it became as dark as midnight. Langley didn't complete a lap before shutting his car down and carefully pulled into the pits. Qualifying continued several minutes later.
Guess Elmo didn't appreciate moonshine.
Elmo pulled off - but sounds Earl Brooks soldiered forward with his run under the cover of mid-day darkness. (As an aside, Bunkie Blackburn's start in Tom Pistone's #59 Ford turned out to be his final career GN start.) Source: Spartanburg Herald
With today's August 21, 2017 solar eclipse, a reminder of one that passed over Rockingham in March 1970.