Forum Activity for @dave-fulton

Dave Fulton
@dave-fulton
08/14/13 07:30:25PM
9,138 posts

Racing History Minute - August 14, 1963


Stock Car Racing History

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/

Dave Fulton
@dave-fulton
08/14/13 03:07:39PM
9,138 posts

Racing History Minute - August 14, 1963


Stock Car Racing History


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 ??!!

Dave Fulton
@dave-fulton
08/15/13 05:53:12PM
9,138 posts

Humpy tells the truth


Stock Car Racing History

I guess we need to check the current fan menu with our RR racing food authority, Billy Biscoe! We know, without checking, however, what's in his cooler!

Dave Fulton
@dave-fulton
08/15/13 05:22:51PM
9,138 posts

Humpy tells the truth


Stock Car Racing History

Bobby... you have said EXACTLY what I thought when I watched the video. Humpy was at the forefront of getting it too fancy and no track in NASCAR history has had more billboards and advertising than CMS did during Humpy's regime. I should know because I spent hundreds of thousands of dollars with Humpy at CMS in the 1980s, both at Wrangler Jeans and 7-Eleven.

In 1981, while CMS had a deal with Pioneer Stereos, I received at my Wrangler Jeans office in Greensboro, NC a huge package. It was a complete Pioneer Stereo outfit from Humpy to "thank me" for my Wrangler sponsorships at CMS.

I shipped the stereo equipment back to Humpy with a letter explaining that my employer, Blue Bell, Inc., had a strict policy that prevented its employees from accepting gifts from entities with whom we were conducting business.

Lo and behold, several day later, Humpy's executive assistant, Carolyn Carrier (Bristol's Larry Carrier's daughter) called me at the office and asked for my home address. She said Humpy had decided he'd like to send the stereo equipment to my wife, Joyce at our Greensboro home.

I politely asked Carolyn what part of NO Humpy didn't understand?

While Humpy championed the working man and scheduled CMS time trials for shift changes at the Kannapolis textile mills, he also sold space to me to build a Wrangler viewing stand on top of the infield restrooms at CMS! Talk about "over the top" advertising!

And who was the first to sell track naming rights to a corporate sponsor? It was, of course, Humpy... to Lowes.

Humpy was every bit as much, if not more, a part of the problem as anybody at NASCAR or International Speedway Corporation. He seems to have a VERY short memory.

Oh... in 1986, Humpy offered me the job of selling Speedway Club memberships in South Carolina and Virginia. He would lease office space for me in Spartanburg and Richmond and I would spend my time between the two. I declined the job offer. Sure sounded "fancy" to me.

I was going to keep my mouth shut until your comment, Bobby... but you are 100% dead on the money in calling Humpy out for his hypocrisy.

Dave Fulton
@dave-fulton
08/15/13 02:42:02PM
9,138 posts

Hillsboro / Occoneechee / Richmond Question(s) 1965 Grand National Season


Stock Car Racing History


Thanks, Dennis for confirming my suspicion about the Richmond race date being postponed, whick would have put Richmond and Hillsboro running on Sat. and Sunday, IF the info in the Spartanburg paper was correct. Chrysler had just returned in late 1965 and Richard had a previous drag racing commitment that resulted in the last minute appearance of LeeRoy at Richmond in the #43.

End result of LeeRoy's run in the #43 Plymouth at Richmond in the 1965 Capital City 300 as captured in Southern MotorSports Journal.

Dave Fulton
@dave-fulton
08/14/13 02:22:55PM
9,138 posts

Hillsboro / Occoneechee / Richmond Question(s) 1965 Grand National Season


Stock Car Racing History

Thanks LaVerne. I'll be interested to hear if Frank knows anything about Paul leasing the track.

Dave Fulton
@dave-fulton
08/13/13 12:02:34PM
9,138 posts

Hillsboro / Occoneechee / Richmond Question(s) 1965 Grand National Season


Stock Car Racing History


While looking to see if I could find any news articles to accompany Tim Leeming's Racing History Minute for today documenting Fireball Roberts' August 13, 1950 win at Occoneechee / Orange / Hillsboro, I stumbled across the article below in the September 16, 1965 Spartanburg newspaper:

Having been a Richmond resident and former employee of Paul Sawyer, I have several questions that I hope perhaps some member of the Historic Speedway Group, such as Frank Craig, LaVerne Zachary or Ed Sanseverino might be able to answer... or perhaps someone with an original 1965 NASCAR Grand National Schedule can provide part of the answer - or one of our sleuths like TMC-Chase or Ray Lamm who was probably there.

I never heard Paul Sawyer mention Occoneechee. Did he in fact ever promote a race there?

Richmond's September date traditionally came on Sunday following the Labor Day Monday Southern 500 at Darlington. In 1965, Richmond, which was promoted by Sawyer, didn't race until Saturday, September 18th... the day before the Occoneechee scheduled event mentioned in the Spartanburg paper.

Was Richmond rained out the previous Sunday? I was there but don't remember.

When Occoneechee ran its October 24, 1965 GN race, was it promoted by Sawyer?

Thanks to any who remember or can shed light on the circumstances.


updated by @dave-fulton: 12/05/16 04:00:58PM
Dave Fulton
@dave-fulton
08/13/13 01:22:53PM
9,138 posts

Racing History Minute - August 13, 1950


Stock Car Racing History

Check out those white walled tires!

Dave Fulton
@dave-fulton
08/13/13 10:50:07AM
9,138 posts

August 12, 1956: Tim Flock


Stock Car Racing History

What a wonderful period photo.

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