The original intent of RJR was to have the event at a different venue each year. Richmond's Paul Sawyer was pretty sure he'd get the first one, but at the last minute, CMS was selected based on what Humpy offrered. As we know, the event was moved in year two to Atlanta and we had the Mother's Day disaster. It has been at Charlotte ever since.
Personally, I think it should be held every year at a different venue as was the original intent.
Had to look it up, but it was the April 23, 1978 Virginia 500 at Martinsville when Cale qualified his Junior Johnson Olds 2nd, led 133 laps and blew up. Crew completed an engine change and Cale finished "Running" in 16th place in the 30 car field, 57 laps down. Cale & Junior would go on to win the 1978 points title.
These stories and the stories behind the stories continue to be verey entertaining and enlightening. I remember all the hoopla over Junior Johnson's team changing cale's engine at Martinsville, but the DW/datorade engine swap was buried in the memory bank. I have no recollection of it. I think NASCAR did make a good call when it curbed thta practice. Too amny opportunities to injure crew during the changes or competitors when a fitting or other part might not be secure.
Our RR member, Steve Cavanah has an early Race Stoppers victory lane photo posted from the 1969 Nashville 400 on his Nashville Speedway History site
http://www.pbase.com/bigcav/nashville_fairgroungs_speedway_historycom
Found this 2010 story about Bill Brodrick's tavern in Algonquin, Illinois:
NASCAR Legend Hangs His Hat in Algonquin
NASCAR
August 31, 2010
By: Robin Zimmerman
Examiner.com
Places & Faces newsletter
With its Victorian homes, quaint Main Street and sweeping views of the Fox River, its easy to see why the town of Algonquin once served as a leisurely getaway for vacationing Chicagoans. But, one ride down the retail overload on Randall Road offers concrete evidence of Algonquins newly acquired fast track status.
Its also interesting to note that Algonquins boom era coincided with the arrival of NASCAR legend, Bill Hat Man Brodrick who took up ownership at the Tavern at the Bridge in 1997 after being shown the door following years of being one of the most recognizable figures on the racing circuit beginning in the late sixties.
Back in the day, Brodrick was hard to miss thanks to his imposing frame, mane of orange red hair and the mere fact that he was always in the winners circle doling out different sponsor hats to the victor at a steady pace. Add to that, a few stunners known as the Unocal Race Stoppers constantly surrounded Brodrick and its easy to see why the Hat Man was a top ambassador for NASCAR.
Brodricks rise to prominence coincided with his position as the public relations guru for Unocal 76 and hes generally credited with organizing the procedures and protocol in victory lane. As photographers clamored for a shot and well wishers hovered around, the burly Brodrick began taking charge by plopping on a sponsor hat, letting the winner pose for a picture, putting another hat on the victors head and so on. Long before the age of Google searches, casual observers and hard-core fans alike were constantly asking for more information on the Hat Man.
But, in a scenario that is become even more prevalent today, Brodricks nearly 29 years of service and high visibility didnt count for much when Unocal was bought out in 1997 and the Hat Mans run was over.
Today, the Hat Man can frequently be found at the Tavern at the Bridge and if you head in there on a Sunday, there will most likely be a race on. But, Brodrick readily concedes that the golden age of NASCAR is over now as it is more of a business and not a hobby for the guys. However, if you check out You Tube, you can find him waxing poetic over racings golden age with stories of everything from Richard Pettys ready smile to the senior Dale Earnhardts love of the bubbly in the winners circle.
After Unocal ran out of gas and Brodrick was relieved of his duties, theres no doubt that he could have landed another gig on the racing circuit. But, its also apparent that geography was working against him, Like many others, this Cincinnati natives Midwestern roots ran deep and he found that most other forms of car racing were stock cars centered in the south or drag racing taking place in California or Texas. Since his son hung out at the Tavern on the Bridge and was familiar with the Fox River watering hole, Brodrick was persuaded to take on the challenge of running a bar. So, he eventually to put 34 years of racing experience to good use and opened a tavern.
And the Tavern at the Bridge certainly is the quintessential river front bar thats overflowing with memorabilia from Brodricks racing days. In addition to the photos, bumper stickers and other souvenirs, the friendly staff serves up cold brews, spicy Bloody Marys and other libations. Located at 101 E. Algonquin Road, (Rte 62) the Tavern at the Bridge offers some old time charm in the boomtown of Algonquin as well as the chance to tip your cap to the Hat Man Bill Brodrick.
Back in 1988 I had former NASCAR driver Shawna Robinson in my Charlotte office for a photo shoot.
When the chorus of boos coming from the grandstand awakened me from my La-Z-Boy nap last night as Danica Patrick was announced as the fan vote winner to be in NASCAR's All-Star race, I remembered that occassion.
The thought went through my mind that I had seen Shawna "manhandle" big rigs in bobtail races and was convinced Danica could never do that.
For those of you who don't remember, here's a sample... if you look quickly, you might even spot a Wrangler cap or two!
From our Sunday Charlotte paper comes an interesting story by our local reporter, David Scott regarding Maurice Petty and his NASCAR Hall of Fame nomination:
Richard Petty is asked to make the case for his brother Maurice to be elected to the NASCAR Hall of Fame.
Dont need to, Richard Petty says with a smile. Hes made his own case. Doing what he did for all those years, as far as Im concerned, he did what he needed to do (to be elected).
Along with his brother Richard, Maurice Petty was a cornerstone of the Petty Enterprises dynasty, the man who built those powerful engines that produced seven NASCAR championships in the 1960s and 70s.
Maurice Petty, 74, is one of 25 nominees for the hall of fames fifth induction class. The five-member class will be announced Wednesday, with the induction next January at the NASCAR Hall of Fame in uptown Charlotte.
If Maurice one of five first-time inductees is elected, hell be the fourth member of the iconic Petty organization to go into the hall, joining Richard, father Lee and cousin/crew chief Dale Inman.
And while his older brother (by 18 months), dad and cousin received the bulk of credit for the teams success, the man they called Chief was usually content to stay in the background in the garage and at the Pettys shop in Level Cross.
He seemed to be very satisfied with that, Richard said. To him, it was about more than people knowing what he did. He knew what he did. He had the inner satisfaction of doing the job. He knew he could go home and know to himself that he did a good job, instead of having somebody pat him on the back.
Maurice Petty succeeded despite being diagnosed with polio as a child. The disease didnt stop him from being an excellent athlete at Randleman High or from getting behind the wheel of a race car. He competed in 26 races at NASCARs highest level from 1960-64, with seven top-five finishes.
He actually did better than I did in my first 25 races, said Richard. But he had a wreck he turned that thing over, got out and said, You drive em. Ill work on em.
Maurice quickly established himself as a skilled, crafty engine builder. Times were different then, Richard reminds, so his brother was on his own much of the time with just his tools and his wits.
They didnt have dynos back then or CNC machines, Richard said of the computerized contraptions that help modern-day race teams. It was all by hand. And he didnt have an army of people around to help him out. He might have two or three boys in there with him.
Maurice built engines for other drivers, including his dad Lee, Buddy Baker, Jim Paschal and Pete Hamilton (who won the 1970 Daytona 500 with Petty as his crew chief).
Sometimes, however, Maurice got too crafty. When Richard Petty won the 1983 fall race at Charlotte, NASCAR ruled the engine was too big. Although Richard was allowed to keep the victory, Maurice was blamed for the transgression.
Maurice Petty could not be reached for this story. Richard Petty said during his hey day he won 200 races and his seven championships came between 1964 and 1979 things could get contentious within the team.
Sometimes we were all kind of a handful, Richard said. Maurice was a little hot head. He didnt take too much off anybody, you know what I mean? He and Dale would go at it if the car didnt run good or handle good. But we were all fierce competitors; we almost competed within the team. Chief would build the engine, Dale would set it up and it was up to me go keep it all straight.
But it was a team, obviously, that worked well together as well as any in NASCAR history. The hall-of-fame inductions of Richard (2010), Lee (2011) and Inman (2012) are testament to that.
If they get (Maurice) in, theyll get rid of all the Pettys, Richard said. They wont have to worry about putting us in that deal anymore.
Thanks. I can't imagine being able to put up with Billy's shenanigans all those years!
