Racing History Minute - June 8, 1952

My choice for the Racing History Minute for today is short on information from my usual source, but I'm sure Chase and/or Dave, and perhaps some others can add to what I post here. I chose this particular race because it was run on the one mile dirt track in Hillsborough, NC known as Occoneecchee Speedway. In addition, two of the top five finishers have sons very active in preserving the honored history of the sport.

It seems that even back in the early days, Hillsborough and surrounding areas were big supporters of stock car racing. Records indicate 12,500 fans showed up for this race where 19 cars were entered. This had to be close to a capacity crowd for the facility. Fonty Flock qualified his Oldsmobile on the pole with Dick Rathman in a Hudson qualifying second. Third went to Herb Thomas in another Hudson and fourth place qualifier was Tim Flock in a Hudson.

There is no information in my source as to lap leaders of hot competition but we can be assured the race was hotly contested as the top three finishers were on the same lap. Three of the top drivers of the day, Herb Thomas, Buddy Shuman and Perk Brown went out early with mechanical issues. However, 14 of the 19 starters finished the event although 14th place was several laps down.

The win was the second consecutive win for Tim Flock (to be inducted into theNASCAR Hall of Fame in January, 2014) and his 11th overall in Grand National (now Cup) racing.

Top five finishers were:

1. Tim Flock, Ted Chester Hudson, winning $1,000.00

2.Fonty Flock, Air Lift Oldsmobile, winning $700.00

3. Dick Rathman, Walt Chapman Hudson, winning $450.00

4. Bill Blair, George Hutchins Oldsmobile, winning $350.00

5. Jimmy Lewallen, Ford, winning $200.00

Bill Blair, Jr. and Gary Lewallen are very active in contributing to the historyof the sport. Both are extremely interesting individuals with whom to talk racing and both are representative of true Southern Gentlemen.

Sixth through tenth were Lee Petty, Joe Eubanks, Ray Duhigg, Clyde Minter, and Donald Thomas.

The remaining finishers, 11th through 19 were Otis Martin, Fred Dove, Coleman Lawrence, Ernie Boost, Bruce Atchley, Herb Thomas, Buddy Shuman, Hank Carruthers and Perk Brown. Two Packards were in the race, 9th place finisher Clyde Minter and 18th place finishers Hank Carruthers. I mention that fact because when I was growing up, a family up the street got a new Packard every year and those were impressive cars or maybe they were the only NEW cars I was actually able to sit in back then.

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

I found this clipping in the  Spartanburg Herald-Journal archives. But the reported crowd estimate is far less than Fielden apparently included in his book based on his research.

N.B. Arnold  shared this image of the 1952 GN race program that was sold at Occoneechee.

Thomas K. Craig's collection  includes this shot from the June 8, 1952, race of 3rd place finisher Dick Rathman racing Bruce Atchley who finished 15th in the 19-car field.

Those step down Hudsons just looked powerful.

Happy Birthday today to my "baby" daughter, Stacey - age 35. She was the one who told Dale Earnhardt at Bristol when she was three in August 1981 that she liked Richard Petty best and he answered "So does Dale, Jr!"

Time flies when you're having fun. That's Stacey on the right in 1981 at age three with my wife, Joyce and her older sister, Gwyn.

Ray Duhigg's 8th place finish was in a #44 Plymouth owned by Julian Petty. Of Duhigg's 54 career starts over a six-year period, 19 of them were in Julian's cars (18 in Plymouths, 1 in an Oldsmobile).

Here is a pic of Duhigg from his final NASCAR GN start - the 1955 Daytona beach race - where he finished 3rd to winner Tim Flock and 2nd place Lee Petty. (Fireball Roberts was DQ'd as the winner and Flock was awarded the win. Interstingly, FLOCK was DQ'd a year earlier and L. Petty was given the win.)

Duhigg was killed in a race in Salem, Indiana later in 1955. Source:  FindAGrave.com

And 23 years later on this date, all the way across the country on a road course, a fellow well known to Tim and Chase would claim victory in a race sponsored by one of the lesser known suds (it wasn't Tide!)

That event, of course, has been thoroughly chronicled by TMC Chase in his outstanding Bench Racing Series:

http://bench-racing.blogspot.com/2012/06/june-8-this-day-in-petty-h...

Happy Birthday to your daughter, Stacey, Dave.

Chase, awesome photo sharing! I love the old Black and Whites.

Thank you, Tim, for another awesome history minute! I appreciate what you guys share every week. Sometimes I think it brings a happy tear to my eyes. Thank you.

Nope, definitely not Tide!

Duhigg's death occurred in an accident on the 20th lap of a race sanctioned by Midwest Association for Race Cars (MARC) - later renamed the Automobile Racing Club of America (ARCA).

Made me think of the MARC Times Racing News - which once sponsored a winning Plymouth Superbird at Riverside in 1970 driven by you know who (it was blue with a #43.)

Walter Elliott, who wrote for Chris Economaki and sold NSSNs trackside all over the country chronicled the passing of MARC Times' founder in 2009:

MARC Times Racing News Founder Beebe Dies

Date: 3/1/2009
By Walter Elliott

BELMONT, Mich. -- Those who want to remember MARC Times Racing News co- founder Dick Beebe, who died of a massive heart attack here Feb. 22, may send  donations to widow Kathie Beebe, 4839 Pettis, Belmont, MI 49306. The  proceeds, in lieu of flowers, are to defray medical bills.

Beebe, a fixture on the Michigan racing scene, founded MARC Times Racing  News in 1965 with first wife Pat. Declining health and the economy prompted  Beebe, 76, to fold the paper in 2008.

Beebe's main job was Beebe Signs painting and lettering - although he said his  first job was lettering race cars at Galesburg Speedway when he was 14.

Beebe's racing resume includes driving, flagging, pit steward, track preparation,  announcing, promotion and concession sales. He founded the American Racing  Congress - that set track safety standards across the country - in 1970 and was  its first president.

Dick Beebe was born Jan. 26, 1933 in Kalamazoo to Alberta Isabel Wormeth  and Paul James Beebe, Sr. Dick credited his father - a former motorcycle rider in  the 1920s and 30s - in becoming a parts gopher and to letter cars.

Paul Beebe built Galesburg Speedway as a one-quarter-mile clay oval in 1948.  The young Beebe became NASCAR's probably youngest official later that year.

"National Racing Directory" editor and publisher Allan Brown said that Beebe  had helped build The Grand Rapids Speedrome quarter-mile plus Harlingen,  Macallen, Pharr and San Benito speedways in Texas. Beebe's driving resume  included several automobile divisions plus motorcycles, karts and snowmobiles.

Dick and Paul Beebe were inducted into the Michigan Motorsports Hall of Fame  in 1985, followed by his late wife Pat in 1998 and son-in-law journalist Jeff Bloom  in 2000.

MARC Times Racing News, an associate sponsor of Richard Petty's 1970

Plymouth Superbird factory effort on the then-NASCAR Grand National circuit ,  received several journalism awards and had donated funds to families of injured  or deceased drivers.  Sons Rick, Tim, and Ted also became NASCAR flaggers.

Beebe's post-cremation memorial service was held Feb. 26 at the Bangor  Church of Christ. 

Stepmother Maxine Mills, brothers Paul Jr. and Jay, sister Susan Belkoski,  children Cathy VanReenan, Linda Bloom, 18 grandchildren and 11 great- grandchildren are also among his survivors.

Bump