Forum Activity for @tmc-chase

Anyone have 1983 Martinsville Cup programs?

Stock Car Racing History

Could be there as well. Looking for pic of Buddy Baker's #1 Buick from April 1982 race. Drove for Henley Gray vs. Hoss Ellington.

Anyone have 1983 Martinsville Cup programs?

Stock Car Racing History

If so, please contact me here or at toomuchcountry(at)gmail(dot)com.

Looking for a photo of a specific car from 1982 spring Virginia National Bank 500 race. Hoping one might be in 1983 program.

Thanks.

updated by @tmc-chase: 12/05/16 04:00:58PM

Daytona Beach Road Course question

Stock Car Racing History

:applause: Dave

A year from now, that reply will have lost its context. But today - very funny!

Daytona Beach Road Course question

Stock Car Racing History

Big Bill was willing to put signs with "Beware of Rattlesnakes" in the dunes to bluff away interlopers looking to watch the race for free. I'd think he would have had have boats in the ocean with guys shouting "Danger: Sharks" on a bullhorn if he thought someone might try to watch the race for free from the sea.

Schaefer Ring of Honor Membership for Bud Moore?

Stock Car Racing History

Ha. Well, I happen to know the executive director of the Schaefer Hall of Fame & Ring of Honor. I'm quite sure Bud Moore's nomination would be unanimously accepted. Of course, some may suggest he change his nickname from Bud to Schaef.

1970 Program - from RacingSportsCars.com

1970 winner's trophy

1973 logo

February 7, 1965: Katona Kaptures Daytona ARCA 250

Stock Car Racing History

February 7, 1965: Katona Kaptures Daytona ARCA 250

Stock Car Racing History

About a year ago, Tim Leeming posted about the 1965 Daytona 500. Some pictures and articles were added about the race and other parts of Speedweeks.

http://racersreunion.com/community/forum/stock-car-racing-history/30534/daytona-500-1965

But one race wasn't included in that recap - the ARCA 250. The race was run on Sunday February 7, 1965, on the same day as Grand National time trials to set the field for the twin qualifying races.

As with the qualifying format for the Daytona 500, the ARCA ran two qualifying races on Saturday. Both were scheduled to be pretty quick events; however, rain monkeyed with the schedule. What was expected to be be 40 minutes of racing turned into a 4-hour marathon - and neither race ran the scheduled distance. Nevertheless, Jack Bowsher and Iggy Katona were flagged as the winners with the chief perk being they got to start up front in Sunday's 250-mile main event. - Daytona Beach Morning Journal

ARCA's John Marcum had set a 40-car limit for the race; however, he didn't even get close to it. Only 31 cars took the green flag.

Bowsher and Katona were noted as the obvious favorites because of their practice speeds and qualifying race wins. Race preview from Daytona Beach Morning Journal .

The field takes the green with Bowsher on the pole, Katona starting 2nd and Dick Freeman in car #2 lined up behind Bowsher in third.

As has often been the case in ARCA races at Daytona and later Talladega, the race was full of wrecks, questionable calls from race officials, and some remarkable racing.

On only the third lap, Homer Newland punched his Pontiac into the fence after losing an engine. He was fortunate not to go over the rail but was obviously done for the day. At least his exit was spectacular. Five other cars did the start-and-park routine after only a lap or two.

Although the remaining cars in the race began to dwindle, it didn't mean the race wasn't competitive. The race had 19 lead changes throughout the event amongst Bowsher,Katona, Freeman, Andy Hampton, Harry Pick and Danny Byrd.

Bad racing luck bit Bowsher. He led the most laps; however, a blown tire, a pit penalty and struggles in the pits to lift the car to change the tires doomed his chances at a win. Despite all of those woes, he managed to finish fifth after losing only one lap.

As the race entered the final quarter, Freeman and Byrd also had issues and faded from contention.

With the trophy on the line, Katona and Hampton found themselves as the only 2 cars on the lead lap and racing tightly - sometimes nose to tail, sometimes side by side. Katona finally gapped Hampton just so slightly as to to get an advantage. As the checkered flag fell, Iggy eked out the win by three car lengths over Hampton. Finishing third was a young driver from Wilkes County, NC who'd later win at Daytona - in the Daytona 500 - Benny Parsons.

Race report from  Daytona Beach Morning Journal

Katona's win in his #30 independent Ford earned him a picture on the cover of the February 10 issue of National Speed Sport News. - Thanks to Russ Thompson for image.

Fin	Driver	Car	Laps
1	Iggy Katona	1964 Ford	100
2	Andy Hampton	1964 Ford	100
3	Benny Parsons	1964 Ford	99
4	Harry T. Pick	1964 Mercury	99
5	Jack Bowsher	1965 Ford	99
6	Ralph O'Day	1964 Plymouth	97
7	Blaine Kaufman	1964 Ford	97
8	Junior Spencer	1964 Ford	96
9	Danny Byrd	1964 Ford	95
10	Harold Smith	1964 Mercury	95
11	Clyde Parker	1963 Chevrolet	93
12	John Baker	1964 Ford	91
13	Mike Brown	1963 Ford	91
14	Johnny Ditch	1965 Pontiac	80
15	Dick Freeman	1964 Ford	70
16	Jack Shanklin	1964 Ford	70
17	Jerry Norris	1964 Ford	59
18	Ed Grady	1964 Ford	46
19	Rich Clement	1964 Plymouth	41
20	Tony Bolick	1964 Mercury	40
21	Gene Ploughe	1964 Ford	39
22	Don Arnold	1964 Ford	22
23	Jack Pickens	1963 Ford	21
24	Willie Schwiebert	1963 Ford	14
25	Terry Blakely	1964 Plymouth	9
26	Charlie Glotzbach	1964 Pontiac	2
27	Homer Newland	1963 Pontiac	2
28	Gus Linder	1964 Ford	2
29	Mike Smith	1963 Ford	1
30	Don Trees	1963 Ford	1
31	Dick Eder	1964 Plymouth	1
32	Russ Curry	1964 Plymouth	1

updated by @tmc-chase: 02/05/17 10:26:42AM

February 6, 1955: The HOFer narrowly defeats The Local

Stock Car Racing History

The first race of the 1955 NASCAR Grand National season was in November 1954. Lee Petty won the 200-lap race at Tri-City Speedway in High Point, NC on November 7, 1954.

http://racersreunion.com/community/forum/stock-car-racing-history/28567/november-7-1954-lee-petty-starts-1955-on-high-note

After race 1, however, the GN drivers didn't race again for about 90 days. The second race of the season was scheduled for February 6, 1955 at Palm Beach Speedway in West Palm Beach, FL.

Race preview from the Palm Beach Post .

The regular cast of characters made the trek to south Florida for the race. In addition, a local, transplanted Floridian was scheduled to make his first GN start. Jack Choquette, who relocated from New Jersey to Florida, was NASCAR's 1954 modified champion. But he also ran and won regular feature races at Palm Beach Speedway.

Dick Rathman timed quickest in qualifying and won the pole. Rathman made three starts at Palm Beach from 1953-1955, and he won the pole for each of those three races. He couldn't, however, convert a last lap into a race win - including the one on February 7, 1955.

Future NASCAR Hall of Famers claimed the next four starting spots:

2. Herb Thomas

3. Buck Baker

4. Junior Johnson

5. Lee Petty

Choquette qualified sixth - not bad for the hometown driver considering the experience and resources of those starting ahead of him.

The race was super-competitive - well except for a couple of fellas. Bill Lamont and Hooker Hood wrecked their cars during a practice session and never saw the green.

When the race got underway, Rathman leveraged his top starting spot to lead the first couple of laps. But after spotting him the first two, Herb Thomas came to the front to lead the next 13 laps. Buck Baker kept pace behind the duo & he decided it was time for him to lead by lap 15. He got around Thomas to lead as the lap count doubled to 30. Those early lead changes were a sign of good things to come for the fans. The race had 11 lead changes in first 150 laps of the race.

Though the drivers pitted for gas, apparently none stopped long enough to change tires - including during the race's two cautions. NASCAR's record keeping of facts in that era was pretty spotty (and some will argue it still is), but some speculated it was the first GN race completed without anyone making a tire change.

After a back-and-forth tussle between Thomas, Baker, Junior Johnson and Lee Petty over the first half of the race, the crowd began to thin. Lee Petty began to fade, and Junior Johnson hit the wall on lap 126. When the caution flew for Johnson, Thomas came to pit road for gas and surrendered the lead to Baker. Over the next 20 laps or so, Herb pursued Baker before retaking the lead with about 50 laps to go.

Thomas then found his groove and kept an even distance over second place Baker. But with the laps winding down, it was the hometown driver Choquette who made things interesting. From the sound of things, he raced a bit like David Pearson before David Pearson came along. After being in the hunt all day but never leading, he found another gear with the end of the race in sight. Steadily he closed in on Baker and got by him for second with 2 laps to go.

Choquette then set his sights on Thomas and quickly closed the gap as the white flag flew. But his rally came up just 3 car lengths' short. As he hustled his Hudson towards Herb, Thomas had just enough of a gap and power in reserve to narrowly defeat Choquette. Baker held on for third. Rathman finished 4th - his best finish of his three starts at the track.

Choquette's second place #23 Hudson.

The top two finishers shake hands.

Thomas' win was his second consecutive at Palm Beach after having won a year earlier on February 7, 1954. His win streak grew to three with his victory at the half-mile track on [ December 11, 1955 ]. Of the seven GN races promoted at the track from 1952 to 1956, Thomas won 4 of them.

The victory by Herb Thomas was also significant in that it was the final win for the FABULOUS Hudson Hornet. The car make tallied about 80 GN wins from 1951-1955.

Race report from the Palm Beach Post .

Choquette passed away February 23, 2013. Jeff Choquette, one of Jack's grandsons, has been racing late models and has made a limited number of NASCAR truck starts the last couple of years.

Fin	Driver	Car
1	Herb Thomas	'54 Hudson
2	Jack Choquette	'54 Hudson
3	Buck Baker	'54 Oldsmobile
4	Dick Rathman	'54 Hudson
5	Lee Petty	'54 Chrysler
6	Blackie Pitt	'54 Oldsmobile
7	Arden Mounts	'54 Hudson
8	Dutch Hoag	'53 Oldsmobile
9	Lloyd Chick	'54 Buick
10	Bill Harrison	'53 Oldsmobile
11	Marion Edwards	'51 Plymouth
12	Allan Clarke	'54 Buick
13	Eddie Skinner	'53 Oldsmobile
14	Junior Johnson	'55 Oldsmobile
15	Ralph Liguori	'54 Hudson
16	Ken Fisher	'54 Chrysler

updated by @tmc-chase: 02/05/17 10:24:33AM

January 28, 1968: Stock Car Racing Rises In Phoenix

Stock Car Racing History

Report from Tucson paper about Roger McCluskey's P2 finish, David Pearson's awareness and USAC scoring challenges.

January 28, 1968: Stock Car Racing Rises In Phoenix

Stock Car Racing History

As noted briefly in the article I posted a year ago, Marty Kinerk finished 14th in a Pontiac. But after losing an engine in final practice. Doing what racers do (or at least used to do ), the team called an audible. An engine was pulled from a GMC pick-up and installed in the race car. Result: P14.

From the Tucson Daily Citizen. Kinerk continued to race several NASCAR Pacific Coast late model races through 1971.