What wonderful photos.
Here are the two photos Richard posted above:
Denny Zimmerman (L) & Ted Hairfield (R) with Ted's #4 modified at Ted's shop.
Dennis Zimmerman's #4x Sportsman at Southside Speedway in Richmond, early 60s.
Richard, here is a two part story on Dennis Zimmerman with photos from 2013:
http://briandanko.speedwaylinereport.com/Archives/MAY13/5-27-13.htm
http://briandanko.speedwaylinereport.com/Archives/JUNE13/6-3-13.htm
Richard, I didn't make it to Southside for the first time until spring of 1965. I don't really know a thing about Denny's car. I know that he posts on a lot of different forums and saw on one where he recently shared memories of Junie Donlavey and working out of his shop.
Richard, although I didn't get to Southside until 1965, I remember the name Winnie Talbot, but I don't know why. I'll have to see if my buddy Frank in Pennsylvania recalls. He has a great memory for the things we saw at Souuthside.
I don't have a write-up, but August 30, 2021 marks the 58th anniversary of Rapid Ray Hendrick 's (Mr. Modified) triumph in the season ending 1963 Virginia 400 NASCAR National Championship Modified-Sportsman race at Richmond, Virginia's third-mile paved Southside Speedway.
Results show Hendrick in the cherry red Jack Tank/Clayton Mitchell "Flying #11" '37 Chevy coupe leading 368 of the 400 laps as he beat Red Foote , one of the original "Eastern Bandits" who moved to Richmond from Connecticut. Only other leaders were Connecticut's original "Eastern Bandit," "Steady Eddie" Flemke leading 15 laps and Richmond's Ted Hairfield in his "Snakebite II" #4 Chevy Modified leading the other 17.
Ed Flemke led 15 laps
A number of the Bowman-Gray Stadium modified drivers made the trip to Virginia's capital city for the big show, with Carl Burris posting the best finish for the North Carolina brigade in 6th place. The top 5 constituted a Richmond sweep, with Melvin Bradley , two-time National Modified champ, Eddie Crouse and Sonny Hutchins finishing in 3rd-5th behind Richmonders Hendrick and Foote.
4th place finisher Eddie Crouse - 1962 & 1963 NASCAR National Modified Champion
5th place finisher Sonny Hutchins - Richmond restaurant and tavern operator
6th place Carl Burris was the top finishing Bowman-Gray driver at Richmond
8th place Runt Harris, one of the famed "4-H Boys" from Richmond
9th place Bill Dennis - 1970 NASCAR Winston Cup Rookie of the Year
11th place Rene Charland, 4-time NASCAR National Sportsman Champion
12th place Bert Robbins
14th place Clay Eastridge (holding trophy)
15th place Bubba Tatum
16th place Bob Dobyns
17th place Denny Zimmerman - 1971 Indianapolis 500 Rookie of the Year
19th place Bill Champion - uncle of Ricky Rudd
20th place Perk Brown (with Bobby Allison kneeling beside car)
22nd place Billy Hensley - cousin of Jimmy - car was grey with Rebel Flag on deck lid
23rd place Paul Radford - "The Ferrum Flash!"
24th place Joe Thurman - '68 NASCAR LMS National Champion - Division's 1st Year
25th place Clarence Pickerell was better known as the owner of Clarence's Steakhouse near Martinsville Speedway and a sponsor of other drivers
26th place finisher Gil Hearne hailed from Wrightstown, NJ
27th place finisher Pee Wee Jones
29th Place finisher Lionel Johnson would finish 10th in Daytona's 1965 Firecracker 400
30th place finisher EJ Brewer competed in NASCAR GN & Convertible races in 1957-58
Two Rookies of the Year competed. Bill Dennis was 1970 NASCAR Winston Cup ROY and Denny Zimmerman was 1971 Indianapolis 500 ROY
Photos are from many sources, including 3Wide, Vintage Modified, Racing thru Time, Randy Ayers and previously posted photos at RacersReunion
Virginia 400
NASCAR National Championship Modified race
Southside Speedway, Midlothian, VA
August 30, 1963
400 laps on 0.333 mile paved oval; 133.33 miles
Fin St Driver # Owner Car Laps Money Status Laps Led
1 Ray Hendrick 400 900 368
2 Red Foote 0
3 Melvin Bradley 0
4 Eddie Crouse 0
5 Sonny Hutchins 0
6 Carl Burris 0
7 Jimmy Mairs Sportsman 0
8 Runt Harris 0
9 Bill Dennis 0
10 Clarence Hicks 0
11 Rene Charland Sportsman 0
12 Bert Robbins 0
13 Bobby McGinnis 0
14 Clay Eastridge 0
15 Bubba Tatum 0
16 Bob Dobyns 0
17 1 Dennis Zimmerman Sportsman 0
18 Ted Hairfield 17
19 Bill Champion 0
20 Perk Brown 0
21 Bob Rosselle Sportsman 0
22 Billy Hensley 0
23 Paul Radford 0
24 Joe Thurman 0
25 Clarence Pickerell 0
26 Gil Hearne 0
27 Pee Wee Jones 0
28 2 Ed Flemke 21X Sportsman 24 accident 15
29 Lionel Johnson Sportsman 0
30 E.J. Brewer 0
Results: Ultimate Racing History
Here's a Jim Wilmore poster advertising the Virginia 400 at Southside Speedway from a different year:
Bobby Allison and his modified at Southside Speedway's 1960 Virginia 400. From the Bobby Allison web site.
A memorial for Don Tilley will be held at 6:30 p.m. Sunday at Statesville High School, 474 N. Center Street. Bikers will leave from Tilleys Salisbury shop at 4 p.m., joining others who will leave the Statesville shop at 5 p.m. Details about that and a smaller service being held Monday are at www.tilleyhd.com .
In lieu of flowers, the family asks that memorials be made to Victory Junction Gang Camp, 4500 Adams Way, Randleman, NC 27317, www.victoryjunction.org .
Hundreds of Harley riders will converge on Statesville Sunday to celebrate the life of Don Tilley, who died as he lived most of his 78 years: Riding a motorcycle with his wife.
Tilley was a legend in racing and Harley-Davidson circles, having led all 20 of Kyle Pettys Charity Ride Across America treks to raise money for seriously ill children. He died when he lost control of his motorcycle on the Blue Ridge Parkway south of Asheville Friday evening.
Robinette Tilley, his wife of 53 years, was riding with him. She remains hospitalized in Asheville with serious injuries, said Vickie Kress, a staffer at Tilley Harley-Davidson in Statesville.
Tributes and concern poured in as word spread over the Labor Day weekend.
Don taught me how to ride long distance, love Harleys & most importantly how to be a friend, NASCAR driver Petty tweeted.
Winston Kelley, executive director of the NASCAR Hall of Fame in Charlotte, called Tilley the Superman of motorcycles.
He rode more miles per year than anybody I personally know, Kelley, a motorcycle enthusiast, said Monday.
Don Tilley was also known for wearing a helmet, even in states where they werent required. His reputation as a careful rider is one of the reasons his wreck came as such a shock, Kelley said.
Sundays memorial service will be held in Statesville High Schools stadium to accommodate the crowds expected to turn out many of them riding motorcycles from the Tilley dealerships in Salisbury and Statesville, thundering in with a police escort.
Youre going to see probably one of the biggest rides youve ever seen in your life, said Kress, who was acting as a family spokesperson.
Don Tilley got his start as a motorcycle and stock car racer in the late 1950s, when he worked for Kyle Pettys father, racing star Richard Petty , according to a history on his website . He also worked for a Statesville Harley-Davidson dealer before opening his own shop in 1972. The business and his name in racing circles grew in the ensuing decades.
Tilley organized and supported many charity events over the years, but the biggest is the Petty trek to benefit Victory Junction , a camp south of Greensboro for children with serious medical conditions. As a longtime family friend, Tilley helped launch the charity ride in 1995, after a handful of friends rode their motorcycles from North Carolina to a NASCAR race in Phoenix. Riders have donated a total of $15 million to Victory Junction and other childrens charities, according to the website.
The 20th ride took place this May, with riders going from California to Florida. Longtime NASCAR writer Mike Hembree, chronicling that trip, called Tilley the Yoda of the Kyle Petty Charity Ride Across America.
Tilley has ridden motorcycles on seemingly every interstate and back road in the United States. He is the rides unofficial road atlas, Hembree wrote . Better to ride through downtown Houston or take the interstate loop around the city? Tilley knows. Best scenic roads in the West? Tilley knows.
Tilley is one of only 10 riders who have participated in all 20 rides, Hembree added. Tough as beef jerky, he shows no signs of letting go.
Robinette Tilley has always been at her husbands side, whether working at the dealerships or accompanying him on rides, Kress said. At 74, Robinette Tilley is a competitive jazz and tap dancer.
Don Tilley has also been a stalwart supporter of Alcoholics Anonymous, which helped him stay sober for 44 years, Kress said. And in 1986 he founded Statesvilles Harley Owners Group , which his website describes as North Carolinas first.
That group had a Tail of the Dragon ride scheduled for the Labor Day weekend, along a twisty mountain road at the N.C./Tennessee state line. Friday evening, Don and Robinette Tilley were riding along the Blue Ridge Parkway. He was driving and she was in back, Kress said.
The wreck happened around 7:50 p.m., near the French Broad River overlook at the intersection of the parkway and Brevard Road, south of Asheville. The U.S. Park Service is investigating and has not released details.
Kress said Robinette Tilley has already had three operations, with another scheduled later this week.
Don Tilleys last tweet marked their 53rd anniversary, on July 23. It has been great, he wrote. Met her by taking a ride on my Harley.
In these days of so few mechanical failures and so many drivers completing races, it's easy to forget how few cars often finished races in all stock car divisions "back in the day" and the often great separation between them.
I think Tim might defer on being on the King under one circumstance:
And, Alex, you've certainly nailed the right card for Danica with your Queen of Hearts "Off with their heads" suggestion:
