1971 Flameless ... err, Permatex 200

Beginning in 1966, Nashville's Fairground Speedways opened each season with the Flameless 300. The banking was raised to a Talladega-esque 35 degrees when the track was rebuilt in 1969-1970, and the toll on the cars, tires, and drivers was felt immediately. During the 1970 Flameless 300, the majority of the field was gone by lap 200. Darrell Waltrip cruised the final third of the race and won by five laps over the second place finisher.

Following the race, track promoter Bill Donoho floated the idea of cutting the race length to minimize the risk of another ho-hum affair. Sure enough, the lap count was cut by 100 laps, and the Flameless 200 was set for April 17, 1971.

Ticket and Nashville Banner photo courtesy of Russ Thompson

The race distance wasn't the only change for 1971. For the first time, the season opening race received a title sponsor, Permatex.

The changes marked a transition for the track.

• More than five years had passed since the September 1965 fire that destroyed the track's grandstands.
• Gone was the original half-mile track.
• A new track now stood along with brand new, covered grandstands.
• Increased corporate dollars were beginning to flow into motorsports - both at the national level with NASCAR and R.J. Reynolds and at the local level such the Permatex support and branding at Nashville.

In the weeks leading up the race, however, the local paper (and the tickets) still referred to the upcoming Flameless 200. Why The Tennessean mentioned the Flameless vs. Permatex race name isn't known (at least to me).

Perhaps the paper intentionally avoided referencing a sponsor that hadn't bought advertising in the paper - or the announcement of Permatex as the race sponsor came closer to race day  - or old habits were just hard to break. One could consider the race as the final Flameless 300/200 or the first Permatex 200. Either way, it was time to race.

Source: The Tennessean

Source: The Tennessean

Source: Nashville Banner /  Nashville Fairgrounds Racing History

After missing the Flameless for the first time in 1970, two-time race winner and two-time pole winner Bob Burcham was back. Unlike his winning ways on the old track, however, Burcham would have a tough night in his first Flameless on the new surface.

Source: The Tennessean

Freddy Fryar, two-time Flameless 300 winner in 1966 and 1968, did not return for the final one in 1971. He instead dominated a 25-lap late model sportsman race at Jackson International Speedway in Mississippi.

Source: The Tennessean

James Ham backed up his fast test session by winning the pole with a track record speed. He broke the record previously held by Red Farmer set just a few months earlier in the 1970 season-ending Southern 300.

Waltrip, Nashville's 1970 late model sportsman division champion, returned for another full season in 1971. Gone were the traditional orange-and-white colors of owner P.B. Crowell. The #48 Chevelle instead sported a red-and-gold scheme tied to Waltrip's new sponsor and lined up alongside Ham on the front row. Coincidentally, the front row matched the two cars side-by-side in the track office's mural.

Farmer arrived in town but hardly ready to race. He suffered a broken leg on April 5th in a multi-car accident during a 100-lap race at Smoky Mountain Raceway in Maryville, TN. Farmer was a two-time, back-to-back NASCAR national late model sportsman champion in 1969 and 1970. Though early in the season, Farmer was already in a tight points battle with Georgia's Sam Sommers.

Two weeks after breaking his leg, Farmer somehow managed to belt into the car, make a pace lap, and then turn his car over to relief driver Tommy Andrews. Reason? Simple. That's what racers of that era did. Andrews did just as he was asked. He took care of Farmer's ride and managed to finish one spot ahead of Sommers. Farmer's commitment and toughness were rewarded when he won his third consecutive LMS title in 1971.

Tiny Lund was a somewhat surprising entrant. The big fella came to town with somewhat of a dual agenda (and the legendary experience of destroying his car and part of the track during the 1963 Nashville 400). He planned to race in the 200 of course. His second plan, however, was to promote the Baughman Hi Speed 100, a NASCAR Grand American division race for "pony cars" scheduled for three weeks after the 200. After qualifying mid-pack, Lund never got to tackle objective #1. He burned a clutch and didn't even start the race.

At the drop of the green, Ham took advantage of his top starting spot and led the first 48 laps. But  with a good rhythm rolling, Ham suddenly lost a water pump, had to make an extended stop, and struggled to a 20th place finish. For the second consecutive year, Ham had a fast car but little to show for it.

Waltrip won the 1970 Flameless 300 in dominating fashion, but the same couldn't be said a year later. Though he qualified second and led a few laps, a blown right front tire slowed his roll. When the night was done, he finished 21st - one spot behind pole-winner Ham.

Burcham won the Flameless in 1967 and 1969. He had to like his odds of winning his third one in an odd year, but a blown engine at lap 150 pretty well ended that quest.

Local driver Flookie Buford went to the point as Burcham exited and seemed to be in control for the win. A cut tire with about 20 laps to, however, doomed his chances. He made his stop and returned to action, but he was in third and a lap down to two drivers in front of him.

As Buford limped to pit road, Chattanooga, TN's Friday Hassler took the lead. Hassler, the 1970 Flameless 300 pole winner, had to be pleased with his reversal of fortune. A year earlier, he fell out of the race after only 10 laps. In 1971's race, he found himself sitting pretty with only 20 quick laps standing between him and the trophy. But then Hassler had to have exclaimed you've GOT to be kidding me! With just six laps to go, Hassler's Chevelle broke a driveshaft. Though he had enough laps on the car behind him to not lose a position, the P3 finish was little consolation.

By process of attrition and misfortune of others, journeyman racer Art Ellis found himself out front in a lap of his own. He knocked down the handful of remaining laps and headed to victory lane. Buford finished second after his late pit stop but was still a lap down to the winner.

Source: The Tennessean

Tragically, Ellis was able to savor his big win for only a couple of months. During a 30-lap, LMS feature race at the Fairgrounds on July 3rd, Ellis veered towards the inside of the backstretch while running fourth. He struck a large tire surrounding a utility pole, flipped several times, and was killed.

Source: The Tennessean

The Flameless race era was over - and Ellis was its final winner. The race began following a disastrous fire in 1965, and the final one was tied to tragedy with Ellis' death. Nashville continued hosting 200-lap season openers through 1978. Permatex returned as the race's title sponsor through 1974, and R.J. Reynolds' Winston brand sponsored the races in 1975 through 1978.

Finishing Order:

1. Art Ellis
2. Flookie Buford
3. Friday Hassler
4. Jerry Echols
5. David Sisco
6. Dorman Adams
7. L. D. Ottinger
8. Dexter Brady
9. Red Farmer
10. Sam Sommers
11. Bob Burcham
12. Rod Stillings
13. Ben Pruitt
14. Harold Carden
15. Bill Morton
16. Charley Binkley
17. Bob Brown
18. Robert “Paddlefoot” Wales
19. Rhea Greenwell
20. James Ham
21. Darrell Waltrip
22. Chester Albright
23. Clyde Peoples 
24. Junior Caldwell
25. Don Anthony
26. Bobby Walker
27. Paul Lewis
28. Ronnie Blasingim
29. Chuck Hunter
30. Tiny Lund (DNS)

TMC