April 11, 1966 - Bowman Gray Stadium

On April 9, 1966 - Easter Saturday - NASCAR's Grand National drivers raced at Greenville-Pickens Speedway in South Carolina. David Pearson dominated the second half of the race and won by a full lap over Richard Petty. 

After taking Easter Sunday off for church, family, food, egg hunts, car repairs, etc., the teams were back at it on Easter Monday for a 200-lap battle on the quarter-mile track at Bowman Gray Stadium. 

After having won three times in the span of a week at Hickory, Columbia, and Greenville-Pickens, David Pearson was shooting for his fourth consecutive win. 

Pearson got off to a good start in Cotton Owens' Dodge by winning the pole. The race was the Stadium's first after a recent repaving. Pearson's qualifying lap on the new surface was about four miles per hour faster than Richard Petty's pole-winning speed the previous August and five miles per hour quicker than Junior Johnson's hot lap the previous May.

Pearson backed up his top qualifying speed by winning the first of two 25-lap heat races. Tiger Tom Pistone won the second heat in his independent Ford and started on the outside of the front row. Two more independent Fords driven by Bobby Allison and Elmo Langley made up the second row. The factory-supported Ford drivers remained sidelined as Ford Motor Company and Big Bill France of NASCAR remained at loggerheads over the Blue Oval's desired use of its new single overhead cam engine. Interestingly, 15 Fords started the race - none of which were factory-supported cars.

When the green dropped, Tiger stormed into the lead from his P2 starting spot and held serve for the first half-dozen laps. Pearson's white and red Dodge then eased by Pistone to take the lead. Once out front, Pearson controlled the rest of the afternoon. 

Despite leading lap after lap after lap, Pearson came close to being thumped by the fickle finger of fate. With about 50 laps to go and a half-lap lead on Pistone, Pearson's engine inexplicably quit. It didn't break - it just quit running. Instinctively, Pearson started jiggling some wires, ANY wires in the hopes of getting the fire to return. Finally, the Dodge roared back to life just as Pistone was making a pass for the lead - and perhaps the win. 

Pearson then had a fight on his hands for a couple of laps. He never surrendered the lead, however, and continued leading the rest of the way. In the end, Pearson led the remaining 154 laps to claim his 17th career win and fourth in a row. 

Pistone fought valiantly to hang with Pearson throughout the race. Yet he couldn't regain the lead and returned home with a solid second place finish - just as he'd started.

With Pearson banking lap after lap, fans found their excitement elsewhere in the field. Petty and J.T. Putney raced hard in the early stages of the race. On the 64th lap, Petty banged past Putney for the fourth position. The pass had a cost though as Petty lost two laps in the pits as the crew pulled back a wrinkled fender from a tire.

The King set sail after the stop and soon passed Putney with relative ease. As the race wore on, Petty once again found himself behind Putney with an opportunity to get by him for position. Putney had no intention of giving up the real estate - particularly on the quarter-mile bullring. Petty chrome-horned Putney a few times yet J.T. hung in there. Then Putney started brake-checking Petty perhaps hoping the 43's nose and radiator would go kaput. 

With about 25 laps to go, Petty seized the moment. He darted past Putney to reclaim the fourth spot that he'd lost about 100 laps earlier. Putney's heat-of-the moment emotions then got the best of him. After Petty's pass, Putney gassed it up and charged the corner in an attempt to exact some revenge on the Petty Blue Plymouth. Instead, he overshot the tight corners and found himself wadded up in the turn four guardrail. In a split second, Putney the Putz went from an all but certain top five finish to a disappointing P12.

Putney's attempted revenge on Petty may remind some of a similar move with a similar outcome by another "P" driver decades later: Danica Patrick.

Source: High Point Enterprise

TMC

August 27, 1966 - Myers Brothers Memorial

On August 7, 1966, Richard Petty won the Dixie 400 at Atlanta International Raceway. The primary storyline from the race involved Junior Johnson's infamous Yellow Banana Ford driven by Fred Lorenzen and Smokey Yunick's black-and-gold Chevrolet driven by Curtis Turner. Both cars had all sorts of questionable parts and body shaping, yet both were allowed to race. Many were upset at the spectacle though the fact neither car won helped settle folks down a bit.

Following Atlanta, Turner agreed to what was expected to be a one-race deal in Junior's Ford at the next race in Winston-Salem, NC. Though his career had started to wind down, he wanted to give the fans and fellow competitors a fair night of racing if they felt they didn't get that at Atlanta.

The Myers Brothers Memorial 250 at Bowman Gray Stadium was scheduled for Saturday, August 13th - the weekend following Atlanta.

Persistent rain scuttled everyone's plans, and the race was postponed until Saturday, August 27th. So instead of the Turner-Johnson venture starting at Bowman Gray, fans got to see Pop finish third at Columbia Speedway.

When the teams returned to Bowman Gray for the rescheduled race, two drivers who eventually claimed the greatest number of wins in GN/Cup racing - Richard Petty and David Pearson - claimed the front row. Petty won the pole in his '66 Plymouth with Pearson qualifying second.

Everyone, however, had their eyes on the second row starters. GN noob Bobby Allison plunked his trusty red and white #2 Chevelle in third spot, and Turner lined up fourth in Junior Johnson's Ford. Apparently, the two of them decided to join forces again for a second race following Columbia.

Turner was the good-time-having, natural-talent, racing veteran. Allison was a relative upstart. Though he'd had success with racing throughout the southeast, Allison started only a handful of GN races prior to the 1966 season. Though he lacked experience racing against the Big Dawgs, the one thing he did not lack was confidence.

Source: Kannapolis NC The Daily Independent

Kim Chapin included a recap of some fan-stirring action during the Myers Brothers Memorial in his November 28, 1966, Sports Illustrated article about Bobby Allison's arrival in Grand National racing.

Winston-Salem is not an important race on the NASCAR Grand National calendar. The purse is not large, the points toward the driving championship are not many, but everybody shows up, as they had nine days before that at Columbia, SC, for a bit of fun at 100 miles around a half-mile dirt track. At that one, Allison, racing in his own red-and-white 1964 Chevelle, sat on the pole, and Turner, in a yellow 1966 Galaxie owned by Junior Johnson, started beside him. Just before the starter's green flag dropped, a strange announcement came over the track loudspeaker. An unidentified person had just offered Turner $500 if he could lead the first lap. Turner went over to Allison and said, in effect, that if Bobby would let him by, $250 of that was for Bobby.

"I didn't think the first lap would mean too much," Allison said, "and so I agreed." But almost immediately the race turned into a seven-car scramble with a whole lot of fender-slapping going on, heavily involving Allison, Turner and David Pearson. "A lot of people thought the Turner thing started right there," Allison said, "but that wasn't so." (The $500 wasn't so, either. Turner did lead the first lap, but later discovered the offer had been a prank.)

At Winston-Salem, Turner got on Allison's tail and started shoving him all around the track. Allison did the only thing he could. He let Turner's Galaxie get past his Chevelle and began bumping Turner, a natural action but a violent breach of etiquette, which states quite clearly, although as informally as the English constitution, that rookies shall not tangle with their elders, especially if that elder happens to be Curtis Turner. It was now Turner's move, and when he got the opportunity he moved in under Allison and hooked him - spun him out. Again Allison retaliated in the only way he could. He spun Turner out. That ended the preliminaries.

Source: Southern MotoRacing

By now Turner was a bit more than unhappy with the way the evening was going. He waited on Allison and, when he got the chance, clobbered the little Chevelle broadside. Allison limped to the infield with a dead engine. Dead engine? Not on your life. Turner came around again, this time following slowly behind the safety car, which was leading the pack, yellow caution flags fluttering, while the track maintenance crews cleaned up the debris. By now it was difficult to find an unmarked piece of metal on either car. Allison's "dead" engine suddenly roared to life and - bop-po - he returned Turner's compliment by slamming him broadside. Both drivers got out of their wrecked cars and without a word returned to the pits.

Source: Southern MotoRacing

"I didn't want to do what I did," Allison said, "but I felt I had to. I wasn't happy about it. In fact, I was nervous all the time I was doing it. We really did a job on each other."

That race started and ended the Allison-Turner trouble, apparently with no hard feelings. But NASCAR was not convinced. On the Saturday before Darlington's Labor Day Southern 500, Allison and Turner were paged over the track loudspeaker for an audience with Lin Kuchler, NASCAR executive manager, and Johnny Bruner Sr., a tough old-timer who is the field manager for NASCAR. Kuchler, young and sincere, made a couple of bad jokes and said something like I'm sure there aren't any hard feelings left but if there are let's not tell anybody about them. We love a good image. Now let's shake hands and that will be $100 each, please, for your trouble. Bruner added, "Yeah, I don't imagine there are any hard feelings left, either, but just in case there are, the next time one of you guys tries something like that you both get suspended for the year." 

While all had their eyes on Turner and Allison, Pearson and Petty kept their focus on the race. When the green flap fell, Pearson got the jump on Petty's 43 to take the lead. He stayed there for almost the first 100 laps.

With Pearson hitting the pits for service, Turner took over the lead for a few laps before the fireworks intensified between him and Allison. After the two hot heads found themselves on the sidelines, Petty found his groove. Ol' Blue grabbed the lead when the race went green again, and the King towed the field around Bowman Gray's quarter-mile track for 113 laps.

Pearson followed Petty's tire tracks the entire time. Then with about 30 laps to go, Pearson passed Petty and led the rest of the way to sweep the Bowman Gray's two 1966 GN races. (Pearson also won the track's 200-lap Easter Monday race over Tiger Tom Pistone and Petty in April 1966.) The race was the 16th of 63 times the two drivers finished in the top two spots.

Turner raced yet again for Junior the following week in the Southern 500 at Darlington. After a sponsor-mocking performance at Columbia, the run-in and wreck with Allison at Bowman Gray, and another wreck at Darlington, Junior had seen enough. He fired Pop, pulled himself out of retirement, and drove his own car the rest of the season.

TMC

August 10, 1968 - Myers Brothers Memorial

On Saturday, August 10, 1968, NASCAR's Grand National drivers arrived in Winston-Salem, NC for the 250-lap Myers Brothers Memorial race. The same drivers raced at Bowman Gray Stadium just two days after a Thursday night, 200-lap race on the half-mile, dirt Columbia Speedway in South Carolina.

Many newer fans of NASCAR may not recognize the names associated with this memorial race. Many may recognize, however, the name Chocolate Myers from his tenure as the gasman for Richard Childress Racing and Dale Earnhardt and his more contemporary employment as a midday co-host on SiriusXM's NASCAR channel.

Chocolate's father was Bobby Myers, and his uncle was Billy Myers. If unfamiliar with either or both, Google a bit to learn about their contributions to racing...and their untimely deaths.

Twenty cars arrived at the track for the event, and Richard Petty put his #43 Plymouth on the pole. David Pearson, fresh off his win at Columbia two nights earlier, started second in his Holman Moody Ford. Bobby Isaac, James Hylton, and Bobby Allison rounded out the top five starters.

Petty took the lead at the drop of the green flag and held onto it for the first 139 laps. As Petty ran upon Bobby Allison to put him a lap down, the engine in Allison's Chevrolet blew sending him into the wall. As Allison's engine dumped oil on the track, Petty spun and brushed against the wall. The unfortunately timed event was just enough to allow Pearson to slide under and take the lead.

Petty regathered his Plymouth and continued. His excursion to the high side, however, was all the advantage Pearson needed. Once out front, the Silver Fox led the remaining 111 laps on the quarter-mile track and was the first to take the checkered flag. Pearson and Petty were the only two cars on the lead lap with Isaac finishing third four laps down.

View image | gettyimages.com

Pearson won at Bowman Gray for his third and final time - though the first and only time with Holman Moody. He also had the Big Mo as he pursued his second Grand National title. Pearson went back to back with wins at Columbia and Bowman Gray. He was also in the midst of a four out of six winning streak with additional wins in the Volunteer 500 at Bristol and Nashville 400 (and a P3 and P4 in the two races he didn't win.)

The race was also the 25th of 63 times Petty and Pearson finished in the top two spots.

TMC

May 24, 1958 - Welborn Wins Winston-Salem

Greetings from the tailgating grounds of Charlotte Motor Speedway. TMC is here once again enjoying the weekend festivities leading up to tonight's Coca-Cola 600.

After driver Bob Welborn joined forces early in 1958 with owner Julian Petty, the duo was almost unstoppable in the spring races of NASCAR's convertible and Grand National divisions.  Welborn won five races in a row followed by Top 5s and a sixth in the next three convertible races with another GN win by Welborn at Greensboro (though he wasn't driving for Julian in that one).

On May 24, 1958, the Grand National drivers traveled to Winston-Salem, NC to race at Bowman Gray Stadium. The track opened in 1949, but the May 1958 race was the first GN event at the Stadium.

The race was officially sanctioned as a Grand National event; however, many convertible division regulars joined the field. They didn't need a separate car - just a top. The drivers brought their regular ragtop cars and simply bolted on a roof piece to race in the GN event.

Source: Greensboro Daily News

Rex White won the the pole. Lee Petty started 3rd, and Welborn timed 10th in Julian's #49 Chevy. Ken Rush started seventh in #44A in a second Julian Petty entry. White raced #44, and some records indicate he also raced for Julian Petty - though White insists he never drove for him.

White leveraged his top starting spot to lead the first two-thirds of the 150-lap race. Welborn then got by Rex and led the remaining 49 laps to match his car number. His victory was his 4th consecutive Grand National win in a series of four races entered.

Although Welborn won the race in a full-bodied sedan, he was not awarded GN points. Why? Despite having a roof over his head, Welborn's Chevy did not have rear glass in place. It's hard to see how the absence of the glass would have provided an aero advantage on the quarter-mile, Winston-Salem bull ring. But that was the ruling. As a GN part-timer, the trophy likely meant more to Welborn than "a good points day" anyway.

Source: Greensboro Daily News

Remarkably, with the momentum Welborn and Julian had built, Welborn wouldn't win another GN race until late August - his fifth and final win of the 1958 season.

Though Welborn and many of the other drivers had the day off Sunday after Saturday night's race at Bowman Gray, others had no time to sit still. Trenton Speedway was to host its first Grand National race on Memorial Day, May 30th. Qualifying began a week earlier on Sunday May 25 meaning several had to hustle to travel overnight from Winston-Salem, NC to Trenton, NJ.

Source: Reading Eagle via Google News Archive

Drivers who raced at Bowman Gray and then trekked to Trenton for qualifying were Buck Baker, Cotton Owens, Eddie Pagan, Lee Petty, Jack Smith, Jim Reed, and 1958 rookie of the year candidate Shorty Rollins. With Lee's participation in both races, I'm curious if 19 year-old Richard was tasked to drive the car home from Bowman Gray - or take a car to Trenton. Hmm.

TMC

April 7, 1958 - Welborn Wins Winston-Salem

Two days after racing in the Grand National race at Champion Speedway in Fayetteville, NC, Bob Welborn continued his successful new alliance with car owner Julian Petty. The duo dominated the NASCAR convertible series race at Bowman Gray Stadium in Winston-Salem, NC on "Easter Monday", April 7, 1958.

After two years as the champion of the convertible series, Welborn sold his equipment to Petty and hired-on as his driver. The two won their first Grand National race together and followed up with a win in their first convertible race together.

The race was promoted as the season opener for the track by co-promoters Bill France Sr. and Alvin Hawkins. Yep, Big Bill controlled the sanctioning body as well as a handful of races on his schedules.

Source: Spartanburg Herald via Google News Archive

Welborn claimed the pole in qualifying in his #49 Chevrolet now owned by Julian. He then led all of the race's 150 laps and claimed the win. Possum Jones (one of racing's greatest names) finished second, and Julian's brother, Lee Petty, brought home his Oldsmobile fourth. Ken Rush finished fifth in a second #38 Chevrolet fielded by Julian. The car had been previously driven by Gwyn Staley who was killed two weeks earlier in the previous convertible race at Richmond.

Source: Spartanburg Herald via Google News Archive

TMC

August 22, 1958 - Lee Petty Banks Bowman Gray

August 22, 1958: Starting second, Lee Petty piloted his #42 Oldsmobile to a spirited win over Shorty Rollins in a 200-lap, 50-mile race at Bowman Gray Stadium in Winston-Salem, NC. Rookie Richard Petty in a #2 1957 Oldsmobile started 11th and finished 20th. (There is a trivia question for you - what car number have Richard Petty and Dale Earnhardt shared?)

The race was Bowman Gray's second NASCAR Grand National event, and it was a 'sweepstakes' race - a blend of hard top and convertible series cars.. The first was about three months earlier on May 24, 1958, and it was won by Bob Welborn in a Chevrolet owned by ... Julian Petty, Lee's brother.

The August race was a reversal of fortune for Welborn. Julian Petty again fielded a Chevy for Welborn. Although he won the spring race, he completed only one lap in Julian's #49 Chevrolet and finished 23rd - dead last - in the August race. Julian fielded a second car in the August race for Ken Rush. He finished 14th in a #44 Chevrolet.

Greg Fielden writes in Forty Years of Stock Car Racing - Vol. 1:

Old pro Lee Petty eked out a half-car length victory over rookie Shorty Rollins in the exciting climax to the 50-mile sweepstakes race at Bowman Gray Stadium.

Petty took the lead from Rollins with 19 laps remaining on the quarter-mile paved oval. The two drivers treated the crowd of 12,000 to a spine-tingling conclusion. Rollins' last lap bid fell short by only a few feet.

George Dunn put his Mercury on the pole and led the first 10 laps. Petty, who started second, nosed to the front on lap 11 and stayed there for 126 laps. Rollins, who started sixth found the 'groove' and began pressing Petty at the half way point. He was able to push his Ford into the lead on lap 137 and led until Petty made the final pass.

Bob Welborn qualified third, but his Chevrolet was taken out with transmission failure after just one lap.

Petty won the 50-miler at an average speed of 39.258 mph. ~ p. 316

Source: Spartanburg Herald Journal via Google News Archive

TMC

April 15, 1963 - Jim Paschal Bags Bowman Gray

April 15, 1963: Starting third on tax day and on a Monday following Easter Sunday, Jim Paschal wins a 200-lap, 50-mile race at Bowman Gray Stadium in Winston-Salem, NC.

Source: The Dispatch via Google News Archive

In the third Grand National race in three days (Whew!), Paschal raced to a two-lap victory over second place Fred Harb. Yes, that Fred Harb. Um, OK.

Paschal's victory was the second of what eventually became a six-race winning streak by Petty cars early in 1963 - 4 by Richard and 2 by Paschal. He won in a Petty Engineering #43 Plymouth - only the second Grand National win by a driver piloting a 43 car other than Richard Petty. Richard raced #41 and won the pole. However, he was involved in a first lap skirmish, later lost a fuel pump and finished 11th in the 16 car field.

Source: Spartanburg Herald-Journal via Google News Archive

TMC

August 28 - This day in Petty history

1970 - Richard Petty pockets his 113th career victory by winning from the pole in the Myers Brothers 250 at Bowman Gray Stadium in Winston-Salem, NC.

Source: The Dispatch via Google News Archive

Richard's 1970 season is most closely associated with his runs in the winged Plymouth Superbird.

However, the Grand National schedule in that era included far more short-track races than in NASCAR's 'modern era' (Winston-Nextel-Sprint Cup years). The 'Bird wasn't the best car for those tracks, so Petty Enterprises ran a Plymouth Road Runner similar to this one in many events - including Richard's win at Bowman Gray.

Courtesy of Jerry Bushmire

TMC

August 22 - This day in Petty history

1969 - Richard Petty wins his 100th career NASCAR Grand National race. He wins the pole and leads only 9 laps in the Myers Brothers 250 at Bowman Gray Stadium in Winston-Salem, NC.

The race is significant enough to merit its own Wikipedia entry!

Petty's accomplishment nearly had to wait until another event. After starting on the pole, Petty spun on lap 1 after nudging the back end of of Bobby Isaac's car. However, he was able to get it headed in the right direction without losing a lap. Isaac then proceeded to dominate the race by leading 241 laps. He and Petty had to make a final pit stop for fuel. Isaac ran out of gas after he had passed the pit road entrance. He lost a 2-lap lead as he coasted around. Petty too ran out of gas; however, he ran out before the pit road entrance. He was able to coast into his pit stall, get some fuel, and take the win.

Petty's milestone win is almost twice the total of the second winningest driver, Lee Petty. Lee finished his career with 54 wins. And for those who have only become NASCAR fans (or media members) in recent years, Richard's 100 wins were all in the Grand National/Cup series vs. accumulated through three series as accomplished by Kyle Busch.

Interestingly, Richard earned his 100th win in the single season he raced Fords rather than his traditional Plymouths and Dodges.

Article courtesy of Jerry Bushmire

A few years ago, WIX Oil Filters released a collectible die-cast of Petty's car to commemorate the 100th victory.

TMC

August 18 - This day in Petty history

1962 - Richard Petty picks up career win number 11 by winning the International 200 at the quarter-mile track in Bowman Gray Stadium in Winston-Salem, NC.

Bowman Gray was a staple track on the Grand National circuit from the late 1950s until the schedule was restructured as the Winston Cup Grand National Series in 1971. Petty had pretty good success at the track with four wins and 20 top 5's in 26 total starts.

In March 2011, NASCAR.com published an article about Bowman Gray under its Hometracks section - including a photo from the 1962 race of Petty leading Larry Thomas. The article gets a +1 bump for being written by Paul Schaefer.

Source: NASCAR.com

The final Grand National race at Bowman Gray was the Myers Brothers 250 in 1971 and was won by Bobby Allison. Well, sorta...

Source: Spartanburg Herald via Google News Archive

TMC
Edited August 15, 2014

August 12 - This day in Petty history

1967 - Richard scores his 66th career win in the Myers Brothers 250 at Bowman Gray Stadium in Winston-Salem, NC.

Petty won the pole and led all 250 laps of the race en route to a dominating victory. Former Petty Enterprises teammate Jim Paschal finished 2nd, three laps down to Petty.

Southern MotoRacing photo courtesy of Harvey Tollison

The win was Petty's 18th of the season which tied the record of Tim Flock set FIFTEEN years earlier. After nabbing this win, 43 kept on a'rollin. When the season ended, Petty obliterated Flock's record by winning 27 races in 1967.

The widows of Billy (left) and Bobby (right) Myers presented The King with his trophy for winning the race. Bobby's widow, Mrs. Lorene Myers, is the mother of long-time Richard Childress Racing gasman, Danny "Chocolate" Myers.

Southern MotoRacing photo courtesy of Harvey Tollison

Source: Spartanburg Herald-Journal via Google News Archive

TMC
Edited September 29, 2014