July 14 - This day in Petty history - part 1

1962 - Starting fourth in a field of 21 cars, Richard Petty wins the Pickens 200 at Greenville-Pickens Speedway in South Carolina.

After a duel with Jack Smith, Petty prevailed in the 100-mile race to notch his eighth career NASCAR Grand National victory.

Source: Spartanburg Herald via Google News Archive

Floyd Powell, a local hot shoe and fan favorite from nearby Spartanburg, made his first Grand National start. Following his GN debut at Greenville-Pickens, he made five additional starts - including the 1963 Daytona 500.

#147370210 / gettyimages.com

About a year after his GN debut, however, Powell sadly was shot dead by his brother-in-law.

Source: The Spartanburg Herald via Google News Archive

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June 24 - This day in Petty history

1967 - Richard Petty wins the pole and dominates the Pickens 200 at Greenville-Pickens Speedway (web | Twitter) in South Carolina.

The King led 195 laps of the race, and he picked up his 60th career NASCAR Grand National victory by winning on the half-mile, dirt track. Petty set sail at the the drop of the green and won handily over the field including second place finisher Dick Hutcherson. The win also marked the beginning of a three-race winning streak at Greenville-Pickens for Petty.

In his book Forty Years of Stock Car Racing - Volume 3, Greg Fielden recaps:

Top threats Jim Paschal, John Sears and Doug Cooper were all victims of a first lap fiasco. The three drivers, starting on the outside of the first three rows, charged into the first turn.  Before the race, the area had been saturated by a water truck, which had lost power and leaked several gallons of water. All three cars shot straight over the banks and flipped outside the track. ~ p. 138

Source: Spartanburg Herald via Google News Archive

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Edited June 24, 2014

June 22 - This day in Petty history

1968 - Starting second alongside career rival David Pearson, Richard Petty passes Pearson with 30 laps to go and gets his 82nd career NASCAR Grand National victory in a 200-lap, 100-mile race at Greenville-Pickens Speedway in South Carolina.

Source: Spartanburg Herald via Google News Archive

The start with pole winner Pearson getting the early jump on Petty, third place starter Buddy Baker in #3, and fourth place starter Bobby Issac in #71.

Courtesy of Harvey Tollison

Petty's win was his second consecutive win at Greenville-Pickens - the middle win of what turned out to be a three-win streak at the track. The speedway still operates today running late model features and can be found on the web and Twitter. NASCAR sanctioned 29 Grand National races at the track from 1951 through 1971, and The King won four of the final eight GN races at the speedway.

Article courtesy of Jerry Bushmire

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