Great Moments In the History of the Daytona 500

            Organized racing on the sandy beaches of Daytona began as far back as 1900. The first timed event was an event sanctioned by the American Automobile Association in 1903. The top speed was 68mph.  Until the early 1930's, it was mainly known as a place where racers would go to attempt world speed records.

       However, as the speeds grew, The 500-feet-wide beach at Daytona was considered too narrow to accommodate the higher speeds,  and the Salt Flats of Utah became the premiere place for racers to attempt these records. Local racers and boot-leggers still used the Daytona Beach road course  as a popular place for unsanctioned races, and showing off their driving skills.

This:

 In 1936, the city of Daytona and the AAA hosted it's first stock car event at Daytona Beach . Milt Marion from Long Island, N.Y. won the race in a ’36 Ford. A local Daytona mechanic named Billy France finished 5th in that race.

Big Bill France on the beach at Daytona for the first-ever Stock Car race there in 1936.

       In 1938, the city asked Mr. France to take over the course, because of his knowledge of the history of the area and the speed records set there.

        Stock car( back then "stock" meant stock, as in Granny's ford coupe) racing had little successs in the 40s.    Race promoters would often steal the money before drivers could get paid.   With World War II coming along, France and other racing leaders fought hard to keep racing in Daytona.

That:

     In late 1947, France called together some major players (drivers, mechanics, sponsors, and so on)from the stock car racing scene.

 Together they forged the National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing (NASCAR) on February 21, 1948.       

     The Series would be known as "Strictly Stock" before being changed to the "Grand National" series in 1950.    In the spring of 1954, NASCAR became the stock car sanctioning body. France went to Daytona’s town leaders and said, “If we want to keep motorsports and the thriving economy that it brings in the Daytona area, a speedway needs to be built.” 

     His main  argument was that the changing ocean tides maid it too difficult and dangerous to race safely in the  cars on the beach course.

     The rest is history—The Daytona International Speedway was built and the Bill France legend had begun.

This:

      The inaugural Daytona 500 was run at the Daytona International Speedway in 1959. In that first race, 59 cars started and 30 finished.  Lee Petty won the race in a ’59 Oldsmobile. For three days after the race, they didn’t know if Lee Petty or Johnny Beauchamp was the winner. Officials asked the fans for any photos they had of the finish, and finally 61 hours later, Petty was declared the winner.

The famous finish.

That:

     Lee's son, Richard Petty,  also drove in that first Daytona 500. Driving a ’57 Oldsmobile, he started in Sixth Place but finished 57th after his engine blew eight laps into the race.  Richard would go on to become the most successful driver American stock car racing has ever seen.                                             
      The "King" of NASCAR,  Richard Petty.                                 

     One of the most famous drmatic moments in NASCAR history ocurred during the 1976 Daytona 500.

This:

That: 

      Coming out of turn 4 on the final lap,   Petty had ducked low and passed Pearson but his car slightly drifted up the track and the two drivers touched and crashed. When both cars came to rest in the tri-oval grass, they still had not crossed the start/finish line. Both cars were badly damaged.  Petty's car never started.  Pearson got his car going again and limped across the finish line at 30mph to take the checkered flag,  in the slowest green flag finish in Daytona 500 history.

Video of the famous 1976 Daytona crash:                                            
                                          http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AibV8_0USBA>

This:
      The 1979 Daytona 500 was the first 500-mile race to be broadcast live on national television.

That:

     During that race,  another famous final lap crash, and fist fight between leaders Cale Yarborough and Donnie Allison (along with Donnie's brother Bobby Allison) brought national  publicity to NASCAR.

     Earlier in the race, Donnie Allison had lost control of his car sending Yarborough spinning into a muddy infeild, and 4 laps down. Amazingly, through timely pitstops and cautons, Cale got back on the lead lap.  Yarborough made his move on the final lap, diving below Donnie's car in Turn 1. Allison ran Yarborough down to the apron, where the two Oldsmobiles crashed leaving Richard Petty the win after neither car could continue. Bobby stopped to survey the damage, and a helmet-throwing, fists flying throw-down began between the Allisons and Yarborough.

      The fight was more famous than the finish, and it gave the fans an understanding of how real the emotions, and hearts of stock car drivers were.
 Many feel this is the defining moment that lead to what the #2 sport in America  has become today.

Video of the crash and fight:      http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MXbHQtZH8dE>

     As a 6 year old boy, I met Bobby Allison in Lubbock, Tx,  two months after that wild and wacky 1979 Daytona 500,  and have been a NASCAR fan since that day.  He was in a much nicer mood when i met him, though than that crazy day in Daytona.  

       The sport of NASCAR has many famous moments, and we  fans all have our favorite.   Daytona International Speedway, more often than not, has been the site for most of those moments.  It's storied history and wild finishes are just a few of the things that make it The "World Center of Racing."

       I hope you enjoyed reading a little of This and That.

Cartoon Courtesy of Mike Smith, award-winning editorial cartoonist featured daily in the Las Vegas Sun, L.A. Times, N.Y. Times, USA Today, and many others.

More of his  NASCAR cartoons can be found here:

http://www.lasvegassun.com/sports/racing/carto
ons.html