Auto race run in North Carolina in 1949
1949 Wilkes 200 Race details[1][2] |
---|
|
North Wilkesboro Speedway |
Date |
October 16, 1949 (1949-October-16) |
---|
Official name |
Wilkes 200 |
---|
Location |
North Wilkesboro Speedway, North Wilkesboro, North Carolina |
---|
Course |
Permanent racing facility 0.500 mi (0.804 km) |
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Distance |
200 laps, 100 mi (150 km) |
---|
Weather |
Chilly with temperatures reaching up to 68.0 °F (20.0 °C); wind speeds reaching up to 7 miles per hour (11 km/h) |
---|
Average speed |
53.364 miles per hour (85.881 km/h) |
---|
Attendance |
10,000 |
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|
Driver |
|
(Dailey Moyer owner) |
---|
Time |
31.27 seconds |
---|
|
Driver |
Bill Blair |
(Sam Rice owner) |
---|
Laps |
180 |
---|
|
No. 7 |
Bob Flock |
(Frank Christian owner) |
---|
|
Network |
untelevised |
---|
Announcers |
none |
---|
Motor car race
The 1949 Wilkes 200 was a NASCAR Strictly Stock Series racing event that took place on October 16, 1949.[where?][3]
Ten thousand people would attend this live racing event where Kenneth Wagner qualified for the race with a pole position speed of 57.563 miles per hour (92.639 km/h) – the equivalent of 31.27 seconds.[2][3] The entire race took place on a dirt track spanning 0.500 miles (0.805 km) per lap.[2][3] Weather conditions for the race were recorded at nearby Hickory Regional Airport; a public airport located three miles (5 km) west of the central business district of nearby Hickory, North Carolina.[1]
Summary
This would be the final race of the 1949 NASCAR season and would take place at North Wilkesboro Speedway in North Wilkesboro, North Carolina.[2][3]
Bob Flock would defeat Lee Petty by an entire football field – 100 yards (91 m) – to win NASCAR's first racing event with an established name.[2][3] Flock would earn a mere $1,500 in prize winnings ($19,208.39 when inflation is taken into effect).[4] Frank Mundy would receive a last-place finish for only finishing 38 laps out of the mandated 200 laps.[2][3] Bill Blair would lead the most laps in this race with 180 laps led out of 200.[3]
Red Byron would go on to win NASCAR's first ever championship while Sara Christian would become one of its first female drivers.[5] Byron almost became a cripple after being shot by an enemy fighter plane while serving as a tail gunner on a B-24 Liberator bomber during World War II. He spent two years in military hospitals rehabilitating his leg so that he could compete in NASCAR after the war ended.[5]
Notable crew chiefs who actively participated in the race were Buddy Elliott, Julian Petty, Buddy Helms, Red Vogt, and Cliff Rainwater.[6]
While Red Byron and Lee Petty were the better drivers of the 1949 NASCAR Cup Series season, Bill Blair was the most consistent driver along with Petty.
Timeline
Section reference:[2]
- Start of race: Bill Blair starts off the race in the pole position
- Lap 38: Frank Mundy withdrew from the race for reasons unknown
- Lap 155: Red Byron withdrew from the race for reasons unknown, he was assumed not have been paid for participating in this event
- Lap 181: Bob Flock takes over the lead from Bill Blair
- Lap 188: Sara Christian ended the racing event 12 laps behind Herb Thomas
- Lap 191: Bill Blair had a terminal problem with his engine, forcing him out of the race
- Lap 196: Roy Hall may or may not have finished the race six laps behind Thomas, records of this race were not kept in the NASCAR archives
- Finish: Bob Flock was officially declared the winner of the event
Results
POS[7]
|
ST
|
#
|
DRIVER
|
SPONSOR / OWNER
|
CAR
|
LAPS
|
MONEY
|
STATUS
|
LED
|
1 |
|
7 |
Bob Flock |
Bob Flock Garage (Frank Christian) |
'49 Oldsmobile |
200 |
1500 |
running
|
20
|
2 |
|
42 |
Lee Petty |
Petty Enterprises |
'49 Plymouth |
200 |
750 |
running
|
0
|
3 |
|
47 |
Fonty Flock |
Green Leaf Cafe (Ed Lawrence) |
'47 Buick |
199 |
400 |
running
|
0
|
4 |
|
19 |
Clyde Minter |
Clyde Minter |
'47 Ford |
199 |
300 |
running
|
0
|
5 |
|
92 |
Herb Thomas |
Herb Thomas |
'49 Ford |
197 |
175 |
running
|
0
|
6 |
|
14 |
Roy Hall |
Parks Novelty (Raymond Parks) |
'49 Oldsmobile |
196 |
150 |
|
0
|
7 |
|
5 |
Ray Erickson |
Ed Hastings |
'49 Mercury |
194 |
100 |
|
0
|
8 |
|
9 |
Raymond Lewis |
Robert Dixon |
'49 Cadillac |
194 |
75 |
|
0
|
9 |
|
41 |
Curtis Turner |
Frank Christian |
'49 Oldsmobile |
193 |
50 |
|
0
|
10 |
2 |
44 |
Bill Blair |
Sam Rice |
'49 Cadillac |
191 |
50 |
engine
|
180
|
11 |
|
11 |
Bob Apperson |
Bob Apperson |
'47 Ford |
191 |
50 |
|
0
|
12 |
|
71 |
Sara Christian |
Frank Christian |
'49 Oldsmobile |
188 |
50 |
|
0
|
13 |
|
28 |
Slick Smith |
Buddy Helms |
'47 Hudson |
174 |
50 |
|
0
|
14 |
|
20 |
H.F. Stikeleather |
|
'48 Lincoln |
167 |
50 |
|
0
|
15 |
1 |
15 |
Kenneth Wagner |
Moyer Co. (Dailey Moyer) |
'49 Lincoln |
165 |
50 |
|
0
|
16 |
|
22 |
Red Byron |
Parks Novelty (Raymond Parks) |
Oldsmobile |
155 |
|
|
0
|
17 |
|
21 |
Bobby Green |
Bobby Greene |
'48 Ford |
148 |
|
|
0
|
18 |
|
1 |
Bill Greever |
|
'48 Mercury |
134 |
|
|
0
|
19 |
|
90 |
Tim Flock |
Buddy Elliott |
'49 Oldsmobile |
117 |
|
|
0
|
20 |
|
8 |
Dick Linder |
LaBelle Motors |
'49 Kaiser |
59 |
|
|
0
|
21 |
|
4 |
Otis Martin |
Raymond Lewis |
'47 Buick |
50 |
|
|
0
|
22 |
|
2 |
Frank Mundy |
|
'49 Ford |
38 |
|
|
0
|
Race summary
- Lead changes: 2
- Cautions: N/A
- Red flags: N/A
- Time of race: 1 hours, 52 minutes, and 16 seconds
- Average speed: 53.364 miles per hour (85.881 km/h)
- Margin of Victory: 100 yards
References
Preceded by inaugural race
|
Wilkes 200 races 1949
|
Succeeded by
|