1961 Buddy Shuman 250

Last updated
1961 Buddy Shuman 250
Race details [1] [2]
Race 43 of 52 in the 1961 NASCAR Grand National Series season
Date September 9, 1961 (1961-September-09)
Official name Buddy Shuman 250
Location Hickory Speedway, Hickory, North Carolina
Course Permanent racing facility
0.400 mi (0.644 km)
Distance 250 laps, 100 mi (150 km)
Weather Very hot with temperatures of 87.1 °F (30.6 °C); wind speeds of 11.1 miles per hour (17.9 km/h)
Average speed 67.529 mph (108.677 km/h)
Attendance 10,500 [3]
Pole position
DriverRex White
Most laps led
Driver Ned Jarrett B.G. Holloway
Laps 160
Winner
No. 4Rex WhiteRex White
Television in the United States
Network untelevised
Announcers none

The 1961 Buddy Shuman 250 was a NASCAR Grand National Series event that was held on September 8, 1961, at Hickory Speedway in Hickory, North Carolina.

Contents

Background

Hickory Motor Speedway is a short track located in Hickory, North Carolina. It is one of stock car racing's most storied venues, and is often referred to as the "World's Most Famous Short Track" and the "Birthplace of the NASCAR Stars".

The track first opened in 1951 as a 12-mile (0.80 km) dirt track. Gwyn Staley won the first race at the speedway and later became the first track champion. Drivers such as Junior Johnson, Ned Jarrett, and Ralph Earnhardt also became track champions in the 1950s, with Earnhardt winning five of them.

In 1953, NASCAR's Grand National Series (later the Cup Series) visited the track for the first time. Tim Flock won the first race at the speedway, which became a regular part of the Grand National schedule. After winning his track championship in 1952, Junior Johnson became the most successful Grand National driver at Hickory, winning there seven times.

The track has been re-configured three times in its history. The track became a 0.4-mile (644 meters) dirt track in 1955, which was paved for the first time during the 1967 season.

Race report

Two hundred and fifty-two laps were accomplished on a dirt track spanning 0.400 miles (0.644 km). [2] [3] The race took one hour and twenty-eight minutes to complete [3] (the approximate length of three modern 30-minute sitcoms aired simultaneously). The pole position speed achieved by eventual winner Rex White was 72.290 miles per hour (116.339 km/h). [3] Jack Smith would become the eventual second-place finished after being outlapped by White in front of 10500 live spectators. [3] Two cautions slowed the race for an undetermined length of laps. Junior Johnson would crash on lap 58 in his 1961 Pontiac Catalina machine while the winning vehicle would be classified as a Chevrolet with a 1961 model year [2] [3] [4] (presumably a Bel Air). Being a modest race on a short dirt track, the highest prize that was awarded at the time was $900 ($7,794 in current U.S. dollars). [3]

A young Richard Petty (being only 24 years old during this race) would finish in 17th place due to issues with his vehicle's rear end on lap 102.; it would be a rare occasion where he drove a car other than his signature number 43. [2] [3] [4] The entire 20-car field was made up of American-born males. [3] Bud Allman was Ned Jarrett's crew chief for the race; [5] he helped Jarrett finish in eighth place.

The transition to purpose-built racecars began in the early 1960s and occurred gradually over that decade. Changes made to the sport by the late 1960s brought an end to the "strictly stock" vehicles of the 1950s.

Qualifying

Grid [3] No.DriverManufacturerOwner
14 Rex White '61 ChevroletRex White
227 Junior Johnson '61 Pontiac Rex Lovette
37 Joe Weatherly '60 Pontiac Elmo Henderson
454 Jimmy Pardue '60 ChevroletJimmy Pardue
586 Buck Baker '61 ChryslerBuck Baker
642 Richard Petty '61 Plymouth Petty Enterprises
711 Ned Jarrett '61 Chevrolet B.G. Holloway
86 Cotton Owens '60 PontiacCotton Owens
917 Fred Harb '61 FordFred Harb
1023 Doug Yates '59 Plymouth Raeford Johnson
1185 Emanuel Zervakis '60 Chevrolet Monroe Shook
1248 G.C. Spencer '60 ChevroletG.C. Spencer
1347 Jack Smith '61 PontiacJack Smith
1419 Herman Beam '60 FordHerman Beam
1593 Lee Reitzel '60 FordLee Reitzel
163 Mark Hurley '59 T-Birdunknown
1736 Larry Thomas '60 Chevrolet Wade Yonts
1874 L.D. Austin '61 ChevroletL.D. Austin
195 Paul Lewis '59 Chevroletunknown
2071 Bob Barron '60 DodgeBob Barron

Top 10 finishers

Pos [3] GridNo.DriverManufacturerLapsWinningsLaps ledTime/Status
114 Rex White Chevrolet 250$900321:28:51
21347 Jack Smith Pontiac249$5250+1 lap
3586 Buck Baker Chrysler249$3750+1 lap
486 Cotton Owens Pontiac248$2750+2 laps
51185 Emanuel Zervakis Chevrolet 246$2500+4 laps
61248 G.C. Spencer Chevrolet 242$2150+8 laps
7917 Fred Harb Ford 240$1750+10 laps
8711 Ned Jarrett Chevrolet 239$150160Left rear axle problems
91874 L.D. Austin Chevrolet 233$1400+17 laps
101593 Lee Reitzel Ford 225$1300+25 laps

Timeline

Section reference: [3]

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References

  1. "1961 Buddy Shuman 250 weather information". The Old Farmers' Almanac. Retrieved 2012-10-11.
  2. 1 2 3 4 "1961 Buddy Shuman 250 information (second reference)". Ultimate Racing History. Retrieved 2010-12-05.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 "1961 Buddy Shuman 250 information". Racing Reference. Retrieved 2010-12-05.
  4. 1 2 "1961 Buddy Shuman 250 information (third entry)". Everything Stock Car. Archived from the original on 2011-07-10. Retrieved 2010-12-05.
  5. Crew chief information for the 1961 Buddy Shuman 250 at Racing Reference
Preceded by
1961 Southern 500
NASCAR Grand National Series Season
1961
Succeeded by
1961 Capital City 200