Roy Trantham

Last updated
Roy Trantham
Born(1941-02-10)February 10, 1941
Asheville, North Carolina, U.S.
Died March 17, 2014(2014-03-17) (aged 73)
Palm City, Florida, U.S.
Cause of death Leukemia
Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series career
5 races run over 1 year
Best finish 60th (1968)
First race 1968 Southern 500 (Darlington)
Last race 1968 National 500 (Charlotte)
WinsTop tens Poles
010

Roy Trantham (February 10, 1941 –March 17, 2014) was an American stock car racing driver. A veteran short-track driver, he also competed in five NASCAR Grand National Series races.

United States federal republic in North America

The United States of America (USA), commonly known as the United States or America, is a country composed of 50 states, a federal district, five major self-governing territories, and various possessions. At 3.8 million square miles, the United States is the world's third or fourth largest country by total area and is slightly smaller than the entire continent of Europe's 3.9 million square miles. With a population of over 327 million people, the U.S. is the third most populous country. The capital is Washington, D.C., and the largest city by population is New York City. Forty-eight states and the capital's federal district are contiguous in North America between Canada and Mexico. The State of Alaska is in the northwest corner of North America, bordered by Canada to the east and across the Bering Strait from Russia to the west. The State of Hawaii is an archipelago in the mid-Pacific Ocean. The U.S. territories are scattered about the Pacific Ocean and the Caribbean Sea, stretching across nine official time zones. The extremely diverse geography, climate, and wildlife of the United States make it one of the world's 18 megadiverse countries.

Stock car racing form of automobile racing

Stock car racing is a form of automobile racing found mainly and most prominently in the United States and Canada, with Australia, New Zealand, Great Britain and Brazil also having forms of stock car auto racing. Traditionally, races are run on oval tracks measuring approximately 0.25 to 2.66 miles. The world's largest governing body for stock car racing is the American NASCAR, and its Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series is the premier top level series of professional stock car racing. Top level races typically range between 200 to 600 miles in length. The cars were originally production models, but are now highly modified.

The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing (NASCAR) is an American auto racing sanctioning and operating company that is best known for stock-car racing. Its three largest or National series are the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series, the Xfinity Series, and the Gander Outdoors Truck Series. Regional series include the NASCAR K&N Pro Series East and West, the Whelen Modified Tour, NASCAR Pinty's Series NASCAR Whelen Euro Series and NASCAR PEAK Mexico Series. NASCAR sanctions over 1,500 races at over 100 tracks in 48 US states as well as in Canada, Mexico, and Europe. NASCAR has presented races at the Suzuka and Motegi circuits in Japan, and the Calder Park Thunderdome in Australia. NASCAR also ventures into eSports via the PEAK Antifreeze NASCAR iRacing Series and a sanctioned ladder system on that title.

Contents

Career

A native of Asheville, North Carolina, [1] Trantham was a veteran of short-track racing in the southern Appalachians, and made his debut in the NASCAR Grand National Series (now Sprint Cup Series) in the 1968 Southern 500 at Darlington Raceway. [2] He finished 34th in the event, and went on to run four more Grand National races that year, posting a best finish of tenth at Martinsville Speedway. [3]

Asheville, North Carolina City in North Carolina, United States

Asheville is a city and the county seat of Buncombe County, North Carolina, United States. It is the largest city in Western North Carolina, and the 12th-most populous city in the U.S. state of North Carolina. The city's population was 89,121 according to 2016 estimates. It is the principal city in the four-county Asheville metropolitan area, with a population of 424,858 in 2010.

Darlington Raceway motorsport track in the United States

Darlington Raceway is a race track built for NASCAR racing located near Darlington, South Carolina. It is nicknamed "The Lady in Black" and "The Track Too Tough to Tame" by many NASCAR fans and drivers and advertised as "A NASCAR Tradition." It is of a unique, somewhat egg-shaped design, an oval with the ends of very different configurations, a condition which supposedly arose from the proximity of one end of the track to a minnow pond the owner refused to relocate. This situation makes it very challenging for the crews to set up their cars' handling in a way that will be effective at both ends.

Martinsville Speedway is an International Speedway Corporation-owned NASCAR stock car racing track located in Henry County, Ridgeway, Virginia, just to the south of Martinsville. At 0.526 miles (847 m) in length, it is the shortest track in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series. The track was also one of the first paved oval tracks in NASCAR, being built in 1947 by partners H. Clay Earles, Henry Lawrence and Sam Rice per Virginia House Joint Resolution No. 76 on the death of H. Clay Earles. It is also the only race track that has been on the NASCAR circuit from its beginning in 1948. Along with this, Martinsville is the only NASCAR oval track on the entire NASCAR track circuit to have asphalt surfaces on the straightaways, then concrete to cover the turns.

Following his racing career Trantam moved first to the United States Virgin Islands, then to Palm City, Florida, where following a battle with leukemia he died on March 17, 2014. [4]

United States Virgin Islands group of islands in the Caribbean

The United States Virgin Islands, officially the Virgin Islands of the United States, is a group of islands in the Caribbean and an unincorporated and organized territory of the United States. The islands are geographically part of the Virgin Islands archipelago and are located in the Leeward Islands of the Lesser Antilles.

Palm City, Florida CDP in Florida, United States

Palm City is a census-designated place (CDP) in Martin County, Florida, United States. The population was 23,120 at the 2010 census. It is part of the Port St. Lucie Metropolitan Statistical Area.

Leukemia group of cancers that usually begin in the bone marrow

Leukemia, also spelled leukaemia, is a group of cancers that usually begin in the bone marrow and result in high numbers of abnormal white blood cells. These white blood cells are not fully developed and are called blasts or leukemia cells. Symptoms may include bleeding and bruising problems, feeling tired, fever, and an increased risk of infections. These symptoms occur due to a lack of normal blood cells. Diagnosis is typically made by blood tests or bone marrow biopsy.

Related Research Articles

Mike Skinner (racing driver) American racing driver

Michael Skinner is an American former stock car racing driver. He has competed in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, Busch Series and Camping World Truck Series. He has most recently driven the No. 98 Ford Fusion for Phil Parsons Racing in the Cup Series. He is the father of former NASCAR drivers Jamie Skinner and Dustin Skinner. He was born in Susanville, California.

Tiny Lund American racing driver

DeWayne Louis "Tiny" Lund was an American stock car racer. He was a journeyman racer-for-hire in the top level NASCAR Grand National Series, running partial seasons for a number of years, including a victory in the 1963 Daytona 500. Lund saw his greatest success in the NASCAR Grand American Series, where he was the season champion in three of the four full years the series was run – Lund won 41 of the 109 Grand American events that ran.

David Pearson (racing driver) American racecar driver

David Gene Pearson was an American stock car racer from Spartanburg, South Carolina. Pearson began his NASCAR career in 1960 and ended his first season by winning the 1960 NASCAR Rookie of the Year award. He won three championships and every year he was active he ran the full schedule in NASCAR's Grand National Series. NASCAR described his 1974 season as an indication of his "consistent greatness". That season he finished third in the season points having competed in only 19 of 30 races.

Robert Pressley American racing driver

Robert William Pressley is a former NASCAR driver who now serves as the promoter at Kingsport Speedway in Kingsport, Tennessee.

Clayton Rogers is an American professional stock car racing driver. He has competed in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, Nationwide Series and Camping World Truck Series, and is the 2004, 2006, 2009, and 2010 champion in the USARacing Pro Cup Series.

Mark Green (racing driver) American stock car racing driver

Mark Green is an American professional stock car racing driver. He is the brother of drivers, Jeff Green and David Green.

Jason Jarrett is an American race car spotter for Richard Childress Racing, Kaulig Racing, NEMCO Motorsports, and Bobby Gerhart Racing. A former driver in the NASCAR Busch Series and ARCA Racing Series, he has not driven in competition since 2005. He is the son of 1999 NASCAR Winston Cup Series champion Dale Jarrett and the grandson of two-time champion Ned Jarrett.

Landon Cassill American stock car racing driver

Landon Douglas Cassill is an American professional stock car racing driver. He currently competes full-time in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series, driving the No. 00 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 for StarCom Racing.

Ryan Truex American racing driver

Ryan Truex is an American professional stock car racing driver. He currently competes part-time in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series, driving the No. 71 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 for Tommy Baldwin Racing and part-time in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, driving the No. 8 Chevrolet Camaro for JR Motorsports.

The Asheville-Weaverville Speedway near Weaverville, North Carolina, USA was considered to be site for the old-school NASCAR races in both the Grand National and the Winston Cup eras. None of the active drivers that are in the Sprint Cup Series today have ever raced at Asheville-Weaverville Speedway. Even some of the legends like Darrell Waltrip and Kyle Petty have never raced on the track due to the timing of their careers. From 1951 to 1969, the race course offered some wins from drivers like Richard Petty, Bob Flock, Fonty Flock, Lee Petty, and a win by Fireball Roberts. As a dirt oval track, the speedway helped served its purpose during the dirt-dominated formative years of what is now called the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series. The track was later paved over. Other NASCAR legends like Banjo Matthews, Ralph Earnhardt, Junior Johnson, and Cotton Owens had made notable appearances here.

1968 National 500 Auto race run in North Carolina in 1968

The 1968 National 500 was a NASCAR Grand National Series stock car race that was held on October 20, 1968, at Charlotte Motor Speedway in Concord, North Carolina.

Robbie Faggart is an American former stock car racing driver. He competed in the NASCAR Sportsman Division in the early 1990s, winning the series' 1992 championship; he saw less success in NASCAR's top divisions, failing to qualify for seven Winston Cup Series races before running a limited schedule in the NASCAR Busch Series in the early 2000s.

Randy Baker is an American stock car racing driver. Son of NASCAR Winston Cup champion Buck Baker, he competed in NASCAR's top divisions in the 1980s and 1990s, and currently operates a driving school.

Rene Charland, nicknamed "The Champ", was an American stock car racing driver. He was a four-time champion of the NASCAR National Sportsman Division, now known as the Nationwide Series.

David Ray Boggs is an American stock car racing driver. Now retired, he is a former competitor in the NASCAR Grand American Series, the NASCAR Winston Cup Series, and the ARCA Racing Series.

Joe Littlejohn was an American stock car racing driver from Spartanburg, South Carolina. He competed in the NASCAR Grand National Division in 1949 and 1950.

Frank "Eddie" Skinner was an American stock car racing racing driver. He competed in the NASCAR Grand National Series during the 1950s.

Will Kimmel III is an American stock car racing driver. Son of Bill Kimmel, Jr. and nephew of Frank Kimmel. He currently competes part-time in the ARCA Racing Series for family-owned Kimmel Racing. He currently competes part-time in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, driving the No. 32 Ford Fusion for Go FAS Racing.

Bill Ingle is an American stock car driver, crew chief, and racing analyst.

The 1964 Jacksonville 200, the third race of the 1964 NASCAR Cup Series calendar is best known for being won by the first African-American driver to win a race, Wendell Scott.

References

  1. ↑ "Trantham Wins Late-Model Feature Race". Spartanburg, SC: The Spartanburg Herald. June 6, 1964. Page 11. Accessed 2014-03-30.
  2. ↑ "Red-Clay Wizard Pushed Into Big Speedway Debut". St. Petersburg, FL: The Evening Independent . August 30, 1968. Page 3C. Accessed 2014-03-30.
  3. ↑ Roy Trantham - NASCAR Sprint Cup Results. Racing-Reference. USA Today Sports Media Group. Accessed 2014-03-30.
  4. ↑ "Roy Trantham (1941 - 2014) Obituary". Asheville, NC: Asheville Citizen-Times . Accessed 2014-03-30.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.