Race Summaries 1950 NASCAR Grand National Series

1 race summaries

1.1 1950-01
1.2 1950-02
1.3 1950-03
1.4 1950-04
1.5 poor man s 500
1.6 1950-06
1.7 1950-07
1.8 1950-08
1.9 1950-09
1.10 1950-10
1.11 1950-11
1.12 1950-12
1.13 southern 500
1.14 1950-14
1.15 wilkes 200
1.16 1950-16
1.17 1950-17
1.18 1950-18
1.19 1950-19

race summaries
1950-01

the first race of 1950 season run on february 5 @ daytona beach road course in daytona beach, florida. joe littlejohn won pole. harold kite of east point, georgia, former army tank driver began racing on short tracks after world war ii, drove past red byron in 25th lap , went on score convincing victory in 200-mile grand national lid-lifter of 1950 season. kite, competing in first grand national event, pushed lincoln around sandy course @ record 89.894 mph , beat runner-up byron finish line 53 seconds. third place went lloyd moore, al gross fourth, , j.c. van landingham, ending lengthy retirement, finished fifth. crowd estimated @ 9,500 watched kite take lead @ outset pole sitter joe littlejohn. kite, captain in national guard, held top spot until byron passed him on 15th lap. defending nascar champ relinquished lead kite in 24th lap when made pit stop. several laps later byron forced make pit stop repair gear shift problems. returned fray, running seventh. kite went uncontested second half of 48-lap affair on 4.167-mile course, byron provided plenty of action worked way through pack. nipped moore second place final lap pass. forty-one cars started event , 21 still running @ finish despite fact conditions on beach less ideal. bob flock turned in 1 of spirited efforts on cloudy, breezy day. finished seventh despite fact left front wheel wobbled around every turn

top ten results

1950-02

the second race of 1950 season run on april 2 @ charlotte speedway in charlotte, north carolina. red byron won pole.tim flock, wheeling same lincoln carried harold kite victory @ daytona, drove around red byron in 48th lap , stormed victory in 150-mile grand national race @ charlotte speedway. flock s first win on nascar major league tour. bob flock finished second, half lap behind younger brother. clyde minter wound third, byron came in fourth , bill snowden fifth. byron s fourth-place effort, coupled runner-up finish @ daytona, enabled him move top of grand national point standings, 2.5 points ahead of tim flock. crowd of 13,000 on hand watch bob flock lead opening laps in oldsmobile. pole sitter byron charged past , led 42 laps on three-quarter mile dirt track. tim surged past byron in 48th lap , led rest of way. lash larue, western movie star, greeted flock in victory lane. biggest win, said happy flock. win grand national race dream come true. june cleveland running in top 5 when flipped buick in 85th lap. roof pancaked, , cleveland transported charlotte hospital cuts. reported not injured. crash occurred in exact spot virginia driver jesse elmo hank stanley killed few weeks earlier in modified sportsman race. curtis turner, lee petty, buck baker, fonty flock , bill blair—all rated pre-race threats—failed finish 200-lap grind.

top ten results

1950-03

the third race of 1950 season run on april 16 @ langhorne speedway in langhorne, pennsylvania. tim flock won pole.-- curtis turner prevailed in intense struggle @ langhorne speedway , won 150-miler on one-mile dirt track. second career grand national win came @ average speed of 69.399 mph. lead changed hands 7 times 5 drivers waged furious duel. tim flock led opening 2 laps pole position. bill blair pushed cadillac past flock in third lap , led until flock assumed command again on lap eight. flock led 35 laps while 23-year-old rookie bill rexford moved second. 2 toured circular oval in bumper-to-bumper fashion. rexford sneaked past flock in 43rd lap , paced action 18 laps. rexford s olds began sputtering, allowed turner take lead on lap 61. ray erickson moved spotlight when gunned mercury past turner in 84th lap. bidding first grand national triumph when rock pierced radiator, forcing him behind wall after 114 laps. turner took lead @ point , led rest of way. lloyd moore, jimmy florian, tim-flock , lee petty rounded out top five. flock running third when wheel came off lincoln , bounced path of hardluck blair, struck errant wheel. steering column in blair s caddy snapped, came through driver s compartment , hit driver. high point, nc, star spent 1 night in hospital.turner won $1,500 efforts 6 cars finished after 28 started. point leader red byron did not enter race. tim flock took on point lead ijut strength of fourth-place finish. turner s john eanes-owned oldsmobile •pipped dunlop tires. dunlop had plenty of space on turner s car — placing name on hood , side doors. erickson s appearance last start of year. short time later, lost arm in hot-rod crash. following race, fbi began investigating characters trying introduce racketeering , gambling stock car racing.

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1950-04

the fourth race of 1950 season run on may 21 @ martinsville speedway in martinsville, virginia, first race in lineage of virginia 500, spring race @ track. buck baker won pole. curtis turner bagged second straight grand national win decisive triumph @ martinsville speedway. roanoke, va blond bomber dashed ahead of baker in 11th lap , led rest of way in 150-lap, 75 mile feature @ half-mile dirt oval. jim paschal finished second in four-year-old ford, lee petty third , glenn dunnaway came in fourth. cyde minter picked fifth spot. turner s oldsmobile-outdistanced field 2 full laps. 2.5 points behind leader tim flock, fell victim rear end problems after 97 laps. buck baker started on pole @ 54.216 mph in ford police special. faded eighth @ finish. herb thomas running among leaders in ford when spindle broke in final laps. got credit 14th in field of 25.

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poor man s 500

the fifth race of 1950 season run on may 30 @ canfield speedway in canfield, ohio. event staged on same day indianapolis 500 — hence ironically title poor man s 500 . jimmy florian won pole. bill rexford of conewango valley, new york stalked curtis turner on half race, took command win poor man s 500 , 100-miler @ canfield speedway. rexford took lead in 121st lap , went on beat runner-up glenn dunnaway 2 laps. lloyd moore finished third , took lead in grand national point standings 36.5 points on tim flock, finished ninth. lee petty crossed finish line in fourth place , bill blair took fifth. promoters did pay lap money, $5 going leader of each lap 101 through 200. rexford s earnings came $1,400 lap money. turner led first 120 laps before engine went sour. departed after 133 laps , wound 19th. crowd of 11,000 showed on memorial day , watched al gross, former stunt car driver jimmy lynch thrill show, flip olds in ninth lap. gross suffered broken , taken hospital extended stay. frank canale posted second fastest qualifying time overheating problems forced him sidelines after 74 laps. joe merola on hand new radically designed 1948 tucker torpedo, 1 of controversial , advanced automobiles ever hit market. car conked out before merola able complete lap.

top ten results

1950-06

the sixth race of 1950 season run on june 18 @ vernon fairgrounds in vernon, new york. chuck mahoney won pole. bill blair of high point, nc avoided bad luck gremlin, took lead in 25th lap , led remaining distance score first grand national win @ vernon fairgrounds. crowd of 15,000 showed 1 year anniversary of nascar grand national stock car racing. blair s mercury comfortably ahead of lloyd moore @ finish of 100-miler. moore extended point lead 216.5 points on tim rock, did not enter. chuck mahoney third @ stripe, while dick burns came in fourth , lee petty fifth. mahoney started on pole , led first 18 laps. in lead when mercury hit loose wheel rolling on track, blew tire , bent axle. pit crew did excellent job of repairing damage,and more incredible drive third place. bill rexford finished sixth , moved top ten in points. ann chester became fourth female driver race in grand national ranks. plymouth fell victim problems , finished 22nd in 23 car field.

top ten results

1950-07

the seventh race of 1950 season run on june 25 @ dayton speedway @ dayton, ohio. dick linder won pole. jimmy florian muscled ford past curtis turner 32 laps remaining , won 100-mile event @ dayton speedway. first win in grand national competition ford nameplate. lead changed hands 6 times among 4 different drivers florian holding upper hand on 2 occasions total of 40 laps. along ushering in ford s first win, florian established first on muggy, sultry afternoon. pulled victory lane , climbed out wearing nothing white pants. 27-year-old cleveland mechanic said decided not wear shirt due hot weather , since there no nascar rule requiring him so. awfully hot , knew d more comfortable without shirt, said florian. ve done several times before, not in grand nationals. dick linder started on pole , led on 2 occasions 35 laps. finished second buck barr came in third. turner wound fourth , art lamey fifth. lloyd moore finished 23rd in field of 25 , failed earn championship points, still held 202.5 point lead on lee petty finished eighth. florian jumped third in standings, 171.5 points out of first place. frank mundy drove nash ambassador, fell out mechanical problems. herschel buchanan drove nash sixth-place finish.

top ten results

1950-08

the eighth race of 1950 season run on july 2 @ monroe county fairgrounds in rochester, new york. curtis turner won pole. curtis turner blitzed field , cruised easy win in 100-mile grand national event @ monroe county fairgrounds. fourth career win. turner, starting olds on pole, jumped out lead , led entire 200 laps on half-mile dirt track. wound 3 laps in front of runner-up bill blair, nosed out lee petty in stretch duel. jimmy florian fourth , bill rexford fifth.turner averaged 50.614 mph 3 caution flags broke action 7 total laps. following race, turner , petty engaged in curricular activity . each fined $100 nascar fighting @ inspection station. dick burns badly shaken when mercury left track , struck light pole in 133rd lap. event first grand national race in father-son duo competed together. roscoe pappy hough , son lee finished 18th , 25th.turner s victory pushed him atop point standings mere 2 points on lloyd moore. petty stood third in points, 24.5 points out of first place, stripped of 809 points when nascar officials discovered competed in non-sanctioned race week later @ concord, nc.

top ten results

1950-09

the ninth race of 1950 season run on july 23 @ charlotte speedway in charlotte, north carolina. curtis turner won pole. – curtis turner jumped lead in opening lap , never streaked victory in 150-mile grand national race @ charlotte speedway. muscular driver out of roanoke, va led start finish — second race in row turner has led every lap. triumph kept turner in grand national point lead lloyd moore dropped 21st in 26 car field. chuck mahoney finished in second place, herb thomas, jimmie lewallen , dick burns rounding out top five. bill blair , bill rexford pressured turner in going, blair departed broken spindle , engine failure put rexford out of action. lee petty , glenn dunnaway running in top 5 when both plymouth drivers lost wheels. finished llth , 12th respectively in final rundown. on same day, jim roper, winner of first grand national race @ charlotte on june 19, 1949, won 20 lap strictly stock outlaw feature @ pratt, kansas on 1.6-mile paved oval, averaging 67.659 mph.

top ten results

1950-10

the tenth race of 1950 season run on august 13 @ occoneechee speedway in hillsboro, north carolina. dick linder won pole.

top ten results

1950-11

the eleventh race of 1950 season run on august 20 @ dayton speedway in dayton, ohio. curtis turner won pole.

top ten results

1950-12

the twelfth race of 1950 season run on august 27 @ hamburg speedway in hamburg, new york. dick linder won pole.

top ten results

southern 500

the inaugural southern 500 run on september 4 @ darlington raceway in darlington, south carolina. curtis turner won pole.

top ten results

1950-14

the fourteenth race of 1950 season run on september 17 @ langhorne speedway in langhorne, pennsylvania. wally campbell won pole.

top ten results

wilkes 200

the wilkes 200 run on september 24 @ north wilkesboro speedway in north wilkesboro, north carolina. fireball roberts won pole.

top ten results

1950-16

the sixteenth race of 1950 season run on october 1 @ vernon fairgrounds in vernon, new york. dick linder won pole.

top ten results

1950-17

the seventeenth race of 1950 season run on october 15 @ martinsville speedway in martinsville, virginia, race regarded second edition of old dominion 500 (the distance changed after track paved in 1955 200 400, , 500 laps). fonty flock won pole.

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this race team owner junie donlavey s first career start, fielding oldsmobile driven runt harris.

1950-18

the eighteenth race of 1950 season run on october 15 @ funk s speedway in winchester, indiana. dick linder won pole.

top ten results

1950-19

the nineteenth , final race of 1950 season run on october 29 @ occoneechee speedway in hillsboro, north carolina. fonty flock won pole.

top ten results