Special Publication by Kapp Advertising - 2017 Season 5 A Bit of NASCAR History The driving force behind the establishment of NASCAR was William “Bill” France Sr. teams. Drivers such as Darrell Waltrip, Dale Earnhart, Bill Elliott and others were rising to (1909-1992), a mechanic and auto repair shop owner from Washington, DC. In the 1930’s Bill the challenge. Petty, Allison and Yarborough were displaying the colors of detergents, cof- moved to Daytona Beach, FL. The Daytona area was a gathering spot for racing enthusiasts, fees and cereals on the hoods of their cars. The Winston Cup All-Star race in 1985 was a big and France became involved in racing cars and promoting races. After witnessing how racing bonus to the drivers and fans of NASCAR. This event was open to all drivers who won races rules could vary from event to event and how dishonest promoters could be with the prize in 1984 and held at Charlotte Motor Speedway. The event was “on the house” for people who money, France felt there was a need for a governing body to sanction and promote racing. had paid to see a race the day before. In December of 1947, Bill France Sr. organized a meeting at the Streamline Hotel in NASCAR’s expansion begins to take place more rapidly in 1993 and they opened the first Daytona Beach, to discuss the problems facing stock car racing. Among the issues facing the New England track: New Hampshire Motor Speedway. Indianapolis would join the schedule sport were tracks that could not handle the crowds or the cars and varying rules from location in 1994. The 1st race of the NASCAR’s Craftsman’s Truck Series, the “Skoal Bandit Copper to location. Others agreed that these were problems that could be solved, and from that meet- World Classic” was won by Mike Skinner in Phoenix in 1995. 14 years after this event, in ing, the National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing was born. 2009, the series gained a new sponsor becoming the Camping World Truck Series. In 1998, In February of 1948, The National Association for Stock Car Racing-or NASCAR is offi- Las Vegas joined the Cup Series, Pike’s Peak in Colorado joined the Xfinity Series and races cially incorporated. Two months after the December meeting, the first sanctioned NASCAR in Colorado, St. Louis and Memphis, TN joined the Truck Series. race was held on Daytona’s beach course, a location France was familiar with, helping pro- 2001 was a tragic year. Dale Earnhart (49 years old) crashed into a retaining wall at the mote races there and even racing himself. The first race was won by Red Byron in his Ford Daytona International Speedway, after making contact with Ken Schrader and died. After Modified. France served as NASCAR’s first president and played a key role in shaping its Earnhart’s death, NASCAR began an intensive focus on safety, including head-n-neck development in the sport’s early decades. restraints, safer barriers at oval tracks, new inspection rules for seats and seat belts and a roof NASCAR held its first Strickly Stock race on June 19, 1949, at the Charlotte Speedway hatch escape system. in North Carolina. Some 13,000 fans were on hand to watch Glenn Dunnaway finish the 200- Tony Stewart’s championship year of 2002 was the beginning of a youth movement lap race first in his Ford; however, Jim Roper (drove a Lincoln) collected the $2000 prize in NASCAR. A new generation of drivers erupted with names like Jimmie Johnson, Matt after Dunnaway was disqualified for illegal rear springs on his vehicle. In the early years of Kenseth, Dale Earnhart Jr., Kurt Busch and Ryan Newman becoming more popular. NASCAR, competitors drove the same types of cars that people drove on the street-Buicks, In 2003, Bill France, Jr. stepped down as president and was replaced by his son Brian Cadillacs, Oldsmobiles, among others, with minimal modifications. France (1962-) as NASCAR’s Chairman and CEO. Brian would go on to be named as one In 1950, the first, NASCAR based, asphalt track, the Darlington Raceway in South of the five most powerful sports executives by The Sporting News in 2005. In 2006, Time Carolina opened. They had 74 entrants. The race was won by Johnny Martz in a 1950 Magazine placed Brian France on the “100 Most Influential of the Century” list. Plymouth. More raceways followed, including the Daytona International Speedway, which 2004 brought “The Chase” for the NASCAR Nextel cup, giving the racing season a post- opened in 1959. Lee Petty won the first Daytona 500, in front of 41,000 fans. season playoff as in other sports. The 1st Chase was won by Kurt Busch. Wendell Scott was the first African-American to win a premier division NASCAR race at In October of 2009 the first inaugural class of the NASCAR Hall of Fame was announced Jacksonville Speedway in 1963. in Charlotte. Nominees included Bill France Sr., Bill France Jr., Richard Petty, Dale Earnhart In 1972, France’s son, William France Jr., took over the presidency of NASCAR from and Junior Johnson. his father. Over the next three decades, the younger France (1933-2007) was instrumental in December of 2012 unveiled the Generation-6 cars which brought NASCAR back to its transforming NASCAR from a regional sport popular primarily in the southeast US into one roots of stock cars. The new Generation-6 cars are safer, more exciting on the track and with a global fan base. resemble the cars sold on showroom floors. On February 18, 1979, the first live flag-to-flag coverage of the Daytona 500 was broad- Jimmie Johnson won his first Cup Series championship in 2006. He would continue his cast on television. An end-of-the-race brawl between drivers Cale Yarborough and Donnie winning streak and captured his 7th championship in 2016, tying Richard Petty and Dale and Bobby Allison was a huge publicity generator and helped boost NASCAR’s popularity Earnhart for the most Cup Series Championships of all time. on a national scale. Also in 1979, Richard Petty won his record seventh series championship. In 1981, NASCAR downsized the cars wheelbase from 115” to 110” to help save on fuel costs. Team sponsorship became paramount in 1982 as costs were ris- ing sharply. Teams had to perform well to secure and keep sponsorships. Winning races was a prerequisite, and crews often challenged the savvy of the NASCAR technical inspectors in their efforts to gain a “competitive edge”. 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