History of American Stock Car Racing - Essay Example

History of American Stock Car Racing Introduction Today stock car racing through NASCAR is one of the most viewed of all professional sports, with only the National Football League (NFL) having more viewers within the United States. NASCAR’s popularity has grown from predominantly a southern appreciated event to a sport recognized internationally. NASCAR races are broadcast in over 150 countries worldwide. The sport has continued to evolve with the times and in 2010 welcomed its first female driver in the Busch Series. While today stock car racing is an internationally recognized event, it wasn’t always this way. In fact, the sport started off with extremely inauspicious beginnings, and only later evolved into the multi-billion dollar enterprise of the 21st century. This essay examines the history of American stock car racing and considers the factors that contributed to its evolution from an event associated with bootlegging to one of the most watched sports in the United States. Moonshine Runners Although stock car racing is more popular today the ever it can be traced back to inauspicious beginnings during the 1920s. From 1920 to 1933 the Prohibition Period made it illegal to produce, sell, and drink liquor, so a prosperous bootlegging industry developed. Many people called bootleggers would illegally run whiskey to market places often racing at high speeds to outrun the police. In an effort to increase their efficiency and limit their chances of being apprehended bootleggers began to develop enhanced, or ‘souped-up’, engines and suspensions for the cars they drove. As the faster vehicle greatly increased the chances of evading the United States Department of Justice these drivers were termed ‘moonshine runners’.1 David “Turbo” Thompson, an associate professor at Loras College in Dubuque, Iowa, who also raced stock cars stated, “Runners built their reputations by outsmarting and outdriving the law.”2 As much of the alcohol was produced in the Appalachian region this primarily became a southern activity. In 1933, when the prohibition ended, stock car racing was becoming very popular. After Prohibition was repealed a great deal of the runners’ business halted, but soon many regions developed an affinity for moonshine alcohol. Moonshine running soon became a recreational activity and races along dirt roads and similar tracks began occurring throughout the southern states, most notably the Wilkes County region of North Carolina. The cars continued to improve and eventually races on Sundays were organized. A number of moonshine runners gained great acclaim, including Fonty Flock, Lee Petty, and Junior Johnson.3 Move to Organized Racing Throughout the 1920s and 1930s the Daytona Beach, Florida increasingly became recognized as the area in the world where land speed records were set. The historic track has been described as, “Drivers raced on a 4.1-mile (6.6 km) course, consisting of a 1.5 to 2-mile (3.2 km) stretch of beach as one straightaway, and a narrow blacktop beachfront highway, A1A, as the other. The two straights were connected by 2 tight, deeply rutted and sand covered turns at each end.”4 One of the most famous races in the history of stock car racing occurred in 1903 and it helped establish the region as the perennial area for speed.5 The race was between Ransom Olds and Alexander Winston and it brought great prominence to the Daytona Beach course within the racing community. While previously speed record breaking had been a European venture, between 1927 and 1935 eight consecutive world speed records were set; by the time Bonneville Salt Flats in Salt Lake City, Utah replaced Daytona Beach, Florida as the premier location for breaking speed record, the Daytona Beach raceway (between 1905 and 1935) had set fifteen world records. As this historic course gradually became rutted and deteriorated a new track, the Daytona Beach Road Course, was formed. In 1936 local racer Sig Haugdahl promoted and held the first race on this newly formed Daytona Beach Road Course that would later become synonymous with NASCAR racing. The 250 mile, 72 lap race was a logistic and financial failure. There was a $5,000 purse offered with $1,700 allocated to the winner, however the turns of the course became so filled with crashed cars that the runners up protested the race. When ticketholders arrived they discovered that the area allocated for seating had already been occupied by people who had arrived well-ahead of time. Ultimately the race ended up losing $20,000.6 After the failed race promoting duties were assumed by driver ‘Big’ Bill France. By 1938 ‘Big’ Bill France organized a race on the beach of Daytona. The winner recieved prizes such as liquor and cigars. Throughout the 1930s and 1940s France promoted and raced in over fifteen events. While he left the area for a period after the Pearl Harbor attacks, he returned in 1947 and established the Occoneeche Speedway. One of the underlining problems of the races of the 1930s and 1940s was that that there were no rules and they went highly unregulated. Furthermore, unethical promoters oftentimes would refuse to pay the drivers the agreed upon winnings. When tracks did develop rules there was great confusion among different tracks and it became abundantly clear that an organized racing society needed to be developed. ‘Big’ Bill France, sought to it that this would become a reality. Formation of NASCAR Bill France saw the potential of racing and by the late 1940 had decided to form an organization. He first approached the American Automobile Association but they declined his offer, but France went ahead anyway and named this makeshift plan the National Championship Stock Car Series. France developed a set of rules and determined that the winner of the season would receive $1,000 and a NCSCS trophy. The season would contain forty events and would begin in January 1947 in Daytona Beach, Florida and conclude the following December in Jacksonville. The season was a resounding success and nearly all the venues were filled to capacity. Fonty Flock was declared the champion at the end of the year.7 December 14, 1947 Big Bill brought together race car drivers and track owners from throughout the country at the art-deco Streamline Hotel in Daytona Beach, Florida. The track owners debated and eventually came to terms on a standard set of rules that would be implemented throughout the countries speedways. Among things that were debated included uniform rules, insurance requirements, and purses. The now famous point system was devised and written on a hotel napkin. Three divisions were organized: Roadster, Modified, and Strictly Stock. The organizers didn’t believe that the public would want to watch cars that they themselves couldn’t use or have access to, so they agreed that all cars that would race would be required to be composed of parts that were completely available to the public through automobile dealers; the models of the cars also had to have sold more than five hundred public units. During this era it became common for many racers to drive the car they were going to use in the race to the race itself. It wasn’t until the late 1950s that NASCAR began to allow the cars to be specifically modified for racing. The organization and rules they formed this day would come to form, on February 21, 1948, what we now know today as NASCAR. NASCAR Early Years NASCAR stands for the National Association of Stock Car Auto Racing. In 1948, the first year of this organization, there were 52 races held on assorted dirt tracks. The first race was held in February of 1948 at Daytona Beach where in the Modified division Red Byron beat Marshall Teague; Byron would go on to claim the first NASCAR championship that year. The first Strictly Stock race was held at the Charlotte Speedway and was won by Jim Roper. In 1950 the Strictly Stock series was renamed the Grand National Series. Development of the Strictly Stock Series The stock car series that is most well known today developed out of this early incarnation of the Strictly Stock Series, or Grand National Series. Since these early incarnations great changes have been instituted and today only one track that was originally included in the season, the Martinsville Speedway, remains. In the early years the races were held entirely on dirt, oval tracks.8 It wasn’t until the creation of Darlington Raceway in 1950 that there was a paved track on the season schedule. In 1959 the Daytona International Speedway was constructed and since then has become the flagship race on the season schedule. In the 1960s an influx of superspeedways were constructed and the majority of the tracks became paved. The final dirt race was held in 1970 at the State Fairgrounds Speedway in North Carolina. In 1972 tobacco company R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Company became the primary sponsor of the series and as a result the Grand National Series name was changed to the Winston Cup Series, ushering in the modern era of NASCAR. They would remain the sponsor until 2003 when increased pressure as a result of the tobacco affiliation led NASCAR to find different sponsorship. A number of changes were instituted when R.J. Reynolds assumed primary sponsorship in 1972. The schedule was changed from 48 to 31 races per year. The circuit became shorter. The point system was also changed and would undergo a series of modifications over the proceeding five years; it was finally determined that all races, regardless of length and the amount of purse would receive equal points. This new point system made it requisite for drivers to participate in every race in order to be crowned Winston Cup Champion. All races on dirt tracks were eliminated, as well as all races on oval paved tracks that weren’t at least two-hundred and fifty miles. During this period Bill France gave over control of NASCAR to his son Bill France, Jr.9 In 1979 the Daytona 500 became the first race on the series to be broadcast nationally. The race became one of the most famous races in NASCAR history as a major wreck on the home stretch by Cale Yarborough and Donnie Allison allowed Richard Petty to coast to victory. This resulted in a fist fight between Yarborough and Allison that captivated viewers and drew wide media attention and support to the sport. Today, the Dayton 500 is the first race of the season and is widely recognized as the most prestigious race on the circuit. In the 1980s an awards program was instituted. This ceremony continues to exist today. In 1985 a program called the Winston Million was devised that granted $1 million to any driver who was able to win 3 of 4 of the most renowned races on the circuit. Since then the prize has only been claimed by two drivers – Bill Elliot in 1985 and Jeff Gordon in 1997. In the 1990s the popularity of the circuit grew immensely and the prize money for the prestigious Daytona 500 multiplied three times. In 2003 the series’ sponsorship switched and its new name became the NEXTEL Cup Series and then in 2008 the Sprint Cup Series. When NEXTEL took over the series the point system was changed and the Chase for the Championship program was instituted. In the Chase for the Championship program after the first 26 races the drivers with the twelve highest points totals are placed in a bracket for the remaining races and the driver with the highest total at the end of the season is then awarded the Sprint Cup. This new system ensures that drivers must compete equally as well throughout all portions of the season and it greatly increases the chances of the winner being determined in the final few races. A number of other prizes are also given out for runners up to ensure that the series remains competitive.10 Contemporary NASCAR It is composed of two sponsors one is the Bush series, the other is the Sprint Series. It is the most popular because it consists of all the greats, the fastest drivers with the best racing times. Both series draw in more than 19 million fans all coming to see the excitement. Today NASCAR sponsors more than 1700 races across the united states. One major race is the Daytona 500. It started a long a prosperous life for NASCAR. Nascar racing today is done in cars like this on ash fault tracks. Throughout the race which can last up to four hours there are eight different flags that can be flown. Including some like the green flag which tells the drivers to start, the yellow flag which means caution or slow down and maintain your current position, the red flag which tells the drivers to stop due to unsafe condition, the white flag which signifies the last lap and the checkered flag which signifies the end of the race. During the time that the caution flag is out many drivers make a pit stop. There are seven people on the pit crew allowed over the wall at one time. They each have their own jobs. Top pit crews can have their driver back out on the track in under 20 seconds. The crew fills the car with gas, changes tires, cleans the windshield, and makes minor adjustments if necessary. The drivers communicate with the crew chief through a head set so they know exactly when to pit. Conclusion By examining the definition, the history, and the racing of stock car racing it’s hoped that you one is informed about a sport that is full of excitement. competitiveness, and is continuing to grow. It should be extremely evident that while many people believe that stock car racing is an activity only enjoyed by a minority of people in southern regions of the country, it is actually a sport with a well-developed history that is appreciated and watched throughout the entire country and, indeed, the world. References Levinson, Meredith. ‘A Brief History of Nascar: From Moonshine Runners to Dale Earnhardt Jr.’ http://www.cio.com/article/17142/A_Brief_History_of_Nascar_From_Moonshine_Runners_to_Dale_Earnhardt_Jr Oldham, Scott. "NASCAR Turns 50." Popular Mechanics. Hearst Communications NASCAR, an Overview - Part 1." Suite101.com.. Fielden, Greg (2005). "Beachfront View". in Editors of Consumer Guide. NASCAR: A Fast History. Lincolnwood, Illinois: Publications International Ltd.. pp. 31 Fielden, Greg (2005). "The National Championship Stock Car Circuit". in Editors of Consumer Guide. NASCAR: A Fast History. Lincolnwood, Illinois: Publications International Ltd. Fleischman, Bill and Pearce. Al. (1999)The Unauthorized NASCAR Fan Guide Williams, Deborah (2003). ‘Daytona Beach: Sun seekers and race car fans flock to Florida Beach. Travel America. Travel America. Read More