1955 Mid-South 250
Coordinates: 35°8.31486′N 90°18.9617′W / 35.13858100°N 90.3160283°W
| Race details[1] | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Race 33 of 45 in the 1955 NASCAR Grand National Series season | |||
| Date | August 14, 1955 | ||
| Official name | Mid-South 250 | ||
| Location | Memphis-Arkansas Speedway (LeHi, Arkansas) | ||
| Course |
Permanent racing facility 1.500 mi (3.000 km) | ||
| Distance | 160 laps, 250.1 mi (402.8 km) | ||
| Weather | Hot with temperatures approaching 89.1 °F (31.7 °C); wind speeds up to 12 miles per hour (19 km/h) | ||
| Average speed | 89.982 miles per hour (144.812 km/h) | ||
| Attendance | 15,000[2] | ||
| Pole position | |||
| Driver | Carl Keikhaefer | ||
| Most laps led | |||
| Driver | Fonty Flock | Carl Keikhaefer | |
| Laps | 88 | ||
| Winner | |||
| No. 301 | Fonty Flock | Carl Keikhaefer | |
The 1955 Mid-South 250 was a NASCAR Grand National Series (now Sprint Cup Series) event that was held on August 14, 1955 at the Memphis-Arkansas Speedway in LeHi, Arkansas.
The race car drivers still had to commute to the races using the same stock cars that competed in a typical weekend's race through a policy of homologation (and under their own power). This policy was in effect until roughly 1975. By 1980, NASCAR had completely stopped tracking the year model of all the vehicles and most teams did not take stock cars to the track under their own power any more.
Summary
One hundred and sixty-seven laps were done on a dirt oval track spanning 1.500 miles (2.414 km).[2][3] There were no cautions and the time of the race was two hours, forty-seven minutes, and twelve seconds.[2][3] The average speed was 89.982 miles per hour (144.812 km/h) while the pole position speed was 99.944 miles per hour (160.844 km/h).[2][3] Fifteen thousand people attended this live and completely untelevised race.[2] Total winnings for this race were $10,625 ($93,856.37 when adjusted for inflation) with the winner receiving $2,950 ($26,058.94 when adjusted for inflation).[3]
Fonty Flock managed to break his brother's eight-race pole streak. However, Tim Flock qualified in second place for this race.[3] Fonty would eventually win the race in his 1955 Chrysler C-300[2] but Tim would finish in third place (one position worse than he started in).[3] None of the speed records from qualifying portion of this race survive today. This is due NASCAR's tendency to throw away data during that era instead of tabulating it into a more permanent form at the end of each season. Records that survive from the earlier years of NASCAR are often spared from being burned or shredded. Lee Petty was knocked out of the race due to problem with his car's U joint and Jimmie Lewallen was forced out of the race due to a broken gas line.
Ted Cannady and Banks Simpson would make their NASCAR debuts at this racing event while Ken Johns and Jim McLain would end their NASCAR careers here.[3] No record pertaining to the points system used in NASCAR was recorded for this event.[4]
Finishing order
- Fonty Flock†
- Speedy Thompson†
- Tim Flock†
- Jim Paschal†
- Buck Baker†
- Bob Welborn†
- Junior Johnson
- Slick Smith
- Jimmy Ayers
- Ken Johns
- Dave Terrell
- Eddie Skinner
- Joe Guide
- Herb Thomas†
- Ted Cannady
- Banks Simpson
- Gene Simpson
- Al Watkins
- Lee Petty*†
- Roscoe Rann
- Jimmie Lewallen*†
- Jim McLain
- Hooker Hood*
- Jack Hubbard*
- Harold Kite*†
- Woodie Wilson*
- Billy Carden*†
- Gordon Smith*
- Gwyn Staley*†
* Driver failed to finish race
† signifies that the driver is known to be deceased
Timeline
- Start of race: Fonty Flock started the race with the pole position
- Lap 3: Gwyn Staley became the last place finisher due to faulty bearings
- Lap 5: Gordon Smith's engine blew, which ended his race weekend a bit too soon
- Lap 11: Billy Carden noticed that the bearings on his vehicle were acting funny; forcing him to end his race weekend early
- Lap 18: Tim Flock takes over the lead from Fonty Flock; Woodie Wilson managed to overheat his vehicle
- Lap 23: Harold Kite had troubles with his pistons, ending his race weekend prematurely
- Lap 56: Jack Hubbard experienced enough problems with his push rod to not finish the event
- Lap 65: The push rod on Hooker Hood's vehicle became problematic, preventing him from finishing the race
- Lap 96: Jimmie Lewallen's gas line no longer worked properly, making him exit the event prematurely
- Lap 97: Fonty Flock takes over the lead from Tim Flock
- Lap 135: Lee Petty's vehicle developed a problematic U-joint, forcing him to leave the race
- Finish: Fonty Flock was officially declared the winner of the event
References
- ↑ "Weather information for the 1955 Mid-South 250". The Old Farmers' Almanac. Retrieved 2012-08-03.
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Basic information". Racing Reference. Retrieved 2010-05-05.
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 "Advanced information". Race Database. Retrieved 2012-03-11.
- ↑ "Points scoring information". Fantasy Racing Cheat Sheet. Retrieved 2012-09-02.
| Preceded by 1954 Mid-South 250 |
Mid-South 250 races 1954-1955 |
Succeeded by none |
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