| The Beach | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Location | Daytona Beach,Ponce Inlet,Daytona Beach Shores,Florida |
| Owner | Public |
| Operator | Closed |
| Opened | 1902 |
| Closed | February 23, 1958 |
| Major events | Site of the second race of the inaugural NASCAR season |
| Road course | |
| Length | 3.1 to 4.2 mi (5.0 to 6.7 km) |
TheDaytona Beach and Road Course was amotorsportrace track that was instrumental in the formation of theNational Association for Stock Car Auto Racing (NASCAR). It originally became famous as the location where 15world land speed records were set.
The course started on the pavement of highwayA1A (at 4511 South Atlantic Avenue, Ponce Inlet29°06′32″N80°56′37″W / 29.108890°N 80.943669°W /29.108890; -80.943669). A restaurant named "Racing's North Turn" now stands at that location. It went south 2 mi (3.2 km) parallel to the ocean on A1A (S. Atlantic Ave) to the end of the road, where the drivers accessed the beach at the south turn at the Beach Street approach29°05′05″N80°55′32″W / 29.084705°N 80.925566°W /29.084705; -80.925566, returned 2 miles (3.2 km) north on the sandy beach surface, and returned to A1A at the north turn.[1] The lap length in early events was 3.2 mi (5.1 km), and it was lengthened to 4.2 mi (6.8 km) in the late 1940s. In the video gameNASCAR Thunder 2004 byEA Sports, the course is shortened to about half its distance, but still shows how the basic course was set up.
On March 29, 1927, MajorHenry Segrave and hisSunbeam 1000 hpMystery set a worldland speed record on the Daytona Beach and Road Course, at 203.79 mph (327.97 km/h), peaking at a top speed of 211 mph (340 km/h).[2]
Washington, DC residentWilliam France, Sr. was familiar with the history of Daytona. He moved there in 1935 to escape theGreat Depression and he set up a car repair shop.
Daytona Beach officials asked local racerSig Haugdahl to organize and promote an automobile race along the 3.2 mi (5.1 km) course in 1936. Haugdahl is credited for designing the track. The city posted a $5,000 purse.[3] The ticket-takers arrived at the event on March 8[4] to find thousands of fans already at the track. The sandy turns became virtually impassable, which caused numerous scoring disputes and technical protests. The event was stopped after 75 of 78 laps. Milt Marion was declared the winner by theAAA (the sanctioning body). Second-place finisher Ben Shaw and third-place finisher Tommy Elmore protested the results, but their appeals were overturned. France finished fifth in the event. The city lost a reported $22,000 ($498508 in 2016 dollars),[3] and has not promoted an event since.
Haugdahl talked with France, and they talked the Daytona BeachElks Club into hosting another event in 1937. The event was more successful, but still lost money.[3] Haugdahl did not promote any more events.
France took over the job of running the course in 1938. Two events were held that year. Danny Murphy beat France in the July event, which made $200. France beat Lloyd Moody and Pig Ridings to win the Labor Day weekend event, this time making $20,000.
Three races were held in 1939, and in three races in 1940, France finished fourth in March, first in July, and sixth in September.
Lloyd Seay finished fourth in the July 27, 1941, event after rolling twice. He returned on August 24 that year to win the event. He was killed by a family member in a dispute over the family moonshine business nine days later.
Roy Hall won on the course several times.
France was busy planning the 1942 event, until the Japanese bombedPearl Harbor; he spentWorld War II working at the Daytona Boat Works. Most racing stopped until after the war. Car racing returned to the track in 1946.
France knew that promoters needed to organize their efforts. Drivers were frequently victimized by unscrupulous promoters who would leave events with all the money before drivers were paid. On December 14, 1947, France began talks at the Ebony Bar at theStreamline Hotel atDaytona Beach, Florida, that ended with the formation of NASCAR on February 21, 1948. The Daytona Beach and Road Course hosted the premiere event of the fledgling series untilDarlington Speedway was completed in 1950.
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NASCAR held a modified division race at the track on February 15, 1948.Red Byron beatMarshall Teague. NASCAR had several divisions in its early years.
1949
The first NASCARStrictly Stock Series race was held in 1949 at theCharlotte Speedway. The second race on the series schedule was held at Daytona Beach in July; 28 cars raced, includingCurtis Turner,Buck Baker,Bob Flock,Fonty Flock,Marshall Teague,Herb Thomas, and second-place finisherTim Flock. Red Byron scored for his fourth win at the track in the decade. Byron went on to win the series’ first championship in his 1949Oldsmobile.
1950
The Strictly Stock series was renamed the Grand National Series. The race was moved to February, which becomes a tradition still held to this day with the modernDaytona 500.Harold Kite won the race in a 1949Lincoln. He took the lead on lap 25 when Red Byron pitted with gearshift problems. Kite led the rest of the way. Byron surged from seventh to finish second. A second race was added to the weekend, the 100-mile (160 km) Modified Stock race, the day before. Gober Sosebee won.
1951
Marshall Teague glided his 1951Fabulous Hudson Hornet into victory lane for his first career victory. He beat Tim Flock by 1 minute and 14 seconds. Gober Sosebee won the Modified Stock race for the second year in a row.
1952
Teague made it two in a row in his 1952 Hudson. He gained the lead on lap two. The race was shortened by two laps because of an incoming tide. Teague won by 1 minute and 21 seconds overHerb Thomas. A day earlier,Tim Flock was flagged the winner at the Modified/Sportsman race, but was disqualified for having wooden rollbars and 2nd place runner up[3]Jack Smith (American racing driver, born 1924) was declared the winner of the Modified/Sportsman race.
1953
Polesitter Bob Pronger and second-place starterFonty Flock had a bet as to who would lead the first lap. They both raced wildly into the north corner. Pronger went too fast into corner, and wrecked his car. Flock had over a one-minute lead in the race, but ran out of gas taking the white flag at the start of the final lap. Flock's teammate pushed his car into the pits.Bill Blair passed to win the race in a 1953 Oldsmobile. Flock finished second by 26 seconds.
In the 100-mile (160 km) Modified/Sportsman race that year, 136 cars started, making it the largest field ever in any NASCAR-sanctioned event.Cotton Owens was the victor.
1954
The "Speedweeks" weekend was expanded to three events, the 100-mile (160 km) Sportsmen race, the 125-mile (201 km) Modified race, and the 160-mile (260 km) main event. Dick Joslin and Cotton Owens won the preliminaries, respectively. Tim Flock finished the main event first, but was disqualified on a minor technicality. Second-place finisherLee Petty edged outBuck Baker, and Petty was declared the winner of the main event. Flock became the first driver to have radio contact with his crew.
1955
The 1955 race was won byFireball Roberts. He was later disqualified, so the official win went to Tim Flock. Roberts was disqualified after NASCAR's technical director foundpushrods that were 0.016 inches (0.41 mm) too long.
Preliminary races were won bySpeedy Thompson (100-mile Sportsmen) andBanjo Matthews (125-mile Modified).
1956
Tim Flock won his second consecutive Daytona race from the pole in his 1956Chrysler C-300. The car was owned by legendary NASCAR car ownerCarl Kiekhaefer. He led every lap except for the four after his first pit stop. Charlie Scott became the first African-American to compete in a NASCAR Grand National race, driving another Kiekhaefer-entered Chrysler.
1957
The three-race weekend was revised with new preliminary formats. The first race was a 125-mile (201 km) Modifield/Sportsmen race, and the second was a 160-mile (260 km) Late Model Convertible event. Tim Flock and Curtis Turner were the victors.
In the main event, Cotton Owens moved from his third-place starting position to lead the first lap.Paul Goldsmith took the lead briefly after 40 mi (64 km) (of 160 mi (260 km)). Goldsmith took the lead back from Owens after Owens pitted after 94 mi (151 km). Goldsmith's quick pit stop gave him a lead that he maintained until he went out with a blown piston with 36 mi (58 km) left in the race. Owens led the rest of the way for his first career win. The win was the first NASCAR win forPontiac, and the first Grand National race speed average over 100 mph (101.541 mph).
1958
Paul Goldsmith started from the pole to win the final event at the course. He drove a Pontiac prepared byRay Fox. Curtis Turner finished second,Jack Smith was third, andJoe Weatherly was fourth. Lee Petty, Buck Baker, Fireball Roberts, and Cotton Owens finished in the top 10.
On Friday,Banjo Matthews won the Sportsmen/Modified race, while on Saturday, Curtis Turner won the 160-mile (260 km) Convertible race.
By 1953, it became increasingly complicated to run the race on the beach course due to the rapid urban growth of the Daytona Beach area.[5] Hotels were being constructed all along the beachfront. France Sr. knew that a permanent racetrack was needed to hold the large crowds that were gathering for races. He looked for alternatives and negotiated with the city of Daytona Beach to purchase a site near the Daytona airport.[6] He arranged financing and in 1957, construction began on theDaytona International Speedway, a 2.5 mi (4.0 km)tri-oval circuit with steep bankings that permitted higher speeds.[5][6]
The Daytona Beach course hosted its last event in 1958 and, in 1959 the firstDaytona 500 was held at the newsuperspeedway. Daytona Speed Week on the beach course continued through 1961 without using the adjoining public road, with time/distance record attempts held for the standing mile and flying mile in multiple classes. The six fastest stock cars recorded on the beach were 1960Chrysler 300G Specials.[citation needed]
