| Race details[1][2] | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Race 41 of 59 in the1966 NASCAR Grand National Series season | |||
 | |||
| Date | August 27, 1966; 59 years ago (1966-08-27) | ||
| Official name | Myers Brothers 250 | ||
| Location | Bowman Gray Stadium,Winston-Salem, North Carolina | ||
| Course | Permanent racing facility | ||
| Course length | 0.250 miles (0.421 km) | ||
| Distance | 250 laps, 62.5 mi (100.5 km) | ||
| Weather | Very hot with temperatures of 84.9 °F (29.4 °C); wind speeds of 7 miles per hour (11 km/h) | ||
| Average speed | 45.928 miles per hour (73.914 km/h) | ||
| Attendance | 15,000[3] | ||
| Pole position | |||
| Driver | Petty Enterprises | ||
| Most laps led | |||
| Driver | David Pearson | Cotton Owens | |
| Laps | 129 | ||
| Winner | |||
| No. 6 | David Pearson | Cotton Owens | |
| Television in the United States | |||
| Network | untelevised | ||
| Announcers | none | ||
The1966 Myers Brothers 250 was aNASCARGrand National Series event that was held on August 27, 1966, atBowman Gray Stadium inWinston-Salem, North Carolina.
Bowman Gray Stadium is aNASCAR sanctioned1⁄4-mile (0.40 km) asphalt flat ovalshort track and longstandingfootball stadium located inWinston-Salem, North Carolina. It is one of stock car racing's most legendary venues, and is referred to as "NASCAR's longest-running weekly race track". Bowman Gray Stadium is part of theWinston-Salem Sports and Entertainment Complex and is home of theWinston-Salem State University Rams football team.[4] It was also the home of theWake Forest University football team from 1956 untilGroves Stadium (laterBB&T Field) opened in 1968.
The race took one hour and twenty-one minutes to complete.[2][3] Three cautions slowed the race for sixteen laps.[2][3] Notable speeds for this race were: 45.928 miles per hour (73.914 km/h) as the average speed[2] and 54.348 miles per hour (87.465 km/h) for the pole position speed.[3] Because the paved oval course only spanned 0.250 miles (0.402 km),[2][3] speeds on this track emulated that of America'sInterstate Highway System.
Fifteen thousand fans came to seeDavid Pearson defeatRichard Petty by ten seconds.[2][3] There were 23American-born drivers and one foreign driver (Don Biederman).[3]Dale Inman was one of three most notable crew chiefs in the race along withFrankie Scott andBud Hartje.[5]
Curtis Turner andBobby Allison were involved in a crash[2] that got them disqualified from the race in addition topolice intervention. However, no charges were laid. The incident started on lap eight of the race and the two drivers would knock and spin each other for approximately ten laps. Both vehicles were eventually tossed out as they came out of ademolition derby. However, Allison and Turner eventually became friends again but this incident would be the most heinous in pre-modern NASCAR history. Turner would eventually die in 1970 from an airplane crash which would also take the life of professional golfer Clarence King.[6]
The transition to purpose-built racecars began in the early 1960s and occurred gradually over that decade. Changes made to the sport by the late 1960s brought an end to the "strictly stock" vehicles of the 1950s.
| Grid[3] | No. | Driver | Manufacturer | Owner |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 42 | Richard Petty | '66Plymouth | Petty Enterprises |
| 2 | 6 | David Pearson | '65Dodge | Cotton Owens |
| 3 | 2 | Bobby Allison | '65Chevrolet | Donald Brackins |
| 4 | 26 | Curtis Turner | '66Ford | Junior Johnson |
| 5 | 59 | Tom Pistone | '64Ford | Tom Pistone |
| 6 | 64 | Elmo Langley | '64Ford | Elmo Langley / Henry Woodfield |
| 7 | 4 | John Sears | '64Ford | L.G. DeWitt |
| 8 | 48 | James Hylton | '65Dodge | Bud Hartje |
| 9 | 92 | Hank Thomas | '64Ford | W.S. Jenkins |
| 10 | 65 | Buddy Arrington | '65Dodge | Buddy Arrington |
| 11 | 94 | Don Biederman | '64Chevrolet | Ron Stotten |
| 12 | 40 | Eddie Yarboro | '65Dodge | Eddie Yarboro |
| 13 | 61 | Joel Davis | '66Chevrolet | Toy Bolton |
| 14 | 34 | Wendell Scott | '65Ford | Wendell Scott |
| 15 | 70 | J.D. McDuffie | '64Ford | J.D. McDuffie |
| 16 | 38 | Wayne Smith | '66Chevrolet | Archie Smith |
| 17 | 20 | Clyde Lynn | '64Ford | Clyde Lynn |
| 18 | 60 | Ernest Eury | '64Chevrolet | Joan Petre |
| 19 | 15 | Paul Dean Holt | '64Ford | Lyle Stelter |
| 20 | 97 | Henley Gray | '66Ford | Henley Gray |
| 21 | 00 | Buddy Baker | '64Ford | Clyde Lynn |
| 22 | 95 | Bill Seifert | '64Ford | Bill Seifert |
| 23 | 73 | Jimmy Helms | '64Ford | Joan Petre |
| 24 | 50 | Larry Manning | '64Chevrolet | Edgar Wallen |
Section reference:[3]
Section reference:[3]
* Driver failed to finish race
† Driver is deceased
| Preceded by | NASCAR Grand National Series season 1966 | Succeeded by |