04-09-2012 - DARLINGTON RACEWAY TO HONOR YARBOROUGH

With Cale Yarborough now having been inducted into the third class of the NASCAR's Hall of Fame, Darlington Raceway will celebrate and honor his achievements during the upcoming Sprint Cup Series Bojangles' Southern 500 race weekend on May 11-12.

Darlington and the NASCAR Hall of Fame are partnering on a special ticket offer for fans, which will include an exclusive meet-and-greet and autograph session with the NASCAR legend and hometown hero from Timmonsville, S.C. For $59, each fan will receive a ticket in the Pearson grandstand for the Bojangles' Southern 500, a ticket to the NASCAR Hall of Fame (redeemable throughout the season), a 2012 Hall of Fame Yearbook and the opportunity to get up-close-and-personal with Yarborough on race day. The package is a savings of $36 if individual tickets were purchased for each venue separately. Packages can be purchased by calling 866-459-7223 or by visiting www.DarlingtonRaceway.com/congratscale.

"Congratulations to Cale on his induction into the NASCAR Hall of Fame. Cale is very deserving of his induction and his commitment and dedication to the growth and success of NASCAR and stock car racing is unparalleled," Darlington president Chris Browning said.

"To have a hometown hero like Cale have success at the sports greatest level is wonderful for our state. We are proud of the fact that he still calls his native Timmonsville home and Darlington Raceway his hometown track."

Yarborough will be on hand during the Bojangles' Southern 500 race weekend participating in various activities, including being honored during pre-race ceremonies for the track's 109th Sprint Cup race.

Yarborough is from Timmonsville, just 15 miles from The Lady in Black, is a local hero to race fans of all generations who call Darlington County home, where they witnessed one of the greatest stock car drivers of his time win five Southern 500 races from 1968-1982. (reprinted with permission from Jayski's)

No one had tell Junior Johnson that he, his team and his driver, Darrell Waltrip, were in difficult straits as the 1985 season wound to a close. With eight races to go, they were 206 points behind Bill Elliott, easily the season’s most dominant driver with 10 superspeedway victories. It was only natural that observers declare there was no way Elliott was going to lose the title. It seemed he would earn the first of his career rather easily. But racing is always unpredictable. While virtually no one thought Darrell stood a chance, his, and Junior’s, thinking was that indeed, they did. It would take some consistently solid performances on their part and some bad luck for Elliott. There was, of course, no guarantee that is what would happen. But that is exactly what happened. And in the space of a mere month, Elliott’s point lead was wiped out.  And it was very clear the battle for the championship would go down to the last race of 1985.

Junior’s contributions to www.motorsportsunplugged.com will appear every other Friday throughout the season. As I look back over the years there’s one accomplishment – one of many, I’m pleased to say – made by Junior Johnson & Associates that I consider outstanding, very outstanding, in fact. Sure, we won three Winston Cup championships in a row and a heckuva lot of races. But when it comes to overcoming adversity; to turning a bad, losing situation into a winning one, what happened in 1985 stands out. As you know, Darrell and Neil were our drivers that year. Neil did very well for most of the season but Darrell was far removed from his winning self. That had me a bit concerned. In the second half of the season Darrell turned it around a bit but I didn’t think we’d claim our third title again and for a good reason – one I’ve raised many times. And that was Bill Elliott, who was so dominant in 1985 he left the other drivers and teams flabbergasted – yeah, and us, too. Bill dominated the superspeedways. When he claimed the first Winston Million with his victory in the Southern 500 at Darlington, it was his 10th superspeedway victory of the season, which tied him with David Pearson for the all-time record. For me, that was depressing enough. What was more depressing was that Bill was ahead of Darrell by 206 points with just eight races remaining in the season. But, as I’ve said before, Darrell rallied, especially on the short tracks where we had been strong all year. 

After he won the 1985 championship, Waltrip said it was his most exciting and satisfying because he overcame so much to win it. In the space of just four races, Darrell went from 206 points out of the lead into first place, 30 points ahead of Bill. I’ll admit that Bill’s recurring mechanical problems hurt him during this stretch. Darrell had his share of problems, too, but with the team’s help he always seemed to do a better job of overcoming them than Bill. That’s the biggest reason we were able to wipe out a 206-point deficit in just four races. Think of it: We came from a time when folks said we had no chance at the championship at all to a time when we were leading in points. It all happened in just one month. That, to me, remains one of the most outstanding achievements by Junior Johnson & Associates – ever. But there were still four races to go and we hadn’t won anything yet. And Bill hadn’t lost anything, either. After North Wilkesboro, the next race was the Miller High Life 500 at Charlotte and I don’t have to tell you I was on pins and needles. We had won the 600 at CMS in May so I knew we would be good.  

But it was yet another superspeedway race and that meant, of course, Bill would be the hands-down favorite. Sure enough, he finished second to Cale. Darrell did a good job to finish in fourth place. He lost 20 points to Bill but was still in first place. That meant Darrell was out front by a mere 10 points and that, to me and just about everyone else, wasn’t enough. The final three races of the season were all on superspeedways and a road course – advantage Bill. But Darrell had the advantage at the next race at Rockingham. He outran Ron Bouchard to win the Nationwise 500 by 1.2 seconds. It was only Darrell’s third win of the season but it happened at a darn good time. Bill finished fourth, which meant Darrell held on to a 35-point lead going into the last two races of the season. Good, yes, but the pad wasn’t big enough. To me, Bill still had the competitive edge as we went to Atlanta and Riverside. Bill had been all but unbeatable at Atlanta – even before 1985 – had he was again this time out. He beat Cale by 4.25 seconds for his 11th win of the season. He broke Pearson’s all-time record. David had won 10 big-track events in 1973. Darrell ran well throughout the race and although he couldn’t match Bill, he finished a strong third. We left Atlanta with a 20-point lead and the road course at Riverside was next. I’d like to tell you that the final race of the season was dramatic or that Darrell and Bill slugged it out for 119 laps, but it wasn’t that way – for which I was grateful. Only six laps into the race, Bill sheared a bolt off his transmission and had to go to the garage area. He spent what seemed like an eternity off the track and when he returned, he was in 31st place. 

All Darrell had to do was stay on the track. And all our Chevrolet had to do was stay in one piece. Darrell did and the Chevy did. They came home comfortably in seventh place and we won the title by 101 points. Think of it, we had gone from 206 points down to 101 ahead in just eight races. I could hardly believe it – but I loved it. Darrell did, too. “The thing that makes this championship so much more exciting than the other two is that one guy had so much success this season,” he said. “Everybody was giving Bill the championship after the Southern 500. “But the way it turned out, it meant that two guys had successful seasons.” Me, I was satisfied with the championship, of course, but I was also relieved – and proud. For the longest time I thought we were going to have a mediocre season and get steamrolled by Bill. Then we had that huge rally after the Southern 500. Yes, as I’ve said, Bill had his problems. But to avoid, or overcome, problems are part of racing and can make all the difference in a championship run. I agree with Darrell to this day. Our third championship together was our most exciting and satisfying ever. Too bad it would be our last. (reprinted with permission from Motorsportsunplugged.com )

01-15-2012 - CALE YARBOROUGH'S '68 MERCURY CYCLONE ADDED

The University of Racing Legends is excited to add a true living legend to our growing stable of vintage diecast. NASCAR Hall of Fame driver Cale Yarborough’s #21 Wood Brothers Mercury Cyclone rolls into the UOR garage just in time for Yarborough’s induction into the NASCAR Hall of Fame. With 83 Cup wins and three consecutive championships from 1976-78, the “Timmonsville” flash set the standard during the era of heavy Detroit steel. This Wood Brother’s Mercury is an exact replica of the car that Yarborough piloted for the famous Wood Brothers Race Team, personally overseen by current team owner Eddie Wood.”

Be sure to add this amazing replica to your collection today.

11-07-2011 - 2012 NASCAR HALL OF FAME INDUCTION CEREMONY
Yarborough, Waltrip, Inman, Evans And Wood To Be Honored

The third annual NASCAR Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony is set for Friday evening, Jan. 20 in the Crown Ballroom of the Charlotte Convention Center. Tickets start at $40 and go on sale Tuesday, Sept. 20. The event is open to the public. Tickets are available on a first-come, first-serve basis and can be purchased through Ticketmaster or by calling 800-745-3000.

Ticket prices and packages for the Induction Ceremony will include:

Induction Dinner & Ceremony VIP Ticket - $299
Includes one Induction Dinner seat plus jacket Presentation access, one Induction Ceremony ticket, one Crew Chief NASCAR Hall of Fame Membership, one admission to First Look at the 2012 Class exhibits and one NASCAR Preview 2012, Presented by Sprint ticket

Induction Ceremony Ticket - Premium Seat - $75
Includes one Induction Ceremony ticket and one general admission ticket to the NASCAR Hall of Fame

Induction Ceremony Ticket - General Seat - $40
Includes one Induction Ceremony ticket and one general admission ticket to the NASCAR Hall of Fame

Click below for more information
http://www.nascarhall.com/

*Reprinted with permission of the NASCAR Hall of Fame

10-14-2011 - CHARLOTTE PAINT SCHEME HONORS GLEN WOOD'S LAST WINNING RIDE

The Wood Brothers have had lots to celebrate in 2011, including a win in the Daytona 500 and the election of team founder Glen Wood into the NASCAR Hall of Fame. The celebration continues during the Bank of America 500 weekend at Charlotte Motor Speedway, as the paint scheme on the No. 21 Motorcraft/Quick Lane Ford Fusion honors Glen Wood’s final win as a race driver.

The Motorcraft/Quick Lane car will be painted in the same colors as the 1963 Ford Galaxie that Wood drove to victory at Bowman-Gray Stadium in Winston-Salem, N.C., on July 13, 1963, and crew members will wear shirts just like the ones the Wood Brothers wore in the mid-1960s.

That No. 21 Ford from 1963 was rugged, fast and versatile. In its first race, at Riverside, Calif., Fred Lorenzen turned the car over in practice, but the Woods repaired it at the track, and Lorenzen took a 22nd-place finish. From there it was on to Daytona, where the Woods’ regular driver Marvin Panch was badly burned in a sports car crash and one of his rescuers, Tiny Lund, took over the No. 21 and drove it to victory in the Daytona 500 in one of the biggest stories ever in auto racing.

Wood returned to the seat at Bowman-Gray that July, and the “Master of the Madhouse” lived up to his nickname earned on the quarter-mile track known then and now as the “Madhouse.” He started on the pole, but was involved in an early spin. While fellow future Hall of Famers Junior Johnson and Ned Jarrett took turns on the point, Wood was using his mastery of the Madhouse to work his way back to the front, no small feat on the small, narrow track. On Lap 107 of 200, he took the lead from Jarrett and led the rest of the way.

09-07-2011 - GORDON REACHES 85-CAREER WINS: EQUALS BOBBY ALLISON'S RECORD

While most fans and NASCAR writers are quick to place Jeff Gordon in sole possession of third place in all time wins behind Richard Petty and David Pearson, as Rick Houston points out in this article Bobby Allison should be credited with 85 wins

(Reprinted courtesy of Rick Houston)

Bobby Allison was less than two minutes into the interview when he brought up the matter.

The short version of his beef is this: Allison is officially credited by NASCAR with 84 career victories and the legendary driver feels he should have 85. That's it, in a nutshell. But as with so many other things in and around the world of NASCAR, there's a lot more to the story.

The race in question is an Aug. 6, 1971, event at Bowman Gray Stadium in Winston-Salem, N.C. Allison drove a Ford Mustang to victory in the event, which was the first in an experimental combination of cars from what was then known as the Winston Cup Grand National ranks running alongside smaller sedans from NASCAR's Grand American tour. Six of the top seven finishers in the Bowman Gray event were in Grand American mounts. Only runner-up Richard Petty's Plymouth broke the chokehold.

“To me, it's so important. ... I did win the race and I should get the win.”

The race is listed as the 34th of 48 races run during 1971 in the historical database on NASCAR's media Web site, with Allison atop the rundown. Nevertheless, the event does not appear amongst his career victories. The inconsistencies do not end there. In the NASCAR media guide, when Allison's year-by-year totals are tallied, they add up to 85. Yet in the guide's list of all-time winners, Allison is listed with 84.

There's more. Tiny Lund won Cup races later in the 1971 season at Hickory and North Wilkesboro, both of which came while driving a Grand American Camaro. He receives credit in NASCAR's database for those victories.

The argument that Allison shouldn't be credited with the win because he was in a Grand American car doesn't hold water, either, based on precedent. Gwyn Staley and Bob Welborn scored wins while driving convertibles in so-called "Sweepstakes" races against Grand National hardtops in the late 1950s. Both are credited for what would now be a Sprint Cup victory.

After the demise of the Convertible division at the end of the 1959 season, Darlington continued running ragtop races for three more seasons. The winner of each of those events, again, receives credit for a win at NASCAR's highest level. If this seems like a trivial matter -- 84 or 85 wins, what's the big deal? -- think again. There are several important reasons why it should matter.

First, Allison is listed as tied with Darrell Waltrip for third on the all-time win list. Allison is not tied for third -- he's third, and Waltrip is fourth. It's a matter of historical accuracy. Jeff Gordon currently has 82 career victories, making it that much more significant.

Secondly, Allison surely will be elected to the NASCAR Hall of Fame at some point in the near future. When Allison's win total is listed somewhere within the hallowed walls of the Hall, will it be 84 or will it be 85? One figure is correct, the other is not.

Finally, and maybe most importantly, it's an issue that very obviously matters to Allison himself. Allison mentions the issue in interview after interview, and some have tended to shrug it off as nothing more than some sort of quixotic mission in life. That's a shame.

Allison endured a wreck that ended his driving career and continues to impact his life to this day, not to mention the loss of not one, but two sons. The very least that somebody somewhere could do would be to add that one all-important digit to the win column. Thing is, it wouldn't be a gift. The win is already his.

"To me, it's so important," Allison said of the controversy surrounding the phantom victory. "For a while, as I remember it, the race was in the record book and then it went out of the record book. I thought they gave the win to Richard Petty, and quite honestly, the Pope's not gonna take a race away from Richard Petty. And so it's gone forever. But if they didn't give it to Richard Petty, then I did win the race and I should get the win." It's gotta be a personal situation where somebody chose to punish me by this method for something that I did ... something I said or somebody's toes that I stepped on somewhere.”

Beyond the faintest shadow of a doubt, this simply is not a political issue, it's basic math. Count Allison's wins up, all the way up, to 85. Allison won the race and he should get credit for it. Still, Jim Hunter, NASCAR's vice president of corporate communications, has declined comment on the controversy in the past, saying only, "It is what it is."

Make no mistake about it. Allison stood toe-to-toe with NASCAR on several occasions, most memorably following the 1973 National 500 at Charlotte. After it was discovered that the two cars finishing ahead of him that afternoon had rather suspect engines, Allison says that he went so far as to obtain a restraining order to prevent the next race on the schedule from taking place. It was only at the last minute that he backed down.

Know what? If the showdown over Charlotte was the genesis of any ill will that might or might not exist toward Allison, it took place more than 35 years ago. Get over it."It's gotta be a personal situation where somebody chose to punish me by this method for something that I did ... something I said or somebody's toes that I stepped on somewhere," Allison said. "I feel that it was Bill France Jr. that made the decision. I'm really disappointed that I did something somewhere that irritated him that bad."

Of all the people Allison could be "tied" with for victories, it's all too ironic that it's Waltrip. Allison is an intensely proud man, and it was Waltrip who beat him out for the 1981 and 1982 Cup championships. Let's just say that Waltrip the talker and Allison the battler didn't mix very well.

"Right now, NASCAR has me in the record books tied with [Waltrip] for wins when actually, there's one race in the NASCAR record book that has no winner," Allison said. "I did win that race and someday, I will get credit for it."

Let's hope so.

07-26-2011 - FRED LORENZEN JOINS THE UOR FAMILY

The University of Racing Legends series is honored to welcome NASCAR racing legend Fred Lorenzen into our garage. The original “Golden Boy” of racing, Lorenzen’s famous #28 Holman Moody Ford Galaxie is the latest edition to the UOR Legends lineup.

In a career that lasted only twelve short years Lorenzen scored 26 wins and 75 Top 5 finishes at NASCAR’s premier level. His good looks and natural racing talent propelled him to the top of the racing ladder and established him as a force week in and week out. 

Join us in welcoming this truly great American legend to our talented lineup of racing stars.  

05-26--2011 - BREAKING NEWS!!!! - NASCAR HALL OF FAMER JUNIOR JOHNSON ADDED TO UOR LINEUP

University of Racing Legends is excited to announce the newest addition to our lineup of Hall of Fame drivers, the #26 Junior Johnson Holly Farms Ford Galaxie. This fantastic replica will hit the stores in July, 2011. Exact in every detail and inspected by Junior Johnson himself, the diecast will make a terrific addition to your collection.

A limited number of #26 Junior Johnson diecast will also be autographed by the Hall of Fame driver. To learn more and to order yours today click here to find the nearest University of Racing Legends dealer.

05-24--2011 - #17 HOLMAN MOODY FORD IN NASCAR HALL OF FAME

Following his induction into the NASCAR Hall of Fame on Monday evening, David Pearson’s legendary #17 Holman Moody Ford was placed on display in the Hall of Champions. This is the very same car produced by The University of Racing Legends and available for purchased from your authorized dealer. Click here to find a dealer near you.

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (April 19, 2011) – NASCAR announced today the list of 25 nominees for the NASCAR Hall of Fame’s third induction class to be enshrined in January 2012. From that list, five inductees will be elected by the NASCAR Hall of Fame Voting Panel, which includes a nationwide fan vote on NASCAR.COM.

Of the 25 nominees, 20 return from last year’s group. Five are first-timers: H. Clay Earles, Bobby Isaac, Cotton Owens, Les Richter and Leonard Wood.

This round of nominees, which again includes many of the sport’s legendary names, were selected by a 21-person nominating committee consisting of representatives from NASCAR, the NASCAR Hall of Fame and track owners from both major facilities and historic short tracks. The committee’s votes were tabulated by accounting firm Ernst & Young.

The NHOF’s inductees will be determined by the Voting Panel, which has 54 members – the entire Nominating Committee, media members, manufacturer representatives, retired competitors (drivers, owners, crew chiefs) and recognized industry leaders. In addition, the fan vote will result in the Voting Panel’s 55th and final ballot. Fan voting on NASCAR.COM opens on April 28 and closes June 12.

• Buck Baker,first driver to win consecutive NASCAR premier (now Sprint Cup) series championships (1956-57)

• Red Byron, first NASCAR premier (now Sprint Cup) series champion, in 1949

• Richard Childress, 11-time car owner champion in NASCAR’s three national series

• Jerry Cook, six-time NASCAR Modified champion

• H. Clay Earles, founder of Martinsville Speedway

• Richie Evans,nine-time NASCAR Modified champion

• Tim Flock, two-time NASCAR premier (now Sprint Cup) series champion

• Rick Hendrick, 13-time car owner champion in NASCAR’s three national series

• Jack Ingram, two-time NASCAR Busch (now Nationwide) Series champion

• Dale Inman, eight-time NASCAR premier (now Sprint Cup) series championship crew chief

• Bobby Isaac, 1970 NASCAR premier (now Sprint Cup) series champion

• Fred Lorenzen, 26 wins and winner of the Daytona 500 and World 600

• Cotton Owens, driver-owner, won 1966 owner championship with David Pearson

• Raymond Parks, NASCAR’s first champion car owner

• Benny Parsons, 1973 NASCAR premier (now Sprint Cup) series champion

• Les Richter, former NASCAR executive; former president of Riverside International Raceway

• Fireball Roberts, won 33 NASCAR premier (now Sprint Cup) series races, including the 1962 Daytona 500

• T. Wayne Robertson, helped raise NASCAR popularity as R.J. Reynolds Senior VP

• Herb Thomas, first two-time NASCAR premier (now Sprint Cup) series champion, 1951, ’53

• Curtis Turner, early personality, called the “Babe Ruth of stock car racing”

• Darrell Waltrip, 84 wins and three NASCAR premier (now Sprint Cup) series championships

• Joe Weatherly, two-time NASCAR premier (now Sprint Cup) series champion

• Glen Wood, as driver, laid foundation for Wood Brothers’ future team success

• Leonard Wood, part-owner and former crew chief for Wood Brothers, revolutionized pit stops

• Cale Yarborough, three consecutive NASCAR premier (now Sprint Cup) series titles, 1976-78

The Class of 2012 will be announced live on SPEED on June 14 at the NASCAR Hall of Fame in Charlotte, N.C and inducted next January. The 2011 class, which includes David Pearson, Bobby Allison, Ned Jarrett, Lee Petty, and Bud Moore will be enshrined at the NASCAR Hall of Fame on Monday, May 23.

03-09--2011 - NASCAR FLAG HONORARY STARTERS - SCRAP BOOK

From the February, 2000 issue of Circle Track
By Doyle Ford

We used to tease honorary starters, adding further to their apprehension. You've got to understand that these people are nervous to begin with and have no idea what to expect. They don't like the idea of hanging over the flag stand with cars speeding underneath them.

Chief starter Harold Kinder and I, his backup, had a little ritual we'd go through after the honorary starter came to the stand, too late for him to make any changes.

At a race in Atlanta, we had an extraordinary honorary starter, President-elect Jimmy Carter. Mr. Carter reported and we introduced ourselves. Harold asked me if Mr. Carter was equipped with his safety gear. I told Harold I was sorry, but that I couldn't get access to Mr. Carter to tell him.

Harold explained to Mr. Carter, already visibly concerned, that starters were required to wear a metal cup and a jockstrap over their private parts to protect them against an aerodynamic vacuum created by the cars at high speed. Mr. Carter asked what he should do, and Harold told him to cross his legs as high as he could before he waved the green flag.

Harold had arranged for a photographer to capture Mr. Carter standing with his legs crossed, but the photographer wasn't the only one to see him. (NASCAR President) Bill France had seen it, too. France called on the radio and told Harold he wanted to see him in the NASCAR office as soon as the race ended. France asked Harold if he had done to the president-elect of the United States what he thought he had. Harold responded that he didn't know what France was talking about. France asked why Mr. Carter started the race with his legs crossed. Harold burst out laughing and confessed. France said he would not tolerate belittling the next president like that, and if he did that to any other honorary starter, he might as well apply to Indianapolis Motor Speedway, because his flagging days in NASCAR would be over. That ended the ritual.

Fingered
We were racing at Talladega in the '80s. Buddy Baker was driving car #88, which he co-owned with a partner, Danny Schiff. Buddy was leading the race. I noticed something hanging from the back bumper of Buddy's car, but given speeds then in excess of 200 mph, neither Harold nor I could distinguish what it was. The race director ordered Harold to black-flag #88. He did several times with no response. Finally, under the threat of disqualification, Buddy pitted. His crew removed a piece of plastic from the bumper. I don't know why it was there, because back then bumpers were metal, not fiberglass.

When Buddy reentered the track and got around to the flag stand, he flashed us the finger. Harold and I had no desire to get a driver in trouble, so we laughed it off. However, the race director had seen his gesture from the tower-and it wasn't one bit humorous to him. Baker was ordered to report to France after the race. I didn't know at the time what the outcome of the meeting was.

At the next race, in Charlotte, Buddy went up to me and grabbed me by the arm like he was really mad. He said to come with him, he wanted to show me something. Considering Baker's physical size, I had little choice. When he got to his garage stall, he opened a drawer of the team toolbox and pulled out a pair of ordinary mittens. Laughing, he said that his car "owners" were requiring him to wear the mittens (so he couldn't isolate one finger) for the rest of the season because they couldn't afford to pay any more $500 fines for obscene gestures.

Flagman's Nightmare
All starters have their most embarrassing moment-a dropped flag. At the '94 Charlotte 500, Jimmy Cox, a longtime NASCAR official, and I were handling qualifying. His job was to send the cars off the line on the white flag, which meant that two cars were on the track at the same time-one coming for the checkered, the other for the green.

Sterling Marlin was headed for the checkered and Joe Nemechek for the green. After I waved the checkered over Marlin and gave Nemechek the green, the checkered flag fell off the staff and onto the track in a little wad against the wall. Obviously, I had no checkered to give to Nemechek, so I leaned way over the edge of the stand and gave him the OK sign.

I radioed Cox to hold up the rest of the cars while I rectified a little problem. The communication drew attention to me, and officials, spotters, crews, and everybody that was monitoring our frequency knew I had dropped a flag. The spectators went wild when I climbed down to retrieve the flag. I turned toward them and bowed.

Souvenir Returned
At the '96 Southern 500 at Darlington, there was a caution a few laps into the race. On the restart, I waved the green flag over about half the field, then dropped it. The wind was blowing hard enough that it blew the flag into the grandstand instead of it falling onto the track.

The kicker to the story is that a spectator picked up the flag and had a rare souvenir indeed. I was taken aback when he brought the flag to the stand and gave it back to me.

Last-Lap Loss
It wasn't always a flag that got away. Before the second Brickyard 400 (in 1995), my girlfriend, Barbara Flippen of Nashville, gave me a gold nugget bracelet, to which I became very attached. During the race, the bracelet came off my arm. After the race, we found some small, bent links on the racetrack about 150 yards from the flag stand. I couldn't figure out when I lost it or what I was going to tell Barbara.

The chief photographer at Indianapolis Motor Speedway sent me a photograph made from the inside of the track showing me waving the white flag over (eventual winner) Dale Earnhardt. The picture also showed that the bracelet was on my arm. It was clear that I had lost it on the very last lap of the race. Fortunately, the insurance company bought me another bracelet, which I wear today with pride.

Montezuma's Revenge
We were at Richmond in 1988, the year the track was rebuilt and extended to 0.75 mile. Henry Benfield, who drove Junior Johnson's car hauler, was always up to pranks and practical jokes. Once his hauler was unloaded, Benfield drove another team vehicle to the grocery store to get snacks for his crew. When he returned, he asked the gate guard if he could drive inside the garage to unload his items. The guard refused.

Benfield parked in the muddy infield, a bog from days of rain, and, lugging four grocery bags, returned to the gate and was stopped by the same guard, who demanded to see his pass. Benfield sat his sacks down in the mud and, without emotion, showed his pass. But Benfield was determined to retaliate.

At the time, Country Time Lemonade was a car sponsor, and there was plenty of it around the garage. Benfield mixed a concoction of lemonade-but mostly a strong and quick-acting liquid laxative-in the biggest cup he could find. He went to the guard and explained that he was supposed to meet a man wearing a Goodyear jacket and a Winston hat there and give him a big cup of lemonade. The guard said he hadn't seen the man. Benfield waited a few moments and said to the guard that his man must have gotten tied up and wasn't coming to get the lemonade. Benfield asked the guard if he wanted it. The guard thanked him and began to drink it.

Benfield came to me and said I'd better get somebody to guard the gate. I told him we had a man on that gate. He snickered and said, "Not for long." Sure enough, in a short time, the guard had to leave and was gone for most the day. I substituted as gate guard until the security officials could replace the indisposed gentleman.

"Deer" Flag
Occasionally, starters have to improvise. The Pocono Mountains are a natural habitat for several species of animals, among them lots of deer. During a race at Pocono Raceway, a deer was spotted inside the track. Even though the animal wasn't on the racing surface, Harold Kinder was notified, and he asked the race director by radio what he should do. The race director asked Harold if he had a "deer flag."

Without saying a word, Harold handed me the flags and leaned over the edge of the stand as the cars rushed by. He folded his thumbs to his palms, with all of his fingers extended upward and spread wide apart, and positioned his hands to each side of his head, just above his eyes. His deer imitation apparently worked and got a lot of laughs, too.

Kinder's Kindness
Harold Kinder, who died in 1992, was very compassionate, softhearted, and in this case, humane. Also at Pocono, before a race, a wild dog got inside the track. Harold feared that the dog would wander onto the track, get run over, and perhaps cause a wreck. He recruited maintenance and safety personnel in an attempt to capture the dog, but they couldn't catch it. The dog ran inside a large drainpipe in the infield. Harold and his fellow chasers blocked both ends of the pipe so the dog couldn't get out. Harold left food and water and fully intended to free the dog at the end of the day. He forgot until late that night, though, while he was driving to Charlotte. He stopped, called the track, and asked that someone let the dog out. That's the way Harold was.

Not the Place
For fear of embarrassing three of my best friends, I won't reveal their names or in which city on the NASCAR circuit we were. At dinner, one of us said a friend had told him about a place that had a great band and was a fun place to go for entertainment. We reached the downtown address to find the huge front door locked. A sign read "Private Club, Members Only; Ring Bell for Service." We rang the bell, and a lady, large in stature-somewhere between Santa Claus and Mean Joe Green-opened the door. She asked if we were members of the club. "No, just visitors looking for a fun night," replied one of the nameless.

The woman said we could come in but must sign the guest register. One of the guys signed for all of us and said later that he had used the names of well-known NASCAR executives and car owners instead of ours. We ordered bottles of beer, and by the time the server brought them, our eyes had adjusted to the dim light. Looking around, all of us realized at about the same moment that we were sitting in the middle of a gay bar. That had to be the first time any of us had gotten up from a table and abandoned four full bottles of beer.

Doyle Ford, 66, our host for Scrapbook this month, was associated with NASCAR for nearly 40 years, 20 as a Winston Cup flagman. After working as a NASCAR official, Ford, a native of Nashville, became the assistant to the late chief starter Harold Kinder in 1978. He became the Winston Cup chief starter when Kinder retired in 1990. After retirement from NASCAR in 1996, Ford now owns a business, Acme Fire & Safety Equipment, operated by his son, Neal, in Nashville and maintains a home there. He has a married daughter, DeAnna, a beautician in Nashville, and five grandchildren. Ford resides on Lake Norman, north of Charlotte, and is a public relations and marketing specialist for two insurance firms: Bartel & Wahl and Brian Allen Insurance and Financial. Obviously, many of his memories originated on the flag stand.