1968 Volunteer 500
Race details[1]
Race 30 of 49 in the 1968 NASCAR Grand National Series season
Layout of Bristol Motor Speedway
Layout of Bristol Motor Speedway
Date July 21, 1968 (1968-July-21)
Official name Volunteer 500
Location Bristol International Speedway, Bristol, Tennessee
Course Permanent racing facility
0.533 mi (0.857 km)
Distance 500 laps, 266.5 mi (428.8 km)
Weather Extremely hot with temperatures of 93.0 °F (33.9 °C); wind speeds of 7 miles per hour (11 km/h)
Average speed 76.31 mph (122.81 km/h)
Attendance 20,000[2]
Pole position
Driver
Junior Johnson & Associates
Most laps led
Driver David Pearson Holman-Moody
Laps 257
Winner
No. 17 David Pearson Holman-Moody
Television in the United States
Network untelevised
Announcers none

The 1968 Volunteer 500 was a NASCAR Grand National Series event that was held on July 21, 1968, at Bristol International Speedway in Bristol, Tennessee.

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.

Race report

There were 36 drivers on the racing grid as the green flag waved and the race was underway. It took three hours and sixteen minutes for David Pearson to defeat Cale Yarborough by one and a half laps in front of a live audience of twenty thousand racing fans; about the size of a small city. There were eight lead changes recorded in the NASCAR summary and 13 caution flags were waved for a grueling distance of 92 laps. There were 500 laps in this racing event; speeds of 76.31 miles per hour (122.81 km/h) were recorded during the race while solo qualifying runs would see LeeRoy Yarbrough earn the pole position by driving up to 87.421 miles per hour (140.690 km/h).[2] Tiny Lund drove a red and silver 1967 Mercury Cyclone #16 vehicle to a respectable 13th-place finish.[2]

Bob Burcham and Ervin Pruitt would make their respective introductions to NASCAR-style racing during this event.[3] Richard Brickhouse ended up being the last-place finisher due to an engine malfunction on the eighth lap. Ford vehicles made up the majority of the racing grid. On lap 187, Dick Johnson would quit the reason for reasons unknown;[2] his final race would be at the 1969 North State 200. Twelve notable crew chiefs participated in the race; including Junior Johnson, Harry Hyde, Dale Inman, Banjo Matthews, Glen Wood and Bud Moore.[4]

Five years later, Swede Savage would be killed in a racing accident at the 1973 Indianapolis 500. The winner of this event received $5,175 in total winnings ($45,342 when adjusted for inflation) while the last-place finisher went home with only $250 in total earnings ($2,190 when adjusted for inflation). The total prize purse for this race was $24,140 ($211,508 when adjusted for inflation).[5]

Considered to be the hottest temperatures for Tennessee during the late-1960s, people were passing out all over the place.

Qualifying

Grid[2] No. Driver Manufacturer Owner
1 98 LeeRoy Yarbrough '68 Ford Junior Johnson
2 6 Charlie Glotzbach '68 Dodge Cotton Owens
3 29 Swede Savage '68 Ford Bondy Long
4 21 Cale Yarborough '68 Mercury Wood Brothers
5 27 Donnie Allison '68 Ford Banjo Matthews
6 17 David Pearson '68 Ford Holman-Moody Racing
7 99 Paul Goldsmith '68 Dodge Ray Nichels
8 43 Richard Petty '68 Plymouth Petty Enterprises
9 71 Bobby Isaac '67 Dodge Nord Krauskopf
10 3 Buddy Baker '68 Dodge Ray Fox
11 22 Darel Dieringer '68 Plymouth Mario Rossi
12 16 Tiny Lund '68 Mercury Bud Moore
13 5 Pete Hamilton '68 Ford Rocky Hinton
14 48 James Hylton '67 Dodge James Hylton
15 4 John Sears '67 Ford L.G. DeWitt
16 2 Bobby Allison '66 Chevrolet Donald Brackins
17 49 G.C. Spencer '67 Plymouth G.C. Spencer
18 39 Friday Hassler '66 Chevrolet Red Sharp
19 08 Bob Burcham '66 Chevrolet E.C. Reid
20 64 Elmo Langley '66 Ford Elmo Langley / Henry Woodfield
21 20 Clyde Lynn '66 Ford Clyde Lynn
22 28 Earl Brooks '66 Ford Earl Brooks
23 25 Jabe Thomas '67 Ford Don Robertson
24 06 Neil Castles '67 Plymouth Neil Castles
25 51 Stan Meserve '67 Dodge Margo Hamm

Top 10 finishers

Pos[2] Grid No. Driver Manufacturer Laps Winnings Laps led Time/Status
1 6 17 David Pearson Ford 500 $5,175 257 3:16:34
2 4 21 Cale Yarborough Mercury 499 $2,650 1 +1.5 laps
3 3 29 Swede Savage Ford 498 $1,700 0 +2 laps
4 9 71 Bobby Isaac Dodge 497 $900 0 +3 laps
5 18 39 Friday Hassler Chevrolet 488 $800 0 +11 laps
6 10 3 Buddy Baker Dodge 481 $700 0 Engine failure
7 24 06 Neil Castles Plymouth 467 $650 0 +33 laps
8 12 16 Tiny Lund Mercury 465 $625 0 Engine failure
9 32 45 Bill Seifert Ford 464 $600 0 +36 laps
10 29 70 J.D. McDuffie Buick 463 $525 0 +37 laps

Timeline

Section reference:[2]

References

  1. ^ Weather information for the 1968 Volunteer 500 at the Old Farmers' Almanac
  2. ^ a b c d e f g 1968 Volunteer 500 racing information at Racing-Reference
  3. ^ 1968 Volunteer 500 results at Race-Database
  4. ^ 1968 Volunteer 500 crew chief information at Racing Reference
  5. ^ Official NASCAR Race Results for the 1968 Volunteer 500 at Fantasy Racing Cheat Sheet
Preceded by1968 Northern 300 NASCAR Grand National Season 1968 Succeeded by1968 Smoky Mountain 200
Preceded by1967 Volunteer 500 races 1968 Succeeded by1969
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