Curtis Turner (born April 12, 1924 in Floyd, Virginia - died October 14, 1970) was an early NASCAR driver. In addition to his success in racing, he made a fortune, lost it, and remade it buying and selling timberlands. Throughout his life he developed a reputation for drinking and partying. The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing (NASCAR) is the largest sanctioning body of motorsports in the United States. ... NASCAR Nextel Cup logo NEXTEL Cup trophy, adopted in 2004 4-time champion Jeff Gordon poses with the Winston Cup trophy (used prior to 2004) The NASCAR Championship is the championship held in NASCARs top stock car racing series. ... 1950 (MCML) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will take you to calendar). ... 1949 (MCMXLIX) was a common year starting on Saturday (the link is to a full 1949 calendar). ... for the current NASCAR track, see Lowes Motor Speedway. ... 1968 (MCMLXVIII) was a leap year starting on Monday (the link is to a full 1968 calendar). ... Occoneechee Speedway was one of the first two NASCAR tracks to open and is the only track remaining from the inaugural, 1949 season. ... 1949 (MCMXLIX) was a common year starting on Saturday (the link is to a full 1949 calendar). ... Langhorne Speedway was a racetrack located in Langhorne, Pennsylvania. ... 1965 (MCMLXV) was a common year starting on Friday (the link is to a full 1965 calendar). ... The North Carolina Speedway, affectionately known as The Rock, was home to NASCAR racing from 1966 to 2004. ... April 12 is the 102nd day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (103rd in leap years). ... 1924 (MCMXXIV) was a leap year starting on Tuesday (link will take you to calendar). ... Floyd is a town located in Floyd County, Virginia. ... October 14 is the 287th day of the year (288th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1970 (MCMLXX) was a common year starting on Thursday (the link is to a full 1970 calendar). ... The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing (NASCAR) is the largest sanctioning body of motorsports in the United States. ...

History

Jack Smith and Curtis Turner at Daytona Beach (1952), courtesy Florida Photographic Collection

He began his racing career in 1946 when he finished 18th in a field of 18 contestants in a race at Mt. Airy, North Carolina. However, he rebounded and won his next race. During his career, he won 360 races several different racing series, including 22 in NASCAR's convertible division in 1956, and 17 wins in the NASCAR Grand National series (now NEXTEL Cup). From 1950 to 1954, he drove for Oldsmobile being billed as the Blond Blizzard of Virginia. He switched to driving Fords in 1954. He eventually acquired the nickname of Pops, allegedly because of the way he would "pop" other drivers on the track. Image File history File links C015963. ... Image File history File links C015963. ... Mount Airy is a city located in Surry County, North Carolina. ... Saab 900 Convertible Convertible can also refer to a convertible (security) A convertible (sometimes called cabriolet in British English) is a car body style with a folding or retracting roof. ... The NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series is NASCARs top racing series. ... The final Oldsmobile Logo, introduced in 1997 as an update of the Rocket theme used in various forms since 1948. ... Ford Motor Company is an American multinational corporation and the worlds third largest automaker based on vehicle sales in 2005. ...

Accomplishments

He is noted for several other racing accomplishments:[1]

• The only NASCAR driver to win two Grand National races in a row from the pole by leading every lap (Rochester NY and Charlotte NC in July 1950)
• The only driver to win 25 major NASCAR races in one season driving the same car in each of them (in 1956 -- 22 were won as the #26 car in the convertible division, the other three, including the 1956 Southern 500, were with a top welded on.)
• The only driver to win a major NASCAR race that was red-flagged because his car was the only one still running (at the Asheville-Weaverville NC track on September 30, 1956.)
• The first driver to climb Pike's Peak in less than 15 minutes (in a 1962 Ralph Moody Ford -- the actual time was 14 minutes 37 seconds for the 14 mile course.)
• The first winner of the American 500 at Rockingham NC (in a 1965 Woods Brothers Ford.)
• The first driver to qualify for a NASCAR Grand National race at a speed greater than 180 miles per hour (1967 Daytona 500, driving #13, a 1967 Smokey Yunick Chevrolet.)
• Turner conceptualized, secured financing for, and built Charlotte Motor Speedway in 1960 before being forced out by his business partners.
• 2006 inductee of the Motorsports Hall of Fame of America

Ralph Moody (born September 10, 1917 in Taunton Massachusetts - died June 9, 2004 in Mooresville, North Carolina) was a NASCAR early driver, but became most famous as team co-owner of Holman Moody. ... Wood Brothers It is family owned and family run. ... Henry Smokey Yunick (born May 25, 1923, somewhere around Maryville, Tennessee, died May 9, 2001 of leukemia) was a mechanic and car designer associated with motorsports in the United States. ... Chevrolet (IPA: ʃɛv. ... Lowes Motor Speedway (formerly Charlotte Motor Speedway) is a superspeedway in Concord, North Carolina, a few miles north of Charlotte. ... The Motorsports Hall of Fame of America is a Hall of Fame and museum in Novi, Michigan for American motorsports legends. ...

Labor Union

Being able to see the racing industry from the business end, he developed a feeling that drivers deserved a better deal for their role in the sport. He attempted to organize a union for them in 1961. Unfortunately for him, NASCAR has never looked favorably on an organized union for the drivers, and Turner was banned for life. However, the ban was lifted in 1965, and he returned to racing. A union (labor union in American English; trade union, sometimes trades union, in British English; either labour union or trade union in Canadian English) is a legal entity consisting of employees or workers having a common interest, such as all the assembly workers for one employer, or all the workers...

Death

He died in a plane crash near Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania on October 4, 1970. The crash also killed golfer Clarence King. Punxsutawney is a borough located in Jefferson County, Pennsylvania. ...

External links

• Curtis Turner at Nascar.com
• Curtis Turner at International Motorsports Hall of Fame
• Curtis Turner at FireballRoberts.com
• Curtis Turner at racing-reference.info