The 1949 Wilkes 200 was a

NASCAR The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, LLC (NASCAR) is an American auto racing sanctioning and operating company that is best known for stock car racing. The privately owned company was founded by Bill France Sr. in 1948, and hi ...

Strictly Stock Series The NASCAR Cup Series is the top racing series of the National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing (NASCAR). The series began in 1949 as the Strictly Stock Division, and from 1950 to 1970 it was known as the Grand National Division. In 1971, ...

racing event that took place on October 16, 1949. Ten thousand people would attend this live racing event where Kenneth Wagner qualified for the race with a

pole position In a motorsports race, the pole position is usually the best and "statistically the most advantageous" starting position on the track. The pole position is usually earned by the driver with the best qualifying times in the trials before the rac ...

speed of – the equivalent of 31.27 seconds. The entire race took place on a dirt track spanning per lap. Weather conditions for the race were recorded at nearby

Hickory Regional Airport Hickory Regional Airport is three miles (5 km) west of Hickory, in Catawba County, North Carolina. It is owned by the City of Hickory. Facilities Hickory Regional Airport covers and has two asphalt runways: 6/24 is 6,400 x 150 ft. ...

; a public

airport An airport is an aerodrome with extended facilities, mostly for commercial air transport. Airports usually consists of a landing area, which comprises an aerially accessible open space including at least one operationally active surface ...

located three miles (5 km) west of the

central business district A central business district (CBD) is the commercial and business centre of a city. It contains commercial space and offices, and in larger cities will often be described as a financial district. Geographically, it often coincides with the "city ...

of nearby

Hickory Hickory is a common name for trees composing the genus ''Carya'', which includes around 18 species. Five or six species are native to China, Indochina, and India (Assam), as many as twelve are native to the United States, four are found in Mexi ...

, North Carolina.

Summary

This would be the final race of the

1949 Events January * January 1 – A United Nations-sponsored ceasefire brings an end to the Indo-Pakistani War of 1947. The war results in a stalemate and the division of Kashmir, which still continues as of 2022. * January 2 – Luis ...

NASCAR season and would take place at

North Wilkesboro Speedway North Wilkesboro Speedway is a short oval racetrack located on U.S. Route 421, about east of the town of North Wilkesboro, North Carolina, or 80 miles north of Charlotte. It measures and features a unique uphill backstretch and downhill fr ...

North Wilkesboro North Wilkesboro is a town in Wilkes County, North Carolina, United States, approximately 80 miles north of Charlotte. The population was 4,131 at the 2020 US Census. North Wilkesboro is the birthplace and original home of Lowe's Home Improvemen ...

North Carolina North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia and So ...

Bob Flock Robert Newman Flock (April 16, 1918 – May 16, 1964) was an American stock car racer. He qualified on the pole position for NASCAR's first Strictly Stock (now NASCAR Cup Series) race and, along with Red Byron, is considered one of the two b ...

would defeat

Lee Petty Lee Arnold Petty (March 14, 1914 – April 5, 2000) was an American stock car racing driver who competed during the 1950s and 1960s. He was one of the pioneers of NASCAR and one of its first superstars. He was NASCAR's first three-time Cup ch ...

by an entire football field – – to win NASCAR's first racing event with an established name. Flock would earn a mere $1,500 in prize winnings ($ when inflation is taken into effect).

Frank Mundy Frank "Rebel" Mundy (born June 18, 1918 in Atlanta, Georgia, as Francisco Eduardo Menendez – died May 15, 2009) was an American stock car racer. He competed in the American Automobile Association (AAA) stock cars, winning the 1955 national champ ...

would receive a last-place finish for only finishing 38 laps out of the mandated 200 laps. Bill Blair would lead the most laps in this race with 180 laps led out of 200.

Red Byron Robert Nold "Red" Byron (March 12, 1915 – November 11, 1960) was an American stock car racing driver, who was successful in NASCAR competition in the sanctioning body's first years. He was NASCAR's first Modified champion (and its first c ...

would go on to win NASCAR's first ever championship while

Sara Christian Sara Williams Christian (August 25, 1918 – March 7, 1980) was the first woman driver in NASCAR history. Driving career Christian raced at the Looper Speedway, the former racetrack which now lies beneath the waters of Lake Lanier. She won a ...

would become one of its first female drivers. Byron almost became a cripple after being shot by an enemy fighter plane while serving as a tail gunner on a

B-24 Liberator The Consolidated B-24 Liberator is an American heavy bomber, designed by Consolidated Aircraft of San Diego, California. It was known within the company as the Model 32, and some initial production aircraft were laid down as export models des ...

bomber during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. He spent two years in military hospitals rehabilitating his leg so that he could compete in NASCAR after the war ended. Notable crew chiefs who actively participated in the race were

Buddy Elliott Buddy may refer to: People *Buddy (nickname) *Buddy (rapper), real name Simmie Sims III (1993–Present) *Buddy Rogers (wrestler), ring name of American professional wrestler Herman Gustav Rohde, Jr. (1921–1992) *Buddy Boeheim (born 1999), Amer ...

, Julian Petty,

Buddy Helms Buddy may refer to: People *Buddy (nickname) *Buddy (rapper), real name Simmie Sims III (1993–Present) *Buddy Rogers (wrestler), ring name of American professional wrestler Herman Gustav Rohde, Jr. (1921–1992) *Buddy Boeheim (born 1999), Amer ...

Red Vogt Red is the color at the long wavelength end of the visible spectrum of light, next to orange and opposite violet. It has a dominant wavelength of approximately 625–740 nanometres. It is a primary color in the RGB color model and a secondary ...

, and Cliff Rainwater. While Red Byron and Lee Petty were the better drivers of the 1949 NASCAR Cup Series season, Bill Blair was the most consistent driver along with Petty.

Timeline

Section reference: * Start of race: Bill Blair starts off the race in the pole position * Lap 38: Frank Mundy withdrew from the race for reasons unknown * Lap 155: Red Byron withdrew from the race for reasons unknown, he was assumed not have been paid for participating in this event * Lap 181: Bob Flock takes over the lead from Bill Blair * Lap 188: Sara Christian ended the racing event 12 laps behind Herb Thomas * Lap 191: Bill Blair had a terminal problem with his engine, forcing him out of the race * Lap 196: Roy Hall may or may not have finished the race six laps behind Thomas, records of this race were not kept in the NASCAR archives * Finish: Bob Flock was officially declared the winner of the event

Results

Race summary

* Lead changes: 2 * Cautions: N/A * Red flags: N/A * Time of race: 1 hours, 52 minutes, and 16 seconds * Average speed: * Margin of Victory: 100 yards

References

{{Tyson Holly Farms 400

Wilkes 200 The Tyson Holly Farms 400 was a NASCAR Winston Cup Series stock car race held annually from 1949 to 1996 at the North Wilkesboro Speedway in Wilkes County, North Carolina. It was the second of two Winston Cup Series races held annually (with the ...

NASCAR races at North Wilkesboro Speedway