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Curtis Turner

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Curtis Turner
Turner's 1967 Daytona 500 racecar
Born(1924-04-12)April 12, 1924
Floyd, Virginia, U.S.
DiedOctober 4, 1970(1970-10-04) (aged 46)
Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Cause of deathAirplane crash
Achievements1956 Southern 500 Winner
1967 Daytona 500 Polesitter

Inaugural winner at Rockingham Speedway (1965)
Led Grand National Series in wins (1950)
Holds record for most career NASCAR Convertible Division wins (38)
Holds record for most career NASCAR Convertible Division poles (23)
Holds record for most NASCAR Convertible Division wins in a season (22, 1956)

Holds record for most NASCAR Convertible Division poles in a season (16, 1956)
Awards1949 and 1956 Grand National Series Most Popular Driver

Named one of NASCAR's 50 Greatest Drivers (1998)
International Motorsports Hall of Fame (1992)
Motorsports Hall of Fame of America (2006)
NASCAR Hall of Fame (2016)

Named one of NASCAR's 75 Greatest Drivers (2023)
NASCAR Cup Series career
184 races run over 17 years
Best finish5th (1950)
First race1949 Race No. 1 (Charlotte)
Last race1968 Hillsboro 150 (Hillsboro)
First win1949 untitled race (Langhorne)
Last win1965 American 500 (Rockingham)
Wins Top tens Poles
17 73 16
NASCAR Convertible Division career
79 races run over 4 years
Best finish2nd (1956)
First race1956 Race #1 (Daytona Beach & Road Course)
Last race1959 Rebel 300 (Darlington)
First win1956 Race #1 (Daytona Beach & Road Course)
Last win1959 Catawba 250 (Hickory)
Wins Top tens Poles
38 53 23
Statistics current as of February 22, 2013.

Curtis Morton Turner (April 12, 1924 – October 4, 1970) was an American stock car racer who won 17 NASCAR Grand National Division races and 38 NASCAR Convertible Division races. Throughout his life, he developed a reputation for drinking and partying. He also fought to form a drivers union, which got him banned by NASCAR founder Bill France Sr. for four years.

History

He was born in Floyd, Virginia, to Morton and Minnie Turner on April 12, 1924. Curtis grew up with a brother and two sisters. His father, Morton Turner, was into the moonshine business and had a productive still. Curtis was responsible for delivering his father's moonshine to the customers. From a very early age, long before he was old enough for a driver's license, Curtis developed his driving talents by running moonshine through the mountains from the law.

Curtis was never caught with alcohol, yet came to grief with a 500 lb bag of stolen sugar (for making alcohol) in the post-WWII ration days. After a gunfight escape from the Joint Expeditionary Base–Little Creek where numerous bullet holes pierced the chassis and the lead lodged in the sugar, his more than 300-mile trip under police dragnet to Floyd, Virginia, was successfully achieved by using back roads. However, his father's house was under surveillance, and he was caught with the sugar and incriminating bullet-riddled car. Under oath, Curtis convincingly stated a lie of conspiring to produce apple butter, and the judge let him off with a 1,000 dollar fine and a 2-year suspended sentence.[1] Locals spoke of how Curtis would drive away from the hot pursuit of revenuers and lawmen, and his legendary ability to turn a car 180 degrees in a very small space.

He began his racing career in 1946 when he finished 18th in a field of 18 contestants in a race at Mount Airy, North Carolina. However, he rebounded and won his next race. He also was one of the founding members in the original group that met in Daytona Beach at the Streamline Hotel to discuss and support the formation of NASCAR. During his career, he won 360 races in several different racing series, including 22 in the NASCAR Convertible Division in 1956, and 17 wins in the NASCAR Grand National Series. 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.

Turner drove a Holman Moody-prepared Studebaker Lark in the 2-hour compact car race accompanying the inaugural United States Grand Prix at Sebring, Florida, on December 12, 1959. He finished second overall, trailing the disc-brake-equipped Jaguar 3.4 of Walt Hansgen.[2]

Turner frequently stayed out partying until the early hours, usually with a friend and fellow driver, Joe Weatherly.

Accomplishments

He is noted for several other racing accomplishments:[1] Archived 2006-02-21 at the Wayback Machine

  • The only NASCAR driver to win two Grand National races in a row from the pole by leading every lap (Rochester, New York, and Charlotte, North Carolina in July 1950)
  • The only win in NASCAR for Nash — Charlotte 150 — April 1, 1951
  • 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, North Carolina track on September 30, 1956.)
  • Turner conceptualized, secured financing for, and built Charlotte Motor Speedway in 1960 before being forced out by his business partners.
  • The first driver to climb Pikes Peak in less than 15 minutes (in a 1962 Ralph Moody Ford — the actual time was 14 minutes 37 seconds for the 12.42-mile course.)
  • The first winner of the American 500 at the Rockingham Speedway (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's 1967 Daytona 500 car designed by Smokey Yunick, seen to the right, was the inspiration for the car driven by the Talladega Nights character Reese Bobby. The car was banned by NASCAR thus starting Smokey's tenuous relationship with NASCAR.
  • In 1999, he was inducted into the Virginia Sports Hall of Fame.
  • In 2006, he was inducted into the Motorsports Hall of Fame of America.[3]
  • In 2016, he was inducted into the NASCAR Hall of Fame.

Labor union

Needing money to support the newly constructed Charlotte Motor Speedway, Turner and his business partner Bruton Smith turned to the Teamsters Union to organize a union for them, the Federation of Professional Athletes, in 1961.[4] According to The Washington Post: "His aims are for better purses, a share in broadcasting rights and retirement benefits for the drivers."[5] NASCAR founder Bill France Sr. refused to let any driver who was a part of the union race, and eventually all the drivers except for Turner and Tim Flock sided with France. Turner and Flock were banned for life, and Charlotte Motor Speedway went bankrupt before being saved by its board of directors.

Turner continued to race under other sanctioning bodies, including the Midwest Association for Race Cars (MARC),[6] even promoting his 100-mile event on the dirt at Lakewood Speedway, Georgia, in October 1961. Tim Flock finished second in that event.[7] Turner and Flock sued NASCAR and France, "seeking $200,000 punitive damages each and restitution for loss of earnings."[8] "Attorneys for the drivers claim the ban represents a violation of state right to work laws because test driving contracts involving $150 a day plus expenses were canceled as a result of the action. NASCAR and France's attorneys contended the ban isn't a right-to-work violation because it doesn't involve an employer-employee relationship. They said Flock and Turner are individual contractors and not employees of NASCAR or any track."[9]

During his NASCAR ban, Turner attempted a few USAC Championship Cars races, in 1962, Turner attempted a race at Illinois State Fairgrounds but failed to qualify. In 1963 Turner competed in the season-opener at Trenton International Speedway and finished 12th. He also attempted the 1963 Indianapolis 500 but failed to qualify.[10]

NASCAR comeback

Turner's NASCAR ban was lifted after four years in 1965, and Turner returned to racing. Bill France was in a bind and needed to mend some fences. 1962 and 1963 NASCAR-points champion Weatherly was killed driving a Mercury at Riverside, California on January 19, 1964,[11] and his star driver Fireball Roberts had died following a fiery crash on May 24, 1964, at the World 600 in Charlotte.[12] The track owners wanted Turner back. "Turner was slated to drive for a newly-organized group, The Grand American Racing Association, organized July 31 in Sumter, S.C. Turner was due to compete in the first of 17 scheduled races at Concord, N.C. Aug 21."[13] France was also short of cars. The Chrysler factory was boycotting NASCAR over the organizing body's ban of the Hemi engine, and Richard Petty went drag racing in the first half of the 1965 season. The Ford factory was also in dispute with NASCAR over the SOHC engine, which faced a joint NASCAR-USAC ban on December 17, 1965.[14]

Turner, then 41, soon notched the first victory of his comeback in a Ford at the inaugural American 500, at the North Carolina Motor Speedway, Rockingham, North Carolina, on October 31, 1965, winning a purse of $13,090.[15] Turner lost his Ford ride in 1966 when: "Ford withdrew its factory backed racing teams from competition when the National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing and the United States Auto Club ruled April 6 that Fords equipped with an overhead cam engine must carry 427 additional pounds."[16] Turner started the 1966 season in a Ford, but with the Ford-factory withdrawal, he signed to drive a Chevrolet for Smokey Yunick out of Daytona Beach, Florida.[17]

In 1968 he was the first NASCAR driver to appear on the cover of Sports Illustrated.

Death and legacy

Curtis Turner died in an airplane crash near Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania on October 4, 1970; the crash also killed golfer Clarence King.[18] Police said the Aero Commander 500 piloted by Turner crashed shortly after taking off from the Dubois-Jefferson Airport en route to Roanoke, Virginia.[19] At the time of the crash, Turner was preparing to compete in that week's National 500 at Charlotte in a special one-off race.[20]

In December 2017, the Virginia Department of Historic Resources approved the erection of a historic marker denoting Turner's birthplace in Floyd County and detailing his accomplishments.[21]

Motorsports career results

NASCAR

(key) (Bold – Pole position awarded by qualifying time. Italics – Pole position earned by points standings or practice time. * – Most laps led. ** – All laps led.)

Grand National Series

NASCAR Grand National Series results
Year Team No. Make 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 NGNC Pts Ref
1949 Curtis Turner 41 Buick CLT
9 		DAB
25 		HBO
20 		6th 430 [22]
Hubert Westmoreland Olds LAN
1* 		HAM MAR
9 		HEI NWS
9
1950 Paul Roberts Lincoln DAB
11 		5th 1375.5 [23]
Eanes Motor Co. Olds CLT
15 		LAN
1* 		MAR
1* 		CAN
19* 		VER DSP
4* 		MCF
1** 		CLT
1** 		HBO
2* 		DSP
23 		HAM
3 		DAR
60 		LAN
24 		NWS
22 		VER MAR
17 		WIN HBO
29
1951 Nash Motors Nash DAB
7 		CLT
1* 		NMO
17 		GAR HBO
27 		ASF NA - [24]
Eanes Motor Co. Olds NWS
27 		MAR
1 		CAN CLS CLB DSP
1* 		GAR GRS BAI HEI AWS MCF ALS MSF
9* 		FMS MOR ABS
15 		DAR
57 		CLB CCS LAN CLT
19 		DSP WIL HBO TPN PGS MAR
14 		OAK NWS HMS JSP ATL GAR NMO
1952 PBS DAB
41 		JSP DAR
61 		CCS LAN DSP WIL HBO MAR NWS ATL PBS 50th 505 [25]
Hudson NWS
20 		MAR
12 		CLB ATL
13 		CCS LAN
37 		DAR DSP CAN
5 		HAY FMS HBO CLT MSF NIF OSW MON MOR PPS MCF AWS
1953 Lincoln PBS DAB
7 		10th 3373 [26]
Olds HAR
30 		NWS
22 		CLT
24 		RCH CCS LAN CLB HCY MAR
20 		PMS
4 		RSP
14 		LOU FIF LAN TCS WIL MCF PIF
16 		MOR ATL
14 		RVS LCF DAV HBO
1** 		AWS
18 		PAS
15 		HCY CCS
11 		LAN
7 		BLF WIL
11 		NWS
22 		MAR
24 		ATL
16
Griffin Motors 44 Olds DAR
3
1954 Frank Christian 14 Olds PBS DAB
3 		ATL
7 		OSP OAK NWS
4 		HBO
5 		CCS
5 		LAN WIL 9th 2994 [27]
Elmer Brooks 44 Olds JSP
13 		RSP
22 		CLT GAR CLB
1* 		LND HCY MCF WGS PIF AWS SFS GRS MOR OAK CLT SAN COR DAR
2* 		CCS CLT LAN MAS MAR NWS
Carmen Amica 21 Olds MAR
3 		SHA
1955 Raymond Parks 99 Olds TCS PBS JSP DAB
4 		OSP
11 		CLB HBO NWS
3 		MGY
4 		LAN CLT HCY ASF TUS MAR RCH NCF FOR LIN MCF FON AIR CLT PIF CLB AWS MOR ALS NYF SAN CLT FOR MAS RSP 34th 1120 [28]
Schwam Motors Ford DAR
58 		MGY LAN RSP
35 		GPS NWS
20 		HBO
2
95 MAS
36 		CLB MAR LVP
1956 99 HCY
2 		CLT
7 		WSS PBS
16 		ASF DAB
52 		PBS
20 		WIL ATL NWS LAN RCH CLB
17 		CON GPS
2 		HCY HBO
26 		MAR LIN CLT
18 		POR EUR NYF MER MAS CLT
2 		MCF POR AWS RSP PIF CSF CHI CCF MGY OKL DAR
1* 		CSH CLT LAN POR CLB HBO NWP CLT CCF 20th 2580 [29]
DePaolo Engineering 26 Ford ROA
24 		OBS SAN NOR PIF MYB POR MAR
28 		HCY WIL
1957 C22 WSS CON
21 		TIC
2 		22nd 2356 [30]
99 DAB
7 		CON
18 		WIL HBO AWS NWS LAN CLT PIF GBF POR CCF RCH MAR POR EUR LIN LCS ASP NWP CLB CPS PIF JAC
Holman-Moody 26 Ford RSP
14 		CLT MAS
10 		POR HCY
22 		NOR LCS GLN KPC LIN OBS MYB
Smokey Yunick 31 Ford DAR
11 		NYF AWS CSF SCF LAN CLB CCF CLT MAR NBR CON NWS
Bob Welborn 49 Chevy GBF
23
1958 Holman-Moody 26 Ford FAY DAB
2 		ATL
1* 		CLT
1** 		MAR
6 		ODS OBS STR
5 		NWS
7 		BGS TRN
12 		RSD CLB NBS REF LIN DAR
33 		CLT BIR CSF GAF RCH HBO SAS MAR NWS ATL 20th 2856 [31]
21 CON
2* 		FAY
1* 		WIL
13* 		HBO
5
126 FAY
4 		CLB PIF
2 GPS
19 		GBF
John Whitford 98 Ford HCY
24 		AWS RSP
19 		MCC SLS TOR BUF MCF BEL BRR CLB NSV AWS
Wood Brothers Racing 21 Ford BGS
22 		MBS
1959 Doc White 41 Ford FAY DAY
29 		DAY
13 		HBO
1* 		CON
1* 		ATL WIL
2* 		BGS
22 		24th 2088 [32]
Carl Rupert 59 Ford CLB
15 		NWS
11 		REF HCY MAR TRN CLT NSV ASP PIF GPS
W. J. Ridgeway 22 Chevy ATL
4 		CLB WIL RCH BGS AWS DAY HEI CLT MBS CLT NSV AWS BGS GPS CLB DAR HCY RCH CSF HBO MAR AWS NWS
Frank Hayworth 75 Ford CON
24
1960 Holman-Moody 26 Ford CLT CLB DAY DAY
31 		DAY
7 		CLT NWS PHO CLB MAR HCY WIL BGS GPS
16* 		AWS DAR CLT
39 		BGS DAY HEI MAB MBS CLT
32 		RCH ATL 36th 3300 [33]
W. J. Ridgeway 77 Ford PIF
21
Wood Brothers Racing 21 Ford HBO
17 		RCH HMS
Beau Morgan 15 Ford ATL
22 		BIR NSV AWS PIF CLB SBO BGS DAR HCY CSF GSP HBO MAR NWS
1961 Wood Brothers Racing 21 Ford CLT JSP DAY DAY
26 		DAY
55 		PIF AWS HMS ATL
20 		GPS HBO BGS MAR NWS
14 		CLB DAR
2 		CLT CLT
11* 		RSD ASP CLT
44 		PIF BIR GPS BGS NOR HAS STR DAY ATL CLB MBS BRI NSV BGS AWS RCH SBO DAR HCY RCH CSF ATL MAR NWS CLT BRI GPS HBO NA - [34]
Rex Lovette Pontiac HCY
10 		RCH MAR
1965 Petty Enterprises 43 Plymouth RSD DAY DAY DAY PIF AWS RCH HBO ATL GPS NWS MAR CLB BRI DAR LGY BGS HCY CLT CCF ASH HAR NSV BIR ATL GPS MBS VAL DAY ODS OBS ISP GLN BRI NSV CCF AWS SMR PIF
DNQ 		AUG CLB DTS BLV BGS 39th 5542 [35]
Sam Fletcher 14 Plymouth DAR
35
Junior Johnson & Associates 2 Ford HCY
22 		LIN ODS RCH
36
Wood Brothers Racing 47 Ford MAR
31 		NWS
5 		CLT
3 		HBO
41 CAR
1* 		DTS
1966 AUG RSD
4 		DAY
11 		DAY DAY
25 		CAR
18 		BRI ATL
13 		HCY
2 		CLB GPS BGS NWS MAR 24th 12266 [36]
Smokey Yunick 22 Chevy DAR
25 		LGY MGR MON RCH
23
Betty Lilly 24 Ford CLT
41 		DTS ASH PIF SMR AWS BLV GPS
Smokey Yunick 13 Chevy DAY
4 		ODS BRR OXF FON ISP ATL
24 		CLT
36 		CAR
34
Toy Bolton 47 Chevy BRI
30 		SMR NSV AWS
30 		BLV RCH
4 		HBO MAR
31 		NWS
6
Junior Johnson & Associates 26 Ford CLB
3* 		BGS
17 		DAR
14 		HCY
1967 Bill Stroppe 15 Mercury AUG RSD
37 		71st 1602 [37]
Yunick-Rich Racing 13 Chevy DAY
28 		DAY DAY
25 		AWS BRI GPS BGS ATL CLB HCY NWS MAR SVH RCH DAR BLV LGY
Turkey Minton 74 Chevy CLT
DNQ 		ASH MGR SMR BIR CAR GPS MGY DAY TRN OXF FDA ISP BRI SMR NSV ATL BGS CLB SVH DAR HCY RCH BLV HBO MAR NWS CLT
34 		CAR AWS
1968 Friedkin Enterprises 14 Plymouth MGR MGY RSD DAY BRI RCH ATL HCY GPS CLB NWS MAR AUG AWS DAR
15 		BLV LGY CLT
9 		ASH MGR
6 		SMR
4 		BIR CAR GPS DAY ISP OXF FDA TRN BRI SMR NSV ATL CLB BGS AWS SBO LGY DAR
6 		HCY RCH BLV 71st 1602 [38]
15 HBO
13 		MAR NWS AUG CLT CAR JFC
Daytona 500
Year Team Manufacturer Start Finish
1959 Doc White Ford 43 13
1960 Holman-Moody Ford 53 7
1961 Wood Brothers Racing Ford 33 55
1966 Wood Brothers Racing Ford 21 25
1967 Yunick-Rich Racing Chevrolet 1 25

See also

References

  1. ^ Curtis Turner Bio autohistorypreservationsociety.org
  2. ^ Competition Press, December 31, 1959, Page 4 (picture), Page 8 (report).
  3. ^ Curtis Turner at the Motorsports Hall of Fame of America
  4. ^ Augusta Chronicle, August 11, 1961, Page 13.
  5. ^ The Washington Post and Times-Herald, August 23, 1961, Page D9.
  6. ^ Augusta Chronicle, October 25, 1961, Page 8.
  7. ^ Augusta Chronicle, October 23, 1961, Page 7.
  8. ^ Springfield Union, Sept 13, 1961, Page 27.
  9. ^ Augusta Chronicle, October 23, 1961, Page 6.
  10. ^ "Curtis Turner Indianapolis 1963". racersreunion.com/. Retrieved 11 May 2020.
  11. ^ Plain Dealer, January 20, 1964, Page 32.
  12. ^ Dallas Morning News, July 3, 1964, Section 2, Page 3.
  13. ^ Competition Press and Autoweek, August 28, 1965, Page 8.
  14. ^ Competition Press and Autoweek, January 15, 1966, Pages 1, 11.
  15. ^ Oregonian, Nov 1, 1965, Page 43.
  16. ^ Springfield Union, April 16, 1966, Page 34.
  17. ^ Augusta Chronicle, April 27, 1966, Section A, Page 6.
  18. ^ New York Times, October 6, 1970, Page 50.
  19. ^ Greensboro Record, October 5, 1970, Page 34.
  20. ^ "Flamboyant Curtis Turner Was A Track Showman". Asheville Citizen. AP. October 6, 1970. Retrieved January 17, 2020 – via Newspapers.com.
  21. ^ "Virginia Department of Historic Resources, 12 New State Historical Highway Markers Approved". dhr.virginia.gov. Archived from the original on 9 February 2018. Retrieved 8 February 2018.
  22. ^ "Curtis Turner – 1949 NASCAR Strictly Stock Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved May 29, 2019.
  23. ^ "Curtis Turner – 1950 NASCAR Grand National Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved May 29, 2019.
  24. ^ "Curtis Turner – 1951 NASCAR Grand National Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved May 29, 2019.
  25. ^ "Curtis Turner – 1952 NASCAR Grand National Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved May 29, 2019.
  26. ^ "Curtis Turner – 1953 NASCAR Grand National Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved May 29, 2019.
  27. ^ "Curtis Turner – 1954 NASCAR Grand National Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved May 29, 2019.
  28. ^ "Curtis Turner – 1955 NASCAR Grand National Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved May 29, 2019.
  29. ^ "Curtis Turner – 1956 NASCAR Grand National Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved May 29, 2019.
  30. ^ "Curtis Turner – 1957 NASCAR Grand National Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved May 29, 2019.
  31. ^ "Curtis Turner – 1958 NASCAR Grand National Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved May 29, 2019.
  32. ^ "Curtis Turner – 1959 NASCAR Grand National Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved May 29, 2019.
  33. ^ "Curtis Turner – 1960 NASCAR Grand National Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved May 29, 2019.
  34. ^ "Curtis Turner – 1961 NASCAR Grand National Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved May 29, 2019.
  35. ^ "Curtis Turner – 1965 NASCAR Grand National Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved May 29, 2019.
  36. ^ "Curtis Turner – 1966 NASCAR Grand National Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved May 29, 2019.
  37. ^ "Curtis Turner – 1967 NASCAR Grand National Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved May 29, 2019.
  38. ^ "Curtis Turner – 1968 NASCAR Grand National Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved May 29, 2019.
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