Stock car racing in America had to start somewhere and there was no better place and time than a piece of vacant southern farmland on a lazy Sunday afternoon.
From this oak tree to that oak tree usually defined the frontstretch, with a pair of pines marking a set of turns. Those trees in the distance at the other end of the field came into play when everyone agreed.
Even though primitive, these makeshift tracks served their purpose, giving local racers and mechanics – many of whom were known for transporting moonshine – a place to compete for not much more than bragging rights.
As the popularity of stock car racing grew, so did the number of tracks, with some layouts proving much tougher to navigate than the others.
One of stock car racing’s original “tough” tracks was the Beach and Road Course in Daytona Beach, Fla. Six-time IMCA big car champion Sig Haugdahl is credited with designing the 3.2-mille oval that utilized a stretch of Highway A1A and a section of the hard-packed beach where land-speed-record runs had previously been conducted.
From its first race in 1936, the unique course was known for deeply rutted turns and unpredictable tides.
Then, an egg-shaped ribbon of asphalt was laid in a rural section of South Carolina farmland that forever changed the auto-racing landscape. Darlington Raceway opened with the inaugural Southern 500 on Sept. 4, 1950.
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