by Cody Harrison

Created on: April 04, 2008   Last Updated: March 22, 2011

In the beginning of NASCAR times when stock car racing first began to organize itself in the late 40's the leading drivers were mostly bootleggers.Men who ran whiskey from illegal stills to hundreds of markets across the southeast.They could go 95 miles in hour in first gear,115 in second.Just a few police could go that fast.Tim Flock who was a champion in 1952,and 1955,came from a family of bootleggers and along with brothers Fonty,and Bob.the first race that was among bootleggers was held in the mid-1930s in a cow pasture in the town of Stockbridgee,Georgia, that's about fifteen miles outside Atlanta.At those times they didn't have no tickets,no safety equipment,no fences,No nothing .Just a bunch of bootleggers who wanted to see who had the fastest car.

In the earlier years Smokey Yunick was a controversial owner-mechanic genius who was known for his innovative engine and chassis designs.His cars were known to win from racers Herb Thomas, and later won by Paul Goldsmith,Fireball Roberts,and Marcin Panch.Herb Thomas who by the week was a dirt farmer and weekend was a racing fool.

The favorites in the late 40's and early 50's were Red Byron and Curtis Turner,but the winner was Johnny "madman" Mantz from long beach,California.He qualified last but he won because his car was light and had connections for tires in Dayton, Ohio.He only changed tires three times.with standard tire it would take twenty four times,twenty-two cars had blown-outs.Mantz averaged 75.25 miles an hour to win.

When sponsors became the era Junior Johnson and Ralph Seagraves from R.J.Reynolds were good old mountain buddies.Junior Johnson asked Seagraves if R.J. Reynolds would be interested in putting up 800,000 dollars of his own money to sponsor his car.Seagrave told him he wanted to spend closer to 400 million dollars,because the federal government had forbidden the tobacco company from placing its ads on TV and radio and in magazines,and it was looking for a new avenue for its advertising.Junior Johnson brought Seagraves to see Bill France Sr.After R.J. Reynalds sponsored the first Winston 500 at Talladega,and then Winston Western 500 at Riverside,California,the company agreed to put the prize money for the NASCAR point fund.

The race world was shocked when Alan Kulwicki and Davey Allison met early deaths in 1993 in separate air accidents.The following year Neil Bonnet died in a crash at Daytona.And who can forget the death of a legend Dale Earnhart who died at Daytona.I give out to the families of the NASCAR's greatest who made history and made this sport the way it is today.

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