1968 Peach State 200
Race details[1][2]
Race 49 of 49 in the 1968 NASCAR Grand National Series season
Jefco Speedway (Now Gresham Motorsports Park)
Jefco Speedway (Now Gresham Motorsports Park)
Date November 3, 1968 (1968-11-03)
Official name Peach State 200
Location Jefco Speedway, Jefferson, Georgia
Course Permanent racing facility
0.500 mi (0.800 km)
Distance 200 laps, 100 mi (150 km)
Weather Mild with temperatures of 75 °F (24 °C); wind speeds of 6 miles per hour (9.7 km/h)
Average speed 77.737 miles per hour (125.106 km/h)
Attendance 5,200[2]
Pole position
Driver
Holman Moody
Most laps led
Driver Bobby Isaac K&K Insurance Racing
Laps 144
Winner
No. 21 Cale Yarborough Wood Brothers Racing
Television in the United States
Network untelevised
Announcers none

The 1968 Peach State 200 was a NASCAR Grand National Series event that was held on November 3, 1968, at Jefco Speedway in Jefferson, Georgia.

The transition to purpose-built racecars began in the early 1960s and occurred gradually over that decade. Changes made to the sport by the late 1960s brought an end to the "strictly stock" vehicles of the 1950s.

Race report

Two hundred laps were completed on an oval track spanning 0.500 miles (0.805 km).[2] The race took one hour, seventeen minutes, and eleven seconds to completely finish.[2] Notable speeds were: 77.737 miles per hour (125.106 km/h) for the average speed and 90.694 miles per hour (145.958 km/h) for the pole position speed.[2] Five thousand and two hundred fans attended this race live.

Paul Dean Holt's streak of 18 DNF's in a row begins at this race, a streak which would last until the end of his career.[2] In 85 starts, Holt only finished 22 races, which is an indication of the lack of reliability during the 1960s and the 1970s when the technology to provide reliable cars were at an extreme premium.[3]

Cale Yarborough defeated Richard Petty by half a lap in his 1968 Mercury Cyclone.[2] Bobby Isaac had a crash that made him commit a DNF in 9th place while Stan Meserve was the lowest finishing driver to actually complete the entire race (in 22nd place out of 29 competitors).[2] All the competitors involved in this race were American citizens with no foreign-born participants.[2] Crashes and problems with the stock car racing engine helped to play a part in knocking unwary drivers out of the race.[4]

The winner of the race would enjoy his race winnings of $1,000 ($8,415 when considering inflation) USD while the bottom seven finishers were unpaid for racing up to 142 laps.[2][4] Bobby Isaac would lead the most number of laps in the entire race (144 out of 200) in his 1968 Dodge Charger vehicle.[2]

NASCAR's family-oriented heritage would shine at this race with the vast number of vehicles that were either owned by the driver himself or by a close relative of the driver. Ford vehicles would make up the majority of the racing grid while Chevrolet and Dodge made up a sizeable amount of the field.[5] Notable crew chiefs at the race included Harry Hyde, Dale Inman, Frankie Scott, and Jake Elder.[6]

Legendary racing team Holman Moody would enjoy a level of success at this event that would eventually be equaled at the other events throughout the late 1960s and early 1970s.[7] Bill Ervin would be black flagged on the fourth lap of this race due to his vehicle being unable to comply with the minimum racing speeds necessary for NASCAR racing.[5]

Don Tomberlin made his NASCAR debut here while Dexter Gainey and Stan Meserve would end their respective NASCAR careers after this event.[8]

Qualifying

Grid[2] No. Driver Manufacturer Owner
1 17David Pearson'68 FordHolman-Moody Racing
2 71Bobby Isaac'68 DodgeNord Krauskopf
3 21Cale Yarborough'68 MercuryWood Brothers
4 84G.C. Spencer'68 FordRoy Trantham
5 14Bobby Allison'68 PlymouthTom Friedkin
6 48James Hylton'68 DodgeJames Hylton
7 43Richard Petty'68 PlymouthPetty Enterprises
8 4John Sears'66 FordL.G. DeWitt
9 39Friday Hassler'66 ChevroletRed Sharp
10 56LeeRoy Yarbrough'67 MercuryLyle Stelter
11 64Elmo Langley'66 FordElmo Langley / Henry Woodfield
12 06Neil Castles'67 PlymouthNeil Castles
13 25Jabe Thomas'67 FordDon Robertson
14 96Don Tomberlin'66 FordRoy Buckner
15 34Wendell Scott'66 FordWendell Scott
16 5Earl Brooks'67 FordDon Robertson
17 8Ed Negre'67 FordEd Negre
18 52Dexter Gainey'66 FordElmer Buxton
19 20Clyde Lynn'66 FordClyde Lynn
20 45Cecil Gordon'68 FordBill Seifert
21 80E.J. Trivette'66 ChevroletE.C. Reid
22 70J.D. McDuffie'67 BuickJ.D. McDuffie
23 19Henley Gray'68 FordHenley Gray
24 47Bill Seifert'68 FordBill Seifert
25 01Paul Dean Holt'67 FordDennis Holt
26 09Stan Meserve'66 ChevroletRoy Tyner
27 57Ervin Pruitt'67 DodgeErvin Pruitt
28 31Bill Ervin'66 FordNewman Long
29 9Roy Tyner'67 PontiacRoy Tyner

Finishing order

Section reference: [2]

  1. Cale Yarborough (No. 21)
  2. Richard Petty (No. 43)
  3. David Pearson† (No. 17)
  4. James Hylton (No. 48)
  5. LeeRoy Yarbrough† (No. 56)
  6. John Sears† (No. 4)
  7. Friday Hassler† (No. 39)
  8. Elmo Langley† (No. 64)
  9. Bobby Isaac*† (No. 71)
  10. Neil Castles (No. 06)
  11. Clyde Lynn† (No. 20)
  12. Jabe Thomas† (No. 25)
  13. J.D. McDuffie† (No. 70)
  14. Wendell Scott† (No. 34)
  15. Don Tomberlin (No. 96)
  16. Henley Grey (No. 19)
  17. E.J. Trivette (No. 80)
  18. Bill Seifert (No. 47)
  19. Cecil Gordon† (No. 45)
  20. Ed Negre (No. 8)
  21. Ervin Pruitt (No. 57)
  22. Stan Meserve (No. 09)
  23. Paul Dean Holt* (No. 01)
  24. Dexter Gainey* (No. 52)
  25. Earl Brooks*† (No. 5)
  26. Roy Tyner*† (No. 9)
  27. Bobby Allison* (No. 14)
  28. G.C. Spencer*† (No. 84)
  29. Bill Ervin* (No. 31)

† signifies that the driver is known to be deceased
* Driver failed to finish race

Timeline

Section reference: [2]

  • Lap 4: Bill Ervin's vehicle was black flagged for disobeying the rules.
  • Lap 28: Oil pressure problems ultimately forced G.C. Spencer out of the race.
  • Lap 64: Bobby Allison's vehicle developed a problematic engine.
  • Lap 71: Engine problems forced Roy Tyner to exit the race.
  • Lap 74: Earl Brooks had a terminal crash, forcing him to exit the race.
  • Lap 101: Dexter Gainey had a terminal crash, causing his premature exit from the race.
  • Lap 142: Ignition problems forced Paul Dean Holt to end his race day.
  • Lap 191: Bobby Isaac had a terminal crash, ending his NASCAR race day a bit too soon.

References

  1. ↑ "1968 Peach State 200 weather information". The Old Farmers' Almanac. Retrieved 2012-08-02.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 "1968 Peach State 200 information". Racing-Reference. Retrieved 2020-05-05.
  3. ↑ "Driver Dean Holt Career Statistics". Racing Reference. Retrieved 2020-09-07.
  4. 1 2 "1968 Peach State 200 information". Fantasy Racing Cheat Sheet. Retrieved 2012-09-04.
  5. 1 2 "1968 Peach State 200 information". Driver Averages. Archived from the original on 2015-09-23. Retrieved 2012-09-04.
  6. ↑ "1968 Peach State 200 crew chiefs information". Racing Reference. Retrieved 2018-08-31.
  7. ↑ Cotter, Tom; Pearce, Al (2002). Holman Moody: The Legendary Race Team. ISBN 9780760308752. Retrieved 2012-09-05.
  8. ↑ "1968 Peach State 200 information". Race Database. Retrieved 2012-09-15.
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