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Welcome, Race Fans!
To The Creative Loafing NASCAR Hall of Fame and Museum
By M.S. Herrin and Jim Hunt
Page 2 of 3
5. Tony Stewart Temper Testimonial
A museum exclusive: the official certificate verifying that driver Tony Stewart completed the anger management course NASCAR forced him to take in 2003. Includes authentic broken glass and frame.
6. The Bill Elliott Helium Blaster
Many fans would like to be a great a driver like Bill Elliott, but few of them can. And even fewer can sound like him, no matter how high they try to speak, or how many Four Seasons songs they've sung along with. Until now. Step right up to what will no doubt be one of the museum's most popular exhibits. Take a big whiff of pure helium, and you'll be able to screech, "Hey, I sound just like Awesome Bill!"
7. Official Aryan Surfboard
See the actual surfboard driver Kasey Kahne used in Young Aryan Surfers in Love, the hit movie he made in 2006 with Hillary Duff whom he met on the set, married, and had two perfect children with.
8. Free Chest X-Ray
Every patron of the museum will be eligible to get a quick, painless, and free chest x-ray, compliments of the museum, in honor of NASCAR's "Tobacco Years."
9. J-Wrecks!
A tribute to driver Jimmie Johnson. Formerly the most squeaky clean personality in NASCAR, he's changed his tune, driving flat-out bumpercars style and, according to drivers he's pissed off, causing wrecks left and right.
10. Dead Man’s Curve
As you're going up or coming down our fabulous stairway, you'll pass Dead Man's Curve, a tribute to the drivers who've been killed while participating in NASCAR events. Stop for a second to pay homage to the likes of Fireball Roberts, Dale Earnhardt, Joe Weatherly, Jimmy Pardue, Adam Petty, Neil Bonnett, Kenny Irwin , Tony Roper, John Nemechek, J.D. McDuffie. . . .well, the list kind of goes on but we'll stop there, no need to upset people or anything.
HALL OF FAME MEMBERS -
FIRST 20 INDUCTEES
Richard Petty
One of NASCAR's true all-time superstars, Petty drove car 42 to seven series championships in a career that lasted 35 years. In 1967, he won an amazing 27 of 48 races, including a record 10 straight. No wonder he's considered The King.
Junior Johnson
The legend, the Last American Hero (according to Tom Wolfe), Johnson acquired his skills while driving the NC backroads, delivering 'shine. A full-tilt, old-school driver, he won 50 series races while gaining many new fans for the sport.
Cale Yarborough
One of the most durable and hard-charging drivers ever, Yarborough, the only NASCAR Winston Cup driver to win three consecutive championships, was a four-time winner of the Daytona 500 and a five-time winner of the Southern 500 at Darlington.
Glenn “Fireball” Roberts
Often referred to as the greatest driver never to win a Winston Cup title, Roberts was highly popular, earned 32 wins, but then died tragically after suffering injuries from a horrific accident at Charlotte Motor Speedway.
Darrell Waltrip
This immensely popular driver is a three-time series champion and is tied for third on the all-time victory list with 84 wins. He is the only five-time winner of the Coca-Cola 600, and he won the inaugural The Winston in 1985.
Joe Weatherly
A motorcycling champion before moving to stock cars, Weatherly won back-to-back Winston Cup championships in 1962 and 1963 and was obviously on his way to becoming an all-time great when he was killed in an accident at Riverside in California. The stock car racing museum in Darlington, SC, is named for him.
Fred Lorenzen
The first NASCAR driver to earn more than $100,000 in one season, Lorenzen was a highly skilled racer and was Richard Petty's main competition for years even though his participation was spotty. In 1964, for instance, he won eight of the 16 races he entered and finished 13th in the points race despite missing 45 of that year's 61 races.
Dale Earnhardt
The one, the only, the Intimidator earned his title with a hard-charging, take-no-prisoners driving style. The only driver to win Rookie of the Year and the series championship in successive seasons, Earnhardt won seven series championships before dying in a last-lap accident at Daytona.
Wendell Scott
Scott was the only black stock car driver during his career in the 1950s through the early 70s. A superb mechanic, he was forced to operate on a low budget, even enlisting his sons as crew members, due to sponsor discrimination. Still, racing on a shoestring, he finished in the Top 10 in 147 races, and was in the Top 10 in point standings from 1966-69. He is still the only black driver to win a NASCAR race.
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