Curtis Turner

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 Turner was born in Floyd, Virginia, to Morton and Minnie Turner on April 12, 1924. He grew up with a brother and two sisters. His father, Morton Turner, was into the moonshine business and had a productive still. Turner 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, Turner developed his driving talents by running moonshine through the mountains from the law.

Turner 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, Turner convincingly stated a lie of conspiring to produce apple butter, and the judge let him off with a 1,000 dollar fine and a two-year suspended sentence. Locals spoke of how Turner 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.

Turner 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 two-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.

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

Accomplishments Turner is noted for several other racing accomplishments:

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. 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. According to The Washington Post: "His aims are for better purses, a share in broadcasting rights and retirement benefits for the drivers." 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), even promoting his 100-mile event on the dirt at Lakewood Speedway, Georgia, in October 1961. Tim Flock finished second in that event. Turner and Flock sued NASCAR and France, "seeking $200,000 punitive damages each and restitution for loss of earnings." "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."

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.

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, and his star driver Fireball Roberts had died following a fiery crash on May 24, 1964, at the World 600 in Charlotte. 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." 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.

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. 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." 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.

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

Death and legacy Turner died in an airplane crash near Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania on October 4, 1970; the crash also killed golfer Clarence King. Police said the Aero Commander 500 piloted by Turner crashed shortly after taking off from the Dubois-Jefferson Airport en route to Roanoke, Virginia. 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.

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.

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 Pts Ref 1949 Curtis Turner 41 Buick CLT9 DAB25 HBO20 6th 430 Hubert Westmoreland Olds LAN1* HAM MAR9 HEI NWS9 1950 Paul Roberts Lincoln DAB11 5th 1375.5 Eanes Motor Co. Olds CLT15 LAN1* MAR1* CAN19* VER DSP4* MCF1** CLT1** HBO2* DSP23 HAM3 DAR60 LAN24 NWS22 VER MAR17 WIN HBO29 1951 Nash Motors Nash DAB7 CLT1* NMO17 GAR HBO27 ASF NA - Eanes Motor Co. Olds NWS27 MAR1 CAN CLS CLB DSP1* GAR GRS BAI HEI AWS MCF ALS MSF9* FMS MOR ABS15 DAR57 CLB CCS LAN CLT19 DSP WIL HBO TPN PGS MAR14 OAK NWS HMS JSP ATL GAR NMO 1952 PBS DAB41 JSP DAR61 CCS LAN DSP WIL HBO MAR NWS ATL PBS 50th 505 Hudson NWS20 MAR12 CLB ATL13 CCS LAN37 DAR DSP CAN5 HAY FMS HBO CLT MSF NIF OSW MON MOR PPS MCF AWS 1953 Lincoln PBS DAB7 10th 3373 Olds HAR30 NWS22 CLT24 RCH CCS LAN CLB HCY MAR20 PMS4 RSP14 LOU FIF LAN TCS WIL MCF PIF16 MOR ATL14 RVS LCF DAV HBO1** AWS18 PAS15 HCY CCS11 LAN7 BLF WIL11 NWS22 MAR24 ATL16 Griffin Motors 44 Olds DAR3 1954 Frank Christian 14 Olds PBS DAB3 ATL7 OSP OAK NWS4 HBO5 CCS5 LAN WIL 9th 2994 Elmer Brooks 44 Olds JSP13 RSP22 CLT GAR CLB1* LND HCY MCF WGS PIF AWS SFS GRS MOR OAK CLT SAN COR DAR2* CCS CLT LAN MAS MAR NWS Carmen Amica 21 Olds MAR3 SHA 1955 Raymond Parks 99 Olds TCS PBS JSP DAB4 OSP11 CLB HBO NWS3 MGY4 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 Schwam Motors Ford DAR58 MGY LAN RSP35 GPS NWS20 HBO2 95 MAS36 CLB MAR LVP 1956 99 HCY2 CLT7 WSS PBS16 ASF DAB52 PBS20 WIL ATL NWS LAN RCH CLB17 CON GPS2 HCY HBO26 MAR LIN CLT18 POR EUR NYF MER MAS CLT2 MCF POR AWS RSP PIF CSF CHI CCF MGY OKL DAR1* CSH CLT LAN POR CLB HBO NWP CLT CCF 20th 2580 DePaolo Engineering 26 Ford ROA24 OBS SAN NOR PIF MYB POR MAR28 HCY WIL 1957 C22 WSS CON21 TIC2 22nd 2356 99 DAB7 CON18 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 RSP14 CLT MAS10 POR HCY22 NOR LCS GLN KPC LIN OBS MYB Smokey Yunick 31 Ford DAR11 NYF AWS CSF SCF LAN CLB CCF CLT MAR NBR CON NWS Bob Welborn 49 Chevy GBF23 1958 Holman-Moody 26 Ford FAY DAB2 ATL1* CLT1** MAR6 ODS OBS STR5 NWS7 BGS TRN12 RSD CLB NBS REF LIN DAR33 CLT BIR CSF GAF RCH HBO SAS MAR NWS ATL 20th 2856 21 CON2* FAY1* WIL13* HBO5 126 FAY4 CLB PIF 2 GPS19 GBF John Whitford 98 Ford HCY24 AWS RSP19 MCC SLS TOR BUF MCF BEL BRR CLB NSV AWS Wood Brothers Racing 21 Ford BGS22 MBS 1959 Doc White 41 Ford FAY DAY29 DAY13 HBO1* CON1* ATL WIL2* BGS22 24th 2088 Carl Rupert 59 Ford CLB15 NWS11 REF HCY MAR TRN CLT NSV ASP PIF GPS W. J. Ridgeway 22 Chevy ATL4 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 CON24 1960 Holman-Moody 26 Ford CLT CLB DAY DAY31 DAY7 CLT NWS PHO CLB MAR HCY WIL BGS GPS16* AWS DAR CLT39 BGS DAY HEI MAB MBS CLT32 RCH ATL 36th 3300 W. J. Ridgeway 77 Ford PIF21 Wood Brothers Racing 21 Ford HBO17 RCH HMS Beau Morgan 15 Ford ATL22 BIR NSV AWS PIF CLB SBO BGS DAR HCY CSF GSP HBO MAR NWS 1961 Wood Brothers Racing 21 Ford CLT JSP DAY DAY26 DAY55 PIF AWS HMS ATL20 GPS HBO BGS MAR NWS14 CLB DAR2 CLT CLT11* RSD ASP CLT44 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 - Rex Lovette Pontiac HCY10 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 PIFDNQ AUG CLB DTS BLV BGS 39th 5542 Sam Fletcher 14 Plymouth DAR35 Junior Johnson & Associates 2 Ford HCY22 LIN ODS RCH36 Wood Brothers Racing 47 Ford MAR31 NWS5 CLT3 HBO 41 CAR1* DTS 1966 AUG RSD4 DAY11 DAY DAY25 CAR18 BRI ATL13 HCY2 CLB GPS BGS NWS MAR 24th 12266 Smokey Yunick 22 Chevy DAR25 LGY MGR MON RCH23 Betty Lilly 24 Ford CLT41 DTS ASH PIF SMR AWS BLV GPS Smokey Yunick 13 Chevy DAY4 ODS BRR OXF FON ISP ATL24 CLT36 CAR34 Toy Bolton 47 Chevy BRI30 SMR NSV AWS30 BLV RCH4 HBO MAR31 NWS6 Junior Johnson & Associates 26 Ford CLB3* BGS17 DAR14 HCY 1967 Bill Stroppe 15 Mercury AUG RSD37 71st 1602 Yunick-Rich Racing 13 Chevy DAY28 DAY DAY25 AWS BRI GPS BGS ATL CLB HCY NWS MAR SVH RCH DAR BLV LGY Turkey Minton 74 Chevy CLTDNQ 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 CLT34 CAR AWS 1968 Friedkin Enterprises 14 Plymouth MGR MGY RSD DAY BRI RCH ATL HCY GPS CLB NWS MAR AUG AWS DAR15 BLV LGY CLT9 ASH MGR6 SMR4 BIR CAR GPS DAY ISP OXF FDA TRN BRI SMR NSV ATL CLB BGS AWS SBO LGY DAR6 HCY RCH BLV 71st 1602 15 HBO13 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