West Virginia 300
winner Ramo Stott is joined by track owner Gary Lashinsky (left) and ARCA’s
John Marcum in victory lane.
Ona, W.Va. (August 24, 1969) - Ramo Stott drove a flawless race in a 1969 Plymouth and benefitted from a lightning pit stop Sunday to win the West Virginia 300 at International Raceway Park.
Stott played a waiting game until the halfway point of the 300-lap Grand National race witnessed by a less-than-anticipated crowd of 4,376 paid. Until that point pole winner Bobby Watson led every lap in a 1969 Dodge Charger.
Stott, who calls Keokuk, Iowa his home, settled into fifth place as Watson and teammate Andy Hampton ran one-two for a while after the start, trailed by Les Snow in a 1969 Plymouth and defending Auto Racing Club of American champion Benny Parsons in a 1969 Torino.
Parsons and Stott moved up to pull behind Watson at the end of 40 laps, and it remained that way while Snow, one of the hard runners on the ARCA circuit, blew his engine, which brought his Plymouth around to the pits without bringing out the caution flag.
Parsons was the first of the front-runners to pit, with 140 laps gone, a stop of 30 seconds for fuel.
Stott, with Watson cut off momentarily by Dave Dayton's 1969 Ford, ducked inside and roared out front on the 151st lap. Watson pitted eight laps later and took on a load of fuel in 31 seconds.
Stott came in on the 167th lap and got back out again in 20 seconds without relinquishing the lead. He held a comfortable margin the remainder of the way, lapping the 7/16-mile track consistently in 20 seconds, with a higher groove around the turns than the other drivers with top-flight machinery.
Parsons was the only other driver in the same lap with Stott, who won $l, 615 for the jaunt of one hour, 43 and 32 seconds. Both Watson and Parsons made up ground on Stott when Willard Googe's 1967 Ford smacked the guard rail to bring out the caution flag for four laps with one third the of the distance to go.
Just after that, smoke began trailing from Watson's car and he had to nurse it home for the remaining 100 laps with a fouled-up gearbox.
Parson’s share of the $10,000 purse was $1,275. Watson won $925 and Hampton's fourth place finish was good for $600.
“I kinda liked it up there,” Stott said in victory lane, commenting on his high groove around the turns. "It gave me a good shot at the straights.”
Scott said his blue, tan and red hemi-powered car "was just a shade faster than anything else out there." He said the quick pit stop was "the big thing" and speculated it might have been a dash to the finish if Parsons had been in front after the pit stops.
Asked if he had any trouble at all during the race, Stott replied, "Well yes, Watson, I had to pick my time when I got by him."
Results –
1. Ramo Stott
2. Benny Parsons
3. Bobby Watson
4. Andy Hampton
5. Larry Ashley
6. Paul Wensink
7. Iggy Katona
8. Clifford Hamm
9. Bill Kimmel
10.Dave Dayton
11.Cleo Ashley
12.Tom King
13.Jesse Griffin
14.Gale Beavers
15.Willard Googe
16.Richard Kershner
17.Don Violet
18.John Early
19.Louis Wusterhausen
20.Danny Dean
21.Grant Wilmot
22.Les Snow
23.Don Bryant
24.Larry Newman
25.Jim Kaetzel
26.Ron Grana
27.Bob Thomas
28.Namon Martin
29.Tony Schotter
30.Wayne Trinkle
Stott, who calls Keokuk, Iowa his home, settled into fifth place as Watson and teammate Andy Hampton ran one-two for a while after the start, trailed by Les Snow in a 1969 Plymouth and defending Auto Racing Club of American champion Benny Parsons in a 1969 Torino.
Parsons and Stott moved up to pull behind Watson at the end of 40 laps, and it remained that way while Snow, one of the hard runners on the ARCA circuit, blew his engine, which brought his Plymouth around to the pits without bringing out the caution flag.
Parsons was the first of the front-runners to pit, with 140 laps gone, a stop of 30 seconds for fuel.
Stott, with Watson cut off momentarily by Dave Dayton's 1969 Ford, ducked inside and roared out front on the 151st lap. Watson pitted eight laps later and took on a load of fuel in 31 seconds.
Stott came in on the 167th lap and got back out again in 20 seconds without relinquishing the lead. He held a comfortable margin the remainder of the way, lapping the 7/16-mile track consistently in 20 seconds, with a higher groove around the turns than the other drivers with top-flight machinery.
Parsons was the only other driver in the same lap with Stott, who won $l, 615 for the jaunt of one hour, 43 and 32 seconds. Both Watson and Parsons made up ground on Stott when Willard Googe's 1967 Ford smacked the guard rail to bring out the caution flag for four laps with one third the of the distance to go.
Just after that, smoke began trailing from Watson's car and he had to nurse it home for the remaining 100 laps with a fouled-up gearbox.
Parson’s share of the $10,000 purse was $1,275. Watson won $925 and Hampton's fourth place finish was good for $600.
“I kinda liked it up there,” Stott said in victory lane, commenting on his high groove around the turns. "It gave me a good shot at the straights.”
Scott said his blue, tan and red hemi-powered car "was just a shade faster than anything else out there." He said the quick pit stop was "the big thing" and speculated it might have been a dash to the finish if Parsons had been in front after the pit stops.
Asked if he had any trouble at all during the race, Stott replied, "Well yes, Watson, I had to pick my time when I got by him."
Results –
1. Ramo Stott
2. Benny Parsons
3. Bobby Watson
4. Andy Hampton
5. Larry Ashley
6. Paul Wensink
7. Iggy Katona
8. Clifford Hamm
9. Bill Kimmel
10.Dave Dayton
11.Cleo Ashley
12.Tom King
13.Jesse Griffin
14.Gale Beavers
15.Willard Googe
16.Richard Kershner
17.Don Violet
18.John Early
19.Louis Wusterhausen
20.Danny Dean
21.Grant Wilmot
22.Les Snow
23.Don Bryant
24.Larry Newman
25.Jim Kaetzel
26.Ron Grana
27.Bob Thomas
28.Namon Martin
29.Tony Schotter
30.Wayne Trinkle
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