1957 – Thompson Won on Steadiness

 

Race winner Speedy Thompson is joined by his crew and “Ms. Southern 500” Martha Brunson. 

Darlington, S.C. (September 1, 1957) – A brilliant, steady performance by one of the wild men of stock car racing won the tragedy-marred eighth annual Southern 500 on Monday afternoon.

Speedy Thompson of Monroe, N.C., went home with the top take of $13,450 and a new race record of 101.10 miles per hour in his pocket.

Death rode the rails much to the horror of the estimated crowd of 70,000 when a three-car pileup on the 28th lap of the six-hour grind proved fatal to Bobby Myers, 33, of Winston-Salem, N.C.

His death was the first at the track in the eight-year history of the event.

Thompson, who qualified at a fast 117.80 miles per hour, kept his Chevrolet in contention all the way from starting seventh in the in a field of 50 cars. He took over shortly after Glenn “Fireball” Roberts of Daytona Beach, Fla., wrecked by hitting the spinning car of Parnelli Jones of Torrance, Calif on the 102nd lap.

The Monroe speedster, who has a reputation for keeping the gas pedal to the floor regardless of track conditions, took a full pit stop shortly before the 108th lap, and Curtis Turner of Roanoke, Va., last year’s winner, stepped into the lead.

When Turner pitted on lap 201, Thompson got the lead back and held it except briefly at the 280th lap mark in the 364-lap grind. Lee Petty of Randleman, N.C., held it for several laps at that point.

Turner was edging up toward the lead again on the 233rd circuit when he and Petty bumped each other in the third turn. Turner spun out and wrecked, got his car back in running order after an 18-lap pit stop, but was out of contention, finishing 11th. Petty blew a tire shortly after taking the lead and was out of the race.

Thompson held on steadily from there, his pit stops only taking 5 minute and 32 seconds.

Cotton Owens of Spartanburg, S.C., who started on the pole, finished second in his Pontiac, earning $5,850. His six pit stops for 7 minutes loss was the difference for him.

Coming in third place was Marvin Panch of Gardena, Calif., in a Ford, collecting $3,775. He had five pit stops that totaled 9 minutes and 25 seconds.

Buck Baker of Charlotte, N.C., driving a Chevrolet, finished fourth, earning $1,975, while Jim Reed of Peekskill, N.Y., piloting a Ford, took home $1,500.

The paved 1-3/8-mile oval had a track temperature of 140 degrees in the near 100-degree heat, and it took its toll on tires and cars.

Mechanical failures sent many cars to the pits. Spins into rails and several minor collisions had the caution flag out half a dozen times.

The crash in which Bobby Myers was killed came on lap 28 when Fonty Flock of Atlanta, Ga., the 1952 winner, went into a spin in the third turn. Myers piled directly into him and flipped over into the path of Paul Goldsmith of St. Clair Shores, Mich.

Flock and Goldsmith were hospitalized at Florence, where Myers died about an hour and a half after the wreck without regaining consciousness.

With his brother critically hurt, Billy Myer of Germantown, N.C., dropped out of the race and Pee Wee Jones of Clemmons, N.C., took over his Ford. He brought it home to a sixth-place finish and $1,175.


Results –


1. Speedy Thompson, Monroe, N.C.
2. Cotton Owens, Spartanburg, S.C.
3. Marvin Panch, Gardena, Calif.
4. Buck Baker, Charlotte, N.C.
5. Jim Reed, Peekskill, N.Y.
6. Pee Wee Jones, Clemmons, N.C.
7. Billy Carden, Atlanta, Ga.
8. Johnny Mackison, Delta, Penn.
9. Possum Jones, Tampa, Fla.
10.Jack Smith, Atlanta, Ga.