The 1971 Sandlapper 200 was a NASCAR Winston Cup Series racing event that took place on August 27, 1971, at Columbia Speedway[1] in Columbia, South Carolina.[2]
The race car drivers still had to commute to the races using the same stock cars that competed in a typical weekend's race through a policy of homologation (and under their own power). This policy was in effect until roughly 1975. By 1980, NASCAR had completely stopped tracking the year model of all the vehicles and most teams did not take stock cars to the track under their own power anymore.
Columbia Speedway was an oval racetrack located in Cayce, a suburb of Columbia, South Carolina. It was the site of auto races for NASCAR's top series from 1951 through 1971.[3] For most of its history, the racing surface was dirt. The races in April and August 1970 were two of the final three Grand National races ever held on a dirt track.[4]
The track was paved before hosting its last two Grand National races in 1971.
While Columbia Speedway was shut down to cars in 1979, noise complaints, it reopened as a velodrome in 2001.
Two hundred laps were completed on a paved oval track spanning 0.5miles in only one hour and thirty-four minutes.[1] [2] Six cautions were given for forty-one laps; Richard Petty managed to defeat Tiny Lund by ten car lengths.[1] [2] Local track announcer Jim Seay would realize the charismatic potential of Petty and interviewed him right after the race in front of a regional crowd.[5] Eight thousand people showed up in person to see cars achieve speeds of up to 64.831mph.[1] [2] Richard Petty, however, would achieve the pole position speed of 85.137mph.[2] Ron Keselowski would crash prior to the first lap of the race.[1] [2]
The combined winnings purse for this race would be $9,275 ($ when adjusted for inflation); the winner would receive $1,500 of it ($ when adjusted for inflation) while the last-place finisher took home a meager $200 ($ when adjusted for inflation).[6]
H. B. Bailey was running in second place until a freak crash on 55 made him finish in 24th place (a loss of 22 positions).[1] [2]
Last top-10 finish for Ken Meisenhelder. The Massachusetts driver had three top-10 finishes in his career, all of them finishing 10th.[7]
Lee Gordon, Vic Ballard and Dale Inman were among the three most notable crew chiefs to participate in this event. Inman was in charge of keeping Richard Petty's car in good order while Vic Ballard looked after Walter Ballard. Lee Gordon's primary responsibility was keeping Cecil Gordon's vehicle in decent working order.[8]
| Grid | Driver | Manufacturer | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 43 | Richard Petty | '70 Plymouth | |
| 2 | 36 | H.B. Bailey | '71 Firebird | |
| 3 | 55 | Tiny Lund | '69 Camaro | |
| 4 | 14 | Jim Paschal | '70 Javelin | |
| 5 | 15 | Wayne Andrews | '71 Mustang | |
| 6 | 48 | James Hylton | '70 Ford | |
| 7 | 74 | Bill Shirey | '69 Plymouth | |
| 8 | 87 | Buck Baker | '71 Firebird | |
| 9 | 24 | Cecil Gordon | '69 Mercury | |
| 10 | 64 | Elmo Langley | '71 Ford | |
| 11 | 2 | Randy Hutchinson | '69 Camaro | |
| 12 | 34 | Wendell Scott | '69 Ford | |
| 13 | 4 | John Sears | '69 Dodge | |
| 14 | 30 | Walter Ballard | '71 Ford | |
| 15 | 7 | Jimmy Vaughn | '69 Camaro | |
| 16 | 19 | Henley Gray | '69 Ford | |
| 17 | 26 | Earl Brooks | '69 Ford | |
| 18 | 10 | Bill Champion | '70 Ford | |
| 19 | 17 | Ernie Shaw | '68 Mustang | |
| 20 | 79 | Frank Warren | '69 Plymouth | |
| 21 | 25 | Jabe Thomas | '70 Plymouth | |
| 22 | 62 | Ron Keselowski | '71 Dodge | |
| 23 | 41 | Ken Meisenhelder | '69 Chevrolet | |
| 24 | 70 | J.D. McDuffie | '69 Mercury | |
| 25 | 8 | Ed Negre | '69 Ford | |
| 26 | 40 | D.K. Ulrich | '70 Ford | |
| 27 | 32 | Marv Acton | '70 Plymouth | |
| 28 | 96 | Richard Childress | '70 Chevrolet | |
| 29 | 86 | Bobby Mausgrover | '69 Dodge | |
| 30 | 73 | Bill Seifert | '69 Ford |
Section reference: [2]
Section reference: [2]