Qualla: Charlotte Speedway

Charlotte Speedway: Introduction

Sat, 30 May 2026 00:00:00 GMT

Photo credit U.S. Air Force photo by Larry McTighe, Public domain. Glenn Dunaway crossed the finish line first on June 19, 1949, and lost the race anyway. The car he drove around the three-quarter-mile dirt track on Little Rock Road had been fitted with stiffened rear springs - bootlegger springs, the kind that let a 1947 Ford carry moonshine over mountain roads without sagging. Post-race inspection caught them. NASCAR disqualified Dunaway, handed the trophy to second-place Jim Roper, and in doing so set a precedent on the very first day of its very first Strictly Stock race. The series would have rules. The rules would be enforced. Even on the first day.

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Image: U.S. Air Force photo by Larry McTighe | Public domain

Charlotte Speedway: The First Day

Sat, 30 May 2026 00:00:00 GMT

Photo credit U.S. Air Force photo by Larry McTighe, Public domain. Twenty-five thousand miles of red Carolina dust later, the legend has worn smooth, but the names from that day are still names racing people know. Bob Flock won the pole. Sara Christian finished 14th and became the first woman ever to start a NASCAR race. The top ten read like a ...

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Image: U.S. Air Force photo by Larry McTighe | Public domain

Charlotte Speedway: Dirt and Owners

Sat, 30 May 2026 00:00:00 GMT

Photo credit U.S. Air Force photo by Larry McTighe, Public domain. Charlotte Speedway was owned by Carl C. Allison Sr. and his wife, Catherine Montgomery Allison. Three-quarters of a mile of packed dirt, a few wooden grandstands, the kind of track that ran a 150-mile feature and called it a long day. Between 1949 and 1956, twelve NASCAR events r...

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Image: U.S. Air Force photo by Larry McTighe | Public domain

Charlotte Speedway: Killed by the Interstate

Sat, 30 May 2026 00:00:00 GMT

Photo credit U.S. Air Force photo by Larry McTighe, Public domain. What ended Charlotte Speedway was not competition from larger tracks or a fire or a money fight among owners. It was Interstate 85. The new highway needed land, and the land it needed included the speedway's parking area. A racetrack with no parking is not a racetrack. The Alliso...

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Image: U.S. Air Force photo by Larry McTighe | Public domain