Click on read more for this week’s Track Trivia Tidbits!

Darlington Raceway’s spring event first took place in 1957 — as a NASCAR Convertible Division race. NASCAR had the division from 1956-1959 with stars such as Curtis Turner, Fireball Roberts, Joe Weatherly and Marvin Panch taking part. The division had proven itself as a viable and action-packed series, so NASCAR felt it was time to see what the “ragtops” could do on a superspeedway.

May 12, 1957 saw the birth of the “Rebel 300″. It was the 14th event on the 1957 Convertible schedule. Former motorcycle champ Paul Goldsmith won the pole with a speed of 115.324 mph. He led the field of 27 cars to the green flag as third-place starter Turner jumped to the outside and took the lead going into the first turn. Five different drivers swapped the lead over the 219-lap event with Roberts coming home the victor by a margin of two laps over Tim Flock. It was Roberts’ first superspeedway win as he averaged 107.941 mph.

There is an interesting sidebar to this race. It was originally scheduled for Saturday, May 11, 1957, however, the event was postponed to, as the ticket stub stated, “the next clear day.” South Carolina, in those days, was subject to what was called “blue laws”, which prohibited sporting events and certain other activities from being held on a Sunday. The “next clear day” was a Sunday.

What to do?

Raceway President Bob Colvin sought special dispensation from the local government officials. He paid a $50 fine and the race went on with no problem.

(Article obtained from Motorsports.com)