1949 Wilkes 200
The 1949 Wilkes 200 was a NASCAR Strictly Stock Series racing event that took place on October 16, 1949. Ten thousand people would attend this live racing event where Kenneth Wagner qualified for the race with a pole position speed of – the equivalent of 31.27 seconds. The entire race took place on a dirt track spanning per lap. Weather conditions for the race were recorded at nearby Hickory Regional Airport; a public airport located three miles (5 km) west of the central business district of nearby Hickory, North Carolina. Summary. This would be the final race of  the 1949 NASCAR season and would take place at North Wilkesboro Speedway in North Wilkesboro, North Carolina. Bob Flock would defeat Lee Petty by an entire football field – – to win NASCAR's first racing event with an established name. Flock would earn a mere $1,500 in prize winnings ($ when inflation is taken into effect). Frank Mundy would receive a last-place finish for only finishing 38 laps out of the mandated 200 laps. Bill Blair would lead the most laps in this race with 180 laps led out of 200. Red Byron would go on to win NASCAR 's first ever championship while Sara Christian would become one of its first female drivers. Byron almost became a cripple after being shot by an enemy fighter plane while serving as a tail gunner on a B-24 Liberator bomber during World War II. He spent two years in military hospitals rehabilitating his leg so that he could compete in NASCAR after the war ended. Notable crew chiefs who actively participated in the race were Buddy Elliott, Julian Petty, Buddy Helms, Red Vogt, and Cliff Rainwater. While Red Byron and Lee Petty were the better drivers of the 1949 NASCAR Cup  Series season, Bill Blair was the most consistent driver along with Petty.