Race 1 of 22 in the 1951 National Stock Car Series season | ||
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National Stock Car Series Race | ||
Date | 18 March 1951 | |
Location | Thompson, Connecticut, United States | |
Venue | Thompson Speedway Motorsports Park | |
Course | Permanent racing facility | |
Circuit Length | 0.625 mi | |
Distance | 500 Laps, 312.5 mi | |
Weather | Cold and windy with maximum temperatures at 43°F (6.1°C) with wind speeds approaching 14 mph (22.5 kmh) | |
Average Speed | 77.717 mph | |
Pole Position | ||
Driver | Cameron Yost | Ted Hansen |
Most Laps Lead | ||
Driver | Cameron Yost | Ted Hansen |
Laps | 322 | |
Podium | ||
First | Cameron Yost | Ted Hansen |
Second | Peter Stafford | Stafford Garage |
Third | Scott Duran | Scott Duran |
The 1951 Icebreaker Sweepstakes was the sixth running of The Icebreaker Sweepstakes, and the first race of the 1951 National Stock Car Series season. Held on March 18, 1951 at Thompson Speedway Motorsports Park, the race comprised 500 laps around a 5/8 mile (1.005 km) paved oval. Cameron Yost won the race after winning the pole and leading the most laps.
Qualifying[edit | edit source]
Qualifying for The Icebreaker was scheduled for two days, Friday, March 16, and Saturday, March 17. Fifty-five drivers attempted to make the field, which was capped at 42 cars.
- March 16: The top ten fastest cars were locked into the field; Cameron Yost won the pole with a new track record of 84.409 mph.
- March 17: The remaining field was set through a series of heat races.
- Drivers who qualified in an odd-numbered position ran in the first heat race to determine the odd-numbered positions from 11 to 39. The top fifteen advanced, with Howard Joyce taking the victory. Cliff West and John Allen crashed during the race and were unable to repair their cars in time for the B-Main.
- Drivers who qualified in an even-numbered position ran the second heat race to determine even-numbered positions from 12 to 40. The top fifteen advanced, with Peter Stafford winning the race.
- Drivers who failed to qualify during their heat race were entered into the B-Main event; of the fifteen eligible drivers, only 13 took the start. Warren Clark won the race to advance, and Alton Walker finished second to advance after Perry Dudley's engine failed with three laps remaining.
Race[edit | edit source]
Yost dominated much of the early portion of the race, and by the end of the first set of pit stops had lapped the entire field; however, just past lap 108 he clipped the spinning car of Dennis Park and had to pit for repairs. This handed the lead to Scott Duran; ironically, this incident saved Peter Stafford's race, as Stafford wound up off-cycle a few laps later due to a cut tire from debris. Duran and Yost would trade the lead back and forth over the remainder of the race, with Yost's superior speed only being bested at the end of the tire life. Duran, however, would develop a fuel line problem with 80 laps remaining and fell to third, losing three laps repairing the issue in the pits. Yost did not face a serious challenge from Stafford and pulled away to a commanding win.
Results[edit | edit source]
Position | Start | No. | Driver | Owner | Car | Laps | Lead | Time/Retired | Points |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 1 | 1 | Cameron Yost | Ted Hansen | Studebaker Champion | 500 | 322 | 4:01:04 | 625 |
2 | 12 | 44 | Peter Stafford | Stafford Garage | Oldsmobile 88 | 500 | 23 | +12.87s | 500 |
3 | 9 | 72 | Scott Duran | Scott Duran | Oldsmobile 88 | 497 | 154 | +3 Laps | 435 |
4 | 21 | 5 | Chuck Wilder | Kent Decker | Buick Roadmaster | 497 | 0 | +3 Laps | 373 |
5 | 10 | 19 | Dave Butler | Dave Butler | Hudson Hornet | 497 | 0 | +3 Laps | 311 |
6 | 41 | 7 | Warren Clark | Warren Clark | Hudson Hornet | 495 | 0 | +5 Laps | 248 |
7 | 2 | 4 | Jimmy Stafford | Stafford Garage | Oldsmobile 88 | 494 | 0 | +6 Laps | 186 |
8 | 20 | 17 | Harry Schmidt | Reggie Horton | Ford Victoria | 493 | 0 | +7 Laps | 124 |
9 | 5 | 62 | Amos Thompson | Thompson Brothers Racing | Plymouth Belvedere | 493 | 1 | +7 Laps | 62 |
10 | 14 | 47 | Kelly Petersen | Randy Petersen | Kaiser Deluxe | 493 | 0 | +7 Laps | 31 |
Post-Race Standings[edit | edit source]
Pos. | Driver | Points | To Lead | To Next | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Cameron Yost | 625 | - | - | |
2 | Peter Stafford | 500 | 125 | 125 | |
3 | Scott Duran | 435 | 190 | 65 | |
4 | Chuck Wilder | 373 | 252 | 62 | |
5 | Dave Butler | 311 | 314 | 62 | |
6 | Warren Clark | 248 | 377 | 63 | |
7 | Jimmy Stafford | 186 | 439 | 62 | |
8 | Harry Schmidt | 124 | 501 | 62 | |
9 | Amos Thompson | 62 | 563 | 62 | |
10 | Kelly Petersen | 31 | 594 | 31 |