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In 1955, Atlanta native Tim Flock held steady in one of Carl Kiekhaefer’s Chrysler 300s en route to 18 victories and his second NASCAR Cup Series championship.
Flock completed his seventh NASCAR season that year with the one of the most prominent teams on the circuit. Kiekhaefer, a boat engine manufacturer from Wisconsin, tried his hand at creating a top NASCAR organization. Going into the season, several drivers were hired to wheel his Chryslers, putting top-of-the-line cars and equipment with top drivers. Kiekhaefer was extremely determined to win and knew he had a strong chance with Flock behind the wheel of one his cars.
That year, Flock’s brothers, Fonty and Bob, also wheeled cars out of Kiekhaefer’s stable. It was older brother Tim who proved to have the most successful season.
Flock’s first victory of the season came on the Road and Beach Course in Daytona Beach, Florida, on Feb.27. From there, Flock often began a string of short-track victories that were preceded by 18 pole positions.
His wins came in such places as Rochester, New York; Charlotte, North Carolina; Syracuse, New York; Spartanburg, South Carolina; Weaverville, North Carolina; Morristown, New Jersey; and Lang- horne, Pennsylvania, to name only a few.
All told, Flock logged 33 top-10 finishes with an amazing 3.2 average start and a 4.6 average finish. On the other end of the spectrum, Flock’s Chrysler fell out of five events with mechanical issues and did not finish.
Flock ended his season with a victory at Hillsboro Speedway on Oct. 30 and clinched his second NASCAR title. His first championship came while driving a Hudson for team owner Ted Chester in 1952.
PRESIDENT: DWIGHT D. EISENHOWER
NO. 1 IN THE BOX OFFICE: LADY AND THE TRAMP
NO. 1 SONG: “CHERRY PINK AND APPLE BLOSSOM WHITE” BY PEREZ PRADO
POP CULTURE: “THE MICKEY MOUSE CLUB” DEBUTS
GALLON OF GAS: 29¢
DRIVING A WHITE CHRYSLER OWNED BY CARL KIEKHAEFER, FORMER Charlotte city bus driver Buck Baker went to Victory Lane 14 times in 1956. Baker also accumulated 39 top-10 results in 48 starts that season. He was the class of the field at every track where he raced and was clearly the fan favorite. Baker claimed the championship by 586 points over former teammate Thomas, who did not compete in the final three races.
ON SEPT. 3, CURTIS TURNER FINALLY WON THE SOUTHERN 500 after eight seasons of entering the prestigious event at South Carolina’s Darlington Raceway. Turner passed Marvin Panch on lap 202 of the 1.375-mile oval and never looked back. Turner led four times for a total of 255 of 364 laps. Seventy cars started the race with Turner lining up in the 11th position. Buck Baker earned the pole with a speed of 119.659 mph.
DATE | CIRCUIT | WINNER
Nov. 7 | Tri-City Speedway | Lee Petty
Feb. 6 | Palm Beach Speedway | Herb Thomas
Feb. 13 | Speedway Park | Lee Petty
Feb. 24 | Daytona Beach & Road Course | Tim Flock
March 6 | Oglethorpe Speedway | Lee Petty
March 26 | Columbia Speedway | Fonty Flock
March 27 | Hillsboro Speedway | Jim Paschal
April 3 | North Wilkesboro Speedway | Buck Baker
April 17 | Montgomery Motor Speedway | Tim Flock
April 24 | Langhorne Speedway | Tim Flock
May 1 | Charlotte Speedway | Buck Baker
May 7 | Hickory Speedway | Junior Johnson
May 8 | Fairgrounds Raceway | Tim Flock
May 15 | Tucson Rodeo Grounds | Danny Letner
May 15 | Martinsville Speedway | Tim Flock
May 22 | Richmond Raceway | Tim Flock
May 28 | State Fairgrounds Speedway | Junior Johnson
May 29 | Forsyth County Fairgrounds | Lee Petty
June 10 | Lincoln Speedway | Junior Johnson
June 17 | Monroe County Fairgrounds | Tim Flock
June 18 | Fonda Speedway | Junior Johnson
June 19 | Airborne Speedway | Lee Petty
June 24 | Southern States Fairgrounds | Tim Flock
July 6 | Piedmont Interstate Fairgrounds | Tim Flock
July 9 | Columbia Speedway | Jim Paschal
July 10 | Asheville-Weaverville Speedway | Tim Flock
July 15 | Morristown Speedway | Tim Flock
July 29 | Altamont-Schenectady Speedway | Junior Johnson
July 30 | New York State Fairgrounds | Tim Flock
July 31 | Meadows Race Track | Tim Flock
Aug. 5 | Southern States Fairgrounds | Jim Paschal
Aug. 7 | Forsyth County Fairgrounds | Lee Petty
Aug. 14 | Memphis-Arkansas Speedway | Fonty Flock
Aug. 20 | Raleigh Speedway | Herb Thomas
Sept. 9 | Darlington Raceway | Herb Thomas
Sept. 11 | Montgomery Speedway | Tim Flock
Sept. 18 | Langhorne Speedway | Tim Flock
Sept. 30 | Raleigh Speedway | Fonty Flock
Oct. 6 | Greenville-Pickens Speedway | Tim Flock
Oct. 9 | Memphis-Arkansas Speedway | Speedy Thompson
Oct. 15 | Columbia Speedway | Tim Flock
Oct. 16 | Martinsville Speedway | Speedy Thompson
Oct. 16 | Las Vegas Speedway Park | Norm Nelson
Oct. 23 | North Wilkesboro Speedway | Buck Baker
Oct. 30 | Orange Speedway | Tim Flock
