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Prairie Meadows 200
Iowa Speedway - July 11
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The
James Hylton Fan Club
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James
Hylton Tribute Video
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NASCAR.COM Article
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LOS
ANGELES
CA (July
4,
2009)
- On
July
11th,
the
ARCA
RE/MAX
Series
and
James
Hylton
Motorsports
both
return
to
Iowa
Speedway
for
the
fourth
annual
Prairie
Meadows
200.
The
ultra-modern
facility
located
in
Newton
IA
opened
in
2006
and
has
brought
NASCAR.
ARCA
and
IRL
to
the
Hawkeye
state.
However,
the
first
racing
foray
for
both
ARCA
and
James
Hylton
into
the
state
of
Iowa
was
1994's
Greater
Des
Moines
Grand
Prix.
"It
was
a
pretty
unique
race"
stated
Hylton
"I
had
never
even
driven
on
the
streets
of
Des
Moines
before
I
got
to
race
on
them."
A
1.6
mile
road
race
course
was
constructed
using
the
streets
of
Des
Moines
and
the
ARCA
Series
regulars
contested
a 75
lap
race
on
July
3,
1994.
The
race
was
captured
by
Scott
Lagasse
driving
a
Chevrolet
Lumina,
winning
by a
narrow
margin
over
Frank
Kimmel
in a
Oldsmobile
Cutlass.
The
remainder
of
the
top-five
finishers
were
Jimmy
Spencer,
Bobby
Bowsher
and
Gary
Bradberry.
NASCAR
veterans
Michael
Waltrip
and
James
Hylton
finished
14th
and
15th
respectively.
"I
was
happy
with
our
run
that
day"
stated
Hylton
"I
was
running
in
fifth
until
I
cut
a
tire
down
and
had
to
limp
around
the
track
into
the
pits.
Overall
though,
I
was
tickled
to
death
with
the
race
and
I
wish
we
could
race
there
again" |
|
 MANSFIELD
OH (June
22,
2009) -
James
Hylton
Motorsports
came
into the
ARCA
RE/MAX
Series
Tim
Richmond
Memorial
200
with a
proven
reputation
for
short
track
durability.
Unfortunately
a
vibration
in the
rear end
forced
Hylton
and his
radon.com
Ford to
exit the
race on
lap 33,
resulting
in a
26th
place
finish
for the
74 year
old
racing
legend.
The race
was
captured
by
Penske
developmental
driver
Parker
Kligerman,
driving
the
Cunningham
Motorsports
Dodge.
This was
the
first
ARCA
RE/MAX
Series
event to
be
contested
at the
half
mile
facility
located
north of
downtown
Mansfield.
"The
fans got
to see
an
exciting
race"
stated
Hylton
"I just
wish I
could
have
hung in
there
till the
end for
them."
The ARCA
RE/MAX
Series
takes
the week
off
before
returning
on July
11th for
Iowa
Speedway's
Prairie
Meadows
200.
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Tim
Richmond
Memorial
200:
NASCAR
Legend
James
Hylton
Reminisces
about
Fellow
Competitor
Tim
Richmond
MEMPHIS
TN
(June
17,
2009) –
One
rarely
runs
across a
person
possessed with a
charismatic
attraction
the
magnitude
of the
late
NASCAR
driver
Tim
Richmond.
The
well-heeled
Richmond
entered
the
sport at
a time
when the
vast
majority
of its
drivers
were
primarily
from
blue-collar
backgrounds.
Ever the
flamboyant
playboy,
Richmond
stood in
stark
contrast
to the
mostly
conservative
NASCAR
drivers
of the
era.
Richmond
lived
life
just as
he
drove,
flat-out
and to
the max.
The
lasting
image of
Richmond
is at a victory
lane
party
with a
trophy
in one
hand and
a beauty
queen in
the
other.
James
Hylton
is one
of the
few
active
drivers
that
raced
with
Richmond
in
NASCAR’s
Winston
Cup
Series.
On
Saturday,
Hylton
will
compete
in the
ARCA
RE/MAX
Series
Tim
Richmond
Memorial
200
at
Mansfield
Motorsports
Park in
Mansfield
OH.
During
their
careers,
Richmond
and
Hylton
raced
against
each
other in
51
NASCAR
Winston
Cup
Series
events.
“I
remember
getting
lapped
by race
leader
Dale
Earnhardt
Sr at
Pocono
one
afternoon
back in
the
early
eighties,”
reminisced
Hylton,
“as we
were
entering
turn
one,
here
comes
Tim
Richmond
flat out
and at
the top
of
track.
We came
out
three-wide
with
Richmond
passing
both me
and
Earnhardt
for the
lead. I
had
never
seen
anyone
take a
car that
high
into a
turn and
make it
stick.
I can
still
see the
dust and
dirt
flying.”
During
his
career,
Richmond
competed
in 185
NASCAR
Winston
Cup
Series
events
and won
on 13
occasions.
The
Ashland,
OH
native’s
career
ended
prematurely
as he
became
infected
with HIV
and was
physically
unable
to
compete.
“If
Tim’s
career
hadn’t
have
been
cut-short
there is
no
telling
what he
could
have
accomplished,”
stated
Hylton,
“he
definitely
would
have won
a lot
more
races
and
probably
a
championship
or two.”
Richmond
staged a
courageous
comeback
in
NASCAR
during
1987
that
included
wins at
both
Pocono
and
Michigan.
“Richmond
could
drive a
race car
better
than
anyone
I’ve
ever
seen,”
said
Hylton,
“Richmond
had the
magic;
he could
drive a
car
deeper
into a
turn
than
anybody
that’s
ever
been in
NASCAR.
He was
truly a
hard
drivin’
son of a
gun.” |
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A
Change in the Goal Line and the
end of the Independents
 Very
seldom in sports history have
the rules been changed in order
to favor one class of competitor
over another. It happened in
NASCAR because of the success of
James Hylton, Benny Parsons and
Cecil Gordon. A new points
system was put in place at the
start of the 1972 NASCAR Winston
Cup season that would put a
premium on laps completed in
competition. The winner of each
race would receive 100 points
and each position after that
would be awarded two points less
than the previous position.
Points were also awarded to
competitors based on number of
laps recorded per ½ mile
intervals. The unintended
consequence of this system was
to reward competitors like James
Hylton that ran all the races
and generally conserved their
equipment in order to finish the
race.
During the
1971 season, citing economic
reasons, many teams would drop
out of the race as soon as the
green flag fell. The teams felt
that the difference between last
place money and mid-pack money
did not warrant the wear and
tear on the equipment as well as
the purchase of tires. With the
new points system NASCAR felt
that the teams would actually be
rewarded for completing laps and
avoid the problems of 1971. The
30 race 1972 season would be
divided up into three segments
with the winner of each segment
receiving $10,000. In a sport
that had recently lost Detroit
backing, it was relaying on
corporate sponsors from outside
the automotive industry to fund
its major teams. Giving the
sponsors more “championship”
opportunities increased media
exposure and made NASCAR more
commercially attractive.
 The
first segment of the 1972 season
ended on May 7, at Talladega
International Speedway’s
Winston 500 and NASCAR was a
little shaken that James Harvey
Hylton was ahead of the
corporate teams of Richard
Petty, Bobby Allison and Bobby
Isaac. Had it not been for a
crash on lap 112, Hylton would
have captured the first Winston
Cup segment and its $10,000
prize instead of Richard Petty.
At segments end, Petty would up
only 103.95 points ahead of
Hylton. NASCAR somehow dodged
the bullet of having an
independent driver win a
championship.
The 1973
season’s first segment would
again belong to Hylton;
unfortunately he lost his lead
again at the final race of the
segment, The Music City 420
at Nashville’s Fairgrounds
Speedway. This time the winner
would not be one of the
corporate drivers, the Winston
Cup segment championship fell to
independent driver Benny
Parsons, of Ellerbe NC. Parsons
drove an unsponsored Chevrolet
to capture the $10,000 bonus and
show NASCAR that the independent
drivers had figured out the
system. Complaints among the
better financed teams seemed to
center on drivers like Hylton
and Parsons, referring to them
in the derogatory racing term of
“stroker”. As Hylton stated in
reply “I didn’t make the rules
about the points……I just run for
them.”
The best
case scenario for NASCAR would
have been for one of the major
sponsor’s teams to come back and
sweep the Winston Cup second leg
from the independents.
Coca-Cola, STP, Purolator and
the like were spending large
sums of money in order to
generate exposure for their
products and nothing generates
exposure like a championship.
Unfortunately for NASCAR,
unsponsored independent racer
Cecil Gordon captured the
Winston Cup second leg at the
Nashville 420, at
Nashville’s Fairgrounds
Speedway. Gordon, from Horse
Shoe NC, drove a yellow 1972
Chevrolet Monte Carlo to the
championship.
 The
final race of the 1973 NASCAR
Winston Cup season, Rockingham’s
American 500, season
produced the biggest upset in
NASCAR history. Benny Parsons
and his independent operation
managed a 28th place
finish in a mangled race car and
won the season long Winston Cup
championship by 67 points over
Cale Yarborough. Cecil Gordon
would end up third with James
Hylton fourth in the final
standings. NASCAR had
attempted to offer exposure to
corporate suitors with the
segment championships but
instead ended up rewarding the
underfunded independent teams.
NASCAR would change the points
system for the 1974 season and
the finishes by Parsons, Gordon
and Hylton would not be exceeded
by an owner/operator team until
the 1992 season with Alan
Kulwicki.
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Story of James Hylton's legendary victory at the 1972 Talladega 500 |
Pictures and Results from NASCAR races at Nashville |
Narrative of the GN East Series |
NASCAR Legend Rex White |
Living Legends of Auto
Racing |
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 Special
Thanks to Evelyn Hylton, Hank Kohn, Russ Thompson, Ed "Stretch" Overton, Bob
Durnell, Ray Lamm, Fred Marchman and Tommy Marchman for all the amazing photos
from the past; to Faye DeTuccio for her leadership and determination in handling
the Virginia Sports Hall of Fame project; to 1960 Grand National Champion Rex
White and Harlow Reynolds for all their work on the Virginia Sports Hall of Fame
Project and to Allison Droke, Sherri Hoenshell, Bethann Puterbaugh, Chris
Knight, Don Radabaugh Andy Belmont and Jim Finfrock for the help during the 2006
season. Thanks also goes to Ray McCormick, Ted Christopher and Carl Long for the
2007 season and to John Carter, Johnny Davis, Lori Morgan and Tyler
Tucker for the 2008 season.
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Website and all contents property of James Hylton, Jeff Droke, Allison Droke and
Hylton Motorsports
A Proud Product of Memphis TN
Happy Motoring !!
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