The 1968 Western North Carolina 500 was a NASCAR Grand National Series event that was held on August 18, 1968, at Asheville-Weaverville Speedway in Weaverville, North Carolina.
Ervin Pruitt would score his best career finish at this event.
Five hundred laps took place on a paved oval track spanning 0.5miles. The race took three hours and twenty-three minutes to finish. Seven cautions were handed out by NASCAR for ninety laps. David Pearson (with a Holman-Moody owned vehicle) defeated Bobby Isaac (in his Nord Krauskopf-owned vehicle) by more than three laps. Notable speeds were: for the average speed and for the pole position speed (accomplished by Darel Dieringer using a vehicle owned by Mr. Mario Rossi). Ten thousand and five hundred stock car racing fans attended this live event. Out of twenty-nine American drivers, only nine of them finished the race in a timely manner. Notable names included: J.D. McDuffie, Richard Petty, Elmo Langley, Roy Tyner, and Wendell Scott.
John Sears went over the guard rail and end over end to terminate his night.
The vehicle used by the winner was a 1968 Ford Torino machine homologated for use by the general public but modified to increase both speed and safety. A prize amount of $2,150 ($ when adjusted for inflation) was given out to the winner of the race while last place paid out $150 ($ when adjusted for inflation) for only fifteen laps of work by driver G.C. Spencer. When all the winnings for this racing event are consolidated together, the total prize purse was $13,485 ($ when adjusted for inflation).[1]
The transition to purpose-built racecars began in the early 1960s and occurred gradually over that decade. Changes made to the sport by the late 1960s brought an end to the "strictly stock" vehicles of the 1950s.
| Grid | Driver | Manufacturer | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 22 | Darel Dieringer | '68 Plymouth | |
| 2 | 17 | David Pearson | '68 Ford | |
| 3 | 43 | Richard Petty | '68 Plymouth | |
| 4 | 99 | Paul Goldsmith | '68 Dodge | |
| 5 | 71 | Bobby Isaac | '67 Dodge | |
| 6 | 1 | Pete Hamilton | '68 Dodge | |
| 7 | 48 | James Hylton | '68 Dodge | |
| 8 | 4 | John Sears | '67 Ford | |
| 9 | 49 | G.C. Spencer | '67 Plymouth | |
| 10 | 08 | Bob Burcham | '66 Chevrolet | |
| 11 | 2 | Bobby Allison | '66 Chevrolet | |
| 12 | 64 | Elmo Langley | '66 Ford | |
| 13 | 76 | Tiny Lund | '66 Ford | |
| 14 | 28 | Earl Brooks | '66 Ford | |
| 15 | 57 | Ervin Pruitt | '67 Dodge | |
| 16 | 20 | Clyde Lynn | '66 Ford | |
| 17 | 51 | Stan Meserve | '67 Dodge | |
| 18 | 9 | Roy Tyner | '67 Pontiac | |
| 19 | 70 | J.D. McDuffie | '67 Buick | |
| 20 | 06 | Neil Castles | '67 Plymouth | |
| 21 | 8 | Ed Negre | '67 Ford | |
| 22 | 45 | Bill Seifert | '68 Ford | |
| 23 | 34 | Wendell Scott | '66 Ford | |
| 24 | 93 | Walson Gardner | '67 Ford | |
| 25 | 50 | Eddie Yarboro | '66 Plymouth | |
| 26 | 25 | Jabe Thomas | '67 Ford | |
| 27 | 38 | Wayne Smith | '68 Chevrolet | |
| 28 | 01 | Paul Dean Holt | '67 Ford | |
| 29 | 88 | George England | '67 Oldsmobile |
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