1949 Lou Figaro's WRA 500-Lap Race Wreck at Oakland Stadium Speedway

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Jesper Hvid
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1949 Lou Figaro's WRA 500-Lap Race Wreck at Oakland Stadium Speedway

#1

Post by Jesper Hvid »

2 different angles, one aftermath, one wreck. Click to enlarge:

ImageImage

Jack Gaynor owned the car, which Figaro drove in the 1951-season. One NASCAR Grand National race at Oakland, but he finished in that:

http://52.6.240.146/race/1951-35/W

This says it happened during a NASCAR Short Track Division race: http://www.catamountstadium.com/hudsons_racin.htm

https://www.thethirdturn.com/wiki/NASCA ... on_Central

But no Oakland races in that series in 1951. Right above pic is definitely Oakland.

I can't get any closer than this, so if anyone knows the missing details, I'd sure appreciate them.
Last edited by Jesper Hvid 2 years ago, edited 3 times in total.
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#2

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It's definitely Oakland Stadium, but it's not a NASCAR race. There were plenty of other stock car sanctioning bodies. I suspect this might have been an ARA (American Racing Association) sanctioned event from the late 1940s as the car is a 1940s era model of Hudson, and not the Hudson Hornet that Figaro later raced.

That model would not have been eligible in 1950s NASCAR races.
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#3

Post by Everso Biggyballies »

In light of @JThur01 post above as being not 50's, a previous ID from a hundred years ago has it as 1949......
Jesper Hvid wrote: 19 years ago Lou Figaro in 1949 at Oakland Speedway during WRA 250-lap race (click to enlarge):

Image

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#4

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Ok, this is from a 500-lap stock car race on September 25, 1949. Figaro was running 4th when he collided into the back of another car exiting the banking in the south turn. The cars went out of control, then crashed head on into the backstretch wall. Figaro's car was eliminated.

The article in the Oakland Tribune notes that the Jack Gaynor owned 1947 Hudson had won every stock car race held at the track. Figaro finished last. There is a photo of the aftermath. It isn't the same photo as above, as Figaro still has his helmet on, so it was taken a short time earlier.

I can't confirm the sanction, but the June race was sanctioned by the WRA (Western Racing Association)
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#5

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:) Timing!
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#6

Post by Jesper Hvid »

Everso Biggyballies wrote: 2 years ago In light of @JThur01 post above as being not 50's, a previous ID from a hundred years ago has it as 1949......
Jesper Hvid wrote: 19 years ago Lou Figaro in 1949 at Oakland Speedway during WRA 250-lap race (click to enlarge):

Image
This didn't show up when I searched for Lou Figaro before posting this topic.
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#7

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...but it's on page 3 of the search results, no question about that. I must have added another word, and should have stuck to just the name.
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#9

Post by Jesper Hvid »

Topic title revised. Original ID was also wrong, this was a 500-lap race at a later date. Thanks for the corrections! Missing bits: sanctioning body and other car involved.
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#10

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For the June race, yes. Figaro won on a scoring re-check after Soares was originally flagged and declared winner.
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#11

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JThur01 wrote: 2 years ago
For the June race, yes. Figaro won on a scoring re-check after Soares was originally flagged and declared winner.
OK, thanks, and please have a look at this, also: https://www.pinterest.co.uk/pin/234750199310878198/

Programme cover. Says WRA, but also: 1st Annual National Championship Classic 500 Lap Race. This is very interesting to me.

Would this be the first "500" in USA stock car racing, labelled/advertised as such, and clearly inspired by the Indy 500?
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#12

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Funny, how a regional racing organization can declare a national championship for a single race, and even dub it a classic, even though it was the inaugural running.
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#13

Post by JThur01 »

Jesper Hvid wrote: 2 years ago
JThur01 wrote: 2 years ago
For the June race, yes. Figaro won on a scoring re-check after Soares was originally flagged and declared winner.
OK, thanks, and please have a look at this, also: https://www.pinterest.co.uk/pin/234750199310878198/

Programme cover. Says WRA, but also: 1st Annual National Championship Classic 500 Lap Race. This is very interesting to me.

Would this be the first "500" in USA stock car racing, labelled/advertised as such, and clearly inspired by the Indy 500?
Jesper, it's possible, but U.S. race promoters were keen on superlatives, so I am reluctant to say it was *the* first. One can rarely be certain of "firsts" in U.S. racing.

For example "National Championship" for a race that likely had no drivers from outside California, and few even from Southern California :haha: Or the "National Championship" stock car races held pre-WWII at Langhorne, Pennsylvania that were made up of a few nationally known drivers and a field of PA and NJ drivers :mrgreen:

There was a "National Championship" hot rod/roadster race at The Rose Bowl in 1947. There was only one driver from outside Southern California in the race :haha: Not that it stopped the promoters from having a special race for "out of state racers", all but one of whom had relocated to So Cal and raced regularly on area tracks :mrgreen:
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#14

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It's very amusing, actually. Seems it's an American affliction... Worst I've ever heard was a friendly football international on astroturf in Phoenix between the USA and Denmark's League XI in 1993, which was advertised as a match in the Soccer World Series...
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#15

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Jesper Hvid wrote: 2 years ago It's very amusing, actually. Seems it's an American affliction... Worst I've ever heard was a friendly football international on astroturf in Phoenix between the USA and Denmark's League XI in 1993, which was advertised as a match in the Soccer World Series...
That I understand, as it was an international friendly :mrgreen: If it was one of a series of events involving international friendlies, well, then it fits! If a one off, not so much :haha:

American promoters are very much in that vein. Seemingly every short track was "the fastest (length) oval in the (region, country)" and from early days, seemingly every fairground horse track auto race was "a new world record!"

Michael Ferner could add so many on those :smiley: After World War I put an end to most open road racing, auto racing in the U.S. became a fairground/carnival attraction, and was handled as such.
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