1958 Jim Mideon 500
Encyclopedia
The 1958 Jim Mideon 500 (known officially as 1958-31) was a NASCAR
Grand National Series racing event that took place on July 18, 1958 at Canadian Exposition Stadium in Toronto
, Ontario
, Canada
.
Children were entertained with a jigsaw puzzle
of the Royal Family
before the race began. Most of the cars in the race were either Chevrolet
or Ford
. All of the 19 drivers on the racing grid were born in the United States of America. Admission to the race was $2.00 for adults ($ in today's money) and $0.50 for children ($ in today's money).
. Lee Petty
(in his 1957 Oldsmobile 88
) defeated Cotton Owens
(in his 1957 Pontiac Catalina
) by racing at speeds up to 43.184 miles per hour (69.5 km/h). Rex White
earned the event's pole position
by qualifying with a speed of 51.406 miles per hour (82.7 km/h). Dick Walters
received a last-place finish in this race due to an incident with his car's rear end.
This race is known for the debut of a young driver at 21 years, 16 days, Richard Petty
, in car #142 (triple-digit numbers were legal in NASCAR until the 1970s). He finished in 17th place; ten positions worse than he started. It was suggested that Lee Petty intentionally knocked his son out of the race due to racing issues. However, the truth of the matter was the Lee was trying to outlap his son Richard (who was driving too slow) but used his "chrome horn" to take out the young Petty in his first race. More than 9700 live spectators were on hand for this race even though heavy rainfall made the track somewhat slippery.
The other drivers in the top ten included: Jim Reed
, Shorty Rollins
, Johnny Mackison, Billy Rafter, Rex White
, Tiny Benson, Bill Poor, and Bob Duell.
NASCAR would eventually return to a more prepared Canada
in the 21st century. However, it would be to Montreal
(Circuit Gilles Villeneuve
) for the Nationwide Series in addition to various small town tracks for the "local" NASCAR Canadian Tire Series
. Cayuga Speedway
(in Cayuga
, Ontario) wanted to host the first ever Nationwide Series race in Canada but was turned down by NASCAR at a later date. Since then, the track has been on hiatus due to economic issues.
In 2010, the Canadian National Exposition Center hosted its first NASCAR-sanctioned race, the Jumpstart 100, since this 1958 race, on a temporary street course spanning 1.721 miles (2.8 km), for the Canadian Tire Series as part of Honda Indy Toronto
weekend.
NASCAR
The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing is a family-owned and -operated business venture that sanctions and governs multiple auto racing sports events. It was founded by Bill France Sr. in 1947–48. As of 2009, the CEO for the company is Brian France, grandson of the late Bill France Sr...
Grand National Series racing event that took place on July 18, 1958 at Canadian Exposition Stadium in Toronto
Toronto
Toronto is the provincial capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. A relatively modern city, Toronto's history dates back to the late-18th century, when its land was first purchased by the British monarchy from...
, Ontario
Ontario
Ontario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa....
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
.
Children were entertained with a jigsaw puzzle
Jigsaw puzzle
A jigsaw puzzle is a tiling puzzle that requires the assembly of numerous small, often oddly shaped, interlocking and tessellating pieces.Each piece usually has a small part of a picture on it; when complete, a jigsaw puzzle produces a complete picture...
of the Royal Family
House of Windsor
The House of Windsor is the royal house of the Commonwealth realms. It was founded by King George V by royal proclamation on the 17 July 1917, when he changed the name of his family from the German Saxe-Coburg and Gotha to the English Windsor, due to the anti-German sentiment in the United Kingdom...
before the race began. Most of the cars in the race were either Chevrolet
Chevrolet
Chevrolet , also known as Chevy , is a brand of vehicle produced by General Motors Company . Founded by Louis Chevrolet and ousted GM founder William C. Durant on November 3, 1911, General Motors acquired Chevrolet in 1918...
or Ford
Ford Motor Company
Ford Motor Company is an American multinational automaker based in Dearborn, Michigan, a suburb of Detroit. The automaker was founded by Henry Ford and incorporated on June 16, 1903. In addition to the Ford and Lincoln brands, Ford also owns a small stake in Mazda in Japan and Aston Martin in the UK...
. All of the 19 drivers on the racing grid were born in the United States of America. Admission to the race was $2.00 for adults ($ in today's money) and $0.50 for children ($ in today's money).
General information
The first green flag of the race was waved at 8:00 P.M. Eastern Daylight Savings Time and the checkered flag was waved at approximately 8:46 P.M. Eastern Daylight Savings Time. One hundred laps were resolved in forty-six minutes on a paved oval track spanning 0.333 mile (0.53591022 km); making it a shorter track than Martinsville SpeedwayMartinsville Speedway
Martinsville Speedway is an International Speedway Corporation-owned NASCAR stock car racing track located in Henry County, near Ridgeway, Virginia, just to the south of Martinsville. At in length, it is the shortest track in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series. The track was also one of the first paved...
. Lee Petty
Lee Petty
Lee Arnold Petty was an American stock car driver in the 1950s and 1960s. He was one of the pioneers of NASCAR, and one of its first superstars. He was born near Randleman, North Carolina.-Career:...
(in his 1957 Oldsmobile 88
Oldsmobile 88
The Oldsmobile 88 was a full-size car sold by the Oldsmobile division of General Motors and produced from 1949 until 1999. From 1950 to 1974 the 88 was the division's top-selling line, particularly the entry-level models such as the 88 and Dynamic 88...
) defeated Cotton Owens
Cotton Owens
Everett "Cotton" Owens "the King of the Modifieds" was a NASCAR driver. For five straight years , Owens captured at least one Grand National series win.-Modified driving career:...
(in his 1957 Pontiac Catalina
Pontiac Catalina
The Pontiac Catalina was part of Pontiac's full-sized automobile line. Initially, the name was used strictly to denote hardtop body styles, first appearing in the 1950 Chieftain Eight and DeLuxe Eight lines...
) by racing at speeds up to 43.184 miles per hour (69.5 km/h). Rex White
Rex White
Rex White is a retired American auto racer and NASCAR champion. White was one of the drivers who competed for the original Chevrolet racing team. He began racing in 1956, grabbing fourteen top-ten finishes. After a part-time run in 1957, White won twice in 1958...
earned the event's pole position
Pole position
The term "pole position", as used in motorsports, comes from the horse racing term where the number one starter starts on the inside next to the inside pole. The term made its way, along with several other customs, to auto racing. In circuit motorsports, a driver has pole position when he or she...
by qualifying with a speed of 51.406 miles per hour (82.7 km/h). Dick Walters
Dick Walters
-External links:* , Sports Illustrated...
received a last-place finish in this race due to an incident with his car's rear end.
This race is known for the debut of a young driver at 21 years, 16 days, Richard Petty
Richard Petty
Richard Lee Petty is a former NASCAR driver who raced in the Strictly Stock/Grand National Era and the NASCAR Winston Cup Series...
, in car #142 (triple-digit numbers were legal in NASCAR until the 1970s). He finished in 17th place; ten positions worse than he started. It was suggested that Lee Petty intentionally knocked his son out of the race due to racing issues. However, the truth of the matter was the Lee was trying to outlap his son Richard (who was driving too slow) but used his "chrome horn" to take out the young Petty in his first race. More than 9700 live spectators were on hand for this race even though heavy rainfall made the track somewhat slippery.
The other drivers in the top ten included: Jim Reed
Jim Reed (racer)
Jim Reed is a retired NASCAR Grand National driver.-Summary:From 1951 to 1963, Reed has raced 16299 laps - the equivalent of . His total career earnings is $16,299 . Reed's biggest win came in the 1959 Southern 500 driving a 1957 Chevrolet Bel Air...
, Shorty Rollins
Shorty Rollins
Lloyd George "Shorty" Rollins , nicknamed "Shorty", born in Granbury, Texas was the first official NASCAR Rookie of the Year.-Summary:...
, Johnny Mackison, Billy Rafter, Rex White
Rex White
Rex White is a retired American auto racer and NASCAR champion. White was one of the drivers who competed for the original Chevrolet racing team. He began racing in 1956, grabbing fourteen top-ten finishes. After a part-time run in 1957, White won twice in 1958...
, Tiny Benson, Bill Poor, and Bob Duell.
Post-race consequences
The purse of the race was $4,200 in American dollars ($ in today's money). To this day, this is the only event in the modern-day Sprint Cup Series to take place in Canada as the track itself was later torn down to make way for newer development. The Canadian media, however, found NASCAR to be boring and the CNE drivers to be more interesting due to their bias towards Canadian athletes. All the local Toronto newspapers could find from the event that was "fit enough to print" was a dispute in pit road between two "local" drivers.NASCAR would eventually return to a more prepared Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
in the 21st century. However, it would be to Montreal
Montreal
Montreal is a city in Canada. It is the largest city in the province of Quebec, the second-largest city in Canada and the seventh largest in North America...
(Circuit Gilles Villeneuve
Circuit Gilles Villeneuve
The Circuit Gilles Villeneuve is a motor racing circuit, venue for the Formula One Canadian Grand Prix, NASCAR Canadian Tire Series, NASCAR Nationwide Series and Grand-Am Rolex Sports Car Series....
) for the Nationwide Series in addition to various small town tracks for the "local" NASCAR Canadian Tire Series
NASCAR Canadian Tire Series
The NASCAR Canadian Tire Series , commonly abbreviated as NCATS, is a national NASCAR racing series in Canada that is based from the old CASCAR Super Series which was founded in 1981.-History:...
. Cayuga Speedway
Cayuga Speedway
The Cayuga Speedway, also known as the Cayuga 2000 Speedway, is a racing track located near Cayuga in Haldimand County, Ontario, Canada.-History:...
(in Cayuga
Cayuga, Ontario
Cayuga is an unincorporated community and county seat in the province of Ontario, Canada located at the intersection of Highway 3 and Munsee Street and along the Grand River in Haldimand County. Cayuga is about a 20 minute drive from Lake Erie and 30 minutes south of Hamilton and 115 minutes south...
, Ontario) wanted to host the first ever Nationwide Series race in Canada but was turned down by NASCAR at a later date. Since then, the track has been on hiatus due to economic issues.
In 2010, the Canadian National Exposition Center hosted its first NASCAR-sanctioned race, the Jumpstart 100, since this 1958 race, on a temporary street course spanning 1.721 miles (2.8 km), for the Canadian Tire Series as part of Honda Indy Toronto
Honda Indy Toronto
The Honda Indy Toronto is an annual IndyCar Series race, held in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Originally known as the Molson Indy Toronto, it was a Champ Car World Series race held annually from 1986 to 2007...
weekend.