JUNIOR JOHNSON

BENNY PARSONS

NORTH WILKESBORO SPEEDWAY

JUNIOR JOHNSON

1930 Robert Glen “Junior” Johnson was born in Wilkes County.  His legendary career began hauling moonshine by the age of fourteen.  Junior won his first Grand National race (the big leagues) in 1955.  He was the first racer to win at each of the four original superspeedways: Darlington, Daytona, Charlotte, and Atlanta. In 1960, Junior won the Daytona 500 and Coca-Cola 600.  He retired in 1966 as a driver and became a successful stock car owner.  In 1971, he helped establish Winston’s sponsorship of NASCAR. 

Junior has been inducted into the North Carolina Sports Hall of Fame, North Carolina Auto Racing Hall of Fame, The Motorsports Hall of Fame of America, and International Motorsports Halls of Fame. 

In 1986, President Ronald Reagan pardoned Junior for his 1956 moonshining conviction.

The first car Junior raced in the North Wilkesboro Speedway is on display in the Wilkes Heritage Museum located on Main Street in Wilkesboro (336)667-3171.

Junior has been the subject of two productions, The Last American Hero movie in 1973 and "Moonshine & Thunder", an annual stage performance by Wilkes Playmakers, Inc. since 2007.

Presently, Junior Johnson lives in Yadkin County, North Carolina and owns Suncrest Farms Country Hams in Wilkesboro and is part owner of Piedmont Distillers, the only legal distiller in North Carolina, producing Midnight Moon, an 80-proof, legal version of his famous family recipe. Click here to visit the official website for Junior Johnson.  In 2004, US Hwy 421 at the Wilkes and Yadkin County border was named Junior Johnson Highway.  Click here for information listed in Wikipedia.

BENNY PARSONS began his racing career in 1963 and finished as a Nascar Legend, retiring after the 1988 season to become a full-time broadcaster and maintain his own automotive parts business.

In 1973 Parsons won the NASCAR Winston Cup championship and in 1975 he captured the Daytona 500. Parsons was the first driver to break the 200 mph barrier in qualifying when he ran 200.176 mph to win the pole for the 1982 Winston 500 at Talladega.

Benny was the first Automobile Racing Club of America (ARCA) Champion to be inducted into the International Sports Hall of Fame.  He is also in The Motorsports Hall of Fame of America and the North Carolina Auto Radcing Hall of Fame. In 2004, Benny was inducted into the Court of Legends at the Lowe's Motor Speedway.  In 2006, he received a Sports Emmy for outstanding live sports series “NASCAR on NBC/TNT”.

Benny Parsons passed away in January 2007 after complications from lung cancer treatment.  His life and career are honored in the Racing Museum showcased at Rendezvous Ridge where his wife, Terri Parsons, carried out their dream of the vineyard in the Purlear community of Wilkes County where Benny was raised.  Benny Parsons Rendezvous Ridge Tasting Room & Racing Museum, 172 Benny Parsons Road, Purlear, NC 28665 (336)973-7375.  A portion of US Hwy 421 in Western Wilkes County was dedicated in memory of him in 2007. 

Click here to visit the official website for Benny Parsons and click here for more information listed in Wikipedia..

NORTH WILKESBORO SPEEDWAY

Built in 1946, the North Wilkesboro Speedway is a 5/8 mile oval track and was paved in 1957.  A track history of the beginning of racing and memories of Winston Cup series.

 The first official race was in 1947, in which Junior Johnson began his career, with 10,000 spectators.  The last NASCAR race at North Wilkesboro, won by Jeff Gordon, was held on September 29, 1996, with over 60,000 fans in attendance.  North Wilkesboro was among the first tracks recognized by NASCAR during its inaugural year of 1949. (The track at Charlotte hosted the first sanctioned race that season.)

Closing in 1996, the North Wilkesboro Speedway continues to receive attention within current NASCAR events, SaveTheSpeedway.net, and articles that appear in local, state, national and international publications: recalling the “great ones” of the racing industry.  The property is for sale as of January 2007. A historical marker is on Speedway Rd.  Click here for information listed in Wikipedia.