1964 Old Dominion 500
The 1964 Old Dominion 500 was a NASCAR Grand National Series event that was held on September 24, 1964, at Martinsville Speedway in Martinsville, Virginia. Forty professional stock car racing drivers would become involved in an event that would become legendary. 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. Background Martinsville Speedway is one of five short tracks to hold NASCAR races. The standard track at Martinsville Speedway is a four-turn short track oval that is long. The track's turns are banked at eleven degrees, while the front stretch, the location of the finish line, is banked at zero degrees. The back stretch also has a zero degree banking. Race report Fred Lorenzen defeated Richard Petty by of a second in front of a live audience of 18,214 spectators; becoming the first recipient of the now-famous Martinsville Grandfather Clock. Lorenzen would also pick up his third win in a row at Martinsville. Typical qualifying times for the race ranged from 24.2 seconds to 25.2 seconds with vehicles driving between and . In