1956 Buddy Shuman 250
| Race details | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Race 55 of 56 in the 1956 NASCAR Grand National Series season | |||
| Date | November 11, 1956 | ||
| Official name | Buddy Shuman 250 | ||
| Location |
Hickory Speedway Hickory, North Carolina, U.S. |
||
| Course | Permanent racing facility 0.400 mi (0.644 km) |
||
| Distance | 250 laps, 100 mi (150 km) | ||
| Weather | Chilly with temperatures approaching 64.9 °F (18.3 °C); wind speeds up to 13 miles per hour (21 km/h) | ||
| Average speed | 66.420 miles per hour (106.893 km/h) | ||
| Attendance | 3,500 | ||
| Pole position | |||
| Driver | Pete DePaolo | ||
| Most laps led | |||
| Driver | Speedy Thompson | Carl Kiekhaefer | |
| Laps | 154 | ||
| Winner | |||
| No. 300 | Speedy Thompson | Carl Kiekhaefer | |
| Television in the United States | |||
| Network | untelevised | ||
| Announcers | none | ||
The 1956 Buddy Shuman 250 was a NASCAR Grand National Series (now Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series) event that was held on November 11, 1956, at Hickory Speedway in Hickory, North Carolina.
Hickory Motor Speedway is a short track located in Hickory, North Carolina. It is one of 's most storied venues, and is often referred to as the "World's Most Famous Short Track" and the "Birthplace of the NASCAR Stars".
The track first opened in 1951 as a 1⁄2-mile (0.80 km) dirt track. Gwyn Staley won the first race at the speedway and later became the first track champion. Drivers such as Junior Johnson, Ned Jarrett, and Ralph Earnhardt also became track champions in the 1950s, with Earnhardt winning five of them.
In 1953, NASCAR's Grand National Series (later the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series) visited the track for the first time. Tim Flock won the first race at the speedway, which became a regular part of the Grand National schedule. After winning his track championship in 1952, Junior Johnson became the most successful Grand National driver at Hickory, winning there seven times.
The track has been re-configured three times in its history. The track became a 0.4-mile (644 meters) dirt track in 1955, which was paved for the first time during the 1967 season.
Ralph Earnhardt would make his NASCAR Cup Series debut here; being the first member of the Earnhardt family to enter the organization. 250 laps took place on a dirt track that spanned 0.400 miles or 0.644 kilometres per lap; for a grand total of 100.0 miles or 160.9 kilometres. The race took one hour and thirty minutes to successfully conclude with Speedy Thompson defeating Earnhardt by four seconds in front of 3500 live spectators. The average speed of the race would be 66.420 miles per hour or 106.893 kilometres per hour while the pole position winner would dial in at a speed of 68.278 miles per hour or 109.883 kilometres per hour. All 22 racers on the starting grid were American-born males.
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