NASCAR and ARCA, a Midwest-based stock car auto racing sanctioning organization, have a long history: ARCA founder John Marcum raced against Bill France Sr. and worked as a NASCAR official. More recently, the series has served as a vital training ground for skilled drivers aspiring to compete in NASCAR's national series. The current NASCAR president is Steve Phelps; he succeeded Brian France, who died in May 2015 at the age of 40. Steve's brother Jeff is the chairman and chief executive officer (CEO) of NASCAR.
The first two events were held in April and October 1949, with different track configurations each time. The third race was held in February 1950, and it remains today as one of the only annual races on the calendar. The fourth race was held in November 1950, and it is considered by many to be the first true NASCAR race. The fifth race was held in January 1951, and it is also considered to be the first truly important race of the season because of its impact on the championship standings. Drivers from all over North America participated in these early races, with most competing in multiple events during the year. The sixth race was held in March 1952, and it is regarded as the beginning of modern NASCAR. Only men were allowed to participate at this point in time, and they usually drove modified sports cars similar to what we see today but more streamlined and with less tail wind resistance than today's vehicles.
While not officially affiliated with NASCAR, the International Speedway Corporation (ISC) was created in 1953 by Bill France Sr. to build and administer NASCAR racetracks. Because multiple members of the France family are executives at ISC, the company is occasionally the target of antitrust cases. However, legal issues have never prevented ISC from building new tracks or selling existing ones.
The most famous example of an ISC track is probably Indianapolis Motor Speedway, which has been held annually since 1909. Other major tracks include Daytona International Speedway, Darlington Raceway, and Talladega Superspeedway. Many smaller venues also participate in various forms of NASCAR racing including the All Star Circuit of Champions and the Canadian Tire Series.
In addition to its role as a race promoter, ISC also owns and operates several sports facilities that are not associated with any form of motorsport. These sites include two NFL football stadiums (Indianapolis Colts and Jacksonville Jaguars), two MLB baseball parks (Colorado Rockies and Miami Marlins), and one NBA basketball arena (Vanderbilt University).
Finally, ISC has expressed interest in bringing Formula 1 to America. If this effort succeeds, it would be the first time that a racing series other than NASCAR has held events at every single one of its owned facilities.
The relationship between NASCAR and ISC is very similar to that of FedEx and FedEx Office.
On February 21st, 1948, William France Sr. is credited with inventing NASCAR. He co-wrote the regulations, the scoring system, and other significant features of the association with the other professional race drivers. They devised three distinct classifications in the initial plan: absolutely stock, roadster, and modified. The term "stock" meant that no part was allowed to be removed or added to the car. Roadsters were required to have a removable top but could have other variations from vehicle to vehicle. Modifieds were designed for use on dirt or asphalt tracks and had large amounts of metal inserted into their frame to make them more rigid.
France originally intended to call his new sport "sidewalk racing", but this name was never officially adopted by the organization that he formed to promote it. Instead, he named it after his family business - a textile company based in North Carolina called France's National Race Association. The first season of NASCAR started on September 7th, 1948 and ended after one race because of financial difficulties caused by the expense of hosting events without any form of television coverage at that time. Bill France Jr. took over management of his father's team after the last race and has been running ever since.
Here are some other famous people who have played a role in the development of NASCAR: Richard Petty, Lee Petty, Bud Moore, Junior Johnson, Sam Hanks, Herb Thomas, and Donnie Allison. Many of these people also work as drivers in the races themselves.
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