|| *Comments on the 1961 Western North Carolina 500:* View the most recent comment <#8> | Post a comment <#post> Tweet 1. Madison posted: 11.26.2009 - 1:18 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) The fans rioted after the cancellation of the race. Most teams were held hostage by rioters. Ned Jarrett and Bud Moore hit one of the mob leaders over the head with a 2X4. Moments after that, the crowd dispersed. 2. James W. posted: 04.05.2010 - 10:41 pm Rate this comment: (1) (0) Bunk Moore in the #58 hit the pothole the eventually stopped the race, sending him sliding to where the pits were set up and injuring spectators. 3. Timberwolf Frenzel posted: 01.16.2013 - 7:26 pm Rate this comment: (1) (0) I heard that the riot was ended by Pop Eargle, a Bud Moore crew member. 4. b4il3y posted: 09.05.2013 - 3:20 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) If this happened today it would be national news. 5. Spen posted: 02.10.2018 - 5:48 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) Two drivers are listed as starting 21st, and no one is listed as starting 12th. Of the two drivers, Nelson Stacy seems a more likely top 15 qualifier than L.D. Austin. 6. @Statscrash posted: 07.19.2018 - 10:33 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Really #1? I can't picture Ned Jarrett hitting anyone with a 2x4 7. joey2448 posted: 04.02.2019 - 11:59 pm Rate this comment: (2) (0) Supposedly what happened was that the track started coming apart during the race, and at one point a baseball-sized chunk of asphalt smacked race winner Junior Johnson's #27 Pontiac near the A-post, causing damage. So what race officials did was red flag the event at lap 208 and tell the drivers that they would run 50 more laps before calling it. So the drivers went back out there and raced to lap 258, at which point the red flag and checkered flags were thrown on race winner Junior Johnson. However, the news of the shortened race was not announced to the crowd, and when the race was stopped and a winner declared, the upset fans rioted and tried preventing the teams from leaving the track (the track promoter had since left the facility) by blocking the entrance into the speedway with a logging truck. Eventually, the aforementioned crew member Pop Eargle (who reportedly stood at 6-foot-6 and weighed in at 285 pounds) grabbed a 2x4 that had been used by one of the protesters and used it to clear out the crowd, allowing the teams to leave. 8. Tarheel posted: 04.03.2019 - 7:37 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) Now that is an awesome story ------------------------------------------------------------------------ *Post a comment:* Your comment may not appear immediately - all comments must be approved by the moderator. Name: Comment: