|| *Comments on the 1975 Winston Western 500:* View the most recent comment <#15> | Post a comment <#post> Tweet 1. MegaRacer posted: 10.17.2005 - 5:52 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) The first race with a new and (more or less) current point system. A win was worth 175 pts until 2003, now it's worth 180 pts. 2. Dave posted: 05.12.2007 - 11:57 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Bill Schmitt's Debut 3. SK posted: 05.27.2007 - 5:28 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) The first Cup race for Ron Esau as well. 4. Pat posted: 04.07.2008 - 8:19 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) This was the first race that the vaunted Chevrolet Malibu Laguna S-3 was eligible for competiton, although its use began in ernest at the Daytona 500 a month later. For three years the Laguna and its pilots dominated NASCAR until the powers that be banned it from competition. 5. RaceFanX posted: 10.25.2008 - 10:07 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) Last Cup race for G.T. Tallas. He'd return to NASCAR 20 years later to run two races in the new Truck Series. 6. 18fan posted: 09.25.2009 - 1:45 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) Second straight win for Bobby Allison, both in California. He won the finale of 1974 in Ontario. 7. 'Modern Era' Nascar Sucks posted posted: 01.14.2011 - 5:16 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) Pat posted - "For three years the Laguna and its pilots dominated NASCAR until the powers that be banned it from competition." Not really. In 1977, yes, in 1975,1976? No. ----------------------------------------------- It was on this day when I became a NASCAR fan and Richard Petty fan. Why I was listening to MRN's broadcast of the race on KLAC 570 AM this day I don't know. Early in the race Petty spun and hit the wall in turn 9. He lost several laps in the pits while the crew repaired the left front of his car. They used a lot of Arno 200 mph tape on that fender. The car looked like a candidate for the junkyard. The rest of the day he roared around the track faster than eventual race winner Bobby Allison. He even passed him a few times, gathering many fans in the process. 8. Walleyewhacker posted: 07.04.2011 - 1:08 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Pearson had his second best year short schedule year in 1976, and he wasn't driving one of those Lagunas. Check your facts Pat. 9. Aldo posted: 01.04.2014 - 7:09 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Bill Spencer lost his life after crashing during the saturday's support race of the Late Model Sportsman Series. 10. mkl62 posted: 12.10.2014 - 9:07 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Looks like attrition took its toll again as only 13 cars finished. Since it was the first race of the year, I guess a lot of teams were feeling their way through. 11. KW posted: 08.17.2016 - 1:06 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) The Permatex 200 for sportsman cars was run the day before, the winner was Jimmy Insolo, followed by Hershel McGriff, Harry Jefferson, Joe Nuccitelli, and Bobby Allison. 12. Ak47 posted: 04.06.2017 - 8:00 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Talk about attrition. 13 cars running, and only one other car within 7 laps of the lead, at a track bigger than Watkins Glen, no less. 13. Scott B posted: 04.07.2017 - 1:25 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) The large contingent of West series entries in the field was surely a factor in attrition. Low budget teams experience more frequent breakage. 14. RaceFanX posted: 12.20.2020 - 5:58 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) This was the third of Bobby Allison's six Riverside wins but it was his only one in the Penske AMC Matador. Allison would only run a partial campaign with Penske in 1975 but whenever they unloaded they were fast; he'd bring the AMC home with three wins in 19 starts among 10 top-5 finishes. Cale Yarborough and the Junior Johnson-owned #11 team were a notable absence for this one, they lost Carling beer as their primary sponsor at the end of the 1974 season and hit sponsor woes in early 1975 as they were initially unable to find a replacement. This would sort itself out in time, Holly Farms came aboard early in the year, but Yarborough wouldn't enter either Riverside race in 1975. 15. rateus posted: 02.19.2021 - 7:55 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) The two alternates for this race were John Soares ('72 Plymouth) and Jack Simpson ('72 Chevrolet) so they should be added as non-qualifiers. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ *Post a comment:* Your comment may not appear immediately - all comments must be approved by the moderator. Name: Comment: