Jack Smith (NASCAR)
Encyclopedia
Jack Smith was a pioneer NASCAR
NASCAR
The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing is a family-owned and -operated business venture that sanctions and governs multiple auto racing sports events. It was founded by Bill France Sr. in 1947–48. As of 2009, the CEO for the company is Brian France, grandson of the late Bill France Sr...

 driver. He raced in the very first NASCAR race ever in 1949, and is a member of the NMPA Hall of Fame in Darlington, South Carolina.

Racing career

Jack Smith moved to Georgia
Georgia (U.S. state)
Georgia is a state located in the southeastern United States. It was established in 1732, the last of the original Thirteen Colonies. The state is named after King George II of Great Britain. Georgia was the fourth state to ratify the United States Constitution, on January 2, 1788...

 when he was two years old. He worked at a service station in the 1940s near Roswell. He began racing against local bootleggers on rough dirt tracks and asphalt superspeedways, and across fields.

He made his debut in NASCAR's first race in 1949 at the Charlotte Speedway
Charlotte Speedway
For the current NASCAR track in Charlotte, North Carolina, see Charlotte Motor Speedway.Charlotte Speedway was the site of NASCAR's first Strictly Stock series race on June 19, 1949. The Daytona Beach Road Course held the first race sanctioned by NASCAR in 1948...

 and finished 13th. He is remembered for flipping his car five time and rolling into the parking lot at a 1958 race at Darlington. He won the NASCAR's Most Popular Driver Award
NASCAR's Most Popular Driver Award
NASCAR's Most Popular Driver Award is awarded to the fans' favorite NASCAR driver in the Sprint Cup Series, Nationwide Series, and Camping World Truck Series every year since 1956. It started as a poll of the drivers and then all NASCAR Sprint Cup Series competitors...

in 1959 http://www.zoominfo.com/directory/Smith_Jack_3240318.htm. He went to win 21 races over the next 14 years. He died from congestive heart failure in 2001.
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