MOTOR RACING / SHAV GLICK : Seagraves’ Tobacco Money Fueled Racing Success

The late Bill France and his family get much of the credit for creating NASCAR and developing stock car racing into the most successful motor racing series in the country.

The praise is well deserved, but almost equally important is a retired cigarette salesman from Winston-Salem, N.C., Ralph Seagraves. He had the idea of promoting R.J. Reynolds tobacco brands by affiliating one of them with NASCAR in 1971.

Seagraves was the key man when the Winston Cup was born in 1971 with a $100,000 point fund that paid $40,000 to Richard Petty for the series championship. This year the winner will receive $1 million from a $2.5-million fund.

“R.J. Reynolds’ entrance into stock car racing was a God-sent thing,” said Petty, a seven-time champion who is retiring at the end of this season after 36 years in the series.

Added Junior Johnson, a one-time champion driver and now a leading car owner: “Winston’s involvement is what brought our sport into the national spotlight, and it was Ralph who did the involving.”

Seagraves is being honored Sept. 5 with membership in the National Motorsports Press Assn. Hall of Fame in Darlington, S.C.

Before he retired in 1985, Seagraves also was one of the most visible men in sports. At races, he dressed in an all-red suit with WINSTON spelled out in jeweled studs up and down the legs, arms and back. That uniform went out with Seagraves. His successor, Wayne Robertson, operates in a more subdued manner.

Seagraves’ approach to racing, however, said something about his dedication.

“I treat every one of the 30 races like it was the Super Bowl, like each one is the most important race of the series to us,” he once said.

Stock car racing has not been the only beneficiary of Seagraves’ attention. He also dipped into his company’s till to back the Camel GT series for International Motor Sports Assn. sports cars, Camel Pro series for dirt-track motorcycles, Supercross for motocross, Winston Drag Racing Series for the National Hot Rod Assn. and the Winston West and Winston Racing Series for modified stock cars throughout the nation at tracks such as Saugus Speedway.

“Seagraves was certainly the godfather of their whole motorsports involvement,” said Brian Tracy, NHRA vice president. “He was the integral player in what it is today, and RJR is the No. 1 corporate client in our stable.”

Looking back over his successes, which include creating the Winston Million--in which a driver can collect $1 million for winning three of the four major races in the same season--and the Winston all-star race, Seagraves says his major achievement was taking the end-of-season awards banquet from the Plaza Hotel in Daytona Beach, Fla., in February to the Waldorf-Astoria in New York in December.

“Nobody noticed what was going on in Daytona,” he said. “The awards were made when everybody was talking about the Daytona 500. I wanted to crown our champion in the year he won it, and I wanted to tell it to a national audience. The first year we moved we got the champion on ‘Good Morning America.’ We wouldn’t have had that happen in a hundred years if we’d stayed in Daytona. We got our money’s worth out of the move.”

And what does Seagraves think of what has happened to his little investment in racing?

“Unreal, just unreal.”

Motor Racing Notes

POWERBOATS--More than 100 racing boats and drivers, including eight national champions, will participate this weekend at Long Beach Marine Stadium as part of the International Sea Festival. On Saturday, the United States Nationals will be held for inboard Crackerboxes, one of powerboat racing’s oldest classes. Favored will be the team of Danny Mang and Cort Neals of Orange. Craig Wendt of Huntington Beach, world champion in the 140-m.p.h. Formula One champ boats, will vie with Greg Foster of Orange in his class. K-boat favorites include Paul Fitzgerald of Anaheim and Ron Bolton of Long Beach.

SPEEDWAY BIKES--Three Southern Californians, Sam Ermolenko of Cypress, Ron Correy of Fullerton and Rick Miller of Reseda, will ride Saturday in the World Individual Finals in Warsaw. The United States has already won the World Pairs title with a team of Greg Hancock of Costa Mesa, Ermolenko and Correy, who rode as a reserve. Only two Americans have won the individual championships, Jack Milne of Pasadena in 1937 and Bruce Penhall of Balboa in 1981 and 1982.

Speedway USA in Victorville will play host to the Mission Yamaha Sidecar Nationals on Saturday night. Sixteen teams, headed by Dean Steele and Dwayne King of New Zealand, will vie for the championship. . . . Scott Brant will be out to extend his Southern California lead over national champion Mike Faria tonight at the Lake Perris Speedway. . . . Match races featuring former U.S. champions will highlight Friday night’s program at the Orange County Fairgrounds in Costa Mesa--Brad Oxley (1987) vs. Steve Lucero (1988) and Mike Faria (1990-91) vs. Bobby Schwartz (1986 and 1989).

SPRINT CARS--Winged cars of the World of Outlaws, headed by Steve Kinser and Sammy Swindell, return to the West Coast this weekend for races Friday and Saturday nights at Santa Maria Speedway. Kinser won the Knoxville Nationals, sprint car’s version of the Indianapolis 500, for the eighth time two weeks ago. This season, Kinser has won 21 and Swindell 16 World of Outlaws main events. The Outlaws will be at Kings Speedway in Hanford next Wednesday night. . . . The California Racing Assn. will be at Manzanita Speedway in Phoenix on Saturday night.

STOCK CARS--Winston Racing Series sportsman cars will headline Saturday night programs at Saugus, Orange Show and Cajon Speedways. Saugus also will have a destruction derby.

MIDGETS--The United States Auto Club’s western regional series for both full and three-quarter midgets will be at Bakersfield Speedway in Oildale on Saturday night.

BONNEVILLE--Rain and wind and a rough surface on the salt flats all but wiped out the Southern California Timing Assn.’s Bonneville Speed Week. Late in the week, Al Teague had top speed of 407.710 m.p.h., with an exit speed of 416.859. Nolan White was next fastest at 365.

MISCELLANY--The Johnson Valley 150, a La Rana Racing off-road promotion, is scheduled to start at 5:30 p.m. Saturday from Lucerne Valley. . . . Grand Prix races in the Toyota super production series will be held Sunday at Willow Springs Raceway. . . . Mike Kiedrowski of Canyon Country won the 250cc motocross in the Japan Grand Prix, final event of the 12-race world championship series.

ALLISON FAMILY--Bobby and Davey Allison have written an open letter to those who supported their son and brother, Clifford: “On behalf of the entire Allison family, we would like to express our deepest appreciation to every individual who has called, written, sent flowers or food or who has simply remembered us in your prayers.” Clifford was killed earlier this month in a crash at the Michigan International Speedway. The family has established a trust fund for Clifford’s wife, Elisa, and their three children. Donations can be sent to Children of Clifford Allison Fund, Amsouth Bank, 109 Hueytown Plaza, Hueytown, Ala., 35023.