Race Histories: 1962 Gwyn Staley 400
Early on, it was apparent that Richard Petty had an affinity for North Wilkesboro Speedway, a place he reached victory lane 15 times during his illustrious NASCAR Winston Cup Series career.
Once he gained his first win at the .625-mile oval, in the 1962 Gwyn Staley 400, the wins just kept on coming. Petty earned his first triumph at North Wilkesboro in that race, pushing his Plymouth to the lead on lap 319 and leading the final 81 circuits to post the first of eight victories that season.
Ned Jarrett passed Petty on the 265th lap and led for 54 laps until Petty regained the point for good. Jarrett developed engine trouble on lap 318 and dropped out of the race, eventually finishing 24th in the 35-car field.
Fred Lorenzen finished second, just four car lengths behind Petty's blue Plymouth. Petty and Lorenzen were the only two cars to finish on the lead lap. Junior Johnson started on the pole and finished third, followed by Fireball Roberts and Darel Dieringer in a lightly-regarded Dodge.
Two-time NASCAR Grand National champion Herb Thomas ended a five-year retirement during the race and finished 14th in a Chevrolet, 23 laps off the pace.
Roberts and Joe Weatherly engaged in a tight struggle in the middle stages of the 400-lap event. After leading for 90 laps, Roberts tapped the rear of Weatherly's Pontiac. Weatherly scooted up the track and nudged the wall, giving Petty the lead for the first time.
Weatherly lost several laps in the pits getting repairs and was penalized one lap for jumping the green flag on a restart following a caution. The Norfolk, Va., driver finished eighth eventually and held onto a 322-point lead in the NASCAR Grand National standings over Jack Smith, who finished ninth.
Roberts lost three laps on a green flag pit stop, but made one of them up as he appeared to have the fastest car in the second half of the race.
An unusual situation made things interesting. The fuel trucks ran dry of racing gasoline just after the halfway point of the race. Some members of the pit crews were seen scurrying around the infield with buckets and hoses in hand, siphoning gasoline from passenger cars.
A caution flag was thrown on lap 250 so that a fuel truck could go get more gas. However, it never made back to the track. Track officials said the large number of cars running at the finish (23 of 35 starters) was responsible for the dwindling supply of gas.
Young Texas hotshot Billy Wade qualified a stunning third and ran with the leaders in the early going. A tire blew on Wade's Pontiac and he slammed the wall, knocking him down to a 10th-place finish. A crowd estimated at 9,228 braved the numbing cold to watch Petty win at an average speed of 84.737 mph.
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