NASCAR History - round & round

[blakester]

I was recently explaining the Polish victory lap to a NASCAR novice and they asked the following related questions:
Why are the races run counter clockwise?
Has a NASCAR race ever been run clockwise?
These are simple, yet valid questions.
Digging into my historical references, I found no specific rules pertaining to direction. I also found several pictures from early racing at Daytona (beach) that show counter clockwise racing. I too wondered if any early races had ever been run in the opposite direction.
Does anyone have more specific rules information. Possibly more information on why and when the decision was made to make only left turns.

[The Beer Baron]

I think since the driver is positioned on the LHS of the car, that means that more weight is on the LHS of the car, which makes it easier to turn the car left and hence a possible reason why the races are run anti-clockwise.

In Australia where the cars have the driver on the RHS , they run their ovals clockwise.

Also on the road courses with both left and Right hand turns they try and distribute the weight more evenly, hence the exhaust is on the right-hand side for the road races.

[Lee]

Beer Baron got it right. The reason is because the driver is on the left hand side. Beside what He said, also because this keeps the driver's side door away from the wall.

[Budmakesmewiser]

When NASCAR started out as an organization they were still driving cars off the parking lot and that was it,thats how we drive in the U.S on the right,no reason to change it considering that the driver is farther away from the wall if he is on the right and if they drive counter clockwise,it makes the sport more original and thats what people like something to relate to.As far as the weight of the driver goes it is hard to say,you would have to calculate volume,mass,size,shape,weight,speed,atomic properties,measurments,friction,angles, g-forces,surface area,and alot lot more to fiqure out how much help the drivers weight is to the cars handling,I doubt it is a whole lot.

[The Beer Baron]

Budmakesmewiser:~ from what you said it doesn'texplain why the races are run anti-clockwise!

[Budmakesmewiser]

What exactly do you mean bear?I don't no that much about NASCARs history or rules but is is the only thing i can think of and i'm pretty sure that it is the same thing that everyone else said also.

[floid2000]

In the 50s in Canada (before Cascar) some tracks had the flagman flip a coin to decide which direction to race...........

AFTER QUALIFYING
Wouldn't that solve the restrictor plate issue in a hurry ?

[The Beer Baron]

Sorry about that Budmakesmewiser, Actually I don't know either, F1 races their circuits clockwise, so in keeping with tradition all American racing series run anti-clockwise

Now that I think of it, all drivers try to go as low on the race-track as is possible, with the driver on the LHS, running ACW, means that he can see/notice someone on the inside a lot easier, than if it was run clockwise. i'm just guessing here!

[Hans.ca]

The first race run clock wise that I remember was the Globe & Mail challenge race at Harewood Acres sometimes in 196?. Lee Petty ran in that race as only one car out of three was allowed into Canada. The cars where held at the border by Canadian customs. Richard and his brother had to spectate.
The next race was the Kawartha 200 or 300 at Mosport. It was also run clock wise. This was in the 196? also and had a full compliment of stock cars. However neither of these two races where run under Nascar. The race at Harewood was sanctioned by CASC and the one at Mosport by USAC. Nascar did not exist at that time if memory serves me right.

[Lee]

Hans.ca,

NASCAR was in existance throughout the 60s. It was formed in 1948.

[Hans.ca]

Lee

The race at Mosport was under USAC rules, don't know where NASCAR was.