Countdown: Oregon

From its rocky coastlines to its eastern deserts, the Beaver State is a land of unique contrasts. There are few places where you can visit extinct volcanoes, giant hydroelectric dams, fertile croplands, fishing villages and huge tracts of forests, all within a half-day's drive from Portland.

The state's contrasts are also reflected in its people. Oregon is the home state of evangelist Garner Ted Armstrong, cartoonist Matt Groening and actresses Jane Powell and Sally Struthers.

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The song Louie, Louie started there. The Oregon Trail stopped there. There's no sales tax in Oregon, and no self-service gas.

Oregon's association with NASCAR goes back to the first Southern 500, when a 22-year-old kid named Hershel McGriff drove his Oldsmobile cross-country to compete in a race at Darlington.

Best behind the wheel

• Hershel McGriff, Bridal Veil

Growing up in South Dakota, Hershel McGriff was exposed to motorized vehicles at an early age.

"My dad let me use the family car when I was 12," McGriff said. "I bought my first car when I was 13."

After the family moved to Portland, the 17-year-old McGriff entered a race at Portland Speedway in 1945, borrowing his father's car.

"They advertised this 250-lap race at Portland Speedway, which was dirt," McGriff said. "My dad agreed to let me use his car, a 1940 Hudson. The following year I was offered a 1946 Ford coupe. In the meantime, they had blacktopped the track. I won that race, a 100-lapper. It just went from there."

In 1950, McGriff went to Mexico and won the Pan American road race, which impressed another competitor -- Bill France.

"From that time on, we were always pretty close," McGriff said. "I think I learned a lot from him. He was so knowledgeable and looked so far ahead."

France then invited McGriff to compete in the inaugural Southern 500 at Darlington. McGriff drove his car cross-country, finished ninth in the race and then drove it back to Oregon.

Inside the Numbers Hershel McGriff's 1954 season Race Site Finish 2 Daytona Beach 12 6 Oakland 20 14 Raleigh 3 15 Charlotte 10 17 Columbia 2 18 Linden 8 19 Hickory 7 20 Rochester 5 21 Mechanicsburg 3 22 Spartanburg 10 23 Weaverville 13 24 Willow Springs 3 25 Grand Rapids 21 26 Morristown 3 28 Charlotte 15 29 San Mateo 1 30 Corbin 2 31 Darlington 45 32 Macon 1 33 Charlotte 1 34 Langhorne 3 35 LeHi 9 36 Martinsville 2 37 North Wilkesboro 1 Career stats Years 27 Starts 85 Wins 4 Top-5 17 Top-10s 31 Poles 5 Avg. Start 16.9 Avg. Finish 18.8

"We didn't have the big races in the Northwest like they did back there," McGriff said. "So, occasionally when something would pop up, Bill would call me and I'd go back there. I was always back and forth."

McGriff ran 24 races in 1954, winning four times and finishing sixth in the points. That earned him a chance to drive for one of the top teams -- but McGriff had his family to consider.

"I know [France] was pretty disappointed when I didn't come back there in 1955, because he lined up the Carl Kiekhaefer Chrysler for me to drive," McGriff said. "I just felt I should stay home and get something started with my family. I stayed home for a while and started a lumber business."

After a 10-year sabbatical, McGriff returned in 1967 to run in NASCAR's West Coast Regional Series -- winning the 1986 Winston West championship -- and selected Cup races, mainly at Riverside, where he collected 14 victories. He also won Winston West's first street race, at Tacoma in 1986.

In addition, McGriff drove a Cup car in the 24 Hours of LeMans and raced in Australia and Japan. McGriff made his last Cup start at 65 when he finished 43rd at Sonoma in 1993.

McGriff remained active in Winston West until 2002, when he suddenly pulled into the pits at California Speedway and climbed out of his car, calling it quits at 74.

"Well, I just retired," McGriff said. "If I cannot keep up, be near the front, have fun and be comfortable -- which is how it has been -- then I think the time has come. I know I'll miss it. I've always enjoyed the people and everything that surrounds it. And I always liked the competitiveness of it."

	Mike Bliss
	Inside the Numbers Mike Bliss' career stats Category Cup Busch Trucks Starts 71 76 149 Wins 0 1 12 Top-5 1 14 50 Top-10 5 29 84 Poles 0 3 18 Avg. Start 26.0 13.5 8.2 Avg. Finish 26.9 17.3 11.4

Former NASCAR executive Ken Clapp had high praise for McGriff, a member of the Oregon Sports Hall of Fame.

"He has always been the all-time big name out here," Clapp said. "There's never been anybody like him. He clearly was our Richard Petty. He was almost unbeatable in his day. He had incredible patience. And he had such charisma.

"He'd never walk away from autographs after a race, no matter how tired he was. He went out of his way to be a good person."

Other noteworthy drivers from Oregon

• Bill Amick, Portland: 19 top-fives in 48 career starts, including a victory at Sacramento in 1957

• Curley Barker, Tillamook: Scored three top-fives in four 1956 Portland races

• Mike Bliss, Milwaukie: 2002 Craftsman Truck champ scored a pair of top-10s in 2005, including a seventh at Bristol

• Jim Bown, Portland: 1981 Winston West champ made 23 Cup starts from 1981-90

• Chuck Bown, Portland: 16-year career included four top-10s and a pole at Bristol in 1994

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• Dick Bown, Portland: Family patriarch made 20 Cup starts and scored 14 Winston West victories

• Royce Haggerty, Portland: Drove a Dodge to victory at his hometown track in 1956

• Carl Joiner, Portland: Scored a fifth at Riverside in 1972, his best in 16 starts from 1957-77

• John Kieper, Portland: Captured two poles and a victory in 1956 at Portland

• Art Watts, Portland: Won poles in five consecutive starts and the 1957 100-lapper at his home track

We wish ...

Distance runner Steve Prefontaine had become a NASCAR driver.

The native of Coos Bay and three-time NCAA cross-country champ owned every American record from 2,000 to 10,000 meters at the time of his death at 24.

Gone but not forgotten

• Portland Speedway, Portland

The paved half-mile has the unusual distinction of hosting four NASCAR races in one season and three the next.

In 1956, the track held Grand National races in May, June, August and September -- with four different winners, including Portland native John Kieper. However, Eddie Pagan proved to be the master of Portland, putting together a streak of five consecutive top-five finishes, including victories in the final two events there.

The track also hosted six Craftsman Truck Series races -- won by six different drivers -- before it closed in 2002.

A word from our sponsor

Nike, Inc., Beaverton

Nike is the world's leading designer, marketer and distributor of authentic athletic footwear, apparel, equipment and accessories for a wide variety of sports and fitness activities. In 2000, Dale Jarrett, Bobby Labonte and Tony Stewart agreed to wear flame-retardant Nike driving shoes.