Countdown: Virginia

While the Old Dominion State's population has grown significantly since the end of the 16th century, its area has been shrinking. After Sir Walter Raleigh returned from his expedition in 1584, Queen Elizabeth I of England designated Virginia as the sum of land from North Carolina to New York and westward.

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By the time of the Revolutionary War, the Commonwealth included Kentucky and West Virginia. The first was admitted to the Union as a separate state in 1792 and the second broke away during the Civil War.

Virginia is for lovers of geography, from the Eastern Shore to the Shenandoah Valley. While Faifax County has more residents than seven states, Lee County -- at the tip of the state's panhandle -- is closer to eight state capitals than it is to Richmond.

Virginia is for lovers of history. The first permanent English settlements were at Jamestown. Williamsburg was the second colonial capital, followed by Richmond, which also hosted the Confederacy during the Civil War. In fact, more Civil War battles were fought on Virginia soil than any other state.

Virginia is for lovers of presidents. Eight presidents can claim Virginia as their birthplace: George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, James Madison, James Monroe, William Henry Harrison, John Tyler, Zachary Taylor and Woodrow Wilson.

Virginia is for lovers of NASCAR. Old Dominion racing has produced legends like Joe Weatherly, Curtis Turner, Ricky Rudd, the Woods and the Burtons.

Best behind the wheel

• Joe Weatherly, Norfolk

Joe Weatherly is among of a handful of NASCAR drivers who excelled at the two-wheel method of transportation before he gravitated to the four-wheel variety.

Growing up in Norfolk, Weatherly took a job as a motorcycle deliveryman for a pharmacy. Then, after serving in the Army during World War II, Weatherly began racing bikes.

Inside the Numbers Joe Weatherly's Cup career Year Starts W T5 T10 1952 1 0 0 0 1954 1 0 0 1 1955 6 0 1 4 1956 17 0 6 12 1957 14 0 5 7 1958 15 1 5 7 1959 17 0 6 10 1960 24 3 7 11 1961 25 9 14 18 1962 52 9 39 45 1963 53 3 20 35 1964 5 0 2 3 Totals 230 25 105 153

He entered his first American Motorcycle Association event in 1947, riding a Harley-Davidson. His best finish that season was a sixth at Laconia, N.H.

Weatherly shocked the motorcycle fraternity in 1948 by winning the Laconia Classic 100-mile road race by a full minute over Babe Tancrede, then proved it was no fluke by repeating as Laconia champion the following season.

He also posted top finishes that season at Jacksonville, Reading and Langhorne, then added a victory at Richmond in 1950 before turning his attention to stock cars.

"Little Joe" made his NASCAR debut in the 1952 Southern 500, finishing 16th in Junie Donlavey's Hudson. As the 1953 NASCAR Modified champ, Weatherly ran sporadically in Grand National for the next few seasons, finally committing to the series in 1956, where he won the pole at Phoenix and posted 12 top-10s in 17 starts.

That earned him a ride first with Pete DePaolo, then with Holman-Moody. Weatherly won four races for that organization over a three-year span, starting with the 1958 race at Nashville.

However, Weatherly's career really took off beginning in 1961, when he signed up to drive Bud Moore's Pontiacs. He won nine races in 1961 despite starting less than half of that season's 52 events. He won five of the final eight races of the season, eventually finishing fourth in the points behind Ned Jarrett, Rex White and Emanuel Zervakis.

From that point, the Weatherly-Moore team was nearly unstoppable over the next two years. Over a 20-race stretch to open the 1962 season, Weatherly's worst finish was 13th, and was fourth or better 15 times. After a 19th at Greenville, Weatherly went on to win back-to-back races, touching off a streak of 21 consecutive top-10s and earning him his first NASCAR championship.

He won only three races in 1963, but traded triumph for consistency on his way to another NASCAR title. He had 35 top-10s finishes in 53 starts, 20 of those in the top five.

The first four races of the 1964 season were run in 1963, and Weatherly continued to impress, leading 84 laps at Concord before settling for second. He was in the championship points lead when the series stopped at Riverside Raceway on Jan. 19, 1964.

Qualifying 16th, Weatherly strapped himself into Moore's Mercury but suffered from transmission trouble early in the race. Running several laps down because of repairs, Weatherly returned to the track.

Just past the midway point of the race, Weatherly skidded out of control heading toward Turn 6, possibly when his brakes failed, and slammed into the retaining wall, driver's side first. Weatherly, who didn't use a shoulder harness and rarely raced with his helmet strapped, struck the wall with his head and was killed.

Other noteworthy drivers from Virginia

• Buddy Arrington, Martinsville: 25-year career included 560 starts, including a third in the 1979 Winston 500 at Talladega

• Earl Brooks, Lynchburg: Ran 262 races between 1962 and 1979, with a best of fourth at Nashville in 1971

• Jeff Burton, South Boston: His 17 career victories include two Coca-Cola 600s and a Southern 500

• Ward Burton, South Boston: Five wins, including the 2001 Southern 500 and 2002 Daytona 500

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• Stacy Compton, Lynchburg: Six-year Cup career included a 10th-place finish in the 2001 Daytona 500

• Bill Champion, Norfolk: Posted 43 top-10 finishes in 289 starts between 1951 and 1976

• Bill Dennis, Glen Allen: Four of his six career top-fives came in 1971

• Tommy Ellis, Richmond: 1988 Busch Series champ made 78 Cup starts, running fourth at Charlotte in 1981

• Ray Hendrick, Richmond: Modified legend ran 17 Cup races, had three top-fives in the Busch Series at age 53

• Jimmy Hensley, Ridgeway: Three-time Busch Series runner-up and 1992 Rookie of the Year had 15 top-10s in 98 career Cup appearances

• Tommy Irwin, Keyesville: Made 99 starts, 52 of which resulted in top-10 finishes

• Clyde Lynn, Christianburg: Had 25 top-10s during 1968 season, finishing fourth in the points

• Rick Mast, Rockbridge Baths: Four career Cup poles, including the inaugural Brickyard 400

• Worth McMillion, Amelia: A fifth at Hillsboro was his best in 62 races from 1962-69

• Clyde Minter, Martinsville: Two of his five career top-fives came on the hometown track

• Lennie Pond, Ettrick: 1973 Rookie of the Year drove Harry Ranier's Olds to a stunning win in the 1978 Talladega 500

• Ricky Rudd, Chesapeake: NASCAR's Iron Man is third all-time in starts with 875, including 788 in a row; first and last wins came on road courses

• Elliott Sadler, Emporia: Won with the Woods at Bristol in 2001, twice in 2004 for Robert Yates

• Wendell Scott, Danville: Only African-American driver to win (1964 at Jacksonville), ran in the top 10 147 times in a 495-race career

• Peyton Sellers, Danville: At 21, became the youngest NASCAR Dodge Weekly Series national champion in 2005

• Jabe Thomas, Christianburg: 65 of his 77 top-10 finishes came in a four-year stretch starting in 1968

• Ronnie Thomas, Christianburg: 1978 Rookie of the Year scored nine top-10s over a 12-year career

• Travis Tiller, Triangle: Was 15th in the 1983 Southern 500, his best in 51 starts

• Curtis Turner, Roanoke: Won 17 races and 16 poles during a career that began in 1949 and lasted until 1968, but never ran more than half of the races in any season; killed when his plane crashed in 1970

• Glen Wood, Stuart: All four of his victories as a driver came at Winston-Salem's Bowman-Gray Stadium

• Emanuel Zervakis, Richmond: Won at Greenville and Norwood in 1961, finished third in the points that year

We wish ...

Tennis player Arthur Ashe had become a NASCAR driver.

As Wendell Scott was to NASCAR, this native of Richmond broke the color barrier in men's tennis, winning the U.S. Open as an amateur and adding Australian Open and Wimbledon titles as a professional.

Keeping it on track

• Martinsville Speedway

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The shortest track on the Nextel Cup circuit is also the oldest, having hosted NASCAR since its inception. Built in 1947, Martinsville originally had seating for 750. Other than being paved in 1955, the configuration of the track hasn't changed since Red Byron won there in 1949.

Richard Petty is still the all-time leader in victories there with 15.

• Richmond International Raceway

The track at the fairgrounds has been hosting NASCAR events since Lee Petty won there in 1953. Since then, its undergone three name changes, four configuration changes and switched from dirt to pavement. In addition, lights were added in 1991. Three generations of Pettys -- Lee, Richard and Kyle -- have combined for 16 victories.

Gone but not forgotten

• Langley Speedway, Hampton

This .4-mile oval hosted nine races between 1964 and 1970, with Elmo Langley and Wendell Scott the only drivers to compete in every race. After the first four races were run on dirt, the track was paved in 1968, and David Pearson promptly won three consecutive races.

Located directly across the street from Langley Air Force Base and within sight of NASA's wind tunnel, Langley Speedway remains on the NASCAR Dodge Weekly Series schedule.

Other tracks which have hosted NASCAR races

• New River Valley Speedway, Dublin: The .416-mile oval hosted four Busch Series races from 1989-92, all won by General Motors makes (Buick, Oldsmobile, Pontiac)

• Norfolk Speedway, Norfolk: Billy Myers and Buck Baker won 100-lappers on the dirt oval

• Old Dominion Speedway, Manassas: In 1966, Elmo Langley won the last of the seven races held on the paved 3/8ths-mile

• Princess Anne Speedway, Norfolk: Herb Thomas' Hudson was first across the line in 1953 at the dirt half-mile

• South Boston Speedway, South Boston: The quarter-mile hosted all three of NASCAR's national series, including 10 Grand National races

• Southside Speedway, Richmond: The initial J was central to winning on the third-mile: Junior Johnson, Jimmy Pardue, Jim Paschal and Ned Jarrett did it

• Starkey Speedway, Roanoke: Junior Johnson won half of the four races held on the paved quarter-mile

A word from our sponsor

• Sprint Nextel, Reston

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• America Online, Inc., Reston

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