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N0KFQ > TODAY 12.02.08 03:01l 29 Lines 1359 Bytes #999 (0) @ WW
BID : 13270_N0KFQ
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Subj: Today in History - Feb 11
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From: N0KFQ@N0KFQ.#SWMO.MO.USA.NA
To : TODAY@ALLUS
February 11, 1951
Hornet stings Big Three
Marshall Teague drove a Hudson Hornet to victory on the beach
oval of the 160-mile Daytona Grand National at Daytona Beach,
Florida, beginning Hudson's extraordinary run on the NASCAR
circuit. In 1948, Hudson introduced the revolutionary "step-down"
chassis design that is still used in most cars today. Until
Hudson's innovation all car drivers had stepped up into the
driver's seats. The "step-down" design gave the Hornet a lower
center of gravity and, consequently, better handling. Fitted with
a bigger engine in 1951, the Hudson Hornet became a dominant
force on the NASCAR circuit. For the first time a car not
manufactured by the Big Three was winning big. Excited by the
publicity generated by their success on the track, Hudson
executives began directly backing their racing teams, providing
the team cars with everything they needed to make their cars
faster. The Big Three, fearing that losses on the track would
translate into losses on the salesroom floor, hurried to back
their own cars. Thus was born the system of industry-backed
racing that has become such a prominent marketing tool today. The
Hudson Hornet would contend for nearly every NASCAR race between
1951 and 1955, when rule changes led to an emphasis on horsepower
over handling.
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