In this episode, Rick stops by the Ashe County Museum to chat with historians Andrew Cole and Jerry Brown to find out the origins of the moonshiners going all the way back to their immigrant roots, plus a look at some of the other fabulous exhibits on offer at the museum. This is a collaboration between The Scene Vault Podcast and North Carolina’s Department of Cultural and Natural Resources made to spotlight the history of moonshine, motorsports, and the state of North Carolina. You can also li...
Jul 25, 2024•21 min
In the second installment of our interview, Dan Elliott talks about the polar opposite reactions he had to Melling Racing’s skyrocketing fame and success in the mid-1980s. Let’s just say it was the best of times and it was the worst of times. He also discusses Darrell Waltrip’s mind games and a disastrous pit stop at Riverside. We then dive into the November 12, 1987 issue of Grand National Scene. Three members of Bill Elliott’s pit crew receive serious injuries … and Dan Elliott winds up bruise...
Jul 24, 2024•1 hr 40 min
This week in the first of what are three lengthy installments, Dan Elliott talks about the monumental impact of his father George on the family racing business, the desperate early struggles of that operation, Harry Melling coming on board to help stabilize the team, that first win at Riverside and laying the foundation for what took place in 1985. We then tackle the April 28, 1983 issue of the Grand National Scene. Darrell Waltrip wins at Martinsville … shocker of all shockers … despite Bobby A...
Jul 17, 2024•1 hr 43 min
In this episode, Rick sits down with Katie Sanford, a park ranger at North Carolina's beautiful Dismal Swamp State Park. One of the most recent additions to the Moonshine & Motorsports Trail, Dismal Swamp is not only smack dab in a neighborhood full of racing, it also hides a secret history of moonshiners who utilized the swamp as a haven for running shine decades ago. This is a collaboration between The Scene Vault Podcast and North Carolina’s Department of Cultural and Natural Resources ma...
Jul 11, 2024•13 min
Ricky Rudd doesn’t talk about an infamous run-in with Jeff Gordon at Charlotte in this week’s installment of our interview, but WE do. Ricky wins the Brickyard 400, which brings up host Rick Houston's favorite story about him. Ricky also puts on one of the most memorable exhibitions of bravery … if not outright stubbornness … in winning at Martinsville. We conclude by talking about the difficult decision to shut down the team he and wife Linda built from the ground up … and the avenues he took i...
Jul 10, 2024•1 hr 42 min
Here’s what our listeners need to know about this week’s installment of our interview with Ricky Rudd. We talk about his Busch CRASH and that astounding win two weeks later at Richmond, as well as his on-again, off-again relationship with Dale Earnhardt that was DEFINITELY off again in the late 80s at North Wilkesboro. Ricky also discusses one of the most controversial finishes in NASCAR history, when his apparent 1991 Sears Point win was awarded to Davey Allison, as well as his years with Hendr...
Jul 03, 2024•1 hr 29 min
Newly elected NASCAR Hall of Famer Ricky Rudd joins us for an in-depth look at the earliest days of his career, when he went STRAIGHT from motocross to the Winston Cup circuit, with NO in between to get him prepped and ready. He talks about the struggles he faced with his family owned team; leaving Nelson Malloch for SAFETY reasons; his take-it-or-leave-it salary at DiGard AND going to drive for Richard Childress Racing. We do something a little different with our issue of the week segment and t...
Jun 26, 2024•1 hr 26 min
In this episode, Rick chats with Todd Johnson of the Johnston County Museum about the secret history of moonshining in Johnston County and what you can discover for yourself at the County Museum. This is a collaboration between The Scene Vault Podcast and North Carolina’s Department of Cultural and Natural Resources made to spotlight the history of moonshine, motorsports, and the state of North Carolina. You can also listen to every episode of the Moonshine and Motorsports Racing Podcast on all ...
Jun 20, 2024•16 min
We went BIG with our 300th episode! Joined by legendary pit-road reporter, radio, and TV host Matt Yocum as a guest host, we also sit down with Richard Childress Racing and Dale Earnhardt's Flying Aces/Junkyard Dogs pit crew ... crew chief and NASCAR Hall of Famer Kirk Shelmerdine, Chocolate Myers, Will Lind, and Danny Lawrence. NOTE: This show is not associated in any way with American City Business Journals, owner of the Scene brand. Be sure to check out the latest and greatest stories from th...
Jun 19, 2024•1 hr 58 min
In this episode, Rick chats with Gray Garrison about the history - and now future - of racing at Bowman Gray Stadium. One of the most historically significant tracks in North Carolina, Bowman Gray was recently revealed to be coming back to the NASCAR racing schedule in the very near future. Rick talks to Gray about that and of course, what it's like to race at what has affectionately become known as the Mad House. This is a collaboration between The Scene Vault Podcast and North Carolina’s Depar...
Jun 13, 2024•46 min
In a perfect world, Jocko Maggiacomo would be best remembered for having one of the greatest names in NASCAR history. But that all changed in a split second … in the time that it took for Jocko to be involved in the crash that ended the driving career of the legendary Bobby Allison. Today … we know Bobby’s story … we know that he was hurt very badly in a crash at Pocono … and that he never raced again. Yet on the other hand, we know next to nothing about Jocko. And that’s why I wanted to do this...
Jun 12, 2024•1 hr 16 min
This week … fresh out of host Rick Houston's mini-cassette stash … Ron Bouchard. In this nearly half-hour conversation, Ron talks about his first exposure to the sport, hooking up with car owner Jack Beebe, and that magical 1981 day at Talladega. He also discusses a couple of opportunities that got away … and a couple that didn’t pan out quite the way he’d hoped. Finally, he takes us through his decision to walk away from the sport once and for all. We then take a long look into the August 6, 19...
Jun 05, 2024•1 hr 35 min
This is a collaboration between The Scene Vault Podcast and North Carolina’s Department of Cultural and Natural Resources made to spotlight the history of moonshine, motorsports, and the state of North Carolina. You can also listen to every episode of the Moonshine and Motorsports Racing Podcast on all your favorite podcast apps. For more, visit https://dailydownforce.com/moonshine-motorsports/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
May 30, 2024•34 min
In the third and final installment of our interview with Sandy Jones, he discusses the meaning of REAL friendship and remembers an all-out Dukes of Hazzard-style car chase that our listeners will just have to hear to believe. We then dig into the April 28, 1988 issue of Grand National Scene. Dale Earnhardt wins at Martinsville after Lady Luck … once again … frowns upon Harry Gant. Sterling Marlin and Bobby Hillin have their day in the sun by finishing second and third, respectively, while Buddy ...
May 29, 2024•1 hr 38 min
We get things started off this week with a stunning find ... Rick's old mini-cassette tapes featuring interviews with a number of long-lost members of the NASCAR community. Sandy Jones then remembers a team divided at Junior Johnson and Associates, Tim Brewer’s jaunt through Ingle Hollow, and parting ways with the team. He remembers his time with Darrell Waltrip and the Tide Ride, their 1989 Daytona 500 win together, and a SHORT-lived stint with DW’s own operation. We then dig into the December ...
May 22, 2024•1 hr 20 min
This week in the first of what will be three installments, Sandy Jones remembers Jimmy "Smut" Means, the LONG road home from Pocono, his stint with D.K. Ulrich, and going to school at Junior Johnson University, where he was the new kid in Ingle Hollow … and treated like it. We then tackle the April 3, 1980 edition of Grand National Scene. Dale Earnhardt wins his second race in a row, early in his sophomore season. The win comes at Bristol, where he’d scored the FIRST victory of his Winston Cup c...
May 15, 2024•1 hr 15 min
This week in the third and final installment of our interview, Norman Negre remembers the mother of all road trips … and flights … with Bobby Allison … who, by the way … has 85 Grand National/Cup wins, not 84. After that, we’ve got false teeth flying all over the place, while race cars AREN’T taking flight quite as much, thanks in part to Norman. We then dig into the June 15, 1995 issue of Winston Cup Scene. Jeff Gordon’s missed shift hands the Pocono win to Hendrick Motorsports teammate Terry L...
May 08, 2024•1 hr 25 min
Norman Negre didn't want to talk about whether or not nitrous played a part in Dale Earnhardt making the first start of his Winston Cup career … and I respected that … but we’ve since discussed it a little bit more … and he did admit that there were some things that he wanted to get straight. So … we met AGAIN … and we got the story straight from Norman. This week in the second installment of our interview, Norman also talks about the lengths to which independents would go to make ends meet, his...
May 01, 2024•1 hr 12 min
in racing as the son of one of NASCAR’s independent drivers and team owners, Ed Negre. Norman remembers how an impromptu chance behind the wheel of his dad’s car in practice settled once and for all the question of whether or not HE would ever drive himself. Norman gives us an inside look at the first Winston Cup start of Dale Earnhardt’s career. We then dig into the April 13, 1978 issue of Grand National Scene. Darrell Waltrip and Benny Parsons swap the first and second positions at Darlington ...
Apr 24, 2024•1 hr 45 min
This week in the second and final installment of our interview, Tim Fedewa talks about changing up the game plan at Talladega and how the decision led to some painful injuries. Then … it’s on to his career as a spotter and his relationship with Kevin Harvick. We then tackle the massive April 25, 2002 issue of Winston Cup Scene. Dale Earnhardt Jr and Jason Keller win at Talladega, although the fields for both events were decimated by HUGE wrecks. There’s a ton of reaction over Kevin Harvick getti...
Apr 17, 2024•1 hr 35 min
Mention his name today, and most will recognize Tim Fedewa as the longtime spotter for Kevin Harvick. But like so many other folks up in the spotter’s stand, Tim began his career as a driver in and around his home state of Michigan. He eventually moved south to go Busch Series racing with Ray and Diane DeWitt, who took him to his first win in 1995 at Nazareth. Tim wound up at BACE Motorsports, where he had a front-row seat to the chaos … and success … of teammates Randy LaJoie, crew chief Steve ...
Apr 10, 2024•1 hr 24 min
We don’t typically cover weekly short-track racing to any great extent … except when it comes to folks getting started out there. But with Gray Garrison’s LONG family history with Big Bill, Billy, Jim AND Annie France, it’s one of those interviews that we couldn’t NOT do, especially considering the recent announcement of NASCAR acquiring the racing lease at Bowman Gray Stadium in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. This WASN’T one of those business associations where NASCAR sanctioned races at Bowman...
Apr 03, 2024•1 hr 30 min
In the third and final installment of our interview, Shawn Parker describes in heartbreaking detail the loss of his wife, trying to race again and eventually parting ways with Robert Yates Racing just two months or so after the accident. Then … he builds a new life with Deborah Renshaw, whose own racing story was impacted by tragedy. NOTE: This show is not associated in any way with American City Business Journals, owner of the Scene brand. Be sure to check out the latest and greatest stories fr...
Mar 27, 2024•1 hr 2 min
Troy Selberg is most known to NASCAR fans as a crew chief for legends like Todd Bodine and Morgan Shephard, but he also moonlights as an accredited bourbon steward. What all does that entail, and how does it connect to the history of North Carolina's moonshine trade? Find out in this episode of the Moonshine and Motorsports Racing Podcast. This is a collaboration between The Scene Vault Podcast and North Carolina’s Department of Cultural and Natural Resources made to spotlight the history of moo...
Mar 21, 2024•21 min
FIRST … we’re gonna dig into the January 30, 1997 issue of Winston Cup Scene. Shawn Parker appears on the cover … along with teammate Ken Sapper … as they work on the rear-end housing from Rusty Wallace’s Penske Racing South Ford. We get preseason stories on Rusty and Jimmy Spencer, as well as features on Ned Jarrett and a throwback to Darrell Waltrip's win in the 1989 Daytona 500. Andy Graves doesn't exactly go all out in his photo bio, and "Pappy" Tom Higgins gets a NASCAR-related fact wrong i...
Mar 20, 2024•1 hr 30 min
Over the course of the next three episodes, our listeners will get to know Shawn Parker, who was one of Jeff Gordon’s original Rainbow Warrior pit crew members. Shawn also worked for Penske Racing and Rusty Wallace; Roush Racing and Mark Martin; and Dale Jarrett. He then takes us on a journey that is one of the most emotional that we’ve ever featured here on The Scene Vault Podcast. This week, Shawn talks about getting into NASCAR with Jeff Gordon, where he’s very reluctantly introduced to Jeff’...
Mar 13, 2024•1 hr 27 min
In the second and final installment of our interview, Chuck Bown remembers winning the 1990 Busch Series championship, as well as the lengths to which NASCAR went to make sure the title was on the up and up. Chuck then moved to Winston Cup with Bobby Allison in 1994 but experienced a terrible accident at Pocono that left him with impaired vision for the next several months. He pulled himself from the car while recovering, and subsequently fought the perception that he was damaged goods. We'll th...
Mar 06, 2024•1 hr 27 min
This week we welcome Daniel Pierce to the show. He's a UNC Asheville professor who's written a book on the history of moonshiners in professional racing, and he sits down with Rick to clear up some of the fascinating history behind these wheelmen in North Carolina. This is a collaboration between The Scene Vault Podcast and North Carolina's Department of Cultural and Natural Resources made to spotlight the history of moonshine, motorsports and the state of North Carolina. For more info, visit: h...
Mar 05, 2024•45 min
This week in the first of what will be two installments of our interview, Chuck Bown remembers going Cup racing as a YOUNGster, winning championships in Winston West and Busch North, and the momentous move to the Busch Series with team owners Hubert and Jeff Hensley. We then dig into the January 19, 1978 issue of Grand National Scene. Chuck Bown parts ways with his Winston West team owner just two years after winning the division championship together. Darrell Waltrip gets a couple of prestigiou...
Feb 28, 2024•1 hr 20 min
This week in the third and final installment of our interview, Troy Selberg tries to blow up his race car and then makes one of his teammates hide in the garage overnight to repair the damage. He then remembers the job offer that go away before turning his attention to how a very straightforward observation from his wife led to him getting out of the sport altogether. We then tackle the January 20, 1994 issue of Winston Cup Scene. Troy Selberg is featured on the cover of this issue along with se...
Feb 21, 2024•1 hr 8 min
