Yarborough Wins With An Assist From Mother Nature

As a successful farmer in Timmonsville, S.C., Cale Yarborough likes rain for his crops.

But as a race driver, he doesn't like it, even when it pays off in victory.

Yarborough captured the rain-shortened, $104,150, 22nd annual Virginia 500 Sunday (April 24, 1977) at Martinsville Speedway when threatening skies opened up to halt the Winston Cup's richest short track race after 384 laps. He also had won the Old Dominion 500 here last fall after it was stopped short at 340 laps and took the Richmond 400 in February, another event cut short by rain.

"The rain is just something we can't do anything about but I hate for the fans not to get to see a whole race," Yarborough said.

A heavy rain storm hit on the 327th lap and after an hour and 38 minutes of delay and drying out the track, the race was resumed under caution before a final downpour put an end to it on the 384th lap.

Yarborough, in the Holly Farms Chevrolet, had taken the lead away from Benny Parsons of Ellerbe, N.C. on the 291st lap and held it until the rain came. He won $21,250, including $2,000 in lap money and was in front a total of three times for 244 laps.

His average speed was only 77.405 miles per hour after records had been falling all day. The running time was two hours, 36 minutes and 26 seconds. Parsons finished in the same lap for $11,950 in the first National City Travelers Checks Chevrolet while 14-time Martinsville winner Richard Petty of Randleman, N.C., was third in the STP dodge, three laps back.

Lennie Pond of Petersburg, Va., was fourth in a Chevrolet and David Pearson of Spartanburg, S.C., fifth in the Purolator Mercury, both making their first short track starts of the season.

There were only three caution flags for a total of 25 laps and were caused by Richard Childress spinning out, debris on the track and, finally, rain. The rest was pure racing action in a 30-car field that had a separation of only .951 of a second and 3.805 miles per hour.

There were eight lead changes among five drivers with Parsons leading twice for 83 laps to earn $1,000 in lap money; Darrell Waltrip of Franklin, Tenn., leading once for 51 laps in the Gatorade Chevrolet to pick up $1,000; pole winner Neil Bonnett leading twice for five laps in the Harry Hyde dodge and Petty once for one lap. Bonnett had set a track qualifying record of 88.923 miles per hour as the top 10 broke Waltrip's old mark of 86.484 miles per hour in time trials.

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