Asheville Citizen-Times chronicles the history of racing in Asheville, leading up to Thursday dedication of monument at Carrier Park

Jason Sandford

Jason Sandford is a reporter, writer, blogger and photographer interested in all things Asheville.

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Asheville Citizen-Times’ sports writer Keith Jarrett today kicked off a multi-day series of stories chronicling the history of motor sports in Asheville. It’s a colorful one, as you might imagine, and Jarrett does a great job of capturing that in today’s story. Here’s a snippet describing driver Banjo Matthews racing at McCormick Field, which had a quarter-mile track built around its perimeter in the mid 1950s:

Banjo Matthews seldom gave but often took the checkered flag, at one point winning 13 straight races at McCormick Field. A frustrated promoter forced Matthews to the back of the pack for a race and had him start with his car facing backwards to the rest of the field — and Matthews still won.

“One night they had a powder-puff race for the ladies,” Wells said. “Banjo dressed up like a woman and was out there racin’, knocking those women sideways and coming around on two wheels. They figured out that nobody but Banjo could drive like that, and they pulled him out of that car and like to beat him to death.

“Banjo was a fine driver, but he was one ugly woman.”

I can’t wait to read the rest of the series, and to attend the ceremony for the monument dedication at Carrier Park, the former Asheville Speedway. Coming up:

On Tuesday, the history of Asheville Motor Speedway, the death of racing here and the future of the sport in this area.

Wednesday: A look at the drivers that raced in Buncombe County — from famous names like Richard Petty, Junior Johnson and David Pearson to local legends Bob Pressley, Banjo Matthews and Jack Ingram.