Now here’s some wild racing action. Check out this bright, clear color footage of the Sportsman and Modified event on the Daytona Beach course in 1952.

Due to the arbitrary editing of this little nine-minute clip, we don’t get to see the finish of the combined Sportsman and Modified race at Daytona in 1952. Records indicate that Tim Flock won that day in a 1939 Ford, besting a full field of early NASCAR stars including Jack Smith, Curtis Turner, and Joe Weatherly.

However, some sources say that Flock was disqualified for a roll bar infraction (it was wood, in semi-official NASCAR lore) and the victory was awarded to Smith. Maybe an expert on early NASCAR history will step forward and school us on this point.

Wacky editing aside, this film excels in showing the raw and wild nature of racing on the beach in these years. There really isn’t anything quite like this today. Reportedly, 97 cars started the 100-mile free-for-all on the 4.1-mile beach course, and as far as we know, no one was killed that day—which is a miracle in itself. Watch this.

http://youtu.be/ecRZq8wdyYk