Ned
Setzer
Excerpt From "Wheels 2000 A Salute To Rich Hickory History"
Ned Setzer, the "Redhead," could have driven with the
best on the Winston Cup circuit, but elected to remain home with his
family, run a well-drilling business and restrict his racing career
weekends, mostly on short tracks, the so-called "bull rings" on Friday
and Saturday nights.
It was at New Asheville Speedway one Sunday afternoon that Setzer took a
big lead on the field and was having a Sunday drive toward yet another
win. That's when luck deserted him. A slower car drifted into his Chevy,
broke off the left front wheel and stoved it sideways beneath the
fender.
What was surprising is that Setzer didn't pit. He stood on it and
continued to race. With most of the pressure on the right side of the
car, loss of the left front didn't seem to make all that much
difference. But it did. The field was beginning to play catchup.
On the final lap, veteran Asheville racer Bosco Lowe moved onto Setzer's
bumper to make the pass.
Setzer wasn't having any. He brushed off Lowe by using some slower
traffic and took the flag for the win. Some of the drivers who didn't
win, including Lowe, were incensed that Setzer wasn't black-flagged from
the track.
But the car was not dropping trash on the track and the leader of a race
gets every consideration. The win went into the record books.
