1960 Gwyn Staley 160
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| Race details[1] | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Race 7 of 44 in the 1960 NASCAR Grand National Series season | |||
 North Wilkesboro Speedway | |||
| Date | March 27, 1960 | ||
| Official name | Gwyn Staley 160 | ||
| Location | North Wilkesboro Speedway, North Wilkesboro, North Carolina | ||
| Course | Permanent racing facility | ||
| Course length | 1.005 km (0.625 miles) | ||
| Distance | 160 laps, 100 mi (80 km) | ||
| Weather | Mild with temperatures of 71.1 °F (21.7 °C); wind speeds of 10.1 miles per hour (16.3 km/h) | ||
| Average speed | 66.437 miles per hour (106.920 km/h) | ||
| Attendance | 9,200[2] | ||
| Pole position | |||
| Driver | John Masoni | ||
| Most laps led | |||
| Driver | Junior Johnson | John Masoni | |
| Laps | 145 | ||
| Winner | |||
| No. 42 | Lee Petty | Petty Enterprises | |
| Television in the United States | |||
| Network | untelevised | ||
| Announcers | none | ||
The 1960 Gwyn Staley 160 was a NASCAR Grand National Series event that was held on March 27, 1960, at North Wilkesboro Speedway in North Wilkesboro, North Carolina.
Paul Lewis, who would eventually be known as the Gentleman Teacher, would make his NASCAR Cup Series debut in this event. Burrhead Nantz would retire from NASCAR Cup Series action after the end of this event.[3]
Through the 1960s and 1970s the NASCAR Grand National Series began focusing on bigger, faster, and longer tracks. Like other short tracks in NASCAR at the time, crowd capacity and purses were small compared to the larger tracks. Over time, Enoch Staley and Jack Combs attempted to keep the facility modern and on pace with the growth of the sport. The West Grandstand was rebuilt with chair-type seats rather than the old bare concrete slabs. New larger restroom facilities were built, and the South Grandstand was expanded. A garage facility was also built within the track, which at the time was rare for short-track venues. But the main focus was on keeping ticket prices affordable. Food and beverage prices were kept low, and event parking and camping were always free. As long as profits covered maintenance costs, Staley was satisfied with the income of the track.