Ethel Ann Mobley (née Flock; March 8, 1914 – June 26, 1984) of Fort Payne, Alabama was tied for the second female to drive in NASCAR history. Her brother Tim Flock said she was named after the gasoline her father used in his car.[1]
| Ethel Mobley | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Born | Ethel Ann Flock March 8, 1914 Fort Payne, Alabama, U.S. | ||||||
| Died | June 26, 1984 (aged 70) | ||||||
| NASCAR Cup Series career | |||||||
| 2 races run over 1 year | |||||||
| Best finish | 52nd (1949) | ||||||
| First race | 1949 NASCAR's second race (Daytona Beach) | ||||||
| Last race | 1949 (Langhorne) | ||||||
| |||||||
| Statistics current as of March 8, 2016. | |||||||
"Flying Flocks"
editPart of the racing Flock family,[2] three of her brothers are considered to be NASCAR pioneers: Tim, Fonty and Bob Flock.[3] She was married to Charlie Mobley, who fielded Tim's car in NASCAR's modified series.[4]
Racing career
editShe raced in over 100 NASCAR Modified events in her career.[4]
She had two Strictly Stock Series starts.[5] She raced against her brothers at NASCAR's second event ever on July 10, 1949 at the Daytona Beach Road Course.[5]
The event was the first to feature a brother and a sister, and the only NASCAR event to feature four siblings. Ethel beat Fonty and Bob by finishing eleventh (her career high), and Tim finished second. She made her only other career Cup start at Langhorne Speedway and finished 44th. Both events featured three female drivers (Sara Christian and Louise Smith).[5]
In June 1949, she entered a racing competition in Florida, competing against 57 men drivers. She finished in 8th place.[6]
On August 7, 1949, she became the first female racecar driver to compete against men in the state of Georgia when she entered a race at Central City Park Speedway in Macon, Georgia. She was rated as the top woman driver in the southeastern United States,[7] having won many competitions in all-women races.[7]
Motorsports career results
editNASCAR
edit(key) (Bold – Pole position awarded by qualifying time. Italics – Pole position earned by points standings or practice time. * – Most laps led.)
Strictly Stock Series
edit| NASCAR Strictly Stock Series results | ||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Team | No. | Make | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | NSSC | Pts | Ref |
| 1949 | Charles Mobley | 91 | Cadillac | CLT | DAB 11 |
HBO | 52nd | 16 | [8] | |||||
| 92 | LAN 44 |
HAM | MAR | HEI | NWS | |||||||||
References
edit- ^ White, Rex; Anne B. Jones; Rick Minter (2004). Gold thunder: autobiography of a NASCAR champion. McFarland. pp. 32–33. ISBN 0-7864-1975-X. Retrieved September 25, 2010.
- ^ Tim Flock Image Gallery, timflock.com; Retrieved February 8, 2008
- ^ Gillepsie, Tom (March 31, 2012). "Flock was best known for wins, sense of adventure". Hickory Daily Record. Hickory, NC. Retrieved 2012-04-12.[permanent dead link]
- ^ a b "Reigning champ Stewart owes Gibbs more than this". Archived from the original on 2003-09-11. Retrieved 2006-05-03.; The Daily Star; August 2, 2003; Retrieved May 2, 2006, inaccessible February 9, 2008
- ^ a b c Early Pioneer's; decadesofracing.net; Retrieved May 2, 2006
- ^ "Woman Driver Enters Races". The Macon Telegraph. August 1949.
- ^ a b "Stock Car Event Draws Large Field; Woman Driver To Battle Men". The Macon Telegraph & News. August 7, 1949.
- ^ "Ethel Mobley − 1949 NASCAR Strictly Stock Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved July 15, 2015.
External links
edit- Ethel Mobley driver statistics at Racing-Reference
- Charles Tidwell's Glory Days[permanent dead link]
