"Red" Farmer
Driver
Charles "Red" Farmer (born in Nashville, Tennessee) is a former NASCAR racecar driver. He was a member of the Alabama Gang.
The Alabama Gang was the nickname for a group of NASCAR drivers (and subsequently their offspring) who set up shop and operated out of Hueytown, Alabama (near Birmingham, Alabama). In the late 1950s, young auto racer Bobby Allison left Miami, Florida, looking for an area that had more opportunities to race. He discovered central Alabama in his travels. The region was dotted with small dirt tracks, and Allison won big his first few times out. He returned to Florida to pick up his brother Donnie Allison, and friend Red Farmer.
Subject ID: 34819
MoreCharles "Red" Farmer (born in Nashville, Tennessee) is a former NASCAR racecar driver. He was a member of the Alabama Gang.
The Alabama Gang was the nickname for a group of NASCAR drivers (and subsequently their offspring) who set up shop and operated out of Hueytown, Alabama (near Birmingham, Alabama). In the late 1950s, young auto racer Bobby Allison left Miami, Florida, looking for an area that had more opportunities to race. He discovered central Alabama in his travels. The region was dotted with small dirt tracks, and Allison won big his first few times out. He returned to Florida to pick up his brother Donnie Allison, and friend Red Farmer.
The trio set up shop in Hueytown, Alabama, and were dominant throughout the 1960s and early 1970s. In 1973, Jimmy Means joined the gang. Beginning in 1979, their sons and contemporaries began racing, and became known as members of the Alabama Gang themselves. Bobby's son Davey Allison, and fellow Hueytown residents Neil Bonnett, and David Bonnett. Hut Stricklin, who married Donnie's daughter, became the last member of the Alabama Gang.
His first race was at Opa-locka Speedway near Miami, Florida in a 1934 Ford in 1948. He became famous as a member of the Alabama Gang and he considered his hometown to be Hueytown, Alabama. Estimates of Farmer's career victories range from 700 to 900 victories, most occurring in the late 1950s and early 60's. He raced 36 NASCAR races from 1953 to 1975. He won numerous championships at local tracks. He was the NASCAR National Late Model Sportsman champion (later Nationwide Series) for three consecutive years from 1969 to 1971. Farmer's best finish in NASCAR's top division was a fourth at both the 1972 Talladega 500, and the 1968 Middle Georgia 500 near Macon, Georgia). He had so few Cup races because he was content to run primarily in the Late Model Sportsman. He was named NASCAR's most popular driver 4 times. Red later raced in the white and gold #97 car. In the mid 60's, however, Red raced a white, gold, and red Ford Fairlane, #F-97.
He was Davey Allison's crew chief in the Busch Series.
Red has retained his skills as a driver in spite of his age. He competed in two Busch Grand National races in 1992, and the season opening ARCA event at Daytona in 1993. On June 2005, Farmer, nearly aged 80, turned heads in winning a heat over current NASCAR Sprint Cup stars, and finished 8th in the feature during the Sprint Prelude to the Dream at Eldora Speedway, owned by Tony Stewart.
As of 2015, Farmer still regularly competes in a late model at Talladega Short Track, a 1/3 mile oval dirt track in Eastaboga, Alabama located near the Talladega Superspeedway. His grandson, Lee Burdett, also races there.
Subject ID: 34819
Subject ID: 34819
