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 Cale
Yarborough's name is synonymous with success in NASCAR racing. His three Winston
Cup Championships and 83 career victories make him a legend in the sport.
Yarborough's awards, victories, and accolades cover volumes of text - from his
first victory in 1965 to his last in 1985.
In 1987, Cale purchased Jack Bee's team and competed in 26 Winston Cup races as an owner/driver before retiring in 1988. It's been ten years since his last trip to the winner's circle, and Yarborough is itching to return. He believes 1996 will be the year he will do it. When he talks about his driver and his crew chief, Cale speaks repeatedly about talent and desire - the elements that allowed him so much success in his own driving career. Like many of his contemporaries, Cale
Yarborough was born to race, but his friends say that he would have succeeded in
any sport. Known as a daredevil, who loves a challenge, Cale will try just about
anything. From his first solo airplane flight at age 13 to hang gliding, or from
boat racing to stock car racing, he loves to go fast! To quote Junior Johnson,
another NASCAR legend, "Cale Yarborough is the best driver the sport has
ever seen. When you strap Cale into the car, it's like adding 20
horsepower." His first official year of competition is what we know today as the Winston Cup Series was 1965. His first victory came that year, the Valdosta 100 in Valdosta, Georgia. Eighty-two wins followed, including taking the checkered flag at virtually every major racetrack in the country, covering 12 different states. Having grown up in Timmonsville, South Carolina, his most memorable victory came on " The track too tough to tame" - Darlington Raceway - his backyard. Cale tamed Darlington five times. Talladega Superspeedway is another track on which Yarborough has enjoyed success. His three Winston Cup victories, all in the Winston Select 500, and another win in the IROC Series, puts him in a tie for sixth place on Talladega's all-time win list. A hard-charger, Cale is still fifth on the list of Talladega's all-time lap leaders with 568, and is second in poles with six. During his career, Cale started on the pole 68 times at 17 different tracks. Cale ventured into other areas of racing as well. Among his favorite times were those when he raced Indy cars. Today Cale's focus is on his race team. In his eyes, his team's accomplishments are "yet to come." His goals are simple, and they have been instilled in the entire organization; to visit winners circles, to win poles and to finish in the top-ten in points. Still residing in Timmonsville, Yarborough and his wife Betty Joe have three grown daughters, Julie, Kelley and B.J. Cale Yarborough… The Fans' Favorite as the 1996 Talladega - Texaco Walk of Fame "Inactive Category" inductee.
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