Donald Charles MacTavish (August 22, 1940 – February 22, 1969) was an American race car driver. He died in an accident at

Daytona International Speedway Daytona International Speedway is a race track in Daytona Beach, Florida, United States. Since opening in 1959, it has been the home of the Daytona 500, the most prestigious race in NASCAR as well as its season opening event. In addition to NAS ...

Biography

MacTavish was born in

Dover, Massachusetts Dover is a town in Norfolk County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 5,923 at the time of the 2020 United States Census. With a median income of more than $250,000, Dover is one of the wealthiest towns in Massachusetts. Located abou ...

, and started his racing career at the age of 15 at the Norwood Arena in nearby Norwood. He quickly earned popularity for driving demolition derby cars, and appeared on

ABC ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster ** Disney–ABC Television ...

's '' Wide World of Sports''. He competed in more than 100 Sportsman Car Series races on the East Coast. In 1963, he progressed to NASCAR's Sportsman Division and in 1966 he won the NASCAR National Sportsman Division Championship, a precursor to today's Xfinity Series, by beating out

Ralph Earnhardt Ralph Lee Earnhardt (February 23, 1928 – September 26, 1973) was an American stock car racer. He was the father of 7 time NASCAR Cup Series champion Dale Earnhardt, grandfather of Kerry Earnhardt, Kelley Earnhardt Miller, Dale Earnhardt Jr. ...

among others. In the late 1960s, MacTavish set his sights on competing in NASCAR's top series, the

Grand National Series The name NASCAR Grand National Series refers to former names of the following NASCAR series: *National-level stock car series: **NASCAR Cup Series (known as NASCAR Grand National Series between 1950 to 1970, then the NASCAR Winston Cup Grand Nation ...

. On February 22, 1969, MacTavish made his debut at the

, driving the No. 5 1966

Mercury Comet The Mercury Comet is an automobile that was produced by Mercury from 1960–1969 and 1971–1977 — variously as either a compact or an intermediate car. In its first two years, it was marketed as the "Comet" and from 1962 as the "Mercury Comet ...

in the

NASCAR Sportsman Division The NASCAR Xfinity Series (NXS) is a stock car racing series organized by NASCAR. It is promoted as NASCAR's second-tier circuit to the organization's top level Cup Series. NXS events are frequently held as a support race on the day prior to a ...

's Permatex 300. On lap nine of the race, his vehicle tangled with a car driven by Bob James. Out of control, MacTavish's car hit the outside crash wall at a point where a metal guard rail covered an opening in the wall. The impact with the butt end of the concrete sheared off the whole front of the car, up to the

firewall Firewall may refer to: * Firewall (computing), a technological barrier designed to prevent unauthorized or unwanted communications between computer networks or hosts * Firewall (construction), a barrier inside a building, designed to limit the spre ...

; the engine was thrown from the wreck. The Mercury then spun around and wound up facing oncoming cars in the middle of the track surface, with MacTavish completely exposed in the driver's seat. It was then struck by

Sam Sommers Sam Sommers (born September 17, 1939) is a former American stock car racing driver from Savannah, Georgia. Sommers competed in 30 NASCAR Winston Cup races between 1976 and 1978, where he achieved a total of 9 top ten finishes and 1 pole position. ...

, who was unable to see MacTavish's car due to smoke and flying debris from the accident. This second impact sent his car bouncing into the grass on the inside of the track. MacTavish was pronounced dead at the scene. Three months after his death, the first annual 100-lap "Don MacTavish Memorial Race" was organized at Albany-Saratoga Speedway. Race-winner

Richie Evans Richard Ernest Evans (July 23, 1941Bourcier, Bones, "61 at 61", ''Speedway Illustrated'' (ISSN 1528-4182), Volume 3, Number 8, August 2002. – October 24, 1985), was an American racing driver who won nine NASCAR National Modified Championships, ...

was presented the winner's trophy by Mrs. Dorothy MacTavish and Miss Marcia MacTavish, mother and sister of the late driver for whom the event was named. Each year, the

American Canadian Tour The American Canadian Tour (ACT) is a late model stock car racing series based in the northeastern United States, and Quebec, Canada. The current American-Canadian Tour Late Model Tour was founded in 1992 as a cost-cutting, regional touring divisi ...

racing series awards one driver with the prestigious MacTavish Award at their annual year-end Banquet of Champions. The award is given for outstanding contribution in the field of stock car racing and named in honor of MacTavish for his contributions to New England racing. Past recipients of the award have included

Bill France Sr. William Henry Getty France (September 26, 1909 – June 7, 1992), also known as Bill France Sr. or Big Bill, was an American businessman and racing driver. He is best known for founding and managing NASCAR, a sanctioning body of US-based stock ca ...

(1969) and

Ken Squier Kenley Dean Squier (born April 10, 1935) is an American sportscaster and motorsports editor from Waterbury, Vermont. From 1979 to 1997, he served as the lap-by-lap commentator for ''NASCAR on CBS'', and was also a lap-by-lap commentator for TBS ...

(1972). In 2001, MacTavish was posthumously inducted into the

New England Auto Racers Hall of Fame The New England Auto Racers Hall of Fame is a hall of fame for racing-related people in the New England region of the United States. NEAR was established in 1981. The New England Auto Racers Hall of Fame was established in 1998 by the New England A ...

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Mactavish, Don 1942 births 1969 deaths People from Dover, Massachusetts Racing drivers from Boston Racing drivers from Massachusetts NASCAR drivers Racing drivers who died while racing Filmed deaths in motorsport Sports deaths in Florida

Biography

See also

References

External links