James Edward Insolo (born February 4, 1943) is an American

NASCAR The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, LLC (NASCAR) is an American auto racing sanctioning and operating company that is best known for stock car racing. It is considered to be one of the top ranked motorsports organizations in ...

Winston Cup Series The NASCAR Cup Series is the top racing series of the National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing (NASCAR), the most prestigious stock car racing series in the United States. The series began in 1949 as the Strictly Stock Division, and fro ...

race driver whose career spanned from 1970 to 1983.

Career

Insolo began his career at

Saugus Speedway Saugus Speedway was a 1/3 mile racetrack in Saugus, Santa Clarita, California, Saugus, Santa Clarita, California on a site. The track hosted one NASCAR Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series, NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series event in 1995, which was wo ...

, where he became one of the top drivers at the track. In addition to his Winston Cup Series starts, Insolo would make 129 appearances in a

Chevrolet Chevrolet ( ) is an American automobile division of the manufacturer General Motors (GM). In North America, Chevrolet produces and sells a wide range of vehicles, from subcompact automobiles to medium-duty commercial trucks. Due to the promi ...

vehicle in the Winston West division of NASCAR. Insolo finished an average of 21st place after starting an average of 13th. His only DNQ came at the

1972 Miller High Life 500 The 1972 Miller High Life 500 was a NASCAR Winston Cup Series racing event that took place on March 5, 1972, at Ontario Motor Speedway in Ontario, California. Race report Two hundred laps took place on a paved track spanning ; the race was r ...

. Jimmy's total earnings as a driver were $59,785 ($ when adjusted for inflation). One of his famous races involved Insolo racing at the

Westwood Motorsport Park Westwood Motorsport Park (or Westwood Racing Circuit) was a 8-turn motorsport race track located in Coquitlam, British Columbia on the southern slopes of Eagle Mountain (known locally as ''Eagle Ridge''). History The track was built and opera ...

(now developed into the

Westwood Plateau Westwood Plateau is a neighbourhood in the northern region of Coquitlam, British Columbia. It is named for Westwood Motorsport Park which existed on the plateau before the community was built, and was closed in 1990 to make way for real estate de ...

neighborhood along with the

Westwood Plateau Golf & Country Club Westwood Plateau Golf & Country Club, located in the Canadian city of Coquitlam, British Columbia, comprises two golf courses set into the hillside of Eagle Mountain. Summary Westwood Motorsport Park had occupied the Crown land Crown land, ...

). Before Insolo stepped onto the NASCAR scene, very few West Coast drivers had any level of success in NASCAR. Drivers from that part of the United States were forced by necessity to race in the specially designated

Winston West Series The ARCA Menards Series West, formerly the NASCAR K&N Pro Series West, NASCAR AutoZone West Series, NASCAR Winston West Series, NASCAR Winston Transcontinental Series and NASCAR Camping World West Series, is a regional stock car racing series ow ...

. Racing in the

Southeastern United States The Southeastern United States, also known as the American Southeast or simply the Southeast, is a geographical List of regions in the United States, region of the United States located in the eastern portion of the Southern United States and t ...

back in the early days of NASCAR was a financially unsustainable activity that brought about meager amounts of money that probably couldn't feed the family or pay the bills back then. The multimillion-dollar purses that make up the basis for today's NASCAR Cup Series races didn't appear until at least the 1980s. For example, the

1955 Southern 500 The 1955 Southern 500, the sixth running of the event, was a NASCAR Grand National Series event. The event was held on September 5, 1955, at Darlington Raceway in Darlington, South Carolina. This race spanned 500 miles on a paved oval track. ...

, one of the highest paying events prior to the inaugural running of the Daytona 500 paid only $50 as its lowest prize ($ when adjusted for inflation). Insolo would race in the days before

Kevin Harvick Kevin Michael Harvick (born December 8, 1975) is an American semi-retired professional stock car racing driver and commentator for '' NASCAR on Fox''. He last competed full-time in the NASCAR Cup Series, driving the No. 4 Ford Mustang for Stewa ...

, Ron Hornaday, and

Kurt Busch Kurt Thomas Busch (born August 4, 1978) is an American auto racing driver. He is best known for competing in the NASCAR Cup Series from 2000–2022, last driving the No. 45 Toyota Camry TRD for 23XI Racing. Busch is the 2004 NASCAR Cup Series ch ...

made NASCAR into a household name west of the

Mississippi River The Mississippi River is the main stem, primary river of the largest drainage basin in the United States. It is the second-longest river in the United States, behind only the Missouri River, Missouri. From its traditional source of Lake Ita ...

Derrike Cope Derrike Wayne Cope (born November 3, 1958) is an American professional stock car racing driver and team owner. He is best known for his surprise win in the 1990 Daytona 500. He last competed in the NASCAR Cup Series, driving the No. 15 Chevrolet ...

Ernie Irvan Virgil Earnest Irvan (born January 13, 1959), occasionally referred to as Swervin' Irvan, is an American former professional stock car racing driver. A retired NASCAR competitor, he is perhaps best remembered for his comeback after a serious head ...

, and

Chad Little Charles Glen Little Jr. (born April 29, 1963) is an American former professional stock car racing driver. He holds a degree in marketing from Washington State University and a J.D. degree from Gonzaga University. While attending Washington State ...

would become a few of his "West Coast" contemporaries. After racing the equivalent of and leading 24 laps out of 2804, Insolo would retire from his NASCAR career. He was the 1978

NASCAR Winston West Series The ARCA Menards Series West, formerly the NASCAR K&N Pro Series West, NASCAR AutoZone West Series, NASCAR Winston West Series, NASCAR Winston Transcontinental Series and NASCAR Camping World West Series, is a regional stock car racing series ow ...

champion.

Awards

Insolo was inducted in the

West Coast Stock Car Hall of Fame The West Coast Stock Car/Motorsports Hall Of Fame, originally the West Coast Stock Car Hall of Fame, is a Hall of Fame for people associated primarily with late-model stock car racing on the West Coast of the United States. Many NASCAR Grand Nation ...

in its first class (2002).

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Insolo, Jimmy 1943 births Living people NASCAR drivers People from Mission Hills, Santa Barbara County, California Sportspeople from Santa Barbara County, California Racing drivers from California USAC Stock Car drivers