July 13, 2007
By Allen Madding

Allen Madding

James Ronald “Bunkie” Blackburn was born April 22, 1936. His father owned and operated a dirt track in his hometown of Fayetteville, North Carolina, so he grew up involved in racing. He began competing on the dirt tracks of Middle Tennessee and then moved to asphalt short tracks including the old Nashville Fairgrounds. At the age of 24, Blackburn entered his first NASCAR Grand National Division event competing in the 200-lap event at the half-mile dirt Southern States Fairgrounds in Charlotte, North Carolina in 1960 driving the Spook Crawford owned No. 64 Ford. A broken A-arm put him out of the event after only eight laps. In the Firecracker 250, Blackburn finished fifth. In 20 starts during his rookie season, Blackburn recorded one top-5 and four top-10 finishes.

In 1961, Blackburn campaigned Wildcat Williams No. 9 Ford in five NASCAR Grand National Division events. But, Blackburn was plagued with mechanical failures in four outings and a crash in the other.

Blackburn was the journeyman driver in 1962 driving the Petty Enterprises No. 41 and No. 42 Plymouth recording an eighth-place finish in the Southeastern 500 at Bristol. He drove Wildcat Williams No. 9 in the Atlanta500 and then Worth McMillion’s No. 83 Pontiac recording a fourth-place finish in the National 400 at Charlotte. In ten starts for the year, he logged four top-5s and 14 top-10s.

Blackburn drove Jim Stephen’s No. 10 Pontiac in the 1963 Daytona 500 qualifying 20th but fell out of the event with a water pump failure. He wheeled Fred Clark’s No. 30 Chevrolet at Charlotte, Fred Harb’s No. 12 Pontiac at Atlanta, Robert Smith’s No. 75 Pontiac at Bristol and Greenville-Pickens, South Carolina, and Paul Clayton’s No. 70 Pontiac in the Southern 500 at Darlington recording a 13th place finish.

Blackburn opened the 1964 NASCAR Grand National Division season behind the wheel of Roscoe Sander’s No. 71 Plymouth in the Daytona 500. He then settled behind the wheel of Casper Hensley’s No. 42 and 82 Pontiac for 12 events recording a tenth place finish in the Firecracker 400 at Daytona and in the National 400 at Charlotte, a ninth-place finish in the Mountaineer 500 at West Virginia International Speedway in Huntington, West Virginia, and a fourth-place finish in the Moyock 300 at the .333-mile paved Dog Track Speedway in Moyock, North Carolina.

Blackburn was behind the wheel of Casper Hensley’s No. 82 Pontiac for the 1965 Daytona 500, Sam Fletcher’s No. 14 Plymouth in the Rebel 300 at Darlington and in the World 600 at Charlotte, Ray Fox’s No. 33 Chevrolet in the Firecracker 400 at Daytona and in the Southern 500 at Darlington. But in five starts, Blackburn failed to complete an event suffering through mechanical failures and crashes.

Mechanical woes continued in 1966, as Blackburn drove Bob Rosenthal’s No. 22 in the Daytona 500, Jim Bangsberry’s No. 50 Chevrolet at Rockingham, and Gene Black’s No. 74 Ford in Atlanta. His luck turned around at Darlington when he drove Ray Fox’s No. 3 Dodge to a fourth-place finish in the Rebel 400. The mechanical failures resumed while driving J. H. Crawford’s No. 39 Chevrolet in the Firecracker 400 at Daytona and in the Dixie 400 at Atlanta. Returning to Darlington, Blackburn drove the No. 20 Mercury to a 27th place finish in the Southern 500.

Blackburn fell absent from NASCAR Grand National Division competition after the 1966 season. He competed in the NASCAR Late Model Sportsman Division in 1968 winning the season opening Permatex 300 at Daytona from the pole.

He returned for one final race in the NASCAR Grand National Division in 1970 to wheel Tom Pistone’s No. 59 Ford in the Carolina 500 at Rockingham, North Carolina. Despite qualifying tenth, a crash ended his day early relegating him to a 37th place finish. He then retired from racing after an injury, taking a job with General Electric in Columbia, South Carolina where we labored for 20 years before retiring.

James Ronald “Bunkie” Blackburn died at the age of 69 on Tuesday, February 28, 2006 at Maury Regional Hospital.

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