{"id":519816,"date":"2026-03-07T06:29:11","date_gmt":"2026-03-07T06:29:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/519816\/"},"modified":"2026-03-07T06:29:11","modified_gmt":"2026-03-07T06:29:11","slug":"another-nascar-driver-has-died-bill-rafter-was-96","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/519816\/","title":{"rendered":"Another NASCAR Driver Has Died: Bill Rafter Was 96"},"content":{"rendered":"

One of stock car racing’s early trailblazers is gone. Bill Rafter, a driver from NASCAR’s very first season in 1949 and a legend on short tracks across the Northeast, has died at the age of 96<\/a>.<\/p>\n

#Buffalo<\/a> area racer Bill Rafter competed in 35 @NASCAR<\/a> Grand National races from ’49-’58, with 2 top-five finishes and 11 top-10s. The 2-time @LancasterMtplx<\/a> champion returned to racing in the early ’70s after suffering burns in a Late Model race at Perry, N.Y. pic.twitter.com\/mBVQkY3zr8<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 John A. Bisci Jr. (@JohnBisciJr) December 1, 2023<\/a><\/p>\n

Rafter competed in 33 races in the early days of what is now the NASCAR<\/a> Cup Series, recording 11 top-10 finishes during a time when the sport was still finding its footing. His best results included a third-place finish in Hamburg, New York in 1949 and a 10th-place showing at Watkins Glen in 1957.<\/p>\n

But numbers alone do not capture his legacy.<\/p>\n

Around Buffalo and across New York, Rafter became one of the most feared and respected short-track drivers of his era. He racked up dozens of wins at Buffalo’s Civic Stadium and claimed the track’s final championship in 1959.<\/p>\n

Those who raced against him say he could win in almost anything.<\/p>\n

“He was so talented,” fellow driver Bill Bitterman once said. “Late Models, Midgets, Modifieds. Anything he drove, he could win in.”<\/p>\n

Rafter’s toughness also became part of his legend.<\/p>\n

In 1964, he was struck by a rock that shattered his windshield during a race at Merrittville Speedway, fracturing his skull. Somehow, he still managed to finish the race and take the checkered flag before collapsing and being rushed to the hospital.<\/p>\n

Just eight days later, he returned and won again.<\/p>\n

Rafter eventually retired from racing in 1972 but remained involved in the sport for years, even working at Daytona International Speedway for more than a decade.<\/p>\n

For many longtime racing fans, he was one of the originals.\u00a0And one of the toughest competitors the sport ever saw.<\/p>\n