Ken Spikes

Kenneth "Ken" L. Spikes
Kenneth "Ken" L. Spikes
Born	February 2, 1935; Cordele, Georgia, United States
Died	November 19, 2009 (aged 74); Albany, Georgia, United States
NASCAR Cup Series career
	16 races run over 3 years
Best finish	40th – 1964
First race	1964 Atlanta 500 (Atlanta)
Last race	1970 Talladega 500 (Talladega)

Kenneth "Ken" L. Spikes (born February 2, 1935, in Cordele, Georgia - died November 16, 2009, in Albany, Georgia) was a driver for the NASCAR Grand National Series who drove from 1964 to 1970. Before he was in NASCAR, Spikes served in the United States Air Force.^[1] During his spare time, Spikes would devote his time to operating a company specializing in heavy equipment.^[1]

Career

Spikes officially drove in 1755 laps of professional stock car racing action; which is the equivalent of 2,695.3 miles (4,337.7 km).^[2] The primary manufacturers for this driver were Chevrolet, Pontiac, and Dodge.^[3]^[4] While he enjoyed an average start of 31st place; racing skills developed on the track allowed him to improve on his unimpressive starts with an average finish of 26th place.^[2]^[4] Spikes would earn a grand total of $8,235 from his entire NASCAR driving career ($64,609.82 when adjusted for inflation).^[2]^[4] He would fail to qualify for one race only: the 1967 National 500 set in prestigious Charlotte Motor Speedway (Concord, North Carolina).^[5]

After retiring from racing, he devoted his life to religion and became a minister. As a faithful church-goer at the Listonia Christian Mission, Spikes knew that he would be attracted to the ministry and became Reverend Ken Spikes.^[1] He died at Phoebe Putney Memorial Hospital in Albany, Georgia; leaving behind his wife Miriam (née Dean) along with four daughters, six grandchildren, and five great-grandchildren.^[1]