The first moment on our Snowball Derby countdown is perhaps the most popular moment in the event’s storied history as hometown hero Johanna Long (10) controversially spun out Landon Cassill (7) to win the trophy she had desired most since her childhood.
Snowball Derby Moment (2010): Johanna Long spins Landon Cassill to win Derby
With the Snowball Derby right around the corner, SB Nation will relive the most famous moments of the event, leading up to the race itself which takes place on Sunday, Dec. 8 this year.
Jared C. Tilton
Cassill had just broken into the Sprint Cup Series that season, competing in a part-time schedule in the Phoenix Racing No. 51 and was also looking for his first Derby victory in his third start. The final laps came down to Long, Cassill and Donnie Wilson and became one of the more buzzworthy moments in race history.
And another angle...
While Cassill had every right to be frustrated with Long, he took the high road and congratulated the Pensacola native in an exclusive interview with Speed 51. He rebounded from the accident to finish fourth as over half of the field failed to make it to the finish of the crash-filled race.
Three years later, Long remains proud of her accomplishment but wishes it had happened under cleaner circumstances.
“I was a little anxious, excited and I had fresh tires,” Long told SB Nation earlier this season. “And at that racetrack you can pick up the gas so much sooner with new tires, and he spun his off the corner. I hated doing it that way but I look back at it and I’m like, ‘I won the Snowball Derby but I really wish I wouldn’t have done it that way.’”
She’ll get another chance to do it without the controversy in 2013. Complete results of the 2010 race can be found below. The 45th Annual Snowball Derby is set for Sunday Dec. 8, 2013 with the green flag dropping at approximately 3 p.m. EST.
Videos courtesy of Speed51 and Brandon Taylor
2010 Snowball Derby Results :
- Johanna Long
- Donnie Wilson
- Scott Hantz
- Landon Cassill
- Dennis Schoenfeld
- Derrick Griffin
- Mason Mingus
- Travis Kittleson
- John Bolen
- Jimmy Garmon
- Bubba Pollard
- Mike Garvey
- David Stremme
- Casey Smith
- Dan Fredrickson
- Casey Roderick
- Chase Elliott
- Johnny VanDoorn
- Ross Kenseth
- Grant Enfinger
- Cale Gale
- Andy Loden
- Chris Davidson
- Jeff Fultz
- Josh Hamner
- Ryan Sieg
- David Ragan
- Augie Grill
- Jerry Artuso
- Dennis Prunty
- Clay Rogers
- Korey Ruble
- Brandon Carlson
- Ryan Lawler
- TJ Reaid
- Dave Mader III
- Eddie Mercer
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