Sure, they still have a 500 mile race on Memorial Day Weekend, but do you remember how GREAT it once was? What do you have for memorabilia, stories, spare parts,anyone lucky enough to have a car or ever wrench on one? This is a page from the Demember 1948 SCTA newsletter. Ten grand would get you TWO Miller-Ford Indy cars from Andy Granatelli.
I too liked the earlier era of the Indy 500 but it is like everything else-Times change and so do race cars. This pic is from the 1992 race when they had a parade of 11 old roadsters. The car is Elmer George's Sarkes Tarzian Spl out of Terre Haute and in this case the driver was Duke Nalon. Nalon had never driven an Offy powered roadster, just the Novis and he stalled it at his first attempt to get rolling. That is me on the left side of the car with my then boss on the right. THis is the same car that Mel Kenyon crashed at Langhorne where he was badly burned. In fact the upholstery in the car is the original stuff and shows signs of the fire around the left side of the cockpit. Roo
Hey, Yeah mean before Roger Penske dragged "Big Money" inta the mix? For a great read on the subject try Smokey Yunick's book "Smokey Li'l Skinny ruel Book & Eatin' An Elephant- Indy Racing And Inventions"Aka Best Damn Garage In Town The World According to Smokey. Swankey Devils C.C.
I saw 13 straight 500's starting in 1958 and then 2 or 3 more later. But truthfully, I lost alot of interest when the front engine cars disappeared. When it comes to Indy cars, I'm a Roadster guy. Man do I miss the sound of Novis! There was nothing like them.
Indy was the "Great American Race". Kinda sad now. How about when Lil Jon Buttera built a car and went with a stock block chevy! He didn't quailify if I remember but it was way cool!
I finally got there in the early 80s - way too late for the Novis, etc, but still a rush (got to spend a week hanging with the GM techs, as they debuted the new Fiero as the pace car). My pal Bob (Lil Axle) Stewart talks about the time he went there (mid 60s) with Bruce Crower and Co, with a stock block Chevy homebuilt, towed behind a pickup on an open trailer. They had to run it at every track they came across, to earn gas money for the trip out and back. Can't remember if they made the show, but they sure had fun on the road...
It also used to be a can't-miss party locally, that attracted thousands of non-race fans. They clamped down in the name of family friendiness and now don't have those folks around to prop the event up in hard times. The brickyard 400 attracts a much larger crowd.
I went to about 15 "Indies" in a row starting in 1985. It truly was the "Greatest spectacle in racing." The infield "snake pit" was an event in itself. Who can forget Rick Mears spinning a 360 as a passing maneuver to win the race? Maybe it's not the SAME as the old days but I challenge ANY OF YOU to actually attend the event and not get a tear or at least goose bumps during pre-race or when they call for "Ladies and Gentlemen, start your engines!"
If any of you like the sights and sounds of the old Indy cars, attend the Miller Meet in Milwaukee in July. They dont race, but they step on it enough to let you know they have some beans. Everything from early teens up to the latest roadsters show up.
Forgot to mention.... For all you non locals that are curious about attending but never have, I'll let you in on the best value in motorsports. $25 general admission to the 500. That's right, walk up on race day and get in for less than the cost of parking. Bring your own camp chair and sit on the infield grass spectator mounds. About 20 degrees cooler than the stands and 3x more comfortable. Factor in all the outside food and drink you can carry, and it's something every american can afford, and needs to do once.
I had to get this because that is the year of the newspapers in my roadster. Only one I have and can afford. I paid 15 bucks for this...he wanted 20. I have an ashtray from the 50s, I'd guess, somewhere. One of the few things I could afford the year I bought it. Cheap by todays standards. I loved the Firestone tire ads in the magazines from the 60s with pictures of every Indy winner up to that date.
I used to work in a shop in Noblesville and made an oil tank once for Raul Boysel's (spelling?) Indy car. I liked it when you could spell the names of the drivers... For a while we had a roadster in the shop that was restored, but they wouldn't let it in the museum. The story goes that in the early fifties the track's owner's wife was caught by him having an affair with the builder of this car. She either killed or had her husband killed and it was swept under the rug. She's the one that told the drivers to start their engines up until a few years ago when she was just too old. I was told that story by more than a few old-timers from the speedway... However, your mileage may vary.....
when i was a kid, i loved the 500. it was amazing to listen to chris eckonomaki go into dtail about all the different chassis and engine combinations. my favorite car is still the 1967 granitelli stp turbine car driven by parnelli jones. i also have a soft spot for the novi cars, and i always pulled for lloyd ruby. these days it's not about creativity or sheer drive to win, it is all about money
My dad was never a racing fan,but would sit and watch the 500 with me cause he knew how much it meant to me. I saw some of the coverage today...on ESPN! Used to be a big deal on channel 7. It will never be the same. Just like NASCAR,with the top ten crap for the championship! Neither one will be as exciting as Ascot on a saturday night!
I still have a dream to race indy before I die. Don't care if it's the 500, the 400, or just the drag strip. I gotta get in a car on the ole brickyard and put the hammer down. I've watched almost every race since 77, never been to anything but the qualifying, but I love that race. Me, my dad, and my granddad, would watch it on TV almost every single year. Good times. Don't care bout the politics, or the money, but something about a car that does over 200mph, for that many hours, just kicks major ass. I love it. Ta heck with that nascar big money modern popular crud. I loved indy as a kid, and I still do.
I've always wanted to go to Indy as one of my life ambitions along with Bonneville. I remember when Indy was the greatest race. True American red, white and blue with a few European types thrown in. Nascar was just a thought on Saturdays and if you were luckly you might see the Daytona 500 with Kirk Goudey(sp) calling the race or the Firecracker 400 on the 4th of July with the other announcer of the day (can't remember his name, round face with glasses). In other words, Nascar wasn't anywhere near as popular as it is today. However, everyone watched the Indy and everyone had a favorite driver and/or car and dreamed of going just one...no maybe three laps in an Indy car. That would have been the ultimate dream come true for anyone associated with cars or racing back in the 60's. Today, it's a completely different event. Doesn't have the same feel that it used to. The Monday morning after the race no one will know the name of the winner. Anyway, yeah I remember the Indy 500.
I found this photo in an antique shop years ago. A.J. Foyt in the 1964 Sheraton Thompson Special, in which he won the race. The inscription reads: "Best wishes from one Champion fan to another" The car ran Champion Spark Plugs!
The Jalopy Journal
