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INDY 500 RECAPS

THE SHORT CHUTE EDITIONBy Pat Kennedy

AuthorHouse

Copyright © 2012 Pat Kennedy
All right reserved.
ISBN: 978-1-4685-7539-2

Chapter One

1911

Drivers had to be able to average 75 mph or better from a flying start over a distance of a quarter mile in order to be included in the starting field.

Qualifiers were lined up by the dates on which the entries were received. There were forty-six entrants total with the first entrant on the pole.

Lewis Strang was on the pole.

Cars were lined up in rows of five. There were forty starters. The pace car and four cars constituted row 1. The ninth row consisted of a single car; all other rows had five cars.

Carl Fisher, a partner in the track ownership, drove the Stoddard-Dayton pace car.

A large crowd of approximately 80,000 attended the first 500.

Johnny Aitken led the first lap of the inaugural Indianapolis 500, or the "International 500-Mile Sweepstakes," as it was referred to through 1980.

Prize money was awarded to only the top ten finishers, with $10,000 to the winner (plus accessory prizes, for a total of $14,250), and $500 for tenth place. The total purse was $30,150.

David Bruce-Brown led for most of the first half of the race. He led a total of eighty-one laps.

Ray Harroun ran a consistently paced race in his Marmon Wasp at approximately 75 mph to minimize tire wear. Cyrus Patschke relieved Harroun near mid-race and drove for about 35 laps. Ray Harroun led 88 laps total, including laps 182-200, for the victory. He made four stops and changed three right rear tires.

Harroun drove the only single-seater in the race, with the aid of what is believed to be the first rearview mirror on an automobile. All other cars had riding mechanics.

Ralph Mulford, driving a Lozier, ran a charging race, resulting in a greater number of tire changes, fourteen versus four for Harroun. He finished second.

The race took six hours and forty-two minutes to complete, a 74.6 mph average for Harroun.

Arthur Newby, a partner in the track ownership, was president of the National Motor Vehicle Company and had three cars compete in the race.

Eddie Rickenbacker drove relief for Lee Frayer, who finished thirteenth.

1912

Riding mechanics became mandatory and would remain so through 1922.

There were twenty-nine entries, and twenty-four cars qualified for the race. Qualifying required greater than a 75 mph average for a full lap. Cars once again started by entry order received. Gil Anderson started on the pole in a Stutz.

This was the first 500 for future track owner Eddie Rickenbacker as a primary driver. He started thirteenth and finished twenty-first. Teddy Tetzlaff led the first two laps, then Ralph De Palma led from lap three to lap 198, when a connecting rod broke on his Mercedes. He and his riding mechanic, Rupert Jeffkins, unsuccessfully attempted to push the car to the finish.

Joe Dawson—whose pit manager was fellow driver Johnny Aitken—made up a deficit of over five laps and went on to win in his National at an average speed of 78.7 mph. Don Herr relieved him for laps 108–144. Teddy Tetzlaff finished second.

The total purse was increased to $50,000, with $20,000 going to the winner.

Dawson was 22 years, 323 days old, and would remain the youngest 500 winner in history until 1952, when Troy Ruttman won at 22 years, 86 days old.

Ralph Mulford finished tenth in 8 hours and 53 minutes, after several lengthy stops, including a dinner break. Tenth was the last position for which prize money was awarded. Mulford won $1,200.

1913

From the outset, the Speedway management had intended for the race to be an international event. A few teams accepted the invitation in 1913, including the Peugeot team from France.

The starting order was determined by a blind draw, with twenty-seven starters. A starting field consisting of four cars in each row, instead of five, was implemented for the first time.

Caleb Bragg started on the pole in a Mercer.

Johnny Aitken was pit manager and race strategist for first-year driver Jules Goux in a Peugeot.

Goux led a total of 138 laps, including from lap 136 to the checker. He won by thirteen minutes and eight seconds—a record that still stands as the greatest margin of victory. His speed average was 75.9 mph.

Spencer Wishart finished second and Charlie Merz finished third, though his car was on fire as he crossed the finish line.

Goux supposedly refreshed himself with a little champagne during several pit stops. He was the first winner to go the distance without a relief driver.

1914

Thirty cars competed in the 500.

The starting field was determined by a blind draw that resulted in six lead changes between five drivers in the opening thirteen laps.

Arthur Duray led 77 of the first 115 laps in his Peugeot.

Jean Chassagne, in a Sunbeam, started on the pole and finished twenty-ninth, the second one out.

René Thomas led a total of 102 laps and led from lap 116 to the checker in his first 500, driving a French Delage. Thomas set a new race record of 82.5 mph.

The first four finishers were swept by French entries, with second and fourth going to Arthur Duray and Jules Goux in Peugeots and first and third going to Thomas and Albert Guyot in Delages.

Barney Oldfield finished fifth in a Stutz, the top-finishing American team.

Joe Dawson was involved in an accident on lap forty-five that resulted in his retirement from racing.

1915

A rule was adopted that allowed only three cars per make to compete. Several Peugeots and Sunbeams were eliminated because of there already being three of each.

A qualifying procedure of lining the cars up by speed was implemented, with the fastest starting on the pole.

There were only twenty-four starters for the race.

Howdy Wilcox won the pole at 98.9 mph, with Ralph De Palma starting second at 98.6 mph.

The field of cars started four abreast.

The race was postponed from Saturday, May 29 to Monday, May 31 because of rain.

Ralph De Palma led for 132 laps total, but with three laps remaining, his connecting rod broke. This time he was able to nurse his Mercedes for the final three laps, the victory avenging the bitter defeat of 1912. His average speed was a record 89.8 mph.

At one point in the race, Dario Resta led by more than a lap over De Palma. Resta experienced a blown tire and steering problems later in the race but soldiered his French Peugot to a second-place finish.

Johnny Aitken came out of retirement and drove relief for Gil Anderson, who finished in third place. Earl Cooper placed fourth.

Following the 1915 race T.E. "Pop" Myers was made general manager of the track.

1916

Single-lap qualifications were used and cars were lined up by speed. For the first time, cars were also lined up by day, with first day ahead of second day, second day ahead of third day, etc.

Twenty-one cars started, the lowest number in 500 history. Seven cars were owned by track management under the banner of the Indianapolis Speedway Team Company and the Prest-O-Lite Racing Team.

The race was scheduled for 300 miles, mainly because of wartime efforts of conservation. As a result of the shorter distance, the race was moved from the normal ten a.m. start time to one p.m.

Defending champion Ralph De Palma did not defend his title because he was not successful in getting the Speedway to pay him appearance money.

Johnny Aitken won the pole with a speed of 96.7 mph.

Dario Resta led from lap eighteen to the finish (120 laps) in his Peugeot and collected $12,000 for the win. Resta averaged 84.0 mph. Wilbur D'Alene finished second in a Duesenberg.

A second event was run on September 9, 1916. The Harvest Day Classic included races of 25 miles, 50 miles and 100 miles. Each race was won by Johnny Aitken.

1917

No race scheduled—United States in World War I.

1918

No race scheduled—United States in World War I.

1919

The winner from 1914, René Thomas, and his riding mechanic returned for the first time in five years. Thomas won the pole at a record 104.7 mph and finished eleventh. Howdy Wilcox started second and was actually the first driver to qualify at over 100 mph (100.01).

Arthur Thurman, an attorney from Washington, DC, became the first driver to lose his life in a 500. Three individuals were fatally injured in the race and two were critically injured.

Thirty-three cars started the race.

Ralph De Palma led 93 of the first 102 laps, but eventually finished sixth in his Packard. Howdy Wilcox, from Crawfordsville, Indiana, led from lap 103–200. Wilcox averaged 88.0 mph to win the race in his Speedway-owned Peugeot.

Wilcox won $20,000 of the $55,275 purse.

Eddie Hearne finished second in a Durant Special, and Jules Goux finished third.

Louis Chevrolet's car threw a wheel toward the end of the race. It hit a scoring cable that snapped around and cut the neck of driver Elmer Shannon. Shannon was relieved and his car went on to finish twelfth.

Accidents took the lives of drivers Arthur Thurman and Louis LeCocq and riding mechanic Robert Bandini

1920

Four-lap qualification runs were required for the first time. More than one car was permitted to qualify at the same time.

The pole was won by Ralph De Palma at 99.15 mph.

Twenty-three cars started the race.

Joe Boyer led most of the first half of the race.

De Palma led from lap 113 to 186, and was ahead of Gaston Chevrolet by over two laps when his French Ballot slowed and stopped on the north end of the track. He thought he was out of fuel, but instead was experiencing magneto problems. He was able to repair his car and salvaged fifth place. Peter De Paolo, his riding mechanic, was the son of De Palma's sister. De Palma led a total of 79 laps.

Gaston Chevrolet, in a Monroe Special, unlapped himself and went on to victory at an average of 88.6 mph. He went the distance with only two pit stops and no tire changes.

René Thomas finished second and Tommy Milton third, with rookie Jimmy Murphy posting a fourth place finish.

Roscoe Sarles crashed into the northeast wall on lap 59, and then later, while relieving Bennett Hill, did the same thing in the same turn on lap 115.

Joe Boyer led ninety-three laps, De Palma, seventy-nine laps, and Gaston Chevrolet led the final fourteen laps for the win.

Lap prize money was paid for the first time to the leader of each lap at the rate of $100 per lap.

On Thanksgiving Day of 1920, Gaston Chevrolet lost his life in a racing accident at a track in Beverly Hills, California. He was the first 500 winner to lose his life in a racing accident.

1921

Ralph De Palma won the pole for the second year in a row, driving a Ballot with a speed of 100.75 mph.

On May 27, Frank Wheeler died. He was one of the founding fathers of the Speedway, but no longer a partner at the time of his death.

After five abreast starts in 1911 and 1912, and four abreast starts up through 1920, the rule of three cars per row was implemented and has remained in place ever since.

Twenty-three cars started the race.

Ralph De Palma led 108 of the first 110 laps before a broken connecting rod eventually ended his race. This brought De Palma's laps led count to 612 total laps. He would remain the all-time lap leader until 1987, when Al Unser, Sr., eclipsed his record.

Once De Palma dropped out, Tommy Milton led the rest of the way. Milton had qualified twentieth of twenty-three starters in his Frontenac. Milton averaged 89.6 mph.

Roscoe Sarles finished second, and Percy Ford third.

Tommy Milton is believed to have had vision in only one eye.

1922

There were twenty-seven cars in the race.

Jimmy Murphy drove a Duesenberg chassis with a Miller engine. He won the pole at 100.5 mph and became the first winner to start from the pole.

Murphy led 153 of the 200 laps for a two-lap win. He averaged 94.5 mph, which broke Ralph De Palma's record from 1915.

Harry Hartz finished second after being a riding mechanic for Eddie Hearne in the previous three 500s. Hearne finished in third place.

Duesenberg products also finished second, fourth, fifth, sixth, seventh, eighth, and tenth, thus occupying eight of the first ten places.

1923

Riding mechanics were no longer mandatory and would not become mandatory again until 1930.

Superchargers were used for the first time.

Tommy Milton, who won the pole at a record of 108.170 mph, went on to win in an HCS Special. He averaged 90.9 mph to become the first two-time winner and the second to win from the pole.

The two Harry Stutz entries, called HCS Specials (for his initials), were actually Millers.

This was the most competitive race to date, with twenty-eight lead changes, the prior record being twelve in 1922.

Pinched feet and blistered hands caused Milton to call for relief from Howdy Wilcox for laps 103-151. Milton led thirteen times for 128 laps.

Wilcox, while relieving Milton, led one time for forty-one laps. Wilcox also led in his original car five times for ten laps.

Harry Hartz finished second, followed by Jimmy Murphy, Eddie Hearne, and L.L. Corum.

On June 11, 1923, Carl Fisher stepped down and named Jim Allison president of the track.

1924

Jimmy Murphy won the pole at 108.0 mph.

Only twenty-two cars started.

For the second consecutive year, a driver was able to lead the race in two different cars. In 1924, it was Joe Boyer, and in 1923, Howdy Wilcox. Boyer led the first lap, but soon experienced supercharger problems in his Duesenberg.

Just past the midpoint of the race, the Duesenberg brothers decided to replace Lora Corum with Joe Boyer while Corum was running fourth, about two and a half minutes behind the leader. It seemed that Corum was unable to keep pace with Earl Cooper and Jimmy Murphy, who dominated the first half.

Boyer led the last 24 laps after Earl Cooper had tire trouble, although Cooper was able to finish second. Cooper led for a total of 119 laps. Because L.L. Corum started the race and Joe Boyer finished, they were declared co-winners. They averaged a record of 98.2 mph. Corum actually completed 110 laps in the winning car before being replaced by Boyer.

Boyer had the unique distinction of leading the first lap and the last lap-in different cars.

Last-place finisher Ernie Ansterburg received $5.25, completing just one lap. This was the smallest amount of prize money ever paid.

Stirling Moss's father, Alfred Moss, drove in the 1924 race and finished sixteenth.

In 1924, three former winners were fatally injured within two weeks of each other: Joe Boyer at Altoona, Pennsylvania; Dario Resta in England; and Jimmy Murphy at Syracuse, New York.

1925

Leon Duray sat on the pole at a new record of 113.2 mph. Earl Cooper was the first driver to eclipse the 110 mph barrier. He eventually started fourth.

Twenty-two cars started the race.

Peter De Paolo's Duesenberg led for 115 laps. Because his hands were badly blistered, Norm Batten stepped in to relieve him for about thirty-five minutes (22 laps),while his hands received attention.

When Dave Lewis, who was leading, stopped for relief on the 173rd lap, De Paolo had clear sailing to the finish. De Paolo was the first driver to average over 100 mph (101.1 mph).

Dave Lewis and relief driver Bennett Hill finished second in the first front-wheel-drive car to compete in the 500. They led a total of fifty laps.

Peter De Paolo became the only person to lead the race both as a riding mechanic (with Ralph De Palma) and as a driver.

The pagoda was burned to the ground the day after the 1925 race to make way for a new pagoda, which was placed further back from the track's edge.

1926

Frank Lockhart, born in Dayton, Ohio, was a good dirt track racer in California. The original plan was for Lockhart to serve as a relief driver for Bennett Hill, but a few days before qualifications, driver/ owner Peter Kreis was hospitalized with pneumonia. Lockhart drove Kreis' rear-wheel-drive Miller for his first 500 start.

Earl Cooper won the pole at 111.7 mph.

Lockhart, who had a lap of 115 mph on one of his two incomplete attempts, qualified on his third attempt and started twentieth in the twenty-eight-car field.

Dave Lewis, who finished second in 1925, led most of the first 60 laps. Frank Lockhart took over for nearly the rest of the race, which was flagged for rain at 160 laps. Lockhart was leading Harry Hartz by two laps when the race was called.

Hartz was in contention for the win until experiencing problems on his last pit stop.

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Excerpted from INDY 500 RECAPSby Pat Kennedy Copyright © 2012 by Pat Kennedy. Excerpted by permission of AuthorHouse. All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
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