Author Topic: No INDY 500  (Read 6906 times)

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Offline DRW

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No INDY 500
« on: May 24, 2020, 01:47:31 PM »
I Know its Not Bonneville, But,  For 50 years in a row, Ive woke up this morning to the excitement of
THE INDY 500
Nope, , Not this Memorial Weekend Sunday , , Its just weird, Anyone else feel this way ?
Sucks ?
Doesnt Mean That Much To me, To Mean That Much To You !

Offline bob

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Re: No INDY 500
« Reply #1 on: May 24, 2020, 02:00:16 PM »
yep , that was a big deal in our house  starting when we were kids in the 50s , my dad and myself and big brother , indy Sunday.   the girls were getting the B B Q  ready for later in the day.

Offline Seldom Seen Slim

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Re: No INDY 500
« Reply #2 on: May 24, 2020, 02:03:30 PM »
Yeah, but not really.  Moving the race from the 30th (1974 was the first time they did it) kinda took some of the glamour out of seeing it, and TV broadcasts of the race didn't do all that much for me.  Here's why:  On the 30th of May, 1961, my dad and I (13 years old at  the time) were sitting in the fifth row about 200 yards down the track from the finish line at Indy.  Mel Torme had sung "Back Home Again in Indiana", the cars were started and went around on the parade lap and then the pace car pulled off and 32 Offys and Jack Brabham in the Lotus roared past us at full song.  They sprayed a mean fog of methanol exhaust on Dad and me...

...And I still get teared up when I think of the visceral thrill of that moment.  Any further questions about how I got hooked on racing?
Jon E. Wennerberg
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Offline floydjer

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Re: No INDY 500
« Reply #3 on: May 24, 2020, 02:45:41 PM »
My associate Robert "Buck" Boudeman (now deceased) was gifted Harry Miller's forever reserved seat passes by Harry's daughter. I am certain he would have a thought or two on the subject. It does seem odd.
I`d never advocate drugs,alcohol,violence or insanity to anyone...But they work for me.

Offline DRW

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Re: No INDY 500
« Reply #4 on: May 24, 2020, 03:30:56 PM »
SS Slim, Same here, In Calif we were lucky, They built a copy of INDY in Ontario , Just 20
min away from us, My Dad said, we finally get to see Indy cars in person, until then I was a
Lions & Irwindale Drag Strip kid , , Ill never forget walking up & up & up,And then into a Superspeedway
WOW, Dad said Its only Friday but at least we can see the cars run, Haha, We bought  tickets for Sundays race before we left, Wow, The Pagentry and feel of a 500 Race day, In Ontario, Prob about half the excitemant
of Indy, But still Damn good ! We went back every year, Now I dont know what I miss more ?
Indy Or Dad   
Doesnt Mean That Much To me, To Mean That Much To You !

Offline floydjer

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Re: No INDY 500
« Reply #5 on: May 24, 2020, 03:47:56 PM »
Speaking of Buck...Here he is rolling out for a trip up Charles' driveway at Goodwood. Car look familiar Jon? The blonde gal is Constance Stanley-Boudeman...F.A.Stanley's grand daughter.
I`d never advocate drugs,alcohol,violence or insanity to anyone...But they work for me.

Offline Seldom Seen Slim

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Re: No INDY 500
« Reply #6 on: May 24, 2020, 07:28:43 PM »
Heck yes that car looks familiar.  I saw one of them - blue, it was - at WalMart just last week.  And now you show me a photo of one.  WoW!  Thanks.
Jon E. Wennerberg
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Offline trimmers

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Re: No INDY 500
« Reply #7 on: May 24, 2020, 08:57:44 PM »
Slim:  That looks like a Kurtis-Novi.  Do people regularly drive them to Wal-Mart in the UP to do their shopping?

Jeff in Boise   
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USFRA 130 MPH Club 09/18/2008 136.757
USFRA 150 MPH Club 09/17/2009 152.162
Bonneville 200 MPH Club 09/15/2019 218.600
Best Run: 253.080 MPH 09/14/2019 #6556

Offline Paulin adelaide

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Re: No INDY 500
« Reply #8 on: May 24, 2020, 11:32:44 PM »
Here in Australia thinking of Indy .   About 6 months ago my son sent me a Pic  and says where am i . I new straight away that it was Indy .  He is a Golf Caddy and was there for a tournament ,they start on the holes in the infield and then move to outside for the rest of the course .

Offline TD

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Re: No INDY 500
« Reply #9 on: May 25, 2020, 10:06:22 AM »
Speaking of Buck...Here he is rolling out for a trip up Charles' driveway at Goodwood. Car look familiar Jon? The blonde gal is Constance Stanley-Boudeman...F.A.Stanley's grand daughter.

Looks like a Kurtis Kraft - Novi at the 1953 race if Web Wisdom is to be believed (see https://public.fotki.com/thenewcityfamily/model-car-projects-/offenhauser-indy-ca/4644005570-90e6d5de66.html).

I have watched the race pretty much every year since I was a little kid.  Realized an ambition to actually go in 1993, courtesy of a good friend living in Indiana.  We were invited to park on a (town of) Speedway neighborhood lawn ($20), arrived early at around 8, and watched the place fill up.  The motorized bar stools / coolers (guarded by cops!) parked under the stands were works of art.  The race was great (Fittipaldi over Luyendyk, Mansell, Boesel, and Mario after a late restart). The entire experience was incredible.

IMO every American should attend at least once!  :cheers:

Offline Seldom Seen Slim

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Re: No INDY 500
« Reply #10 on: May 25, 2020, 10:51:02 AM »
I do remember the Novi cars.  Dad got hired as Premier Industrial's midwest salers manager in the early 60s, and since Premier supplied high-zoot fasteners to the racers from a garage in the infield -- well, sure enough, Dad got us pit passes for one day of the time trials.  And that's where I was lucky enough to see...

...A Novi was rolled out of the garage and into the sunshine.  We and a bunch of others gathered around as Andy Granatelli "conducted" the team in starting, warming, and getting set for some laps.  Start the engine (cripes! LOUD!!!), idle for a moment or two, and then pour in a couple of cans of STP.  Shut it off, put in "warm up" plugs (the first set was the "cold start" set), and then start and run for a couple of minutes to get some heat into the system.  Then shut it off and Andy said:  "Okay, track plugs" and the crew got busy again.

If memory serves correctly -- there were 16 sparking plugs in the V-8.  And the cold start plugs and the warm up plugs that they just ran to get this far?  Into the garbage can they went.  I couldn't frickin' believe it.  They threw away 32 spark plugs, each of which had been used less than 5 minutes?  OMG, this racing must be expensive!!!

Yes, Andy was smoking a cigar the whole time.  And the Novi itself?  Did I say LOUD?

During the race you'd see the pack coming out of turn 4 and roaring WFO down the straight.  I could close my eyes and pick out the Novi easily by the sound.  It stood out above all the roars.


I gotta stop.  I could go on - this is great.  Thanks.
Jon E. Wennerberg
 a/k/a Seldom Seen Slim
 Skandia, Michigan
 (that's way up north)
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Owner of landracing.com

Offline floydjer

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Re: No INDY 500
« Reply #11 on: May 25, 2020, 11:55:43 AM »
Loud indeed..The looks on the faces of the proper ladies lining the podium at Meadowbrook when Buck rolled by in his NOVI were only out -done by the looks of abject terror when Al  Bergler lit up The Motown Shaker fuel funny car moments later. Priceless memory.
I`d never advocate drugs,alcohol,violence or insanity to anyone...But they work for me.

Offline WOODY@DDLLC

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Re: No INDY 500
« Reply #12 on: May 25, 2020, 12:27:26 PM »
Me thinks this deserves a closer look: https://www.dropbox.com/sh/qngjdebymbbpsa1/AABp9FPeEu3ORB1GkTPxxnhca?dl=0
Local garage did some work on the beast and I got to touch it: https://zakiras.com/
All models are wrong, but some are useful! G.E. Box (1967) www.designdreams.biz

Offline floydjer

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Re: No INDY 500
« Reply #13 on: May 25, 2020, 12:50:14 PM »
 Zakiras'  is a fun place for big kids to hang out. A guy can o.d. on Millers.
I`d never advocate drugs,alcohol,violence or insanity to anyone...But they work for me.

Offline Stan Back

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Re: No INDY 500
« Reply #14 on: May 25, 2020, 01:52:23 PM »
Slim ?

I'd guess that competitors didn't pay for spark plugs in those days.  The manufacturers  wanted their brand to be the winner and they spent money advertising it.  They sold a lot more to race fans and general public with cars that sometimes got them every 10,000 miles.  Now 100,000.

I put a new set in my roadster every Saturday morning.  Seems I probably didn't tune the Enderle injectors right (or maybe right was only at 7:13 P.M. with my set-up.

Stan
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