Tag: John Lingle

The Greatest 33 Non-Winners: Final Grid- A Reader Request Post

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Editor’s Note: This is the first reader request; originally published May 9, 2017

What a fun project this turned out to be! It was fascinating seeing how much those who submitted grids both agreed and disagreed. Some drivers got just one mention, while others appeared on every ballot.  There was near unanimous placement for some drivers, and some drivers were near the front on some grids and near the back on others. The driver nearly everyone agreed should be on the pole is Michael Andretti (pictured above, from 1992).

I  noticed the rankings were along age lines. Older fans close to my age seemed to have near identical grids,  and younger fans as a group submitted similar lineups.  Many drivers from long ago in general fared better on the lists from the older group. I was surprised how well the current drivers stacked up against the racers of the past. Another interesting detail is that all 50 driver finalists had at least one mention. I didn’t expect that.

To rank the drivers, I assigned points to the drivers corresponding to their spot on each person’s grid. A driver on pole got 1 point, the last driver got 33. If a driver was listed on pole on five grids, his total was 5. The lowest total won the pole. If a driver did not appear on someone’s grid, he/she was given 34 points. To my shock, there were only two ties. I resolved placement by averaged each driver’s highest and lowest rank of all the grades, with the lowest average getting the higher spot. One of the ties was for 32nd and 33rd. It was just like qualifying for the 1963 500.

The front row- Michael Andretti, Rex Mays, and Ted Horn, is strong. These drivers were in the top 10 on everyone’s grid. Andretti led 431 laps, the most by any non-winning driver. he started on the front row three times and had 5 top 5 finishes.  Rex Mays, in the middle of the front row is the only other driver to lead more than 200 laps and not win. Mays was on the pole four times. Ted Horn, on the outside of the front row, finished in the top five 9 times in 10 starts.

So here they are, the Greatest 33 Non-Winners of the Indianapolis 500:

Row 1

Michael Andretti

Rex Mays

Ted Horn

Row 2

Harry Hartz

Marco Andretti

Lloyd Ruby

Row 3

Gary Bettenhausen

Ralph Hepburn

Roberto Guerrero

Row 4

Scott Goodyear

Carlos Munoz

Robby Gordon

Row 5

Eddie Sachs

Tony Stewart

Jack McGrath

Row 6

Wally Dallenbach

Tomas Sheckter

Will Power

Row 7

Danica Patrick

Tony Bettenhausen

Joe Leonard

Row 8

Jimmy Snyder

Ed Carpenter

Danny Ongais

Row 9

Pancho Carter

Mel Kenyon

Kevin Cogan

Row 10

Vitor Meira

Russ Snowberger

Paul Russo

Row 11

Tom Alley

Johnny Thomson

George Snider

it’s kind of fitting that Snider is last on the grid. his trademark was jumping into a car on Bump Day and getting into the field starting near the back. Thanks to everyone who submitted a grid. I really enjoyed reading your thoughts and reasoning as to how yo put your grids together.

I will be back tomorrow with some 500 news and a report on my visit to the A. J. Foyt exhibit at the Speedway Museum. The cars were great to see, but the memorabilia was even more amazing to me. Thursday I will have my Indianapolis Grand Prix preview with my normally inaccurate winner’s prediction.

 

 

 

 

 

True Racer- McLaren Movie Review

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Just one more lap before lunch. Bruce McLaren, always looking for more from himself and his car, wanted to try a different downforce level.. He left the pits but didn’t return that day in June 1970, ending a meteoric rise from champion driver to successful car builder. A view of the accident scene comes at the end of the documentary, McLaren, a film making sporadic appearances in the United States. I had the good fortune to see it Thursday night.

The film chronicles McLaren’s life in chronological order from his humble beginnings in New Zealand. Bruce knew he wanted to be a race car driver by the time he was 5 years old. When he was nine, he developed Perthes disease, a disease that causes the head of the femur to lose blood flow and die. As a result his left leg was shorter than his right one. McLaren was bedridden for nearly 2 years as doctors tried to strengthen the hip and lengthen his left  leg.  While the hip got stronger, his leg did not get longer. Mclaren walked with a permanent limp.

He went to Europe to drive F2 in 1958 and won his first Formula 1 race the following year, the U.S. GP at Sebring. At the time McLaren was the youngest F1 winner in history, a distinction he held for 44 years. He drove as a teammate to Jack Brabham for Cooper.  Brabham won the World Championship the following year and McLaren finished second.   Both drivers  left Cooper and eventually each built their own Formula 1 cars.

McLaren’s greatest success came in the Can Am series.  In 1969, McLaren-built cars won every race on the Can Am schedule. The three McLaren  cars swept the podium twice that year.  Dennnis Hulme and Mark Donohue were McLaren’s teammates that year.

The movie contains interviews with many racing greats including Mario Andretti, Dan Gurney, and Chris Amon. McLaren’s family also appears, lending a personal view of the man. We also hear from several engineers and mechanics, mainly Robin Heard, who came to work for McLaren after helping design the Concorde supersonic airplane.  Many of the airplane’s aerodynamic principles, and some of the same materials, were applied to the cars.

My favorite segments were the vintage racing footage. The race films contain shots of Graham Hill, James Hunt, Jack Brabham, and many other drivers of that era.  We see Le Mans in 1966, Monaco in 1958, Sebring in 1959, and Spa in 1968.  Several things in the films stood out. Grand prix races used to start 3 wide and both F1 and F2  raced at the same time just as sports cars race today. It was great to see the traditional Le Mans start again, with drivers sprinting across the track to their cars. How would that work today?

Several McLaren home movies brought a personal touch to McLaren’s life. He would send film of his European races home and the family and their friends gathered to watch. I also enjoyed the movies of Bruce with his wife and young daughter.

McLaren is one of the best documentaries I have seen on any subject. It is a new, important contribution to preserving racing history. I’m hoping the movie returns in general release. Had there been a second showing last night, I might have stayed for it.  Look for its return, and go see it.

The Greatest 33 Non-Winners: Final Grid

thepitwindow2 Comments

What a fun project this turned out to be! It was fascinating seeing how much those who submitted grids both agreed and disagreed. Some drivers got just one mention, while others appeared on every ballot.  There was near unanimous placement for some drivers, and some drivers were near the front on some grids and near the back on others. The driver nearly everyone agreed should be on the pole is Michael Andretti (pictured above, from 1992).

I  noticed the rankings were along age lines. Older fans close to my age seemed to have near identical grids,  and younger fans as a group submitted similar lineups.  Many drivers from long ago in general fared better on the lists from the older group. I was surprised how well the current drivers stacked up against the racers of the past. Another interesting detail is that all 50 driver finalists had at least one mention. I didn’t expect that.

To rank the drivers, I assigned points to the drivers corresponding to their spot on each person’s grid. A driver on pole got 1 point, the last driver got 33. If a driver was listed on pole on five grids, his total was 5. The lowest total won the pole. If a driver did not appear on someone’s grid, he/she was given 34 points. To my shock, there were only two ties. I resolved placement by averaged each driver’s highest and lowest rank of all the grades, with the lowest average getting the higher spot. One of the ties was for 32nd and 33rd. It was just like qualifying for the 1963 500.

The front row- Michael Andretti, Rex Mays, and Ted Horn, is strong. These drivers were in the top 10 on everyone’s grid. Andretti led 431 laps, the most by any non-winning driver. he started on the front row three times and had 5 top 5 finishes.  Rex Mays, in the middle of the front row is the only other driver to lead more than 200 laps and not win. Mays was on the pole four times. Ted Horn, on the outside of the front row, finished in the top five 9 times in 10 starts.

So here they are, the Greatest 33 Non-Winners of the Indianapolis 500:

Row 1

Michael Andretti

Rex Mays

Ted Horn

Row 2

Harry Hartz

Marco Andretti

Lloyd Ruby

Row 3

Gary Bettenhausen

Ralph Hepburn

Roberto Guerrero

Row 4

Scott Goodyear

Carlos Munoz

Robby Gordon

Row 5

Eddie Sachs

Tony Stewart

Jack McGrath

Row 6

Wally Dallenbach

Tomas Sheckter

Will Power

Row 7

Danica Patrick

Tony Bettenhausen

Joe Leonard

Row 8

Jimmy Snyder

Ed Carpenter

Danny Ongais

Row 9

Pancho Carter

Mel Kenyon

Kevin Cogan

Row 10

Vitor Meira

Russ Snowberger

Paul Russo

Row 11

Tom Alley

Johnny Thomson

George Snider

it’s kind of fitting that Snider is last on the grid. his trademark was jumping into a car on Bump Day and getting into the field starting near the back. Thanks to everyone who submitted a grid. I really enjoyed reading your thoughts and reasoning as to how yo put your grids together.

I will be back tomorrow with some 500 news and a report on my visit to the A. J. Foyt exhibit at the Speedway Museum. The cars were great to see, but the memorabilia was even more amazing to me. Thursday I will have my Indianapolis Grand Prix preview with my normally inaccurate winner’s prediction.

 

 

 

 

 

Alonso Hits the Speedway; My Greatest 33 Non-Winners

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Any doubt that people were excited that Fernando Alonso will be in this year’s Indianapolis 500 were obliterated yesterday. More than 2 million views on social media and a rather large crowd in person erased any questions of how big this is.

I arrived at the track around 9:30. The Museum lot was close to full. The viewing mounds likewise had a lot of people already there, many of whom appeared to be settled in for the entire day.  A cheer when up when the #29 first came by, but Marco Andretti was actually in the car then on a shake down run.

Alonso began his rookie test runs a few minutes later. He was tentative at first, lifting in turn 2 and staying well above the line. As the session went on, you could see him gaining confidence. Eventually his line got closer to the white line, and he stopped lifting. His top speed was reported at 222.548, although this morning his official top speed was reported as a high 221. He looked very comfortable in the car. The next test is how will Alonso do with other cars on the track?

Fans on the mounds constantly checked the live streams and were amazed at the number of viewers watching.

It was great day at the Speedway, as always. We may be at the dawn of a new era in crossover drivers.  Having a current F1 driver and former world champion drive in the 500 is  a huge step for the race.  We must remember that Stefan Wilson sacrificed a lot to make this happen. I hope Indycar follows through with their guarantees to him.  They owe him a lot more than they promised.

My 33 Greatest Non-Winners

Thanks to all of you who sent in your grids. I’ve enjoyed reading how you put them together. Before I present the final grid, here is mine.  I used a combination of statistics and how I feel about certain drivers, many of whom I have watched race. No, I did not see Ralph Mulford race. The first two rows were easy to fill. After that, things got tricky, especially toward the end. Why is Driver A 22nd and Driver B 23rd? I could argue that their positions could be reversed. I tended to give preference to drivers from the past over current drivers. My thinking is that current drivers stats will change, and some of them could still win.

So here is how I would line them up:

Row 1

Michael Andretti

Rex Mays

Ted Horn

Row 2

Harry Hartz

Jack McGrath

Marco Andretti

Row 3

Eddie Sachs

Will Power

Tomas Sheckter

Row 4

Wally Dallenbach

Lloyd Ruby

Gary Bettenhausen

Row 5

Joe Leonard

Danny Ongais

Robby Gordon

Row 6

Roberto Guerrero

Ralph Hepburn

Carlos Munoz

Row 7

Ed Carpenter

Scott Goodyear

Danica Patrick

Row 8

Steve Krisiloff

Teo Fabi

Russ Snowberger

Row 9

Paul Russo

Tony Stewart

Tony Bettenhausen

Row 10

Jimmy Snyder

Kevin Cogan

Raul Boesel

Row 11

Duke Nalon

Dan Gurney

Vitor Meira

 

 

The Race Fans’ Christmas Gift Guide

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Race fans are always happy to receive gifts, especially gifts related to racing.  Here are some suggestions for the race fan on your list, including many gifts that I have enjoyed over the years.

One of the best things I’ve received is tickets to a race. Many fans say they would be happy to go to more races if they had the budget. Race tickets  as a gift are a big help in making races more affordable. If you have never been to an Indycar race, get one for yourself as well. It’s silly to let your friend go alone.

A ride in an Indycar 2-seater will delight any Indycar fan.  It was one of the best I ever got. The ride is good at any track offering them.  There are sometimes discounts on Groupon.  It’s the best way to see what driving an Indycar is all about.

My friend George Phillips, in his Oilpressure.com column yesterday,talks about the Indy Racing Experience. You get to drive an Indycar on your own at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.This is something I want to try in the next couple of years.  If you haven’t read this column before, check it out.  It is always a good read.

Have friends who collect things?  We fans are eager to get our hands on anything related to racing. The Indianapolis Motor Speedway Museum has lots of things for the collector. They are currently having daily sales on selected items. They also have a clearance sale in mid-November with incredible deals. Also, check eBay for items like old programs and ticket stubs.

Books about racing, especially racing history, are one thing I can’t get enough of.  I highly recommend Black Noon by Art Garner. It tells the story of the 1964 Indianapolis 500 and talks about how the events of that day came to be and their lasting effects on racing  The author does a great job profiling Eddie Sachs and Dave MacDonald. This is one of the best books on the history of the 500 I have read.

Beast by Jade Gurss details Roger Penske and Imor engineering developing the Mercedes badged engine that dominated the 1994 500.  It was not as easy as it appeared. Gurss also discusses the brewing storm that led to the split in 1996. Even though you know the outcome, the narrative creates a suspenseful conclusion.

I have not read Lionheart by Andy Hallberry and Jeff Olson. I anticipate receiving it in a few days.  I have heard great things about it, and I will share my thoughts in January. The IMS Museum shop has it online for purchase.

Trivia buffs will enjoy Pat Kennedy’s compilations of trivia questions. He has two volumes of How Much Do You really know about the Indianapolis 500?, The Official Indy 500 Trivia Book, and Indy 500 Recaps, the Short Chute Edition.  The recaps book has a summary of every race and a results table for each race.

Other books I have enjoyed are Vukovich by Bob Gates and Umbrella Mike by Brock Yates. Umbrella Mike tells the story of Mike Boyle, whose cars won three Indianapolis 500s, including the famous Maserati car driven by Wilbur Shaw in 1939 and 1940.

Hard Luck Llloyd by John Lingle is a biography of Llloyd Ruby, a great racer who almost won the 500 several times, but bad luck always seemed to thwart his trip to Victory Lane.

I hope everyone has a great holiday season. I will be back after the first of the year when I settle in following my southern migration.