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American Racing Drivers Club
The American Racing Drivers Club (ARDC) is an open-wheel midget car racing sanctioning body that operates primarily in the Mid-Atlantic area of the United States. History The American Racing Drivers Club was organized in 1939, making it one of the oldest sanctioning bodies in the United States, predating NASCAR by nearly a decade. The purpose of the organization was to represent the drivers and car owners in dealing with track owners and promoters. The club's first president was Bill Schindler.Biography for at the |
Open-wheel
An open-wheel single-seater (often known as formula car) is a car with the wheels outside the car's main body, and usually having only one seat. Open-wheel cars contrast with street cars, sports cars, stock cars, and touring cars, which have their wheels below the body or inside fenders. Open-wheel cars are built both for road racing and oval track racing. Street-legal open-wheel cars, such as the Ariel Atom, are scarce as they are often impractical for everyday use. History American racecar driver and constructor Ray Harroun was an early pioneer of the concept of a lightweight single-seater, open-wheel "monoposto" racecar. After working as a mechanic in the automotive industry, Harroun began competitive professional racing in 1906, winning the AAA National Championship in 1910. He was then hired by the Marmon Motor Car Company as chief engineer, charged with building a racecar intended to race at the first Indianapolis 500, which he went on to win. He developed a revolutionary c ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Len Duncan
Len Duncan (July 25, 1911 Brooklyn, New York – August 1, 1998 Lansdale, Pennsylvania) was an American race car driver. Duncan raced midget cars in seven decades from 1920s until the 1980s. During World War II, received the honor of being assigned as President Harry S. Truman's driver during one of his visits to England. Mario Andretti credits Duncan with having a great influence on his professional life. Andretti raced against Duncan in the American Racing Drivers Club (ARDC) series in 1963. Midget car career Duncan began racing in 1928. Duncan was the AAA Eastern Midget Champion. Duncan won eight American Racing Drivers Club (ARDC) championships during the thirteen years between 1955 and 1967. Career award *He was inducted in the National Midget Auto Racing Hall of Fame in 1991. Indy 500 results Complete Formula One World Championship results (key) : ''* Indicates shared drive with George Fonder George Thomas Fonder (June 22, 1917 Elmhurst, Pennsylvania – J ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Open Wheel Racing
An open-wheel single-seater (often known as formula car) is a car with the wheels outside the car's main body, and usually having only one seat. Open-wheel cars contrast with street cars, sports cars, stock cars, and touring cars, which have their wheels below the body or inside fenders. Open-wheel cars are built both for road racing and oval track racing. Street-legal open-wheel cars, such as the Ariel Atom, are scarce as they are often impractical for everyday use. History American racecar driver and constructor Ray Harroun was an early pioneer of the concept of a lightweight single-seater, open-wheel "monoposto" racecar. After working as a mechanic in the automotive industry, Harroun began competitive professional racing in 1906, winning the AAA National Championship in 1910. He was then hired by the Marmon Motor Car Company as chief engineer, charged with building a racecar intended to race at the first Indianapolis 500, which he went on to win. He developed a revolutionary c ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Johnny Thomson
John A. Thomson (April 9, 1922 – September 24, 1960) was an American racecar driver. Thomson was nicknamed "the Flying Scot." He won several championships in midgets and sprint cars before competing in Championship Car (now IndyCar) racing. He won the pole position for the 1959 Indianapolis 500. Background Thomsom was born on April 9, 1922 to William and Marion Ross Thomson. He graduated from Lowell High School then the New England Aircraft School. He served in the United States Air Force as a crew chief during World War II in Corsica and Italy between 1942 and 1945 on a B-25 bomber. Thomson was awarded five service stars and the Distinguished Air Force Medal. Thomson met his future wife Evelyn Peterson in 1951. He moved from the Springfield, Massachusetts area to a five-acre ranch that he built near Boyertown, Pennsylvania in the mid 1950s. Midget cars Thomson began watching races at a track across the street from his home in 1937 and 1938 in Lowell. He began racing at t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Jan Opperman
Jan Opperman (February 9, 1939 – September 4, 1997), was an American racecar driver. He won the 1971 Knoxville Nationals, the premiere event in sprint car racing. In 1976, he won the Hulman Classic at Terre Haute, Ind., which at the time featured most of the top sprint car drivers in the country and had several drivers in the field who would start the Indianapolis 500 later that month. Born in Long Beach, California, Opperman died in Fountain, Florida, 16 years after suffering critical injuries from a crash during a race in Jennerstown, Pennsylvania. Known primarily as a sprint car driver, he also drove in the USAC Championship Car series, racing in the 1974 and 1976 seasons. He had 9 champ car starts, including the 1974 and 1976 Indianapolis 500 The Indianapolis 500, formally known as the Indianapolis 500-Mile Race, and commonly called the Indy 500, is an annual automobile race held at Indianapolis Motor Speedway (IMS) in Speedway, Indiana, United States, an enclave ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mario Andretti
Mario Gabriele Andretti (born February 28, 1940) is an Italian-born American former racing driver. One of the most successful drivers in the history of motorsports, Andretti is one of only two drivers to have won races in Formula One, IndyCar, the World Sportscar Championship, and NASCAR (the other being Dan Gurney). He has also won races in midget car racing and sprint car racing. During his career, Andretti won the 1978 Formula One World Championship, four IndyCar titles (three under USAC sanctioning, and one in CART), and IROC VI. To date, he remains the only driver ever to win the Indianapolis 500 ( 1969), Daytona 500 ( 1967) and the Formula One World Championship, and, along with Juan Pablo Montoya, the only driver to have won a race in the NASCAR Cup Series, Formula One, and an Indianapolis 500. As of 2021, Andretti's victory at the 1978 Dutch Grand Prix is the last Formula One win by an American driver. Andretti had 109 career wins on major circuits. Andretti had a long ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
United States Automobile Club
The United States Auto Club (USAC) is one of the sanctioning bodies of auto racing in the United States. From 1956 to 1979, USAC sanctioned the United States National Championship, and from 1956 to 1997 the organization sanctioned the Indianapolis 500. Today, USAC serves as the sanctioning body for a number of racing series, including the Silver Crown Series, National Sprint Cars, National Midgets, Speed2 Midget Series, .25 Midget Series, Stadium Super Trucks, and Pirelli World Challenge. Seven-time USAC champion Levi Jones is USAC's Competition Director. History When the American Automobile Association (AAA) withdrew from auto racing after the 1955 season, citing the Le Mans disaster and the death of Bill Vukovich at Indianapolis as contributing factors, both the SCCA and NASCAR were mentioned as its potential successor. Ultimately, USAC was formed by Indianapolis Motor Speedway owner Tony Hulman. It became the arbiter of rules, car design, and other matters for what it te ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ed "Dutch" Schaefer
''Alan "Dutch" Schaefer was also the name of Arnold Schwarzenegger's character in the original Predator movie'' Ed "Dutch" Schaefer (June 23, 1915 – March 12, 1978) was an American racecar driver. Schaefer was 1940 champion at the track at Cedarhurst, New York. He won the 1946 and 1948 track championships at Philadelphia’s Yellow Jacket Speedway. He was a four-time American Racing Drivers Club (ARDC) midget car champion (1956, 1957, 1960, and 1965). He served as President of the East Coast regional racing organization from 1952 to 1968.Biography at the Schaefer once won a [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mike Nazaruk
Mike Nazaruk (October 2, 1921 Newark, New Jersey – May 1, 1955 Langhorne, Pennsylvania) was an American racecar driver. He raced midget cars, sprint cars, and IndyCars. He was nicknamed "Iron Mike."Biography at the Nazaruk was of Ukrainian descent. Before racing, he worked as a florist's delivery driver and as an aircraft welder. Nazaruk served as a in the Battle of Gu ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Midget Car Racing
Midget cars, also speedcars in Australia, is a class of racing cars. The cars are very small with a very high power-to-weight ratio and typically use four cylinder engines. They originated in the United States in the 1930s and are raced on most continents. There is a worldwide tour and national midget tours in the United States, Australia, and New Zealand. Cars Typically, these four cylinder engine cars have to and weigh . The high power and small size of the cars combine to make midget racing quite dangerous; for this reason, modern midget cars are fully equipped with roll cages and other safety features. Some early major midget car manufacturers include Kurtis Kraft (1930s to 1950s) and Solar (1944–46). Midgets are intended to be driven for races of relatively short distances, usually 2.5 to 25 miles (4 to 40 km). Some events are staged inside arenas, like the Chili Bowl held in early January at the Tulsa Expo Center in Tulsa, Oklahoma. There are midget races in ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
George Rice (racing Driver)
George J. Viola (February 22, 1914 – February 26, 2003), better known by his racing name George Rice, was a midget race car driver from Milford, Connecticut. Personal life George fathered two daughters, Sarah and Glorianna, and a son, Edward, with his wife Bess. Racing career Rice was born George J. Viola. When he started racing, he drove sprint cars, not midgets. When he heard about midgets he wanted to try them but his sprint car club at that time don't permit drivers to compete in other series. Viola took the last name of his friend Charlie Rice to become "George Rice". When his younger brother, John, decided to race midgets also, he took the name Johnny Rice and the pair became known as the "Rice Brothers". In the 1940s in particular he was very successful. In 1947 alone he won the Midget track championship at Danbury (CT) Fair Racearena, Deer Park (NY) Speedway, and won his second consecutive title at West Haven (CT) Speedway. He was the 1947 ARDC Midget champion. I ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Henry Banks
Henry Banks (June 14, 1913 – December 18, 1994) was an American midget car and "big car" driver. "Married Roseanne Eisamann, two children, John Allen Banks, and Kathryn Roseanne Banks, three grandchildren Allen Edwin Banks, Jeffrey Henry Banks and Gavin Working " Background Henry Banks was born in England, but brought up in Royal Oak, Michigan.Biography at the National Midget Auto Racing Hall of Fame He was the son of an early European race-driver. Henry began competing in 1932, when he was 19 years old, and became successful in the midget cars. Racing career He was the first driver to pass the qualifying "rookie test" at the |
