Danny Oakes (July 18, 1911 – January 13, 2007) was an American

midget car 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 ...

hall of fame A hall, wall, or walk of fame is a list of individuals, achievements, or other entities, usually chosen by a group of electors, to mark their excellence or Wiktionary:fame, fame in their field. In some cases, these halls of fame consist of actu ...

driver.

Early life

Daniel G. Oakes became interested in racing when he delivered morning and evening newspapers in his hometown of

Santa Barbara, California Santa Barbara ( es, Santa Bárbara, meaning "Saint Barbara") is a coastal city in Santa Barbara County, California, of which it is also the county seat. Situated on a south-facing section of coastline, the longest such section on the West Coas ...

. His favorite day was Monday. He viewed

Model T The Ford Model T is an automobile that was produced by Ford Motor Company from October 1, 1908, to May 26, 1927. It is generally regarded as the first affordable automobile, which made car travel available to middle-class Americans. The relati ...

cars powered by Frontenac motors parked outside a downtown Santa Barbara restaurant when the professional racecar drivers from

San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish language, Spanish for "Francis of Assisi, Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the List of Ca ...

came to town. Oakes fantasized about the day he would become a race driver. He began attending races at

Legion Ascot Speedway Legion Ascot Speedway was an American race track in Los Angeles, California that operated from 1924 to 1936. It hosted AAA Champ Car races. History Early success under Bentel ends with a scandal After the construction of a -mile dirt oval near ...

. He built a black roadster with chrome wheels that he drove to the track. The car led to an opportunity to be a mechanic on a bootlegger's racecar. Oakes drove the car at warmups at area racetracks.

Driving career

Oakes began racing at Legion Ascot Speedway in 1932 at age 21 in the Class C for beginners. Legion Ascot Speedway closed down in 1936, and Oakes switched to midget cars. He won the Pacific Coast championship three times. Oakes was one of the drivers who was unable to race in the prime of his life during the four years of

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, as all racing halted during the war. Oakes was a flight inspector at Lockheed. Danny Oakes 1946

Oakes won the first race after the war at

Gilmore Stadium Gilmore Stadium was a multi-purpose stadium in Los Angeles, California. It was opened in May 1934 and demolished in 1952, when the land was used to build CBS Television City. The stadium held 18,000. It was located next to Gilmore Field. The stad ...

, the 1945

Turkey Night Grand Prix The Automotive Racing Products Turkey Night Grand Prix is an annual race of midget cars. It is the third oldest race in the United States behind the Indianapolis 500 and the Pikes Peak International Hill Climb. It has been held on Thanksgiving nig ...

. He won the 1947 Pacific

AAA AAA, Triple A, or Triple-A is a three-letter initialism or abbreviation which may refer to: Airports * Anaa Airport in French Polynesia (IATA airport code AAA) * Logan County Airport (Illinois) (FAA airport code AAA) Arts, entertainment, and me ...

midget car championship. He later won the 1959 Pacific Coast USAC championship. Oakes holds the 40-lap record at Gilmore. He drove for 25 years in the midget cars and championship cars, but he was unable to qualify for any

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 suburb of Indi ...

races as a driver. He attempted from 1952 to 1955. He was bumped from the field in 1954, and he did not complete his attempt in 1952. He stood by as a relief driver for his friend

Alberto Ascari Alberto Ascari (; 13 July 1918 – 26 May 1955) was an Italian racing driver and a two time Formula One World Champion. He was a multitalented racer who competed in motorcycle racing before switching to cars. Ascari won consecutive world titles ...

, but Ascari's

Ferrari Ferrari S.p.A. (; ) is an Italian luxury sports car manufacturer based in Maranello, Italy. Founded by Enzo Ferrari (1898–1988) in 1939 from the Alfa Romeo racing division as ''Auto Avio Costruzioni'', the company built its first car in ...

was eliminated before his first pit stop. He continued racing midgets until he was in his mid-60s. He ended his racing career as a throttleman in off-shore boat racing in his 70s. During his years of driving, he became friends with Tony Hulman, Wilbur Shaw, and other big names in racing during those reconstructive years after WWII. Danny was infamous with the ladies and often referred to as "Dapper Dan".

Crew chief

He did set up the

Jim Hurtubise James Hurtubise (December 5, 1932 – January 6, 1989) was an American race car driver who raced in USAC Champ Cars (including the Indianapolis 500), as well as sprint cars and stock cars (USAC and NASCAR). He was from the Buffalo suburb of No ...

's car in 1960, which won the pole for the

by three miles per hour. Hurtubise won the

Indianapolis 500 Rookie of the Year The Indianapolis 500 Rookie of the Year is an annual award "presented to the driver who has performed with the most distinction among first-year drivers in the Indianapolis 500." Criteria includes "on-track performance in practice, qualifying an ...

award. Oakes was also crew chief for

Johnny White Johnny White (January 18, 1932 – December 24, 1977), was an American racecar driver. Born in Warren, Michigan, White died in Indianapolis, Indiana. He drove in the United States Automobile Club, USAC Championship Car series, racing in the 19 ...

his

1964 Events January * January 1 – The Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland is dissolved. * January 5 - In the first meeting between leaders of the Roman Catholic and Orthodox churches since the fifteenth century, Pope Paul VI and Patriarch ...

Indianapolis 500 Rookie of the Year performance. His final attempt at Indy at qualifying

Paul Goldsmith Paul Goldsmith (born October 2, 1925) is a former USAC and NASCAR driver. He is an inductee of the Motorcycle Hall of Fame, the Motorsports Hall of Fame of America, and the USAC Hall of Fame. Later in life Goldsmith became a pilot and, flying ...

1965 Events January–February * January 14 – The Prime Minister of Northern Ireland and the Taoiseach of the Republic of Ireland meet for the first time in 43 years. * January 20 ** Lyndon B. Johnson is Second inauguration of Lyndo ...

ended after mechanical failure.

Career award

*Oakes was inducted in the

National Midget Auto Racing Hall of Fame The National Midget Auto Racing Hall of Fame is an American Hall of Fame and museum for midget cars. The Hall of Fame is located at Angell Park Speedway Angell Park Speedway has a 1/3 mile () dirt racetrack located in Sun Prairie, Wiscons ...

in 1996.

Death

Oakes died in

Huntington Beach, California Huntington Beach is a seaside city in Orange County, California, Orange County in Southern California, located southeast of Downtown Los Angeles. The city is named after American businessman Henry E. Huntington. The population was 198,711 duri ...

on January 13, 2007, aged 95.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Oakes, Danny 1911 births 2007 deaths Sportspeople from Santa Barbara, California Racing drivers from California Lockheed people