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Thomas Allan Bigelow (born October 31, 1939 in
His first attempt at the National Championship was in 1967, and he finished eighteenth. He had 1968 midget wins at Hales Corners Speedway in
He raced in USAC and CART in 17 seasons (1968–1983 and 1985), with 104 combined career starts, and started in the
NASCAR statistics at racing-reference.info
/ref>
Whitewater, Wisconsin
Whitewater is a city located in Walworth and Jefferson counties in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. Located near the southern portion of the Kettle Moraine State Forest, Whitewater is the home of the University of Wisconsin–Whitewater. As of the 2 ...
) is a former driver in the USAC and CART
A cart or dray (Australia and New Zealand) is a vehicle designed for transport, using two wheels and normally pulled by one or a pair of draught animals. A handcart is pulled or pushed by one or more people.
It is different from the flatbed tr ...
Championship Car
American open-wheel car racing, also known as Indy car racing, is a category of professional automobile racing in the United States. As of 2022, the top-level American open-wheel racing championship is sanctioned by IndyCar.
Competitive event ...
series.
Racing career
Midget car racing
He began his racing career at the Badger Midget Racing Association atAngell Park Speedway
Angell Park Speedway has a 1/3 mile () dirt racetrack located in Sun Prairie, Wisconsin. The track has been run by the city's fire department since 1903. Racing occurs every Sunday approximately Memorial Day until Labor Day. Special racing event ...
in Sun Prairie, Wisconsin
Sun Prairie is a city in Dane County in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. A suburb of Madison, it is part of the Madison Metropolitan Statistical Area. The city's population was 35,967 at the 2020 U.S. Census. It is the second-most populous city in Da ...
.Biography at the National Midget Auto Racing Hall of FameHis first attempt at the National Championship was in 1967, and he finished eighteenth. He had 1968 midget wins at Hales Corners Speedway in
Hales Corners, Wisconsin
Hales Corners is a village in Milwaukee County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 7,692 at the 2010 census. History
The land in the area that would eventually encompass the Village was first claimed as French, then British, and even ...
and at the Sycamore, Illinois track. He won the first Astro Grand Prix in the Houston Astrodome
The NRG Astrodome, also known as the Houston Astrodome or simply the Astrodome, is the world's first multi-purpose, domed sports stadium, located in Houston, Texas. It was financed and assisted in development by Roy Hofheinz, mayor of Houston ...
in 1969. His come back in Midgets started in 1981 driving for Sandy Racing.
In 1984, he was National USAC Midget Champion. For two years in a row (1982 and 1983), he was USAC Spreedrome champion.
USAC/CART
He raced in USAC and CART in 17 seasons (1968–1983 and 1985), with 104 combined career starts, and started in the 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 ...
every year during 1974 to 1982. He finished in the top ten 39 times, with his best finish in second position in 1978 at Texas World Speedway
Texas World Speedway (TWS) was a motorsport venue located in College Station, Texas.The track was one of only eight superspeedways of or greater in the United States used for racing, the others being Indianapolis, Daytona, Pocono, Talladega, ...
and Milwaukee
Milwaukee ( ), officially the City of Milwaukee, is both the most populous and most densely populated city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin and the county seat of Milwaukee County. With a population of 577,222 at the 2020 census, Milwaukee is ...
.
Bigelow started in nine straight Indianapolis 500 races between 1974 and 1982, his best finish was sixth in 1977
Events January
* January 8 – Three bombs explode in Moscow within 37 minutes, killing seven. The bombings are attributed to an Armenian separatist group.
* January 10 – Mount Nyiragongo erupts in eastern Zaire (now the Democratic R ...
.
Sprint car
Bigelow was the 1978 USACSprint Car
Sprint cars are high-powered open-wheel race cars, designed primarily for the purpose of running on short oval or circular dirt or paved tracks. Sprint car racing is popular primarily in the United States and Canada, as well as in Australia, New ...
Series Champion. He became the leader in USAC Sprint car single season wins with 14. Bigelow won 52 USAC Sprint Car races in his career.
Return to midget cars
He returned to his roots won the 1984 USAC NationalMidget
Midget (from ''midge'', a tiny biting insect) is a term for a person of unusually short stature that is considered by some to be pejorative due to its etymology. While not a medical term like "dwarfism", a medical condition with a number of ca ...
Series Champion. He finished fourth, third, and ninth in the following three season. He also won the 1982 USAC Midwest Regional midget car title. His car (number 16) was owned by Carl Sandy, husband of Carol Sandy and father of Duane, Mathew, and Troy Sandy.
NASCAR
Bigelow made a singleNASCAR
The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, LLC (NASCAR) is an American auto racing sanctioning and operating company that is best known for stock car racing. The privately owned company was founded by Bill France Sr. in 1948, and hi ...
start at the 1986 Atlanta Journal 500
The Ambetter Health 400 is a NASCAR Cup Series stock car race held at Atlanta Motor Speedway in Hampton, Georgia. William Byron is the defending race winner.
This race was originally Atlanta's second race of the season and was run as a late- ...
at the Atlanta International Raceway
Atlanta Motor Speedway (formerly known Atlanta International Raceway from 1960 to 1990) is a 1.54-mile entertainment facility in Hampton, Georgia, United States, 20 miles (32 km) south of Atlanta. It has annually hosted NASCAR Cup Series s ...
, and he finished 40th with engine problems./ref>
Career awards
*He was a 2002 inductee in theNational 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 in Sun Prairie, Wisconsin
Sun Prairie is a city in Dane County in the U.S. state of Wi ...
at his home track in Sun Prairie.
*Bigelow was inducted in the National Sprint Car Hall of Fame in 1996.
Retirement
Starting in 2009, Bigelow was a color announcer forFox Sports Network
Fox Sports Networks (FSN), formerly known as Fox Sports Net, was the collective name for a group of regional sports channels in the United States. Formed in 1996 by News Corporation, the networks were acquired by The Walt Disney Company on Mar ...
for Must See Racing Xtreme Sprint Series television coverage.
Motorsports career results
American open-wheel racing
(key
Key or The Key may refer to:
Common meanings
* Key (cryptography), a piece of information that controls the operation of a cryptography algorithm
* Key (lock), device used to control access to places or facilities restricted by a lock
* Key (map ...
) (Races in bold indicate pole position)
USAC Championship Car
PPG Indy Car World Series
=Indianapolis 500
=NASCAR
(key
Key or The Key may refer to:
Common meanings
* Key (cryptography), a piece of information that controls the operation of a cryptography algorithm
* Key (lock), device used to control access to places or facilities restricted by a lock
* Key (map ...
) (Bold – Pole position awarded by qualifying time. ''Italics'' – Pole position earned by points standings or practice time. * – Most laps led.)
Winston Cup Series
ARCA Bondo/Mar-Hyde Series
(key
Key or The Key may refer to:
Common meanings
* Key (cryptography), a piece of information that controls the operation of a cryptography algorithm
* Key (lock), device used to control access to places or facilities restricted by a lock
* Key (map ...
) (Bold – Pole position awarded by qualifying time. ''Italics'' – Pole position earned by points standings or practice time. * – Most laps led.)
References