Bob Harkey (June 23, 1930January 16, 2016) was an American driver in the USAC

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 from

Charlotte, North Carolina Charlotte ( ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of North Carolina. Located in the Piedmont region, it is the county seat of Mecklenburg County. The population was 874,579 at the 2020 census, making Charlotte the 16th-most populo ...

. He raced in the 1963–1979 seasons, with 85 career starts, including 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 ...

in 1964, 1971 and 1973–1976. He finished in the top ten 23 times, with his best finish in 4th position in 1964 at Trenton. He made one

NASCAR 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 ...

start, which also happened to be the first race at

Daytona International Speedway Daytona International Speedway is a race track in Daytona Beach, Florida, United States. Since opening in 1959, it has been the home of the Daytona 500, the most prestigious race in NASCAR as well as its season opening event. In addition to NASC ...

. Driving a Chevrolet for

Buck Baker Elzie Wylie Baker Sr. (March 4, 1919 – April 14, 2002), better known as Buck Baker, was an American stock car racer. Born in Richburg, South Carolina, Baker began his NASCAR career in 1949 and won his first race three years later at Columbia ...

, Harkey placed 10th in the 1959

NASCAR Convertible Division The NASCAR Convertible Division was a division of convertible cars early in NASCAR's history, from 1956 until 1959, although the signature race for convertibles remained a Convertible Division race until 1962. Two remnants of the Convertible Divi ...

race supporting the inaugural Daytona 500. He also entered the 500 but withdrew. Harkey's first experiences with speed came as the driver of a decoy car during moonshine runs. He worked as a stunt driver for movies such as '' Thunder Road'', ''

Speedway Speedway may refer to: Racing Race tracks *Edmonton International Speedway, also known as Speedway Park, a former motor raceway in Edmonton, Alberta *Indianapolis Motor Speedway, a motor raceway in Speedway, Indiana Types of races and race cours ...

'' and '' Winning''. Harkey was also an accomplished

stunt pilot Stunt flying refers to any stunts performed in an aircraft. It encompasses aerobatics, wing walking, and transferring from one airplane to another or to a moving vehicle on the ground, such as an automobile or train, and vice versa. History From th ...

and wing walker. He owned a Stearman and an AT-6, with which he taught fellow drivers such as

Johnny Rutherford John Sherman "Johnny" Rutherford III (born March 12, 1938), also known as "Lone Star JR", is an American former automobile racing driver. During an Indy Car career that spanned more than three decades, he scored 27 wins and 23 pole positions in ...

to fly. Harkey also trained as a boxer, and once fought eventual world heavyweight champion

Floyd Patterson Floyd Patterson (January 4, 1935 – May 11, 2006) was an American professional boxer who competed from 1952 to 1972, and twice reigned as the world heavyweight champion between 1956 and 1962. At the age of 21, he became the youngest boxer in hi ...

in the

Golden Gloves The Golden Gloves is the name given to annual competitions for amateur boxing in the United States, where they are awarded a belt and a ring. And the title of nations champion is awarded. The Golden Gloves is a term used to refer to the Nation ...

. For many years, Harkey worked with Champion Spark Plugs' safety program. On January 16, 2016, he died in Indianapolis at the age of 85.

Indianapolis 500 results

*1975: Relieved by

Salt Walther David "Salt" Walther (November 22, 1947 – December 27, 2012) was a driver in the USAC and CART Championship Car series. He also drove NASCAR stock cars and unlimited hydroplane boats, and was a car owner in USAC. Walther is best remembere ...

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References

External links

Driver Database Profile
1930 births 2016 deaths Indianapolis 500 drivers Racing drivers from Charlotte, North Carolina USAC Silver Crown Series drivers {{US-autoracing-bio-stub