2019 INDY 500: WHAT YOU NEED TO SEE AND DO!

2019 INDY 500: WHAT YOU NEED TO SEE AND DO!
Motorsports Maven Jim Donnelly’s quick and handy Indy 500 survival and 'to-see-and-do' guide for all you road warriors out there. Let’s say you’re making an oft-discussed, long-planned and much-anticipated journey out to Indianapolis for the first time this week, to take in the Greatest Spectacle in Racing on the most hallowed weekend in motorsport. Maybe you were already in town for the big Mecum auction that took place over the past weekend. The point here is there’s a ton to see, do, and eat ...
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INDYCAR: SO YOU WANT TO DRIVE THE INDY 500?

We've suspected this for many years and now it's official. The Indianapolis 500 is no longer a reasonable aspiration for most racing drivers, blogs Stephen Cox.  Indianapolis Motor Speedway (IMS) president Doug Boles was kind enough to talk with me briefly at the annual PRI trade show in Indy. I asked him what his plan was to increase the number of entries at the Indianapolis 500. His answer took me by surprise. “We grew up falling in love with the sport when you had that number of ent...
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STEALING THE 500: SHELBY’S 1968 TURBINE-POWERED INDY CAR!

Stephen Cox blogs about Carroll Shelby’s assault on Indy - Part 2 of 2. Ken Wallis was running out of time. Both of Carroll Shelby's turbine-powered cars were now at Indianapolis but they were nowhere near race-ready condition. His drivers, McLaren and Hulme, had only a six-day window before they returned to Europe for the Spanish Grand Prix. In a desperate bid to make the cars competitive, Wallis used a liberal interpretation of USAC rules to design a new annulus (the engine opening ...
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STEALING THE 500: SHELBY’S 1968 TURBINE-POWERED INDY CAR!

Stephen Cox blogs about Carroll Shelby’s assault on Indy - Part 1 of 2. He wasn't the first to try, nor was he the last. Armed with a huge budget, a massive turbine engine and two of the finest drivers on the planet, in the spring of 1968 Carroll Shelby was ready to steal the Indianapolis 500. The plan was straightforward. Ken Wallis, a 38-year-old British aircraft engineer, had designed the famed Granatelli-Lotus Turbine with which Parnelli Jones had nearly won the race in 1967. Wallis had ...
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FORD: TOTAL PERFORMANCE, ROAD & TRACK!

CarGuyChronicles Editor and Ford GT owner, Martyn Schorr chronicles Ford’s rich performance heritage from the 1920s through the golden age of musclecars. And, takes you inside Ford’s Skunk Works. FORD TOTAL PERFORMANCE is 208 slick pages of Ford race and street car history from 1920s Fours, 1930s-1940s Flatheads, 1950s Y-Blocks and 1960s to 1971 big-blocks. It showcases Boss 302-351-429 Mustangs, Shelby GT Mustangs, Shelby & AC Cobras, Pantera, Torinos, Sunbeam Tiger & Lola-Ford GT ...
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SAFETY: THE REAL RISKS OF AUTO RACING!

If we actually did eliminate all danger from auto racing, would we really like what was left, blogs Stephen Cox?                                                   Ed Carpenter, 2015, IMS I began driving racecars in 1985. In the thirty years since, I've had a total of one serious neck injury while racing. It was...
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ASSOCIATED PRESS’ PAUL NEWBURY: BAN INDYCAR FOREVER!

‘After the latest tragedy in Indycar... it's time to shut down this ridiculously dangerous form of racing,’ says Paul Newberry in the wake of the tragic death of Indycar driver Justin Wilson. In making his demand, Newberry is typical of the paternalistic, safety-at-gunpoint class of pundits who seem to have taken over the Land of the Formerly Free. Newberry's rant, which appeared on ABC News on August 28th, goes on to say, “It's time to end a sport that has destroyed too many lives.” Note th...
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LESSONS LEARNED: THE HISTORY OF DRIVER SAFETY IN NASCAR!

When Bill France Sr. founded NASCAR in 1948, driver safety wasn’t exactly a primary concern. That first generation of drivers showed up on race day in the fastest cars their teams could build. There was a general understanding that auto racing was a dangerous endeavor, and that any measure to increase safety might decrease your chance of taking that checkered flag first. But it didn’t take long for these ideas to change. In an http://www.dish.com/dig/sports/motorsports-hof-of-america-nalon-l...
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INDY: BRICKYARD VINTAGE RACING INVITATIONAL!

SVRA enjoyed a second year at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway with its Vintage Racing Invitational. Mike Matune was trackside for the Chronicles. Clark Howey’s ‘66 Corvette won its class at Daytona. After more than 20 years and numerous owners, it is once again owned and raced by Howey. So much more than just racing, the event encompasses a car auction, car show, Jaguar exhibit and autocross and an enactment of the very first event at the Speedway - 1909 hot air balloon race. To us, the si...
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2015 AMELIA ISLAND CONCOURS D’ELEGANCE

The Amelia Island Concours was graced with sunny skies, warm temperatures and the most eclectic assortment of important cars – from hot rods to classics. Who would have thought that original gathering of 160 cars just 20 years ago would double in size to include a show field chock full of rare, fun, interesting and significant cars? Our congratulations to event founder and chairman Bill Warner, his staff, volunteers, supporters, judges and entrants who helped turn a dream into a reality. Th...
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