AJ Foyt Speed Sport Magazine

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o5GcoFW3vCE

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JMXmjnhKO8w

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Es0H-fDaxHU

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4bOjb3FBgCU

 

reserved

 

Classic Races Indy 500 on Tampa Racing.com
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ahBHJ53v8Ns

 

Thanks for Watching guys. Sorry this is a day late and the last clip. It was the only known clip of the finish.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W2dt1jH_0_c

TV coverage got better in time...

 

The Indianapolis Not-Quite-Nine By Bob Marlow
When the checkered flag waves over the winner of the 100th Indianapolis 500 this Sunday, it will, as is customary, signify the end of the race. But it was not always so.
In the early years of the 500, when the winner crossed the finish line, the race would continue until all cars capable of completing the 500-mile distance had done so. Given the lower speeds of the era as compared to today, this process took some time. Which is how it came to be that Ralph Mulford, known in the racing circles as Smilin’ Ralph, set a record in the race of 1912 that still stands today.

In 1912, prize money was available only to the top ten finishers, and the rules further required competitors to complete the full 500 miles in order to earn the cash. Mulford, whose car was suffering mechanical problems that made numerous pit stops necessary but well-aware of the high rate of attrition, was determined to be one of those ten. So he persevered, continuing to drive long after winner Joe Dawson had taken the checkered flag, and long after virtually everyone had gone home.
So lengthy was Mulford’s journey to the finish that one of his pit stops was for a quick dinner, widely reported to have been fried chicken and ice cream. A dinner break would seem a necessary stop, because Mulford finished 8 hours and 53 minutes after the start of the race. He finished his 500 miles in front of grandstands that had once been packed but were now empty, and under a sky that was once bright with the noonday sun but was now tinged with the last rays of sunset.


Mulford’s race speed was an average of 56.285 mph, a record which will remain unbroken: The slowest finishing speed in Indy 500 history.
Today, soccer parents in SUVs exceed that average in between cub scout meetings and play dates.
Sunday’s 500 will be concluded when the winner completes 200 laps, with all others being credited for however many laps they completed to that point and their position relative to their competitors. Every driver, including the last-place finisher, will earn a share of the more than 13.5 million dollars in prize money. But even if it were still required to go the full distance in order to get paid, it would likely not take very long. This year’s slowest qualifier, Buddy Lazier, qualified at 222.154 mph.

 

Tying some racing history together
See last post in thread:
See it before it goes away.

 

[h=2]Resurrecting Joe Leonard's 1972 title-winner[/h] Monday, 10 July 2017


Mark Dill / Images by IMS, Chuck Jones

One of the shining stars of last month's SVRA Brickyard Invitational at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway was the recently-restored Vel's Parnelli Jones Samsonite racer Joe Leonard drove to the 1972 USAC national championship.
Along the way Leonard picked off three important victories in the Pocono 500, the Michigan 200, and the Milwaukee 200. He also scored a third-place in that year's Indianapolis 500 behind winner Mark Donohue and teammate Al Unser. Leonard's passing this year on April 27 at age 84 made the car's debut as a vintage racer all the more appropriate and poignant.

The car, owned by Chuck Jones, Chief Design Officer for Silicon Valley surgical robot company Intuitive Surgical, is in its original dihedral wing aero configuration. This innovative design was the brainchild of Maurice Phillippe, renowned for his accomplishments during the halcyon days of Lotus, where he led the design of the world championship-winning Lotus 49 and Lotus 72. He also designed the iconic Lotus 56 Turbine, which, again in the hands of Leonard, won the pole for the 1968 Indianapolis 500 and was leading with nine laps to go when it suffered drivetrain failure.
"He was onto an intriguing idea," says Jones, the owner of three meticulously-restored Indy cars. "The dihedral design was to combat unstable, twisting yaw moments. It wasn't about downforce, as people think of the main reason for aero designs today. He was onto something profound, but it came at the time big rear wings were introduced and that changed the game."
Jones's car was part of the fabled Vel's Parnelli Jones "Super Team" that also included Mario Andretti and Al Unser. Viceroy sponsored their cars, while Leonard represented Samsonite luggage. Impressively, it was only "Pelican Joe" – a nickname assigned by A.J. Foyt – who scored race wins.
"We openly admitted we were the 'C' team of the three cars," reports John Capels, who served as Leonard's crew chief. "We just put our heads down. Joe was a cool-headed man and driver. He was all about business and very determined to get the full potential out of a situation. He was one of those guys who really believed that you had to first finish, to finish first. That delivered results."
The Phillippe design, known as the VPJ1, only raced once in the dihedral configuration. That was in the second race of the season, at Trenton, as finishing touches were applied to the machines on the grounds in the days leading up to the contest. Joe finished fourth, again outperforming his teammates, both of whom retired with mechanical maladies. Next on the schedule was the Indianapolis 500.

After arriving at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway the Vel's Parnelli team discovered that McLaren had changed the game. Their cars sported massive rear wings, and downforce became part of the speed conversation.
"Those wings were 72 inches wide," chuckles Capels. "Suddenly, they had massive downforce. We couldn't compete with that, so we flew fabricators out from California and went to work creating our own wings. In those days the Speedway had practice for the whole month, starting at 9 am and ending at 6 pm each day."
That track time, unfathomable in today's world, was essential to the thrashing they had to perform. Phillippe went to work on designing the required appendages on drawing boards. The team had a fully-outfitted shop in Indianapolis, making a fundamental aero transformation feasible. The dihedral wings disappeared, and the rear of the car sprouted the huge wings. While the cars never attained the speed of the McLarens or Bobby Unser's pole-winning Eagle, they were able to turn in a credible performance as Al Unser and Leonard came home second and third.
That May 1972 transformation was nothing compared to the project Jones faced when he acquired the car in 2012. To call it a "car" at the time is misleading – it was a tub on a shelf, along with boxes of mixed-up parts. Some were for the VPJ1, others for its successor VPJ2, and still others were from the team's 1975 Formula 1 car, the VPJ4. All had been in storage for 20 years – and not in a climate controlled facility. Chuck wasn't sure what he was buying into, but his passion and enthusiasm drove him.
"I feel there are three stages to restoration," says Jones. "First, you discover and make parts. Second, you assemble and detail the machine. Finally, you get to the best part – driving and enjoying it."
It was during that discovery phase that Chuck realized his new acquisition was more special than he imagined. Through a meticulous effort of identifying parts, studying repair work on the tub and examining details such as rivet patterns, he developed a conclusive case that the car was the actual machine Leonard drove in 1972. Blueprints sourced directly from Parnelli Jones proved a tremendous resource.

 

Resurrecting Joe Leonard's 1972 title-winner


Sorting everything out required three months and the assistance of Parnelli, Capels, and other original crew members such as Larry "Smokey" Alleman. Jimmy Dilamarter found an original set of 'suitcase decals' for the car that had been in storage since 1972. Capels verified that Joe's car was the only one of the three to utilize a unique Mallory ignition, and the modifications done to accommodate the ignition were present on the tub Jones owned, which added to the list of compelling identification evidence.
As the car came together, Jones was able to share his progress with none other than Leonard himself, who resided in an assisted living center near the Intuitive Surgical offices in Sunnyvale, California. Leonard frequently asked, "How's my car coming?", and Jones was delighted to provide updates. At one point he arranged a conference call between himself, Leonard and Capels.
"As a lifelong fan, I just marveled at being able to sit in on that conversation," Jones says. "I know Joe really appreciated what John and I were doing. It really is a tribute to his outstanding career. I owe a debt of gratitude to Steve Gregory, a lifelong friend of Joe's, who introduced us. I'm just sorry Joe passed away before we completely finished the project."
Jones also has a residence in Stevensville, Michigan, a village just north of the Indiana state line. There, he has a 12,000 square foot car restoration and maintenance shop he calls his man cave. Nearby Gingerman Raceway and access to a local airport runway provide excellent facilities to sort out gremlins. The clutch proved particularly problematic, and an oiling issue forced them to go through two turbochargers.

Jones confesses to being "obsessive compulsive" about mechanical detail, but insists that's a good thing whether he is working with race cars or surgical robots. In both cases, lives depend on the job being done properly.
"The car is put together as good as ever," Capels insists. "If you put a young Joe Leonard in the car today, he could push it. He could be fast, safe and thrilled."
Indeed, with an 1100 horsepower turbocharged Offenhauser behind them, the drivers of today's Indianapolis 500 would undoubtedly be respectful. Jones' decision to make the Brickyard Invitational the coming-out party for the car was partly good timing, but more importantly, he just wanted to drive the car – especially at the Speedway.
"I remember the first time I drove it," he says. "I looked upward and said, 'God, don't let me screw this up."
Anyone who saw the car at the Brickyard Invitational will have no doubt that Jones and Capels did not screw up what turned out as an immaculate, fully-functional restoration. Jones wants to share what they have done with the world, and has already entered the machine in next year's famous Amelia Island Concours d'Elegance. He is also looking to the Monterey Motorsports Reunion and the eventual aspiration of driving up the famous hill during the Goodwood Festival of Speed.
"I want to keep the story of these cars and Joe Leonard's and Johnny Capels' accomplishments alive and in front of people," Jones says. "These cars and the people who developed them overcame so much. They delivered great accomplishments racing people should remember."

 

Relive all the action from the 2017 NASCAR Monster Energy Cup Series "Brickyard 400" race at Indianapolis Motor Speedway!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ghAgWYXeCZI

More nearby NASCAR races can be found here:
Xfinity Series "Lilly Diabetes 250" at Indianapolis - https://youtu.be/Nt5Wky6-pHc
Camping World Truck Series "Eldora Dirt Derby" at Eldora - https://youtu.be/JIvwY8zVMag

 

Photos and articles of 2018 INDYCAR body work:
https://www.tamparacing.com/forums/c...body-work.html