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Automotive Facts - Part 5: Indy 500 Racing Facts
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| Indy 500 Racing Facts |
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| Updated |
Mar 17, 2005 19:41:50 |
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Description:
Interested in car racing? Here are a few facts concerning the Indy 500 Race:
The Indianapolis 500 is the original 500-mile auto race, predating any
other existing 500 by nearly fifty years. It's not only the most famous
race in America, but is the most celebrated around the world. The Indy 500
was first run in 1911.
The distance around one lap of the Indianapolis course is two and
one-half miles per lap.
It takes a driver forty seconds to negotiate one full lap at a speed of
exactly 225 miles per hour.
Traditionally, thirty-three cars start in the 500.
The Speedway was nicknamed "The Brickyard," because the track was once
paved with bricks.
For more than fifty years, the winning driver has pulled into Victory
Lane and taken a drink of milk.
The Indianapolis Motor Speedway is not located in Indianapolis. It's in
Speedway, Indiana, a community incorporated in 1926, with its own town
board, police and fire departments, schools systems, and water company.
An effective Indy pit stop (to pump forty gallons of fuel, change four
wheels, and many any minor adjustment) takes about fifteen seconds.
Indy cars do not run on gasoline. Since 1964, they've used methanol, a
wood-based alcohol.
If an Indy Car engine were installed in the average riding lawn mower,
it could cut a half-acre lawn in about 5.6 seconds.
The winning time at the 1990 Indy was more than four hours faster than
the 1911 Indy's winning time of six hours, forty-two minutes.
At 200 miles per hour, an Indy driver can cover the length of a
football field in less than one second.
While eight different drivers named Jones have driven in at least one
500 race (none of which are related), no starting field has ever included
a driver named Smith.
Buddy Lazier was eliminated after only one lap in the 1991 Indy and
received $162,690 in prize money. Ernie Ansterberg, on the other hand,
pulled out after two laps in 1924 and was awarded the hefty sum of $5.25.
At 224 miles per hour, an Indy Car is traveling about 100 miles faster
than an average Air Force fighter jet at takeoff.
Indianapolis 500 Results
YEAR
DRIVER
ENGINE
CYLINDERS
MPHÂ AVERAGE
1911
Ray Harroun
Marmon Wasp
6
74.69
1912
Joe Dawson
National
4
78.72
1913
Jules Goux
Peugeot
4
97.933
1914
Rene Thomas
Delage
4
82,47
1915
Ralph DePalma
Mercedes
4
89.84
1916
Dario Resta
Peugeot
4
84.00*(1)
1919
Howard Wilcox
Peugeot
4
88.05
1920
Gaston Chevrolet
Monroe
4
88.62
1921
Gaston Miltono
Frontenac
4
89.62
1922
Jimmy Murphy
Miller
8
94.48
1923
Tommy Milton
Miller
8
90.95
1924
L.L. Corum
Dusenberg
8
98.23
1925
Peter Depaolo
Duesenberg
8
101.13
1926
Frank Lockhart
Miller
8
95.904*(2)
1927
George Souders
Duesenberg
8
97.545
1928
Louis Meyer
Miller
8
100.448
1931
Louis Schneider
Miller
8
96.629
1932
Fred Frame
Miller
8
104.144
1933
Louis Meyer
Miller
8
104.162
1934
William Cummings
Offenhauser
4
104.863
1935
Kelly Petillo
Offenhauser
4
106.240
1936
Louis Meyer
Offenhauser
4
109.069
1937
Wilbur Shaw
Offenhauser
4
113.580
1938
Floyd Roberts
Offenhauser
4
117.200
1939
Wilbur Shaw
Masurati
8
115.035
1940
Wilbur Shaw
Maserati
8
114.277
1941
Floyd Davis
Offenhauser
4
115.117
1942-1945 Race not held (due to WWII)
1946
George Robson
Thorne/Sparks
6
114.820
1947
Mauri Rose
Offenhauser
4
116.338
1948
Mauri Rose
Offenhauser
4
119.814
1949
Bill Holland
Offenhauser
4
121.320
1950
Johnnie Parsons
Offenhauser
4
124.002*(3)
1951
Lee Wallard
Offenhauser
4
126.244
1952
Troy Ruttman
Offenhauser
4
128.922
1953
Bill Vukovich
Offenhauser
4
128.740
1954
Bill Vukovich
Offenhauser
4
130.840
1955
Bob Sweikert
Offenhauser
4
128.209
1956
Pat Flaherty
Offenhauser
4
128.490
1957
Sam Hanks
Offenhauser
4
135.601
1958
Jim Bryan
Offenhauser
4
133.791
1959
Rodger Ward
Offenhauser
4
135.857
1960
Jim Rathmann
Offenhauser
4
138.767
1961
A.J. Foyt
Offenhauser
4
139.130
1962
Rodger Ward
Offenhauser
4
140.293
1963
Parnelli Jones
Offenhauser
4
143.137
1964
A.J. Foyt
Offenhauser
4
147.350
1965
Jimmy Clark
Ford
8
150.686
1966
Graham Hill
Ford
8
144.317
1967
A.J. Foyt
Ford
8
151.207
1968
Bobby Unser
Offenhauser
4
152.882
1969
Mario Andretti
Hawk-Ford
8
156.867
1970
Al Unser
Colt Ford
8
155.749
1971
Al Unser
Colt Ford
8
157.735
1972
Mark Donahue
Offenhauser
4
162.962*(4)
1973
Gordon Johncock
Offenhauser
4
159.036
1974
Johnny Rutherford
Offenhauser
4
158.589
1975
Bobby Unser
Meyer Drake
4
149.213*(5)
1976
Johnny Rutherford
Offenhauser
4
148.725*(6)
1977
A.J. Foyt
Coyote-Foyt
4
161.331
1978
Al Unser
Cosworth
8
161.363
1979
Rick Mears
Cosworth
8
158.889
1980
Johnny Rutherford
Chaparral
8
142.862
1981
Bobby Unser
Offenhauser
4
139.029
1982
Gordon Johncock
Cosworth
8
162.029
1983
Tom Sneva
Cosworth
8
162.117
1984
Rick Mears
Cosworth
8
162.962
1985
Danny Sullivan
Cosworth
8
152.982
1986
Bobby Rahal
Cosworth
8
170.722
1987
Al Unser
Cosworth
8
162.175
1988
Rick Mears
Chevy
8
144.809
1989
E. Fittipaldi
Chevy
8
144.809
1990
Arie Luyendyk
Chevy
8
185.984
1991
Rick Mears
Chevy
8
176.457
1992
Al Unser Jr.
Chevy
8
134.447
1993
Emerson Fittipaldi
NA
NA
157.207
1994
Al Unser Jr.
NA
NA
160.872
1995
Jacques Villeneuve
NA
NA
153.616
1996
Buddy Lazier
NA
NA
147.956
1997
Arie Luyendyk
NA
NA
145.827
1998
Eddie Cheever Jr.
NA
NA
145.155
1999
Kenny Brack
NA
NA
153.176
2000
Juan Montoya
NA
NA
167.496
  * Due to rain, the race was shortened to: Â
  (1) 300 miles. Â
  (2) 400 miles. Â
  (3) 345 miles. Â
  (1) 332.5 miles. Â
  (4) 435 miles. Â
  (5) 255 miles. Â
  The race record, as of 2000, belongs to Arie Luyendyk. He averaged 185.984 MPH in 1990. |
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