# 1962 Indianapolis 500

The 46th International 500-Mile Sweepstakes was held at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Speedway, Indiana on Wednesday, May 30, 1962.
A historic pole day saw Parnelli Jones break the 150 mph (240 km/h) barrier in qualifying. Rodger Ward and Len Sutton finished 1st-2nd for Leader Cards Racing.
The 1962 Indy 500 marked the final 500 wherein the entire 33-car field consisted of U.S.-born participants. It was also the first race held with the track surface paved entirely in asphalt, with just the ceremonial single yard of bricks exposed at the start/finish line.

## Race schedule

For 1962, the Opening Day of practice was shifted back to Saturday April 28. Time trials were held on the second and third weekends of May, allowing the 500 Festival Open Invitation golf tournament the entire fourth weekend of May. Bump Day was held May 20, ten days prior to the race. Carburetion Day, the final day of practice was held Monday May 28, along with the 500 Festival Parade later that evening.
Race schedule — April/May 1962 :
| Sun | Mon | Tue | Wed | Thu | Fri | Sat |
| 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 | 26 | 27 | 28 Practice |
| 29 Practice | 30 Practice | 1 Practice | 2 Practice | 3 Practice | 4 Practice | 5 Practice |
| 6 Practice | 7 Practice | 8 Practice | 9 Practice | 10 Practice | 11 Practice | 12 Pole Day |
| 13 Time Trials | 14 Practice | 15 Practice | 16 Practice | 17 Practice | 18 Practice | 19 Time Trials |
| 20 Bump Day | 21 | 22 | 23 Pro-Am | 24 500 Open | 25 500 Open | 26 500 Open |
| 27 500 Open | 28 Carb Day | 29 Meeting | 30 Indy 500 | 31 Banquet | | |
| Color | Notes |
| Green | Practice |
| Dark Blue | Time trials |
| Silver | Race day |
| Blank | No track activity |

## Time trials

Time trials were scheduled for four days.
* Saturday May 12 – Pole Day time trials
** Len Sutton was the first driver to make an assault on the track record. His fourth lap of 149.900 mph was a new one-lap track record.
** Parnelli Jones became the first driver to break the 150 mph barrier. His first lap was run at 150.729 mph, a new all-time one-lap track record. All four of his laps were over 150 mph, and his four-lap average came in at 150.370 mph. Jones was rewarded by having 150 silver dollars poured into his helmet by Phil Hedback of Bryant Heating & Cooling.
* Sunday May 13 – Second day time trials
** The 13th proved to be an unlucky day for Norm Hall, whose previous crash in car #25 left him unscathed, but today, he spun the #41 Forbes Special on the Southwest Turn, hit the wall backwards and was severely injured, including a fractured left leg and possible skull fracture. Jim Rathmann and Troy Ruttman both were flagged off by their crews after they failed to get sufficient speed to qualify. Eddie Sachs could not reach an acceptable speed and a new engine was ordered for his Dean-Autolite Special machine. Dan Gurney left for Holland to compete in the Holland Grand Prix. Qualifiers this day were Eddie Johnson #32 at 146.592 and Bob Veith #96 at 146.157.
* Saturday May 19 – Third day time trials
* Sunday May 20 – Fourth day time trials

## Starting grid

| Row | Inside | Inside | Middle | Middle | Outside | Outside |
| 1 | 98 | Parnelli Jones | 3 | Rodger Ward W | 54 | Bobby Marshman |
| 2 | 7 | Len Sutton | 1 | A. J. Foyt W | 4 | Shorty Templeman |
| 3 | 15 | Jim McElreath R | 34 | Dan Gurney R | 17 | Roger McCluskey |
| 4 | 5 | Bud Tingelstad | 14 | Don Branson | 27 | Don Davis |
| 5 | 9 | Dick Rathmann | 62 | Paul Russo | 18 | Bobby Grim |
| 6 | 19 | Chuck Hulse R | 21 | Elmer George | 32 | Eddie Johnson |
| 7 | 96 | Bob Veith | 88 | Gene Hartley | 67 | Chuck Rodee R |
| 8 | 83 | Allen Crowe R | 44 | Jim Rathmann W | 12 | Lloyd Ruby |
| 9 | 45 | Jack Turner | 53 | Paul Goldsmith | 2 | Eddie Sachs |
| 10 | 38 | Johnny Boyd | 91 | Jim Hurtubise | 26 | Troy Ruttman W |
| 11 | 29 | Bob Christie | 86 | Ebb Rose | 79 | Jimmy Daywalt |

### Alternates

* First alternate: Dempsey Wilson (#31)
* Second alternate: Ronnie Duman R (#28)

### Failed to qualify

* Chuck Arnold (#23, #37, #46, #47, #77)
* Duane Carter (#72)
* Bill Cheesbourg (#35, #59, #88)
* Leon Clum R (#6, #23)
* Jack Conely R (#89)
* Russ Congdon R
* Tommy Copp R (#58)
* Johnny Coy R (#68, #92)
* Chuck Daigh R (#35)
* Jack Ensley R (#95)
* Jack Fairman R (#32, #78)
* Don Freeland (#36)
* Roy Graham R (#55)
* Norm Hall (#25, #41)
* Jim Hemmings R (#65, #94)
* Herb Hill R (#69) – Entry declined
* Bruce Jacobi R (#22)
* Ed Kostenuk R (#37)
* Ralph Ligouri R (#68)
* Bob Mathouser R (#43)
* Mike McGreevey R (#46)
* Al Miller R (#64)
* Keith Rachwitz R (#33)
* Gig Stephens R (#61)
* Chuck Stevenson (#16)
* Chuck Weyant

## Race recap
### First half

Parnelli Jones took the lead at the start, and led the first 59 laps. The first incident on the track occurred on lap 17. A four-car crash in turn four involved Jack Turner, Bob Christie, Allen Crowe, and Chuck Rodee. A lengthy yellow light period was needed to clean up the incident.

### Second half

Rodger Ward led the final 31 laps en route to victory. It was his second 500 win, after winning also in 1959. His Leader Cards teammate Len Sutton finished second, accomplishing the first team "sweep" of 1st-2nd since the Blue Crown team did it in 1947 and 1948.
After dominating much of the early race, Parnelli Jones, who started on the pole and led 120 laps, finished 7th. Jones chances for victory faded around the lap 125 mark when he lost his brakes. Unable to easily bring his car to a halt during pit stops, his crew put out tires so he could bump up against them or ride over them in order to help stop the car.

## Box score

| Finish | Start | No | Name | Chassis | Engine | Qual | Laps | Status |
| 1 | 2 | 3 | Rodger Ward W | Watson | Offenhauser | 149.371 | 200 | Running |
| 2 | 4 | 7 | Len Sutton | Watson | Offenhauser | 149.328 | 200 | Running |
| 3 | 27 | 2 | Eddie Sachs | Ewing | Offenhauser | 146.431 | 200 | Running |
| 4 | 12 | 27 | Don Davis | Lesovsky | Offenhauser | 147.209 | 200 | Running |
| 5 | 3 | 54 | Bobby Marshman | Epperly | Offenhauser | 149.347 | 200 | Running |
| 6 | 7 | 15 | Jim McElreath R | Kurtis Kraft | Offenhauser | 149.025 | 200 | Running |
| 7 | 1 | 98 | Parnelli Jones | Watson | Offenhauser | 150.370 | 200 | Running |
| 8 | 24 | 12 | Lloyd Ruby | Watson | Offenhauser | 146.520 | 200 | Running |
| 9 | 23 | 44 | Jim Rathmann W | Watson | Offenhauser | 146.610 | 200 | Running |
| 10 | 28 | 38 | Johnny Boyd | Salih | Offenhauser | 147.047 | 200 | Running |
| 11 | 6 | 4 | Shorty Templeman | Watson | Offenhauser | 149.050 | 200 | Running |
| 12 | 11 | 14 | Don Branson | Epperly | Offenhauser | 147.312 | 200 | Running |
| 13 | 29 | 91 | Jim Hurtubise | Watson | Offenhauser | 146.963 | 200 | Running |
| 14 | 32 | 86 | Ebb Rose | Porter | Offenhauser | 146.336 | 200 | Running |
| 15 | 10 | 5 | Bud Tingelstad | Phillips | Offenhauser | 147.753 | 200 | Running |
| 16 | 9 | 17 | Roger McCluskey | Watson | Offenhauser | 147.759 | 168 | Spun T2 |
| 17 | 17 | 21 | Elmer George (Paul Russo Laps 53–126) (A. J. Foyt Laps 127–147) | Lesovsky | Offenhauser | 146.092 | 147 | Engine |
| 18 | 30 | 26 | Troy Ruttman W | Kuzma | Offenhauser | 146.765 | 140 | Piston |
| 19 | 15 | 18 | Bobby Grim | Trevis | Offenhauser | 146.604 | 96 | Oil Leak |
| 20 | 8 | 34 | Dan Gurney R | Thompson | Buick | 147.886 | 92 | Rear End |
| 21 | 16 | 19 | Chuck Hulse R | Kurtis Kraft | Offenhauser | 146.377 | 91 | Fuel Pump |
| 22 | 33 | 79 | Jimmy Daywalt | Kurtis Kraft | Offenhauser | 146.318 | 74 | Transmission |
| 23 | 5 | 1 | A. J. Foyt W | Trevis | Offenhauser | 149.074 | 69 | Lost wheel |
| 24 | 13 | 9 | Dick Rathmann | Watson | Offenhauser | 147.161 | 51 | Magneto |
| 25 | 18 | 32 | Eddie Johnson | Trevis | Offenhauser | 146.592 | 38 | Magneto |
| 26 | 26 | 53 | Paul Goldsmith | Epperly | Offenhauser | 146.437 | 26 | Magneto |
| 27 | 20 | 88 | Gene Hartley (Bill Cheesbourg Laps 21–23) | Watson | Offenhauser | 146.969 | 23 | Steering |
| 28 | 14 | 62 | Paul Russo | Watson | Offenhauser | 146.687 | 20 | Piston |
| 29 | 25 | 45 | Jack Turner | Kurtis Kraft | Offenhauser | 146.496 | 17 | Crash FS |
| 30 | 31 | 29 | Bob Christie | Kurtis Kraft | Offenhauser | 146.341 | 17 | Crash FS |
| 31 | 22 | 83 | Allen Crowe R | Watson | Offenhauser | 146.831 | 17 | Crash FS |
| 32 | 21 | 67 | Chuck Rodee R | Christensen | Offenhauser | 146.969 | 17 | Crash FS |
| 33 | 19 | 96 | Bob Veith | Elder | Offenhauser | 146.157 | 12 | Engine |
| Sources: |||||||||
Note: Relief drivers in parentheses
W Former Indianapolis 500 winner
R Indianapolis 500 Rookie
All entrants utilized Firestone tires.

### Race statistics

Lap Leaders :
| Laps | Leader |
| 1–59 | Parnelli Jones |
| 60–61 | A. J. Foyt |
| 62–64 | Roger McCluskey |
| 65–125 | Parnelli Jones |
| 126–160 | Rodger Ward |
| 161–169 | Len Sutton |
| 170–200 | Rodger Ward |
Total laps led :
| Driver | Laps |
| Parnelli Jones | 120 |
| Rodger Ward | 66 |
| Len Sutton | 9 |
| Roger McCluskey | 3 |
| A. J. Foyt | 2 |
Yellow Lights: 5 for 38 minutes, 18 seconds :
| Laps* | Reason |
| 18–33 | Turner, Christie, Crowe, Rodee crash in turn 4 (18:44) |
| 37–38 | Shorty Templeman spin fronstretch (2:09) |
| 60–62 | Bobby Grim (1:39) |
| 75–81 | A. J. Foyt lost wheel (6:50) |
| 168 | Roger McCluskey spin turn 2 (9:27) |
| * – Approximate lap counts ||

## Broadcasting
### Radio

The race was carried live on the IMS Radio Network. Sid Collins served as chief announcer. Fred Agabashian served as "driver expert." Newcomer Howdy Bell joined the crew, serving as a turn reporter. It was his first of over 40 years with the network. Turn reporter Mike Ahern, who debuted on the radio crew a year earlier, missed the 1962 race due to being in the Army. He would return in 1963.
Indianapolis Motor Speedway Radio Network :
| Booth Announcers | Turn Reporters | Pit/garage reporters |
| Chief Announcer: Sid Collins Driver expert: Fred Agabashian Statistician: Charlie Brockman | Turn 1: Bill Frosh Turn 2: Howdy Bell R  Backstretch: Bernie Herman Turn 3: Lou Palmer Turn 4: Jim Shelton | Jack Shapiro (north) Luke Walton (center) John Peterson (south) |

### Television

Highlights of the time trials were shown on ABC's "Wide World Of Sports".

## Gallery

* 1962 winning car (Ward)
* 1962 pole position winning car (Jones)