The Indianapolis times. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1922-1965, 1933-05-31
Lou Meyer Speeds to Second
800 Triumph in Record Race
Motor Marks Tumble in
Thrilling Classic;
Shaw Second.
BY NORMAN E. IssACs


Louis Meyer perched him.
self on the throne of speed
today, winner for the second
time of the 50O-mile motor
sweepstakes at the Indian
apolis motor speedway Me-
mortal day.
Records toppled as Meyer flashed
around the wreck-rimmed oval,
gradually increasing his lead from
one lap at 800 miles to a full four
laps at the finish. The Huntington
Park (Cal) driver. who won in
1928. set new 5OO-mile record of
1O4162 miles an hour for the full
grind
His eight cylinder. rear-drive,
Miller motored Tydol Special
worked perfectly, and Meyer. driv-
ing a canny, marvelouSly Judged
race, stopped only three times.
The first time was on his fifty-frst
lap, when he was running second;
the second time at 1G2 laps, when
he still held that position. and the
last time at ITO laps, when he was
holding a two-Iap advantage over
Wilbur Shaw, Indianapolis pilot.
who took second money in a NAL
lory Special.
Crash Cuts Speed
Undoubtedly a new record of pos
sibly 108 miles an hour would have
been set had not the field been
slowed down to speed ranging
around sixty miles an hour when
the cars of Malcolm Fox and Lester
Spangler smashed on the southwest
turn, bringing death to Spangler
and his riding mechanic, G. L. Jor-
dan.
Delayed fifteen minutes by a
drivers strike. the start of the race
saw Wild Bill" Cummings, local
ace, hammer into the lead to set
new One-lap record of 114.141
miles an hour.
Cummings held the lead for
eigthy-f1ve miles, setting up amaz-
ing new records for every signal
post. His speeds were 1850 at
10 miles, 1928 at Is miles, 114.118
at so miles and 1859 at Is miles.
Cummings lost his radiator cap
and Fred Frame dashed into the
lead to continue the setting of new
records until Babe Slap went ahead
at las miles
Stapp Loses Lead
Stapp held his lead until 800
miles. Frame and Cummings had
gone out of the race and Meyer had
moved up to the striking position.
He raced into the lead when Stapp
miSjudged his gasoline supply and
ran out of fuel on the back stretch.
From then on it was all Louis
Meyer.
Shaw, in second, was followed by
Lou Moore who took third; Chef
Gardner who picked up fourth
money; Stubby Stubblef1eld. fifth:
Dave Evans, sixth; Tony Gulotta,
seventh; Russell Snowberger, eighth;
zeke Meyer, ninth, and Luther
Johnson, tenth.
The first four cars we're strictly
racing automobiles, Meyers an
eight, Shaws and Moore's Miller
fours, and Gardeners a Miller eared
sixteen two eight cylinder motors
placed side by side.
Stock Cars Collect
From there down the row it was
the stock cars day The fifth car
vas a Buick motored machine. and
the sixth, seventh, eighth. ninth and
t h all Studebaker-m
speedsters.
The eleventh and twelfth places
went to Studebakers, Bergere and
Corum; the thirteenth to Willard
Prentice in a Duesenberg; and the
fourteenth to Raoul Riganti in a
Chrysler machine.
The oil and gas rule combined to
make the day miserable for most of
the racing cars. The added weight
OF the stock cars made little differ
ence IN the number of stops a car
was forced to make and there is no
telling just at this time how manv
cars were knocked out of the run
nlng by the siX-gallon oil limitation.
Drivers of strictly racing ma
chlnes would have you believe the
rule is stock car plot to ruin rae
ing. 1t isn't that bad The taking
OF the first four places by racing
cars proves that.
Event Most Sensational
The trouble actually can be placed
at the door of the mechanics. If A.
mechanic put his car together well
and had it "buttoned up" as it
should have been, his car finished.
aside, Of course, from several incl
dents of racing luck, like Cum
mings' and Stapp's.
The 1888 race ranks as the most
sensational in all history. If there
is any one fault to be found. if is
That the field is too large and too
fast.
If the A. A. A. is to permit speci-
fications that make for extra high
speed, then the field in the Indian
apolis race should be cut to thirty
three cars. 1t will make for more
safety. There can be no safety at
1l5 and 116 miles an hour with
forty-tWo cars on a tWo-and-one-
half-mile racing strip.
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