Evening star., 1937-05-20
Promoters Self-Ffacing.

THE four founders Of the speedway
realized that a scientific labora-
tory would not interest the Wo,ld at
large. 1t needed color and drama,
novelty, If you will, that no other
laboratory possessed. And so they
dressed 1t up. They dangled $4,000
purse before the eyes of every great
racing star of that early era in auto
mobiling and established a 500-mlle
distance as an exciting test OF speed
and endurance. And all those inter-
ested in the progress of the automobile
industry, both in America and abroad,
were invited to participate.
The four men who founded the
Speedway asked nothing in return.
1t seems quite certain that they
never retrieved the money they poured
into this huge racing plant. Of
glory, too, they wanted no share.
Their names they desired forgotten
like the silver dedicatory brick that
lies imbedded among the red bricks
somewhere on the main straight
away.
When engineers designed the track
they ANTICIPATED top speed of 85
miles an hour, but lived to see this
figure exceeded by a large margin.
In 1925. Pete de Paolo established
a record of more than 100 miles an
hour, and in recent years tremendous
increase in power of racing cars has
compelled renovation of the track
% Fot Nj
Harroun First Winner.
THE first winner of 50O-mile race
Ray Harroun in 19l1-set an
example of experimentation for men
of racing by introducing the first
rear-vision mirror in his streamlined
Marmon Wasp. Four-Wheel brakes
were used here for the first time by
Jules Goux, French driver, who won
in 1918 I believe Dave Lewis used
the first 'front.' wheel drive in 1925,
while, in the same year, De Paolo
made his record with the then radi-
cal balloon tires. Low-slung automo-
bile bodies that hold a car in the
center of gravity resulted from rae
ing, and vast improvements in sus-
pension likewise have been achieved.
The 500-mile race also made manda-
tory installation of perfected springs
and shock absorbers.
Harvey Firestone founded the fame
OF his tires on lessons learned from
the racing laboratory, and other au-
tomobile men who turned to In
dianapolis in the early days were
W. c. Durant, Harry Stutz, Fred
Duesenberg, Walter and Howard Mar
mon, Col. Jesse G. Vincent, Albert
Champion, Charles Crawford and
Arthur C. Newly, to mention just
handful. They saw the scientific
benefits in racing
1900 Have Driven in Race.
IMMENSE crowds witnessing the
surging struggle of the 5O0-mile
race little thought they were part of
this scheme of science, even as they
acclaimed the winner of yesterday,
they were giving encouragement to
q winner of tomorrow. Unknown in
ventors, unknown car builders, un-
known drivers came to Indianapolis.
Sometimes they failed to find the
golden grail; sometimes they de-
parted with the rewards gained with
victory and achievement.
When the tWenty-fifth 5eO-mile
face draws to an end on May 81,
more than 1900 drivers will have
attempted to traverse those 12,5OO
hard competitive miles that consti-
tute quarter century of racing.
Thousands of others, mechanicians,
engineers and manufacturers, like
wise will have played their parts and
played them well
Millions of dollars have been
poured into scientific experiment, and
the Speedway itself during this time
has invested other millions, insuring
that the spectacle be as safe as hu-
manly possible. In prizes alone,
$1,3l6,800 has been posted by the
speedway.
Speed of the future in automobile
racing is unpredictable, but Is years
from now those who believe a safe
average of 160 miles an hour impos-
sible will have been convinced to the
contrary.
Speed on the speedway makes for
safety on the highway.
tCopyrieht, 1887, by the North American
Newspaper Alliance, lnc.)