Help Needed...

Hi, I am wondering if anyone can help me identify what is going on in the picture below. I believe it is a CART race, but I am unsure of when, where, and whether or not anyone was hurt at all. Thanks.

http://members.home.nl/erik8013/images/indycar/clips/scr_disc2-3.jpg

Originally posted by DNQ
Hi, I am wondering if anyone can help me identify what is going on in the picture below. I believe it is a CART race, but I am unsure of when, where, and whether or not anyone was hurt at all. Thanks.

http://members.home.nl/erik8013/images/indycar/clips/scr_disc2-3.jpg

What year it could be!? Pretty smokey anyway:)

I don't know, but I have asked and will ask some more to try and find out.

Is it like in 70s!? The cars look like it has been taken in 70s. I wasn't even born then so - I can't help you.

I am not sure, but given the fire that one can see, I think it is the 62 Indianapolis 500.

KM

Is that not the crash at Indianapolis back in the early seventies or late 1960's that Swede Savage sadly lost his life in ???

I feel quite certain that this is the 1962 Indy 500. Although blurry the cars look like the "roadster" type cars prevalant in that era. The Swede Savage incident was in 72, and I don't think that there was that much black smoke. The '62 Indy crash was smoky like that. Unless this picture was not taken at Indy, then it's hard to say where it was taken.

Hi, thanks for your help so far. I also forgot to mention that it is at Indianapolis, and that it occurred quite a while ago. Other than that, that's all I have to say. Oh, thanks a lot for your help.

your probably right Sevengrain..they do look like roasdters..so its not the swede savage crash...it could be the crash that AJ Foyt slowed down for picked his way through and went on to win the 500..not sure if that 62 or not but it could be a possibility.

I do think it is the 1962 500. If it indeed is '62,it is a picture of Eddie Sachs and Dave MacDonald who lost their lives in that terrible crash.

Savage was mortally injured in the 1973 500. He died a month later of complications associated with his burns.

Kurt Maxwell
MaxSport
Carmel,IN

Thanks for your help, everyone. What a shame that it is a fatal crash :(

According to two different sources, the deaths of Sachs and MacDonald occurred in the 1964 Indy 500. There were no fatalities in the 1962 500, though there was a multi car crash on lap 17 that year.

So, is it the fatal crash of 64, or is it a smokey non-fatal crash from 62 that we see in the picture?

Yep, I'd agree with 1964 on this one...

The Indianapolis News 500 record book 1982 edition has the following on the 1964 race.
A.J. Foyt was the winner.
Lap 1: MacDonald skidded into northwest inside retaining wall, exploded: Sachs hit MacDonald, exploded: Sachs killed. MacDonald died of injuries. Norm Hall spun to avoid crash, hit wall; Duman hit inside wall, caught fire, seriously burned; Unser bumped by Sachs hit outside wall; Stevenson broke brake drum, drove through fire; Rutherford bumped in firey melee, continued to pits. Race stoped 1-Hour 42 Minutes.
The above is at it appears in the book including all the punctuation marks etc.

http://www.geocities.com/Colosseum/Track/5502/500d-64.htm

This site has info about the fatal 1964 Indy 500.

The car Dave McDonald drove was built by Mickey Thompson, and it had a number of novel features, including small-diameter wheels. It was practised by Masten Gregory, who felt it was pretty undrivable and walked out on the project.

During the pre-race period, Masten told Jack Brabham to watch for certain movements in the car if it appeared to misbehave, and if it did it in front of him, get on the brakes fast!

Brabham was right behind McDonald going into that corner, saw what Masten had warned him about, and put his foot on the brake. "I think I pushed the pedal through the front of the chassis," he told me, "and poor Eddie went past me and T-boned McDonald. I owe Masten my life for that warning."

Ray Bell is right, 1964 Indianapolis. I have never seen this photo before. It has apparently been taken by a fan, sitting in the infield bleachers, exiting turn four.

Wasn't this or another tragic fiery crash the impetus to switch to ethanol?(or is it methanol?) I do not recall the year, but I have a feeling that it was a bit later, and that it was a terrible crash early on in the race, with ignited fuel going into the stands area as well?

Originally posted by djb
Wasn't this or another tragic fiery crash the impetus to switch to ethanol?(or is it methanol?) I do not recall the year, but I have a feeling that it was a bit later, and that it was a terrible crash early on in the race, with ignited fuel going into the stands area as well?

This 1964 crash caused the banning of gasoline in champ cars, replaced by methanol.

The other crash you are referring to, came at the start of the 1973 500. The fuel cell of Salt Walther'car split, spraying fuel into the stands on the front straight. These rows of seats were removed before the 1974 race.

Later in the race on lap 57, Swede Savage, who had pitted for 75 gallons of fuel only four laps before, slid sideways near the outer wall, then slammed into the inside wall, and exploded. He inhaled flames (as did Art Pollard who was killed in a qualifying accident three weeks earlier) and died of his injuries a month later. A member of Savage's crew, while running to the scene of the accident, was struck and killed by an emergency vehicle going to Savage's aid.

The Savage accident, lead to the reduction of fuel allowed to be carried in the cars, from 75 gallons, down to 40 gallons. Also the inside wall that he hit, was removed before the following years race. The rain shortened race, was won by Savage's team mate, Gordon Johncock.