Indianapolis Times, Indianapolis, Marion County, 29 May 1951 — Page 16
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PANE 18 Local Boys in Race
Indianapolis, home of the « Superstition Hitches a Ride
boasts three drivers for the 35th
THE INDIANAPOLIS TIMES
Holds Pit Record
500-miler. They are Cliff we With SA Wh og oo : Jackie Holmes and Bill Mackey. | £ Oo a e L 3 The unofficial record for a fast TTT TTT t ft ! yr v f in pit stop belongs to the crew of
| Race drivers are too supersti-
tious to talk about their superstitions. But they've got 'em
HEAVYWEIGHT { Black cats, peanuts in rhe pits, | No. 13, the color green, women in. CHAMPIONSHI the garage area are but a few of
the taboos making up the tableaux of the 500-Mile Race. A long time ago, way back in
of the WORLD! the 1925, Winner Pete DePaola _—~— |Indulged himself in baby choes = lon the dashboard. The shoes
‘seemed to help. Pete's still among us. Fancied Black Cat The 1949 winner, Bill Holland, > had a fancy for a certain black ~ (cat that made its home in the, garage area. Holland's luck | [traveled a smooth road on the feline’s arching back. Seconds in 1947 and 1948 preceded his victory in 1949.
ON TELEVISION | citoners tears "tn" inetr CHANNEL 6 cars. St. Christopher is the
9:00 P. M. a welcome companion on a
crew followed suit. The Jackson
entourage at the track looked like a mechanized Irish picnic. Nothing's happened to Jimmy yet.
Drivers Have Fears
And there are “superstitions” that aren't superstitions at all. Cynics often point out that a
patron saint of the traveler. He's driver always enters his car the tion and hold place.
same way. The fact that the un-|
the lata Bernard Rosemever, His they pass by a spot on the track pow once refueled his: car, where they've spun, burned Or changed four tires, restarted his crashed. And they must remember engine and got him underway in when they watched a" fellow 44 seconds. driver “getting his.” - Last year Mauri Rose's crew No, drivers don't talk . about 4iq areal fancy Dan act. They those things. They drive like the changed tires, refueled and had a wind and superstition hitchhikes fire in 1 minute and 20 seconds. a ride with them. They roar and Jim Travers of Rose's crew set plummet and speed. Memories can an all time track record for shedtravel at a 130 mph clip, too. ding his trousers. When the fire ~— hit his clothes he leaped over the pit wall with pants ablaze and removed them in 15 seconds according to best estimates,
Here's What Flags Mean
Flags carry a special meaning Death Strikes Close to drivers in the 500-mile classic. Wild Bill Cummings of IndianHere's what they mean: apolis, who won the Speedway Checkered Flag--You have fin- Race in 1934, and Floyd Roberts, ished the race. who won in 1938, died three White FI , months apart. Cummings passed vour last iy You away February 8th, 1939, Green Flag Used at the start Roberts died May 30, 1939, one ? 3 start year after winning the 1938 event. ani ju 10 indicate a clear track, Roberts died in a three-car pileag—Drive with cau- yn quring the 1939 race.
are starting
Blue, Orange Stripe—Car at-
Vitamin Pills
and,
The dodo is extinct. Not so the railbird.‘Every “500” season you'll find the railbird nesting in the same old place at the Speedway. There he perches on the
pit wall, feeds on gossip, hatches race rumors. It's a man’s world in this
peculiary aviary. It always has been. Alwa’'s will be. Female railbirds are non-existent.
~ » » BY THEIR plumage shall ye know them. Loud sports shirts, dark glasses, billed caps, stop watches worn on a belt loop and a bit of grease on the trousers make up the costume.
They flock to the race track about a month hefore the “500.” They stay until it's just a cas-
Rosemeyer Crew Railbird Peculiar Fellow
tinged memory. These birds have such aliases as newshawks and eagle-eyed AAA officials. They apfear rain or shine. The railbirds have closed ranks a number of times. The vacancies will never be filled. Who could take the place of such as Rex Mays, Shorty Cantlon, Floyd Roberts and George Robson and all the rest whose wings are folded forever? = ~ ~
tor-oil
AFTER tomorrow the rail- |
birds will fly away to places like Milwaukee, -DuQuoin, Springfield, Dayton and Darlington. Sure as the swallows come back to Capistrano, they'll be back at Speedway next year.
They always>come home to |
roost.
TUESDAY, May 29, 1951
FRANK FENR BREWING CO, INC, LOUISVILLE 2, KY.
favored side contains a red-hot tempting to pass you. Red Flag—Stop, race is halted.| - Some of the drivers take horBlack Flag-—Stop at pits for mone shots and vitamins at pit consultation. * |stops to help relieve fatigue.
dangerous 500-mile trip. There are drivers who defy exhaust pipe seems to make little} | superstition. Jimmy Jackson is “ifference to the cynic. one. Jimmy flaunted the old] Like the rest of us, drivers have, {bugaboo about green cars being their fears. No man is born with- | {bad luck. He had his mount nut fear. Drivers don’t discuss it, painted green, donned a green T- but there must be a spine tingle, shirt and green glov2s. His pitia tightening of the throat when
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Drivers, mechanics and rail birds| use picturesque terms in dis-/ cussing the race.
| The unitiated won't need an in|terpreter if he remembers these t
Shoe or Skin—Tire (also called “Doughnut.”) Small Bull Ring—A dirt track. Sneeze—DBacktire, Stick—Cameghaft.
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erms: Smokestack—Exhaust pipe. ® Antiques ® Classie Cars Alligator—See “Old Clunker.” Soup—Motor fuel, ® Nash-Healey Sports Car An Old Clunker— See “01d Windmill—Supercharger. ® Oldsmobile “Bubble exhibit .1 Goat.” Wind It Up—Slowly increasing TT Back Off— Reducing accelera- Speed until maximum is reached. | ADMISsioN $|00 | i“ ax Included tion. | If a rail bird says, “His knee| Children under 12, 4c tax
Drawing May 30. Winner needn't be present. Free registration for drawing.
ticket additional.
| hit his chin,” he means the driver has taken his foot off the accel-| erator before he should have.
Balloon Foot—Slow driver. Benzine—Motor fuel. Binders—Brakes. Blacksmith—A mechanic. Blowers—Superchargers. Buckets—Pistons. Bugs—Mee¢hanical faults. Chauffeur—Driver (see Jockey). | Cog (high and low) — Gear ratio. Control Stick—Steering wheel. Cutting a Quick One—Driving| a particularly fast lap. | Crate—Any racing car. Doughnut—See “Shoe.” : Fifth Wheel—Steering wheel. | Gadget Board — Instrument] panel. . { Galloper—Connecting rod. Gates—Valves, Grease Monkey—Mechanic. Gilhooley—A bad spin or skid. The original Gilhooley lives in |New York. He continually risked his life in spins and skids, hence the term. Iron—Motor or auto parts. Jockey—Driver. Kicking It—Stepping on accelerator, Lead Foot—A fast driver. Loggy—Motor acting lazy. |
=
the |
Losing It—Letting a car get, § ITTINC out of control. | : On It—When a driver is press-| : Mile R St WON » : | ing hard on the throttle. ean ever | : AMOU DRIVERS Old Gave—Reference to Gabriel ==The Unfinished "500." 1950 lo. | riding with driver who has had| Not disnapelis Roce; Joha Cobb's OL, 1 World feed Bas ten 3 | & narrow escape—"Riding with! : ' . ville Sait Plats); Grand Conyen | Old Gabe.” tion trials Economy Run: Roce Films in Old Goat—An old car. I sit color and sound. Pouring Coke to It—Going fast Yo ® Io on the turns i . achieve tl MONZA, ITALY Pots—Carburetors. | ' Quick—To go fast. ! 3m MONTHLERY, Revving— When a car is “really and the h PARIS |revving” it means a driver is | . - AR. / 7 un an et rrr | trous wre NARElIR2’75"% | Now You Can Get Famous Ade J lI['{\\}z DOG BISCUIT! ic a fort | Perfect f : ! Iwan -« | © eC OF "— Sra shez e | race. But SUE N New uersey indianapolis | Between-Meal Snacks Mechanie At la San; . f them, | TONIGHT—TUES., MAY 29 Over 200 mina Ibe. fed 1 Tadegs : : kennels-—now available at your fa- s early eno ite store. So first chance get a big box of this famous Ken-L-Biskit. For- “
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