1960 Indianapolis 500
Sanctioning body USAC | | ||||
Date | May 30, 1960 | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Winner | Jim Rathmann | ||||
Winning team | Ken-Paul | ||||
Average speed | 138.767 mph (223.324 km/h) | ||||
Pole position | Eddie Sachs | ||||
Pole speed | 146.592 mph (235.917 km/h) | ||||
Most laps led | Jim Rathmann (100) | ||||
Pre-race ceremonies | |||||
Pace car | Oldsmobile | ||||
Pace car driver | Sam Hanks | ||||
Starter | Bill Vanderwater[1] | ||||
Estimated attendance | 200,000[2] | ||||
Chronology | |||||
|
The 44th International 500-Mile Sweepstakes was held at the
Often regarded as the greatest two-man duel in Indianapolis 500 history, the 1960 race saw a then-record 29 lead changes (a record that stood until
The inaugural 500 Festival Open Invitation was held at the Speedway Golf Course in the four days leading up to the race.
Time trials
Time trials was scheduled for four days, but the third day was rained out.
- Saturday May 14 – Pole Day time trials
- Eddie Sachs set a track record of 146.592 mph to win the pole position.
- Sunday May 15 – Second day time trials
- Saturday May 21 – Third day time trials
- The third day of time trials was rained out.
- Sunday May 22 – Fourth day time trials
- Jim Hurtubise nearly broke the elusive and much-anticipated 150 mph barrier. Hurtubise's four-lap qualifying average of 149.056 mph featured a new one-lap record of 149.601 mph (on lap 3), to establish himself as the fastest qualifier in the field.[4]
After Carburetion tests, Dempsey Wilson replaced Jimmy Daywalt as the driver for the #23 entry, and the car was moved to the rear of the starting grid.[5]
Starting grid
Row | Inside | Middle | Outside | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 6 | Eddie Sachs | 4 | Jim Rathmann | 1 | Rodger Ward W |
2 | 97 | Dick Rathmann | 9 | Len Sutton | 28 | Troy Ruttman W |
3 | 22 | Eddie Johnson | 7 | Don Branson | 65 | Chuck Stevenson |
4 | 10 | Jimmy Bryan W | 73 | Don Freeland | 98 | Lloyd Ruby R |
5 | 8 | Johnny Boyd | 38 | Bob Christie | 32 | Wayne Weiler R |
6 | 5 | A. J. Foyt | 3 | Johnny Thomson | 2 | Tony Bettenhausen |
7 | 26 | Shorty Templeman | 37 | Gene Force | 14 | Bobby Grim |
8 | 27 | Red Amick | 55 | Jim Hurtubise R | 48 | Gene Hartley |
9 | 44 | Bob Veith | 99 | Paul Goldsmith | 17 | Duane Carter |
10 | 18 | Bud Tingelstad R | 46 | Eddie Russo | 76 | Al Herman |
11 | 39 | Bill Homeier | 16 | Jim McWithey | 23 | Dempsey Wilson |
Alternates
- First alternate: Chuck Rodee R (#89)[6]
Failed to qualify
- Chuck Arnold (#21)
- Foster Campbell R (#62) – Entry declined, not enough experience
- Bill Cheesbourg (#45)
- Bob Cleberg R (#61)
- Leon Clum R (#95) – Entry declined, not enough experience
- Russ Congdon R (#79)
- Jimmy Daywalt (#23) – Raced by Dempsey Wilson
- Duke Dinsmore (#95)
- Lee Drollinger R (#58)
- Jack Ensley R (#17)
- Cotton Farmer R (#31, #69)
- Cliff Griffith (#29)
- Norm Hall R (#31, #39, #92)
- Chuck Hulse R (#43, #69)
- Eddie Jackson R (#62) – Entry declined, not enough experience
- Bruce Jacobi R (#95) – Entry declined, not enough experience
- Al Keller (#35, #57)
- Mike Magill (#77)
- Jim Packard R (#71)
- Marvin Pifer R (#87)
- Ebb Rose R (#41)
- Jack Rounds R (#52)
- Paul Russo (#31, #47, #49)
- Gig Stephens R (#21)
- Johnnie Tolan (#24)
- Jack Turner (#25, #31)
- Bob Wente R (#95) – Did not finish rookie test
- Chuck Weyant (#87, #88)[7]
Race recap
First half
The race started out with four contenders in the first half.
The first caution came out on lap 47, after Duane Carter spun in turn 3. He did not hit the wall, came to a rest in the infield grass, then continued in the race. Later, Jim McWithey came into the pits without any brakes. He brushed the inside pit wall trying to slow the car down, but continued through the pit lane and wasn't able to stop until he reached the infield grass in turn 1. Later in the race, Eddie Russo and Wayne Weiler also suffer single-car crashes.
Rodger Ward stalled his engine twice during his first pit stop, losing considerable ground. After getting back on the track, he started charging to catch up to the front of the field.[8] Shortly after the halfway point, Eddie Sachs and Troy Ruttman would both drop out of the race, ultimately leaving Rathmann and Ward to battle it out in front.
Second half
On about lap 124, Tony Bettenhausen came in for a routine pit stop. He complained of a smoking engine, but returned to the track. One lap later, he was back in the pits with a fire and a blown engine. Bettenhausen was unhurt, but hoisted himself out of the cockpit as it was coasting to stop in the pits to avoid getting burned.
In the second half, Ward had caught up to Rathmann, with Johnny Thomson close behind in third. Rathmann and Ward swapped the lead several times, but meanwhile Ward was hoping that the pace would slow down, in order to save his tires to the end. After stalling in the pits earlier, the hard charge Ward made to get back to the front was a concern, as he was afraid he had worn out his tires prematurely. Ward was aware of Rathmann's tendencies as a driver, and allowed Rathmann to pass him for the lead. Rathmann was known for charging hard to take the lead, but once he was in the lead, would often back the pace down.[8] Ward's prediction came true, but it was at the expense of losing ground to third place. Johnny Thomson was now catching up.
With Thomson closing in on the leaders, Ward and Rathmann started charging again, racing each other hard, swapping the lead between themselves. Meanwhile, Thomson's engine lost power, and he slowed to a 5th-place finish. Inside ten laps to go, Rodger Ward seemed to have the faster car, and took the lead on lap 194. A few laps later though, Ward saw the cords in his right front tire showing, and he let off the pace.
Paul Goldsmith charged from 26th starting position to finish 3rd, holding off 4th place Don Branson by about a car length.
Box score
1960 Indianapolis 500 | |||
---|---|---|---|
Race 3 of 10 in the 1960 Formula One season | |||
Race details | |||
Date | 30 May 1960 | ||
Official name | 44th International 500-Mile Sweepstakes | ||
Location | Indianapolis Motor Speedway, Indianapolis | ||
Course | Permanent racing facility | ||
Course length | 4.023 km (2.500 miles) | ||
Distance | 200 laps, 804.675 km (500.000 miles) | ||
Pole position | |||
Driver |
Ewing-Offenhauser | ||
Time | 146.592 mph (235.917 km/h) | ||
Fastest lap | |||
Driver |
Jim Rathmann |
Watson-Offenhauser | |
Time | 1:01.59 | ||
Podium | |||
First |
|
Watson-Offenhauser | |
Second |
Watson-Offenhauser | ||
Third | Epperly-Offenhauser | ||
Lap leaders |
Pos | Grid | No | Driver | Constructor | Qual | Rank | Laps | Led | Time/Retired | Points |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 2 | 4 | Jim Rathmann
|
Watson-Offenhauser
|
146.37 | 4 | 200 | 100 | 3:36:11.36 | 8 |
2 | 3 | 1 | Rodger Ward W | Watson-Offenhauser
|
145.56 | 5 | 200 | 58 | + 0:12.75 | 6 |
3 | 26 | 99 | Paul Goldsmith | Epperly-Offenhauser | 142.78 | 27 | 200 | 0 | + 3:07.30 | 4 |
4 | 8 | 7 | Don Branson | Phillips-Offenhauser | 144.75 | 11 | 200 | 0 | + 3:07.98 | 3 |
5 | 17 | 3 | Johnny Thomson | Lesovsky-Offenhauser | 146.44 | 3 | 200 | 10 | + 3:11.35 | 2 |
6 | 7 | 22 | Eddie Johnson
|
Trevis-Offenhauser
|
145.00 | 10 | 200 | 0 | + 4:10.61 | 1 |
7 | 12 | 98 | Lloyd Ruby R | Watson-Offenhauser
|
144.20 | 15 | 200 | 0 | + 4:25.59 | |
8 | 25 | 44 | Bob Veith | Meskowski-Offenhauser | 143.36 | 23 | 200 | 0 | + 5:17.48 | |
9 | 28 | 18 | Bud Tingelstad R | Trevis-Offenhauser
|
142.35 | 29 | 200 | 0 | + 8:19.91 | |
10 | 14 | 38 | Bob Christie | Kurtis Kraft-Offenhauser | 143.63 | 19 | 200 | 0 | + 8:40.28 | |
11 | 22 | 27 | Red Amick | Epperly-Offenhauser | 143.08 | 26 | 200 | 0 | + 11:10.58 | |
12 | 27 | 17 | Duane Carter | Kuzma-Offenhauser
|
142.63 | 28 | 200 | 0 | + 11:17.20 | |
13 | 31 | 39 | Bill Homeier | Kuzma-Offenhauser
|
141.24 | 32 | 200 | 0 | + 12:10.71 | |
14 | 24 | 48 | Gene Hartley | Kurtis Kraft-Offenhauser | 143.89 | 16 | 196 | 0 | + 4 Laps | |
15 | 9 | 65 | Chuck Stevenson | Watson-Offenhauser
|
144.66 | 12 | 196 | 0 | + 4 Laps | |
16 | 21 | 14 | Bobby Grim | Meskowski-Offenhauser | 143.15 | 25 | 194 | 0 | + 6 Laps | |
17 | 19 | 26 | Shorty Templeman | Kurtis Kraft-Offenhauser | 143.85 | 17 | 191 | 0 | Clutch | |
18 | 23 | 56 | Jim Hurtubise R | Christensen-Offenhauser | 149.05 | 1 | 185 | 0 | Engine | |
19 | 10 | 10 | Jimmy Bryan W | Epperly-Offenhauser | 144.53 | 13 | 152 | 0 | Fuel System | |
20 | 6 | 28 | Troy Ruttman W | Watson-Offenhauser
|
145.36 | 8 | 134 | 11 | Axle | |
21 | 1 | 6 | Eddie Sachs | Ewing-Offenhauser
|
146.59 | 2 | 132 | 21 | Magneto | |
22 | 11 | 73 | Don Freeland | Kurtis Kraft-Offenhauser | 144.35 | 14 | 129 | 0 | Magneto | |
23 | 18 | 2 | Tony Bettenhausen | Watson-Offenhauser
|
145.21 | 9 | 125 | 0 | Engine | |
24 | 15 | 32 | Wayne Weiler R | Epperly-Offenhauser | 143.51 | 20 | 103 | 0 | Accident | |
25 | 16 | 5 | A. J. Foyt | Kurtis Kraft-Offenhauser | 143.46 | 22 | 90 | 0 | Clutch | |
26 | 29 | 46 | Eddie Russo | Kurtis Kraft-Offenhauser | 142.20 | 30 | 90 | 0 | Accident | |
27 | 13 | 8 | Johnny Boyd | Epperly-Offenhauser | 143.77 | 18 | 77 | 0 | Engine | |
28 | 20 | 37 | Gene Force | Kurtis Kraft-Offenhauser | 143.47 | 21 | 74 | 0 | Brakes | |
29 | 32 | 16 | Jim McWithey | Epperly-Offenhauser | 140.37 | 33 | 60 | 0 | Brakes | |
30 | 5 | 9 | Len Sutton | Watson-Offenhauser
|
145.44 | 7 | 47 | 0 | Engine | |
31 | 4 | 97 | Dick Rathmann | Watson-Offenhauser
|
145.54 | 6 | 42 | 0 | Brakes | |
32 | 30 | 76 | Al Herman | Ewing-Offenhauser
|
141.83 | 31 | 34 | 0 | Clutch | |
33 | 33 | 23 | Dempsey Wilson | Kurtis Kraft-Offenhauser | 143.21 | 24 | 11 | 0 | Magneto |
Lap leaders
- 1 Ward
- 2–3 Sachs
- 4–18 Ward
- 19–24 Ruttman
- 25–37 J. Rathmann
- 38–41 Ward
- 42–51 Sachs
- 52–56 Ruttman
- 57–61 Sachs
- 62–69 J. Rathmann
- 70–72 Sachs
- 73–74 J. Rathmann
- 75 Sachs
- 76–85 J. Rathmann
- 86–95 Thomson
- 96–122 J. Rathmann
- 123–127 Ward
- 128–141 J. Rathmann
- 142–146 Ward
- 147 J. Rathmann
- 148–151 Ward
- 152–162 J. Rathmann
- 163–169 Ward
- 170 J. Rathmann
- 171–177 Ward
- 178–182 J. Rathmann
- 183–189 Ward
- 190–193 J. Rathmann
- 194–196 Ward
- 197–200 J. Rathmann
Race notes
- Fastest Lead Lap: Jim Rathmann – 1:01.59
- The 1960 Indianapolis 500 was the final 500 which featured a 33-car field consisting of all front-engined cars.
- The weather on race day would reach a high of 75 °F (24 °C) with wind speeds up to 15 miles per hour (24 km/h).Climate historianswould consider this to be the "traditional" climate for an Indianapolis 500 race.
- Despite some published claims that it was Smokey Yunick,[10] the race-winning chief mechanic for Rathmann was Takeo "Chickie" Hirashima.[11]
Spectator fatalities
Two spectators in the infield, Fred H. Linder, 36, of Indianapolis, and William C. Craig, 37, of Zionsville, were killed, and as many as 82 were injured, when a homemade scaffolding collapsed. Approximately 125–130 patrons had paid a small fee ($5–$10) to view the race from the 30-foot tall scaffolding, erected by a private individual (Wilbur Shortridge, Jr.[12]) and not the Speedway – a practice that was allowed at the time. The structure was partially anchored to a pick-up truck, and situated in the infield of turn three. Over the years, the private scaffold platforms had become a popular fixture at the Speedway, with often many located around the massive infield. They were not sponsored by the track, and at times, the track management would attempt to curtail the practice, with safety in mind. However, enforcement was inconsistent, and they were not banned outright prior to 1960.
During the parade lap as the field drove by, the people on the platform began to lean and wave at the cars, which caused the scaffolding to become unstable. It soon tipped forward and fell to the ground, crushing people who were underneath the structure, and the 125–130 people who were on it either fell or jumped to the ground. Linder and Craig were pronounced dead of broken necks, and over 80 were injured, about 22 seriously.
After the accident, the Speedway banned "bootleg" homemade scaffolds at the track, a rule that still exists to this day. The track management was scrutinized by the state fire marshal and other officials for allowing the scaffolds to be constructed without permits, inspections, or any sort of safety rules. Other reports even criticized spectators who witnessed the tragedy and did little to offer help, whereas many in attendance were totally unaware of the accident. Johnny Rutherford, who was attending the race for the first time as a spectator, claims to have witnessed the accident.[13] In addition, his future wife Betty Hoyer, a student nurse, attended to the scene.[14]
Championship standings after the race
|
|
- Notes: Only the top five positions are included for both sets of standings. Also, points scored in the 500 did not count towards the F1 constructors championship.
Broadcasting
Radio
The race was carried live on the IMS Radio Network. Sid Collins served as chief announcer. Fred Agabashian served as "driver expert" for the second year. After the race, Luke Walton reported from victory lane.
For the first time, the network reached South Africa via tape-delay rebroadcasts.
Indianapolis Motor Speedway Radio Network | ||
---|---|---|
Booth Announcers | Turn Reporters | Pit/garage reporters
|
|
Turn 1: Bill Frosh |
Greg Smith (north) Jack Shapiro (center) Luke Walton (south) |
References
- ISBN 0-915088-05-3.
- ^ a b The Talk of Gasoline Alley – 1070-AM WIBC, May 21, 2007
- ^ Indy Record Probable
- ^ "The Talk of Gasoline Alley", WIBC, May 12, 2003
- ^ The Talk of Gasoline Alley – 1070-AM WIBC, May 14, 2004
- ^ "1960 International 500 Mile Sweepstakes". ChampCarStats. Retrieved 26 June 2015.
- ^ a b c The Talk of Gasoline Alley – 1070-AM WIBC, April 30, 2007
- ^ "Weather information for the "1960 Indianapolis 500"". The Old Farmers' Almanac. Retrieved 2013-06-26.
- ^ "The Talk of Gasoline Alley," WIBC: May 20, 2005
- ^ "The Talk of Gasoline Alley," WFNI/Network Indiana: May 21, 2009
- ^ Grandstand Collapse at the 1960 Indianapolis 500
- ^ The Talk of Gasoline Alley. May 22, 2000. Network Indiana.
- ^ Cork, Bob (1974-06-09). "Rutherford's Wife Met Tragedy, Then Him, at Indy". The Milwaukee Journal. Retrieved 2014-03-11.[permanent dead link]
- ^ a b "Indianapolis 1960 - Championship • STATS F1". www.statsf1.com. Retrieved 18 March 2019.
External links
- Indianapolis 500 History: Race & All-Time Stats – Official Site
- 1960 Indianapolis 500 Radio Broadcast, Indianapolis Motor Speedway Radio Network