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The 1935 Indianapolis 500 held at Indianapolis on Thursday, May 30, 1935. Despite attempts to improve participant safety by requiring crash helmets and installing green and yellow lights around the track, the event that year would prove to be one of the worst in terms of fatalities.[1]

Pre-race and qualifying[]

On May 21, nine days before the race, three prospective participants lost their lives. Rookie Johnny Hannon, on just his first lap at racing speed, had his car go over the outside retaining wall and was killed from a fractured skull. Later that day, driver Hartford "Stubby" Stubblefield also had his car go over the outside wall, and both he and his riding mechanic Leo Whittaker died from injuries they received being thrown from the vehicle.[2] Kelly Petillo, the eventual winner, had his own difficulties getting into the field. His initial qualifying run (a record-breaking 121.687 miles per hour ( km/h) was voided when his car was ruled to have exceeded the fuel limit. Returning to the track, he had an engine blow, before finally having a qualifying run of 115.095 that placed him 22nd in the field.[3]

Race[]

Driver Clay Weatherly would beg Leon Duray, the owner of Hannon's crashed car, to allow him to drive it in the race. The car would prove no luckier for Weatherly, who would be killed when the car hit the outer wall on lap nine. Rex Mays would lead most of the first 300 miles (Template:Convert/(300)*1609.344) before being forced out with mechanical failure. Petillo had climbed to second, and after Mays' departure led most of the remainder other than briefly following a pit stop. Petillo easily broke the record for the fastest average speed (115.095 mph) despite being slowed somewhat by rain near the end of the race.[4] Petillo received approximately $33,000 in winnings for the race.

Aftermath[]

The driver deaths in 1935 caused the Speedway to develop a program to test rookie drivers which was instituted in 1936. Adjustments were also made to the configuration of the turns.[3] Petillo would race in five more 500s, never again finishing higher than 18th. Six of the thirty-three drivers who started the race would end up having their lives ended in accidents at the Indy Speedway.

Results[]

Finish Start No Name Qual Rank Laps Led Status
1 22 5 25px United States Kelly Petillo 115.095 15 200 102 Running
2 20 14 25px United States Wilbur Shaw 116.854 7 200 5 Running
3 5 1 25px United States Bill Cummings 116.901 6 200 0 Running
4 3 22 25px United States Floyd Roberts 118.671 3 200 0 Running
5 7 21 25px United States Ralph Hepburn 115.156 13 200 0 Running
6 19 9 25px United States Shorty Cantlon 118.205 4 200 0 Running
7 9 18 25px United States Chet Gardner 114.556 17 200 0 Running
8 13 16 25px United States Deacon Litz 114.488 18 200 0 Running
9 15 8 25px United States Doc MacKenzie 114.294 20 200 0 Running
10 17 34 25px United States Chet Miller 113.552 24 200 0 Running
11 8 19 25px United States Fred Frame 114.701 16 200 0 Running
12 4 36 25px United States Louis Meyer 117.938 5 200 0 Running
13 16 15 25px United States Cliff Bergere 114.162 23 196 0 Out of gas
14 31 62 25px United States Harris Insinger 111.729 30 185 0 Flagged
15 21 4 25px United States Al Miller 115.303 12 178 0 Magneto
16 26 43 25px United States Ted Horn 113.213 27 145 0 Steering
17 1 33 25px United States Rex Mays 120.736 1 123 89 Spring shackle
18 23 7 25px United States Lou Moore 114.180 22 116 0 Rod
19 14 37 25px United States George Connor 114.321 19 112 0 Transmission
20 10 2 25px United States Mauri Rose 116.470 9 103 0 Studs
21 6 44 25px United States Tony Gulotta 115.459 11 102 0 Magneto
22 30 39 25px United States Jimmy Snyder 112.249 29 97 0 Spring
23 24 41 25px United States Frank Brisko 113.307 26 79 0 Universal joint
24 27 42 25px United States Johnny Seymour 112.696 28 71 0 Grease leak
25 12 17 25px United States Babe Stapp 116.736 8 70 4 Radiator
26 29 35 25px United States George Bailey 113.432 25 65 0 Steering
27 11 3 25px United States Russ Snowberger 114.209 21 59 0 Exhaust pipe
28 32 26 25px United States Louis Tomei 110.794 32 47 0 Valve
29 33 46 25px United States Bob Sall 110.519 33 47 0 Steering
30 2 6 25px United States Al Gordon 119.481 2 17 0 Crash T4
31 28 27 25px United States Freddy Winnai 115.138 14 16 0 Rod
32 25 45 25px United States Clay Weatherly 115.902 10 9 0 Crash T4
33 18 66 25px United States Harry McQuinn 111.111 31 4 0 Rod

References[]

  1. Fatalities - May 1935, indymotorspeedway.com
  2. Three Auto Racers Killed, One Injured, In Memorial Day Trials at Indianapolis Associated Press, May 22, 1935, as seen on page 1 of the New York Times
  3. 3.0 3.1 Reed, Terry Indy. The Race and Ritual of the Indianapolis 500. Potomac Books 2005. ISBN 1-57488-907-9.
  4. 155,000 See Petillo Capture Indianapolis Auto Race; One Driver Is Killed. Associated Press, May 31, 1935, as seen on sports page 19 of the New York Times
1934 Indianapolis 500
Bill Cummings
1935 Indianapolis 500
Kelly Petillo
1936 Indianapolis 500
Louis Meyer


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