As the article states there was only one car and driver that stayed racing on the track the whole race in 1970. It was Bob Tattersall.
Houston's favorite son and USAC's fair haired boy took home the winning money and trophy but it was Bob Tattersall who raced on the racetrack the whole race.
Silver Crown Championship Dirt Cars properly driven on a one mile dirt track are classic poetry in motion. Using that analogy, Jack Hewitt is one of the greatest poets of all time.
Tat drove for my grandfather there in 69 and 70. They did protest the 70 finish since he was the top finsher who ran the whole race on the actual racing surface but the way dad put it was they were never gonna take a win away from Foyt in Houston.
Originally Posted by stroud21:
Tat drove for my grandfather there in 69 and 70. They did protest the 70 finish since he was the top finsher who ran the whole race on the actual racing surface but the way dad put it was they were never gonna take a win away from Foyt in Houston.
That's exactly the story I got from those that were there in the Astrodome. Foyt was not going to be denied the win no matter where on the track and the infield he raced. Not by USAC and definitely not in Houston, Texas.
Silver Crown Championship Dirt Cars properly driven on a one mile dirt track are classic poetry in motion. Using that analogy, Jack Hewitt is one of the greatest poets of all time.
The rundown of the finish kind of highlights why Indy Car racing is not doing as well as it should. By my count there were at least 13 out of the 26 drivers in the event that had qualified for the 500 not to mention at least five more who attempted to get into the 500. Wow, do you think having Indy 500 driver race at your local event might bring new fans to the tracks. Look at the entry list and you will see many Indy 500 past or future winners. Sad that the road racing folks have made Indy racing more of "technical perfection corner entry and exit" rather than "out braving" someone for the spot. Don't get me wrong, the 500 is still "the greatest race in the land," but, we need more of the dirt drivers have a chance to make the show. I remember seeing just about all 500 winners from 1950 to 1964 plus Andretti, the two Unsers and Rutherford run a sprint, midget or dirt champ car at Williams Grove, Reading, Langhorne, or Allentown at some time during their racing days. I think I saw "Vucky" run a midget at Reading and Old Bridge, NJ when AAA came East in the early 50's, not sure that is correct or not.
