I was sitting in history class today and was amazed when the teacher said something about the indy 500. since we were talking about world war 1. I've read alot about him online today, but i cant seem to find anything about how he did in a race car. All i have read is he raced in the 1st indy 500 and bought the track later in life for $700,000. so my question is

What do some of you know about this Hero?

Gotta say. In US History we just learned about him. My teacher had mentioned the name Eddie Rickenbacker and that he was in the first Indy 500 and stuff. ha

War hero, racer, owned the Speedway, and was president of an airline.....lived quite a full life.

Glad to see kids with an interest in history.

History is a very important subject. I dont think kids pay enough attention to it. i sure do. thanks for giving me that link. shooting down 25+ war plans and to live to tell about it is a pretty amazing thing. also to buy a race track for $700,000. Couldnt even buy the bricks for that price these days.

He was also a recipient of our nation's highest honor. The Congressional Medal of Honor.

Jerry

Here is a bit of Rickenbacher trivia:
He was born in America to Swiss immigrants. Due to anti-German sentiment during World War I, he chose to spell his surname with the 'h' changed to a 'k' in an effort to make his name seem less German.
BTW, several of the aircraft he has credit for shooting down were tethered observation balloons -- not like going head-to-head with the Red Baron, ya know.

Edit: I have a copy of one of the Rickenbacher biographies, which I recently loaned to one of my old friends from Caterpillar. I would call it a "very good read" about a hero from a time so very different than our current world. I'm afraid that long gone are the days of America having heroes such as Eddie Rickenbacher or Billy Mitchell or Jimmy Doolittle.

Devin,

I don't have anything else to add about Mr. Rickenbacker but I am glad to hear that you were paying attention in history class. Education is a top priority these days and by learning about history you will see what folks before you have done. I am always interested in hearing about the history of auto racing and so many IOW folks educate all of us with their knowledge and background.

He was born near Columbus, Ohio, not that far from Columbus Motor Speedway
He ran the 500 four times with his best finish a 10th, That was in 1914. He was not in the first Indianapolis 500, but was 21st in 1912. He was 19th in 1915 and then 20th in 1916. This is according to the Indianapolis 500 Media Guide. He finished all 200 laps only once -- 1914 -- and started the 1916 race in second.
Jim Morrison

You'll find most of his AAA racing records listed here....
http://www.champcarstats.com/drivers...ackerEddie.htm

Thanks to www.champcarstats.com/