First Published May 14, 2010
Forty eight years ago this month (61 years ago adjusted for today’s date), Rufus Parnell Jones became the first Indy car racer to break the magic minute mile. That is, he averaged 150 miles an hour on a qualification run. Today of course that’s not even warm-up speed, but in the first half of the Speedway’s history, that speed was considered the “Holy Grail” of Indy car racing achievements.
There is an old saying, “There are old race drivers and there are bold race drivers, but there are no old, bold race drivers,” For the first 50 years, that seemed to be the rule. Speeds at the track increased slowly as track conditions improved and tires became better, but it was often the daring of a particular driver that caused speeds to jump. In 1928, Leon Duray became the first driver to break the 120-mile an hour barrier by averaging 122 miles an hour on a qualification run, with a fast lap of 124 miles an hour. That record would stand for nine years.
In 1939, Jimmy Snyder became the first driver to break the 130 mile an hour barrier. Snyder had become known as a top qualifier when he took the pole at 130 mph. He would be killed in a midget race later in the year.
The next great Indy car qualifier was Jack McGrath. The first “Flying Scot” came to the Speedway in 1948 and qualified for the 3rd starting position. He would qualify for the front row on six separate occasions. But it was his 1954 run for the pole that was most memorable. He became the first driver to hit the 140 mile an hour mark. Before that, many racing experts were convinced that 135 miles an hour was the ultimate speed mark for the track. Go faster then that, and you would fly off the course. However, race car designer Frank Kurtis came up with the “roadster” in 1949. The engine and drive shaft were offset to the left, giving the car greater stability and holding the track better. McGrath and his rival Bill Vukovich made the roadster viable with their success in the cars. However, both drivers were killed racing in 1955.
By the mid 1950s, experts had to reevaluate their theories of maximum speed at Indianapolis. In 1958 both Dick Rathman and Ed Elisian were flirting with 148 mile an hour practice speeds and more than one stop watch had Ed at 150 on a couple of laps. Unfortunately they were also the cause of the first lap racing disaster that took Pat O’Connor’s life. Elisian was killed racing in 1959.
In 1960, rookie Jim Hurtibise made a third day qualification run of 149.050, so close to 150 he could almost touch it. After the run, Herk’s first words were ”If you think that’s something, wait until you see Parnelli Jones next year!”
Someone said of Parnelli Jones that he was ”born to be a race car driver.” His record certainly indicated that. He excelled in every facet of automobile racing: open wheel, stocks, and sports cars — you name it, he dominated in it. He arrived at the Speedway in 1961, one of the most heralded rookies in 500 history. His rookie of the year performance cemented that reputation.
In 1962, he came ready to make history. Driving “Calhoun,” his nickname for the #98 Agajanian Watson roadster, he clocked the first official 150 mile an hour speed and achieved the magical minute mile. His place in racing history is secure. He is still active in racing today as an owner/promoter.
It took nearly fifty years to get to 150 but it would only take 15 more years to get to 200 miles per hour. Tom Sneava would run 202 miles an hour to take the Indy pole. Since that time, the effort seems to be to slow the cars down. When Arie Luyendyk qualified for the 1996 race with a one lap record of 237.4 miles an hour single lap record and 236.9 4 lap record, the Speedway decide to impose car engine restrictions to reduce speed. Arie will always have the record, but he stood on the shoulders of Duray, Snyder, McGrath, Jones, and Sneava to get there.