Lone Star JR and Al Unser's rides sound incredible down the frontstretch and heading into to turn 1, sheesh. A TWA commercial on the way out. What a throwback. Really amazing video. Really cool racing history. Whoever owns the originals should be converting all of these types of videos to HD.
First, Jim McKay and Chris Economaki! Two of the best. Second, these are the drivers I grew up watching, just love watching them manhandle those cars around the track.
1970 I was 10 years old; my wife was born in 1970, and I caught the racing bug. I had gone to Manzanita Speedway a couple of times by this point to watch USAC Sprints & Midgets. I knew enough about racing to know that winning the Indy 500 by almost 2 laps was special and Al Unser, Sr. would become my favorite driver. I followed auto racing as much as I could in those days, there was no internet, so basically if it wasn't on ABC's Wide World of Sports you didn't see races on TV. Those were the days, the drivers would drive Dirt Champ Cars, or Sprint Cars or even Midgets to earn points for the USAC National Championship. No, it wasn't just racing Indy Cars you had to race other divisions in USAC so you could win the championship.
Stewart Low: Johnny Lighting match box cars were for future felons who played with themselves Real boys had HOT WHEELS. We set up JOEY CHITWOOD obstacles and jumps with LINCOLN LOG structures. So, how much time did you have to do?
Nearing the end of the golden age when most Indy Car drivers had gobs of experience driving "uprights" elbows OUT on clay tracks... and fans related to them =at= Indy because they'd seen them at work (instead of just the tops of their helmets) in V8-powered sprint and champ cars in places like Decatur, Torrance, Rossburg, Clovis, South Phoenix and Syracuse. Now? It's a TV series featuring upside-down airplanes that sound like weed eaters on near-empty NASCAR tracks.
Back in the day when ABC tried to show racing but golf or underwater basket weaving would cause the telecast to be preempted ... not even a third of the race was shown
I think Jim McKay was "hitting the sauce" prior to this broadcast. Understandable , I would get wasted myself if I had to spend a weekend in Springfield IL.
DuQuoin has a mile dirt track that has run races forever. The indoor DuQuoin track is new within the last few years. And the Indiana State Fairgrounds still runs the Hoosier Hundred USAC Silver Crown race every May. As a matter of fact, that race will be run on Friday, May 25. There are other mile dirt tracks out there, but they don't run races anymore, just horse races. For example, the mile in Sacramento.
Charles Intestine just to follow up the Indiana State Fairground mile track is converting to horses only in 2020. Should the season get underway the 2020 Hoosier 100 will be at half mile Terre Haute Action Track. One less dirt miler. :(
@@ramblinman4197 well the hoosier is back as a full 100 mile race but its paved at irp, but if they wanted to do it right they would put some dirt down they got more funds then most tracks, and they got plenty of room even to put up a 1/2 mile and have a 200 lap extravaganza, they are owned by the nhra they are a major facility, and if they did I could almost promise you they could get more people in the gates and entrents, the hoosier 100 was in the old days second only to the indy 500 in prestige to win on the champ car trail, and like the indy 500 of dirt at least to me, and it was the indiana state fair mile that the four that built the indy motor speedway got the idea to built it, as well as the first place a sub minute mile was done in 1905 by barney oldfield, or wasseon ohio, it sux but at least the hoosier is back and maybe they will build a big dirt track at irp one day if enough people clammor for it
I remember when some cars had roll cages some didn't Believe it not when my Dad was young they didn't use any safety belts Indy cars, champ cars etc .What your seeing here to win the USAC points title you raced on asphalt Indy , Milwaukee and they had a few dirt track races in the schedule .The last big name I ve ever seen .
2:43 Mario Andriette driving a dirt car at the Illinois State Fair as the defending F-1 Champion 1 weak after running the Austrian Grand Prix. in the Johnny Player Special ........................ THE EQUIVALENT OF SEBASTIAN VETTLE or LOUIS HAMILTON showing up to run the Terre Haute 100. I'm sure McClaren and Ferrari wouldn't have a problem with it. They could enter the Demolition Derby later that evening.
No money in F-1 racing back in those days....in the 1960s F-1 took pride in not having advertising on there cars. Now every inch is covered by advertising.
I have never understood where the Indy 500 cars were driving when they weren't in Indianapolis? there was an alternative championship like what was later called Champ Car? or they simply didn't raced them? I have read about the Formula 5000 and the Atlantic's series but I have read about some these races and I couldn't find guys like Donohue, Bettenhausen or Gordon Johncock and Penske wasn't there too Pleasr explain to a big Motorsports fan from Spain sorry about my english, cheers
ohh those really were just like the old old torpedo shaped indy cars from so long ago looking just like the old cowl cars like the dussinburgs and cords, and bearcats, not like the more square champ silver crown cars of today that look almost like a sprintcar, saddly we have lost new york and they limestoned the hoosier mile so they can race horses year round, never mind the fact indy is supposed to be the vatican city of racing though we do now have a bull ring track they just finished the season on called circle city but its only a 1/4 mile.
No, those are not "Indy cars". They are USAC dirt cars, a throw back division that ran on dirt for points for the USAC championship. By this time almost everyone was running mid engine cars on the pavement, but no one ran a mid engine car on dirt. Jim Hurtubise was the last guy to put an Indy roadster into the field in 1968. Herk, as he was known, was kinda obstinate by nature. He was finally banned from the speedway, mostly for bringing his antique MALLARD race car, which had no chance of making the race, and sitting in line to qualify. The Indy roadsters were an evolution of the sprint car, they were pretty old school with straight front axles and rear ends. They traced their linage back to the 20s. Then the damn mid engine cars came along and kinda fucked everything up.
this was part of the indy car series, and so i considder them indy cars, just a dirt indy or champ car. it's like if you call road cart cars a different series than ovel cars. also Hurtubise wasn't really banned from the speedway, it depends on who you ask
this race was in fact part of the national championship trail , 1970 was the final year the mile dirt tracks were included in the champ car trail . In 1971 the dirt cars were broken off to a separate division.
I know I'm late to the show, but Du Quoin has a mile dirt track with racing labor day weekend every year. I haven't missed many of them. When you commented at Indianapolis State Fair they were still running on dirt.
In the 1950s the had multiple goggles around their neck.. The were WW2 aviation surplus goggles. When one got full of dirt they would drop it and slid up another one.
idk this and syracuse are the only ones as far as i know. the diquoin track if ur thinking of the one in illinois is a tiny indoor track that runs karts and midgets ect
Back when racing was racing. Skinny tires and nearly all Offy engines. Fat tires and big engines killed champ racing. The fat tires turned dirt track racing into almost pavement racing by smoothing down the track surface.
How embarrassing to know that the common sense on safety was near non-existent. Imagine the Gory Bloody Deaths that have been witnessed for decades and nothing was done to improve safety.
indyfan: Jock Strap Villeneuve showed up @ Indy with a European Cigarette (PLAYERS) Sponsor. Years after tobacco was banned. Forsythe threaten to sue, Pissing off Tony Holman, So they unjustly penalized him 2 laps (5 miles) for bullshit infractions. There's no Lucky Dog, no Wave Around, only 1 way out. Pass everybody, go around pass them again, go around pass them again. AND THAT'S EXACTLY WHAT THAT UGLY LITTLE SHIT DID. Greatest driving performance in the History Of the Indy 500. Doesn't even make a high-light reel
I do love the sound of them Offenhauser engines-
Lone Star JR and Al Unser's rides sound incredible down the frontstretch and heading into to turn 1, sheesh. A TWA commercial on the way out. What a throwback. Really amazing video. Really cool racing history. Whoever owns the originals should be converting all of these types of videos to HD.
First, Jim McKay and Chris Economaki! Two of the best.
Second, these are the drivers I grew up watching, just love watching them manhandle those cars around the track.
1970 I was 10 years old; my wife was born in 1970, and I caught the racing bug. I had gone to Manzanita Speedway a couple of times by this point to watch USAC Sprints & Midgets. I knew enough about racing to know that winning the Indy 500 by almost 2 laps was special and Al Unser, Sr. would become my favorite driver. I followed auto racing as much as I could in those days, there was no internet, so basically if it wasn't on ABC's Wide World of Sports you didn't see races on TV. Those were the days, the drivers would drive Dirt Champ Cars, or Sprint Cars or even Midgets to earn points for the USAC National Championship. No, it wasn't just racing Indy Cars you had to race other divisions in USAC so you could win the championship.
The very best racing in America 🇺🇸 when you had to EARN YOUR WAY TO INDY used to watch USAC at Syracuse on the mile of dirt
Al Unser in the Johnny Lightning Special! My once and forever best looking race car.
Stewart Low: Johnny Lighting match box cars were for future felons who played with themselves
Real boys had HOT WHEELS. We set up JOEY CHITWOOD obstacles and jumps with LINCOLN LOG structures.
So, how much time did you have to do?
It's Amazing to see these cars out there with no cage just a small roll hoop that barely reaches the top of the drivers head!!!! Brave Men
Not Brave. Stupid.
Boy, does this ever take me back...
Larry Dickson was one of the best dirt track drivers of all time .
So cool to see the history of my home track. Also really cool that Mario Andretti was here just a week after almost dying in the Austrian Grand Prix.
And Toby Tobias.Too bad he had to pull off .A real big name in my area
Nice piece of motorsport history, thanks for sharing.
Nearing the end of the golden age when most Indy Car drivers had gobs of experience driving "uprights" elbows OUT on clay tracks... and fans related to them =at= Indy because they'd seen them at work (instead of just the tops of their helmets) in V8-powered sprint and champ cars in places like Decatur, Torrance, Rossburg, Clovis, South Phoenix and Syracuse. Now? It's a TV series featuring upside-down airplanes that sound like weed eaters on near-empty NASCAR tracks.
Absolutely... Spec cars too....
1970 also last season that dirt "Champ Car"races counted toward the USAC Driving Championship. How great would that be now?
The track in the video is at the Illinois State Fairgrounds. Syracuse is in New York.
iRacing needs to add dirt Champ Cars like these.
Back in the day when ABC tried to show racing but golf or underwater basket weaving would cause the telecast to be preempted ... not even a third of the race was shown
They race here the last two days of the state fair. The day before last in silver crowns and the last day in ARCA
I saw them in Milwaukee the next day. The Al Unser show.
When racers had respect for one another 🙂
hello al it brings back a lot memories for me
No other commenter has said that the winner of the race was Al Unser,Sr. and that he went on to win the season championship with 10 wins.
Nice! I've been wanting to see this one.
I think Jim McKay was "hitting the sauce" prior to this broadcast. Understandable , I would get wasted myself if I had to spend a weekend in Springfield IL.
Love it, amazing ❤
Shades of what's to come at Thunder Valley with Cup Cars this year.
AJ Foyt always did good at this track too
I hated broadcasts in those days. How could they leave the race in progress? Yet it happened all the time.
Will Cagle, Tobias, Ralphie the racer, Busson, oh I liked this one!
great quality. wow
No roll cages. In one of the 1960s Indy starting fields half the drivers eventually died in racing accidents.
that was just crazy
It was the 58 Indy 500, 16 of the 33 drivers who started that race died in racing accidents
What a stat. America used to be made up of incredibly brave men.
@@paulross9287 used to, unfortunately we've had it to good for you long
DuQuoin has a mile dirt track that has run races forever. The indoor DuQuoin track is new within the last few years. And the Indiana State Fairgrounds still runs the Hoosier Hundred USAC Silver Crown race every May. As a matter of fact, that race will be run on Friday, May 25. There are other mile dirt tracks out there, but they don't run races anymore, just horse races. For example, the mile in Sacramento.
Charles Intestine just to follow up the Indiana State Fairground mile track is converting to horses only in 2020. Should the season get underway the 2020 Hoosier 100 will be at half mile Terre Haute Action Track. One less dirt miler. :(
@@ramblinman4197 Inconceivable 10 years ago that we'd lose the Hoosier :(
@@ramblinman4197 well the hoosier is back as a full 100 mile race but its paved at irp, but if they wanted to do it right they would put some dirt down they got more funds then most tracks, and they got plenty of room even to put up a 1/2 mile and have a 200 lap extravaganza, they are owned by the nhra they are a major facility, and if they did I could almost promise you they could get more people in the gates and entrents, the hoosier 100 was in the old days second only to the indy 500 in prestige to win on the champ car trail, and like the indy 500 of dirt at least to me, and it was the indiana state fair mile that the four that built the indy motor speedway got the idea to built it, as well as the first place a sub minute mile was done in 1905 by barney oldfield, or wasseon ohio, it sux but at least the hoosier is back and maybe they will build a big dirt track at irp one day if enough people clammor for it
I remember when some cars had roll cages some didn't Believe it not when my Dad was young they didn't use any safety belts Indy cars, champ cars etc .What your seeing here to win the USAC points title you raced on asphalt Indy , Milwaukee and they had a few dirt track races in the schedule .The last big name I ve ever seen .
ok thanks for the clarification charles
Sooooooooooo fucking cool.
2:43 Mario Andriette driving a dirt car at the Illinois State Fair as the defending F-1 Champion 1 weak after running the Austrian Grand Prix. in the Johnny Player Special ........................ THE EQUIVALENT OF SEBASTIAN VETTLE or LOUIS HAMILTON showing up to run the Terre Haute 100. I'm sure McClaren and Ferrari wouldn't have a problem with it.
They could enter the Demolition Derby later that evening.
rayism 24b Andretti was part time F1 at this point. Jackie Stewart is the defending champion as of this video. Andretti’s F1 title was in 1978.
No money in F-1 racing back in those days....in the 1960s F-1 took pride in not having advertising on there cars. Now every inch is covered by advertising.
This looks really dangerous
Reallylame that they had to abandon broadcast. Local programming came on after wwos
How many races were held in the USAC Championship Series in 1970?
18 races.
That number includes all the paved courses, such as the Indy 500. Just a small amount of races with the dirt cars.
(Spoiler warning): Five dirt track races in 1970, all won by Al Unser. Carl Williams finished second in this race, Jim McElreath third.
I have never understood where the Indy 500 cars were driving when they weren't in Indianapolis? there was an alternative championship like what was later called Champ Car? or they simply didn't raced them? I have read about the Formula 5000 and the Atlantic's series but I have read about some these races and I couldn't find guys like Donohue, Bettenhausen or Gordon Johncock and Penske wasn't there too
Pleasr explain to a big Motorsports fan from Spain
sorry about my english, cheers
@@orbyfan what happened to Rutherford?
yes. thats in new york this is illinois
I was there at ontario
ohh those really were just like the old old torpedo shaped indy cars from so long ago looking just like the old cowl cars like the dussinburgs and cords, and bearcats, not like the more square champ silver crown cars of today that look almost like a sprintcar, saddly we have lost new york and they limestoned the hoosier mile so they can race horses year round, never mind the fact indy is supposed to be the vatican city of racing though we do now have a bull ring track they just finished the season on called circle city but its only a 1/4 mile.
Why did they not do the entire 100 Laps as PACE LAPS!?
Are these what became Indycars/champcars or are these sprint cars?
+edward harris These were "Indy Cars" in 1970. It was the last season for "Indy Cars" on the dirt.
No, those are not "Indy cars". They are USAC dirt cars, a throw back division that ran on dirt for points for the USAC championship. By this time almost everyone was running mid engine cars on the pavement, but no one ran a mid engine car on dirt. Jim Hurtubise was the last guy to put an Indy roadster into the field in 1968. Herk, as he was known, was kinda obstinate by nature. He was finally banned from the speedway, mostly for bringing his antique MALLARD race car, which had no chance of making the race, and sitting in line to qualify. The Indy roadsters were an evolution of the sprint car, they were pretty old school with straight front axles and rear ends. They traced their linage back to the 20s. Then the damn mid engine cars came along and kinda fucked everything up.
this was part of the indy car series, and so i considder them indy cars, just a dirt indy or champ car. it's like if you call road cart cars a different series than ovel cars. also Hurtubise wasn't really banned from the speedway, it depends on who you ask
this race was in fact part of the national championship trail , 1970 was the final year the mile dirt tracks were included in the champ car trail . In 1971 the dirt cars were broken off to a separate division.
These ARE Indy cars, buddy! The safe but boring machines they race today are what UNbecame Indy cars! Look at these crazy SOBs GO!!!!
so this is a different race track than the Syracuse Mile then?
yes
so is this what is the Syracuse Mile today?
The Syracuse mile is GOne sad to say!
this and syracuse are the only 2 dirt miles left. i go here every year for eaither arca or usac with my grandpa
I know I'm late to the show, but Du Quoin has a mile dirt track with racing labor day weekend every year. I haven't missed many of them. When you commented at Indianapolis State Fair they were still running on dirt.
1970.......America's apex.
Patrick Ryan Syracuse is now GONE!
Thank Cuomo.
12:02 Superbird or Daytona spotting...
No fucken fear
5:11 dude take the shield off dont think they had tear offs then
Yes , they had tear offs back then.
In the 1950s the had multiple goggles around their neck.. The were WW2 aviation surplus goggles. When one got full of dirt they would drop it and slid up another one.
idk this and syracuse are the only ones as far as i know. the diquoin track if ur thinking of the one in illinois is a tiny indoor track that runs karts and midgets ect
I know I'm late to the show, but Du Quoin has a mile dirt track with racing labor day weekend every year. I haven't missed many of them.
🇲🇾
Ive been told that each good Mormon gets their own planet (full of women too) when they die. Thisis what my planet would look like.
Back when racing was racing.
Skinny tires and nearly all Offy engines.
Fat tires and big engines killed champ racing.
The fat tires turned dirt track racing into almost pavement racing by smoothing down the track surface.
How embarrassing to know that the common sense on safety was near non-existent.
Imagine the Gory Bloody Deaths that have been witnessed for decades and nothing was done to improve safety.
There was a lot of criticism when in 1956 Indy winner Bob Swikert put a little roll bar on the back of his car.
.
too bad USAC can't get IndyCar back. F##K the RideBuyers and roadcourses. IndyCar was best with American drivers and Ovals, paved and dirt.
indyfan: Jock Strap Villeneuve showed up @ Indy with a European Cigarette (PLAYERS) Sponsor. Years after tobacco was banned. Forsythe threaten to sue, Pissing off Tony Holman, So they unjustly penalized him 2 laps (5 miles) for bullshit infractions. There's no Lucky Dog, no Wave Around, only 1 way out. Pass everybody, go around pass them again, go around pass them again. AND THAT'S EXACTLY WHAT THAT UGLY LITTLE SHIT DID.
Greatest driving performance in the History Of the Indy 500. Doesn't even make a high-light reel