First things first: there are still great racing teams and drivers at the Indy 500. It still takes tremendous skill, endurance, and a little luck to win at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Crowds remain huge at the event.
Like other sports, greed and pettiness did get in the way of holding onto the mighty momentum of the event's national popularity, when IRL formed and splintered off from CART. A truce was formed much later, but the damage (like Major League Baseball's 1994 strike) had been done.
This is the 100th anniversary of the Indy 500. Since there were no races held in 1917, 1918, 1942, 1943, 1944, and 1945 due to world wars (appropriately enough for its Memorial Day date), this is not the 100th running of the event.
In 1911, driver Ray Harroun took 6 hours and 42 minutes at an average speed of 74.602 mph to win. The year 1930 saw Billy Arnold break the five-hour (barely) and 100 mph average speed barriers. Races grew progressively faster with advancing technology,
leading to Jim Clark breaking the 150 mph average barrier in 1965. Clark took just under three hours and 20 minutes to win.
The '70s and '80s saw more rapid advances, leading to Arie Luyendyk's fantastic 185.981 mph average and a race time of two hours and 42 minutes in 1990. After Rick Mears' similarly incredible performance in 1991, the Indy 500 has seen times fall back. Sure, there are yellow flags to consider, but winners haven't broken a 170 mph average since. Last year's winner took three hours and five minutes at an average of 161.623 mph.
This apparent decline in motor racing technology parallels America's decline in manufacturing and space exploration (we're not talking high tech here). For political reasons, NASA's budget has been cut for several years. Our space rockets of today are puny compared to the '60s and '70s Saturn 5's. India, China, or Russia will make it to the moon before we make it back. NASA's nadir came last year when President Obama eradicated the Orion and Constellation programs. So much for engaging the human spirit. Politicians (including the current president) talk about Mars manned missions, but the dates have been constantly pushed further into the future.
What else about the Indy 500 mirrors America's decline? While it is true that foreign manufacturers like Mercedes, Peugeot, and Maserati did provide winning drivers with engines as far back as 1913, never has there been such foreign domination as there is now. First, there was the British Cosworth run of 1978-87 winners. However, they had competition then from American companies Ford, GM, and Offenhauser. For about the past nine years, the engines have come from the Toyota or Honda plants across the Pacific. This year all the engines are Honda.
On the subject of "foreign invasion," one reason the Indy 500 was so massively popular was its superstars of the brickyard. With all due respect to early greats like Wilbur Shaw, Mauri Rose, and Bill Vukovich, the superstar driver era really started with Juan Fangio in Formula One in the '50s. At Indianapolis, the superstar era started with A. J. Foyt's first win in 1961. A.J. was ugly, industrious, and easy to underestimate, just like the USA by its enemies at the beginning of both world wars. Some longtime observers would say the golden age of Indy is framed by A.J.'s first and last victories in '61 and '77. I disagree.
When Bobby Unser won his third 500 in 1981, the race was still golden. When Al Unser, Sr. won his fourth Indy in 1987, the race was still golden. Other superstars of the brickyard were also very American if not as ugly: Gordon Johncock, Johnny Rutherford, Danny Sullivan,and Rick Mears among them.
While there had been an English Invasion of sorts in the '60s at Indy mirroring the music industry, with Jim Clark and Graham Hill winning in consecutive years, that was an anomaly. The great Emerson Fittipaldi of Brazil and his wins in 1989 and 1993 started a foreign invasion of foreign superstar drivers that has not decelerated. It has led to the Indy 500 of 2011, where the two greatest drivers, Helio Castroneves (wins in 01, 02, 09) and Dario Franchitti (wins in 07, 10) are from Brazil and Scotland, respectively.
The dearth of American Indy-style racing superstars in 2011 makes one view 1991, the year of Rick Mears' fourth and final victory at a jaw-dropping average speed of 176.457 mph, as the true end of the 500's golden age. Open to debate is the date of the end of America's golden age.
Yes, it is good that races today are much safer than back in the days of the horrific crashes of '55, '64, and '73, but safety comes at what cost? Back then, American men with the right stuff were in pursuit of excellence. They were not afraid of pushing the envelope or offending somebody due to outright aggression. This winning attitude belonged to owners, engineers, and manufacturers, not just the drivers. In 2011, Americans have air bags and say the right things, but drive on poorly maintained highways built during America's golden age, an interstate system that would be impossible to duplicate today without foreign assistance. When American motorists view the moon, they have a vision of the past, not the future. When American viewers watch the Indianapolis 500 tomorrow, they see the grim but safe future, not the reckless but brilliant and colorful past.
Enjoy the race!
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