Flying into Indianapolis

Part of the fun of going to PRI is getting there. As you walk from your arrival gate to the baggage area you will come across historic race cars such as the one in the photo above. These really help set the mood for what is to come.

This yellow racer is the 1939 Sampson V16 Special. It competed in the Indianapolis 500 several times between 1939 and 1949. The Sampson Special was powered in four of its starts by the same engine used by Frank Lockhart when he lost his life while trying to break the world land speed record on the sands of Daytona Beach in 1928. Developed under Frank’s direction, it was derived from two supercharged 91.5 cubic-inch straight-eight Millers reworked to become a 183-cubic-inch V-16. It was later acquired by Gordon Schroeder, and placed into a chassis built in 1938, by Myron Stevens, and driven to the sixth-fastest qualifying time in 1939, and to sixth in the 1940 race by Bob Swanson. Sponsored in 1946 by Spike Jones, the zany band leader, it was qualified for the outside of the front row by Sam Hanks, with Lockhart’s 18-year-old engine still in the car.

Thursday morning was the traditional opening breakfast.

After honoring three new inductees to the PRI Hall of Fame, the guest speaker was nonother than Mario Andretti, himself.

Born in 1940 Mario is still going strong and shared some great stories regarding his career and racing.

Then it was off to the 1.1 million square feet of exhibition floor space that enthralled the thousands of attendees.