Rickenbacker By Whitaiker

By Sigur Whitaker.
 
Eddie Rickenbacker, who led a consortium to buy the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in 1927, was a national hero. If you read books on Eddie Rickenbacker, you will learn of his exploits in auto racing, during World War I, and leading Eastern Airlines as it transitioned from a small carrier to one of the leading United States airlines. What you will not find out is much about his time leading the Speedway from 1927 until 1945 when it was sold to Tony Hulman. Yet, Rickenbacker should be credited with saving the Speedway during the Great Depression, a time when the board tracks and most of the other auto racing venues closed.
 
Rickenbacker was born in Columbus, Ohio in 1890. Like many children of that era, he dropped out of school at age 13.  He was exposed to auto racing at an early age as the Southside Columbus racetrack Driving Park was near his childhood home. With a mechanical bent, he was interested in how engines worked. That interest led him to Lee Frayer, a partner with William Miller in a Columbus buggy manufacturer. In 1902, the partners began designing and building automobiles. In 1905, they designed a six-cylinder, air cooled, automobile engine with 36 horsepower. One day in 1905, Rickenbacker showed up at the shop and quickly became Frayer’s apprentice.
 
In 1910, he helped Lee Frayer, owner of the Red Wing Special, defeat Barney Oldfield. In June, Rickenbacker drove the Red Wing Special in a race at Red Oak, Iowa, where he lost control of the racer going through a curve and the car flipped. The next year, Frayer entered the first Indianapolis 500 with Rickenbacker as his riding mechanic and relief driver. The team finished 13th.
 
By 1912, Rickenbacker wanted to become a race car driver. He explained, “I wanted to drive good cars fast, to pit my automobile knowledge and driving skill and plain old guts against the world’s best.” Once again, Frayer entered the Red Wing in the Indianapolis 500, this time with Rickenbacker as the pilot. His day ended early when his crankshaft bearing failed.
 
After parting company with Frayer, Rickenbacker was hired in the winter of 1912-1913 by Fred and Augie Duesenberg as a mechanic. The Duesenberg brothers entered three cars under the Mason title in the 1913 Indianapolis 500, finishing ninth, thirteenth, and nineteenth. Rickenbacker, who had been sanctioned by the AAA, worked in the pits.  Rickenbacker had a fearless driving style, crashing five race cars within a year. He was lucky enough not to be seriously injured.
 
In the fall of 1914 and early 1915, Rickenbacker was driving a Peugeot, then considered to be the world's best car. After the Peugeot’s transmission failed at Corona and later in 1914 and  January 1915, he broke a rod, he “unloaded” the car on Harry Miller. Rickenbacker would later comment that it “was the major mistake of my racing career, because he made a tremendous car out of it.” Miller had legendary mechanic Offenhauser tear the Peugeot engine down to discover what made it so powerful. Driven by Dario Resta, it finished second in the 1915 Indianapolis 500.
 
In 1914, Rickenbacker joined the Maxwell racing team as its manager. When Maxwell quit racing, Rickenbacker approached Carl Fisher and Jim Allison, who had recently formed the Speedway Team, to form a second race team. They agreed and the Prest-O-Lite Team, with Rickenbacker as its manager, was incorporated on September 14, 1915, with an initial capitalization of $20,000. They purchased two Maxwells. Rickenbacker was given the choice of two compensation packages. The first was that he would earn fifty percent of all earnings including paying the second driver, Pete Henderson. Prest-O-Lite would pay all maintenance expenses. In the second scenario, Rickenbacker would earn seventy-five percent of the earnings and would pay all expenses. Rickenbacker chose the second option. The Prest-O-Lite team won the first race it entered, which was at Narragansett Park in Providence, Rhode Island in September 1915.
 
When he retired from racing, Rickenbacker had competed in 42 major races including the Vanderbilt Cup, and five times in the Indianapolis 500. He had 14 podium finishes with seven wins including at California, Iowa, Nebraska, New York,  and Rhode Island. His best finish in the Indianapolis 500 was tenth in 1914.
 
In May 1917, Rickenbacker joined the American Expeditionary Forces as the driver to General John J. Pershing. He was attached to the newly formed Aero Pursuit Squadron. After gaining permission to join a fighter unit, he began his training at the Aviation Training School in Tours, France. After completing the necessary training, he was assigned to the third Aviation Instruction Center at Issoudun. Despite having completed the training, his commander, Major Carl A. Spaatz refused his requests to become a fighter pilot. In March 1918, he was finally successful in being assigned to the 1st Pursuit Group’s 94th Aero Squadron where he thrived. In April 1918, he shot down a German plane on his first mission. He became an “ace” with five enemy kills by June 1918. He became known as America’s “ace of aces” in World War I by shooting down five observation balloons and 21 enemy planes. He was awarded the Medal of Honor by President Herbert Hoover on November 6, 1930, the only Indianapolis 500 driver awarded the Medal of Honor. He won the award by attacking seven enemy planes on September 25, 1918, near Billy, France. He also received seven Distinguished Service Cross medals and the French Croix de Guerre.
 
Returning from France at the conclusion of World War I, Rickenbacker, with the financial help of Barney Everitt, William Metzger, and Walter Flanders, started the Rickenbacker Motor Company in 1922. Despite being the first car to have four-wheel brakes, the company failed in 1926. With close ties to General Motors, Rickenbacker became the head of sales for the LaSalle and Cadillac autos.
 
After Tommy Milton retired from racing in 1926, Carl Fisher, who was deeply involved in the development of the Montauk, New York resort, thought Milton would be the perfect owner of the Speedway. He offered Milton the opportunity to buy the Speedway for $100,000 less than a real estate developer offered. Milton wasn’t interested. Eighteen months later, Rickenbacker expressed an interest in buying the Speedway. He had the same vision for the Speedway as Fisher and Allison did, who established the track for the testing of automobiles. They struck a deal, but Rickenbacker had trouble finding financing. Detroit banker Frank Blair provided a $700,000 bond issue at 6.5% interest. The transaction closed on November 1, 1927, with Rickenbacker owning 51% of the Speedway.
 
Rickenbacker’s interest in automobiles was waning, and he was more interested in being part of the burgeoning airline industry. He turned the day-to-day management of the Speedway over to Pop Myers, the trusted employee since the early days of the facility.
 
Rickenbacker’s first act after purchasing the Indianapolis Motor Speedway was to have a golf course built, nine holes inside the racetrack and nine holes outside of the track. During the most difficult days of the Great Depression, the golf course brought in needed cash flow.
 
After the running of the 1929 Indianapolis 500, Rickenbacker changed the format of the race. His goal was to lower the cost of buying and maintaining race cars which prohibited automobile manufacturers’ participation in the race. The knowledge of engine design had resulted in a race car engine running between 6,000 and 8,000 revolutions per minute, which was too fast for use in a passenger automobile. As a result, automobile manufacturers stopped participating in the race in 1920.
 
Primary changes made by Rickenbacker for the race included banning the use of superchargers and raising the minimum cubic inches of displacement. Additionally, the dimensions of the race cars were modified including raising the minimum weight to 1,750 pounds, increasing the vehicle width to 31 inches, and increasing the wheelbase from 100 to 135 inches. The field was also expanded from 33 positions to 40 positions with the hope of increasing the participation of semi-stock cars. Rickenbacker’s decision to include semi-stock cars in the 500-mile race had a positive impact during the Great Depression. During the early 1930s, familiar names such as Buick, Chrysler, Ford, Studebaker, and Packard participated in the race. The number of entrants also soared, ranging from 45 to 72.
 
Rickenbacker also decided to reestablish the requirement for a riding mechanic for the first time since 1922. This action was not well received. Wilbur Shaw, the first man to win consecutive Indianapolis 500 races later expressed his opinion in his book Gentlemen Start Your Engines. In the early days of racing, the riding mechanic provided information to the driver by hand signals and monitored the oil pressure. Shaw saw no benefit in reinstatement. He was not aware of any instance where a riding mechanic prevented an accident and pointed out that when a wreck occurred, two people were usually injured, with the more serious injuries frequently being to the riding mechanic. Additionally, the riding mechanic added additional weight to the cars and cost to the racing team since he was usually on the payroll. The requirement for a riding mechanic was stopped in 1937.
 
By 1932, the impact of the Great Depression was taking its toll on the Speedway. As unemployment soared, thousands of seats were unoccupied on race day. An earlier decision by Rickenbacker to increase the money for those finishing outside of the top ten continued but increased the financial stress. Despite the financial difficulties, Rickenbacker was determined to continue the race. By lowering the ticket prices and the prize purse, the track continued to operate. By 1933, the Indianapolis Motor Speedway was the only major racetrack to continue operations.
 
In 1934, the Speedway restricted the amount of fuel for the race to 45 gallons. This new rule had the benefit of increasing the popularity of the semi-stock passenger cars. It was felt the new rule would lower speeds, particularly in the first 400 miles. Drivers were expected to be conservative and save as much fuel for the last 100 miles. Those with plenty of gas on the last pit stop for fuel were expected to “shoot the works” to win the race.
 
In 1935, the Indianapolis Motor Speedway was the first track in the world to install safety warning lights. Initially, the warning lights were yellow, which along with the waving of yellow flags signaled that the drivers should slow down and maintain their positions. The Speedway also mandated the use of a helmet.
 
In 1936, Rickenbacker introduced the Borg-Warner Trophy, to the driver that wins the Indianapolis 500. When Rickenbacker bought the track, the race was known as the International 500-Mile Sweepstakes. The Borg-Warner Trophy reflected the name as the Indianapolis 500-Mile Race.
 
Continuing to improve the track, in August 1936, the four turns were resurfaced. The repaving of the track continued in 1938 when the entire surface except for the middle section of both straightaways. 
 
When the United States entered World War II, Rickenbacker turned the responsibility for the track over to his brother, Al. The track was shuttered and left to the elements. At the conclusion of World War II, Rickenbacker was the president of Eastern Airline and an absentee owner of the Speedway. 
 
Rickenbacker, Reed Chambers, and Virgil Chinea founded Florida Airlines initially to carry mail by air between Miami and Atlanta. It started passenger service on June 1, 1926. The revenues to support the operation were insufficient and in 1927, the company shuttered.
Rickenbacker was able to convince General Motors to acquire Fokker Aircraft Corporation of America. He was named the Vice president of public relations for General Motors’ aeronautical division, which included Eastern Air Transport, a mail carrier. The 1934 Airmail Act resulted in Eastern Airlines being established. Operating out of Miami, Eastern focused on routes between east coast cities. When General Motors decided to sell Eastern Airlines, it was purchased by a Rickenbacker led consortium in 1938.
 
Rickenbacker, who had survived both auto racing and air combat during World War I, almost died on February 26, 1941. Rickenbacker was on an Eastern Airlines flight from New York City to Atlanta when at about 1 a.m. it crashed about five miles from the Atlanta airport.  Shortly after dawn, two passengers went to a farm where help was called. Rickenbacker was among the nine people who were injured. He was severely injured with a broken hip, several ribs, and a broken nose.
In 1942, Rickenbacker was asked by Secretary of War Henry Stimson and Army Air Forces Chief of Staff Hap Arnold to be a nonmilitary observer in the Pacific theater. On October 21, 1942, he and six other men were on a B-17 flight to Canton Island, a small atoll located between Hawaii and Fiji. Unfortunately, the pilot was unable to spot Canton Island, and the plane ran out of fuel. The men on board prepared for the plane evacuate the plane as it attempted a water landing. They had three life rafts on board with a limited amount of fresh water and food. Despite rationing, their provisions were soon gone. To survive, they ate raw fish which they captured and drank rainwater. Despite the odds, they were rescued on the 24st day.
Rickenbacker returned to his duties at Eastern Airlines which he led until October 1959. He died in July 1973 at age 82.
 
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Sigur Whitaker, Author 

Racing with Roger Penske, A History of a Motorsports Legend

The Indianapolis Automobile Industry, A History 1893-1939

The Indy Car Wars, The 30-Year Fight for Control of American Open-Wheel Racing

Tony Hulman, The Man Who Saved the Indianapolis Motor Speedway

James Allison, The Engine Manufacturer and Indianapolis 500 Cofounder