Billy Arnold, 1930

This is David Story's rendering of 1930 Indianapolis 500 winner Billy Arnold.
 
Below are the margin notes David composed to support his art:
 
"Many auto racing greats don't get the recognition they deserve and Billy Arnold is certainly one of them. He was the man to beat from 1930 to 1932. We can only speculate what might have happened if he had not retired after the 1932 season, just before his 27th birthday. Despite the early end of his career, he led three of the Indy 500s for a total of 410 laps. In the 1930 race that Arnold won, he led the race in all but two laps. This is the most laps ever led by a winner of the race. Arnold did this driving a front wheel drive Miller, the first front wheel drive car to win an Indy 500.
 
Arnold went on to distinguish himself during WWII where he served as chief of maintenance of the U.S. Army 8th Air Force until the end of the war. He left the Army as a lieutenant colonel.
 
The 'Junk' Formula of the 1930s started with America's plunge into the Great Depression. The economic condition was not the reason the Indy 500 adopted the Junk Formula in 1930. Eddie Rickenbacker sought to lower costs for the competitors and to lure back passenger car manufacturers to the race. Cars were allowed displacement up to 366 cubic inches. Superchargers were banned except for two-cycle engines and riding mechanics were mandatory again."

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