Deadly Passions, Terrible Joys

Ask Formula 1 drivers about the Grand Prix with the best atmosphere, and they’ll almost all point to Mexico — and that’s because, for decades, Mexican drivers, promoters, and fans have played a vital role in shaping the world of motorsport.

Join award-winning motorsport historian Elizabeth Blackstock for an expansive look at the men, machines, and race tracks that have made Mexico legendary — from the Rodriguez brothers (whose name now adorns the F1 circuit in Mexico City) to the nail-biting rally known as the Carrera Panamericana, you don’t have to be a motorsport expert to uncover this unique element of Mexico’s history.PROGRAMMING NOTE: This is not my usual Wednesday fare, but I've been helping one of my kitties overcome renal failure, so I didn't have the opportunity to finish my planned video. Please enjoy this library talk instead (it was going to be posted soon anyway!)!

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François Cevert was on the cusp of becoming a Formula 1 superstar. He had Jackie Stewart as his mentor. He was set to take over the Tyrrell team. Ferrari was calling. A World Championship was within reach. Then, on October 6, 1973, he was killed in a qualifying crash at Watkins Glen ahead of the United States Grand Prix — Jackie Stewart's final race before retirement.

Cevert's story has always captivated me, because it's about so much more than the accident that took his life. Instead, it raises so many questions: What happens when a person dies just as their life seems to be falling perfectly into place? And how do the people who loved them make sense of a loss that has no satisfying explanation?

#F1 #formula1 #F1history #motorsport #motorsporthistory #jackiestewart #francoiscevert #flyingscot #tyrrell #teamtyrrell #usgp #usgrandprix #racing 

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Bibliography

A Contract with Death by Jean-Claude Hallé

Winning Is Not Enough by Jackie Stewart

https://web.archive.org/web/20160214012157/https://silodrome.com/ronnie-peterson-f1-documentary/

https://www.nytimes.com/1973/10/15/archives/jackie-stewart-ends-driving-career-while-champion.html

The Porsche 917/10 and 917/30 were two of the most terrifyingly powerful race cars ever constructed. With a twin-turbocharged flat-12 engine making more than 1,000 horsepower, it was so dominant that it seemed almost inevitable that it would crush the competition in America's no-holds-barred Can-Am Series — with the help of Penske Racing and Mark Donohue, of course.

But the 917/30 did so much more than dominate Can-Am. It helped expose a fundamental contradiction at the heart of the series: Can-Am was designed to let engineers build the wildest, fastest cars imaginable… but the freedom to innovate often came with an unbearable price tag. Throw a global recession into the mix, and you've got a recipe for disaster.

In this month's episode of Deadly Passions, Terrible Joys, we follow Porsche Penske's unlikely partnership, Mark Donohue's brutal 1972 season, the creation of the 917/30, and the dominance that followed. At the same time, we'll look at Porsche's involvement in motorsport throughout history and the economic conditions that resulted in the collapse of one of the greatest sports in the world in order to answer one major question: Did Porsche kill Can-Am? Or did Can-Am engineer itself into an unwinnable war?

#markdonohue #porsche #penske #penskeporsche #motorsport #motorsporthistory #canam #canadianamericanchallengecup #rogerpenske #racing #racinghistory #porsche917

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Episode Bibliography: 

The Unfair Advantage by Mark Donohue

Can-Am 50th Anniversary by George Levy

Can-Am by Pete Lyons

Can-Am Challenger by Peter Bryant

In June of 1909, five cars departed from New York City with one major goal in mind: Each one wanted to become the first to reach Seattle in order to be proclaimed the victor of the 1909 Ocean-to-Ocean race. There was just one problem: Ford was ready to cheat in order to win.

The Ford Model T was still a relatively new invention at this point in history, and it defied all of the contemporary logic about car construction. No one believed that a small, light car would have the endurance required to conquer thousands of miles of unpaved, unmarked terrain. The early pace of the two Fords entered in the event was shocking. 

But the Ford that crossed the Seattle finish line first cheated, and the rightful winner — a car produced by a struggling Boston-based company called Shawmut — folded in the wake of the event, which meant this story has been lost to the annals of time. 

This month on “Deadly Passions, Terrible Joys,” I'm joined by Pulitzer-winning journalist Eric Moskowitz, whose incredible new book “The Hardest, Longest Race: Henry Ford and the Cross-Country Contest That Changed America” brings the 1909 Ocean-to-Ocean race back to life in evocative detail. 

Order your copy today:

https://us.macmillan.com/books/9781250282675/thehardestlongestrace/

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Episode Bibliography: 

The Hardest, Longest Race: Henry Ford and the Cross-Country Contest That Changed America by Eric Moskowitz

Coast-to-Coast Auto Races of the Early 1900s by Curt McConnell

https://colescollision.com/history-of-the-american-automobile/

The Lone Star State has no shortage of forward-thinking innovators dedicated to transforming the world — and that’s just as true in motorsport as it is in other fields.

From dusty dirt tracks and moonshine backgrounds to Indianapolis glory and international fame, Texas has produced some of racing’s boldest personalities and fiercest competitors. This talk explores the lives and legacies of legendary figures such as A. J. Foyt, Carroll Shelby, Jim Hall, and other drivers, builders, and innovators whose influence extended far beyond the Lone Star State.

Join motorsport journalist and historian Elizabeth Blackstock for a talk spanning discipline including IndyCar, NASCAR, endurance racing, drag racing, and sports cars to examine how Texas developed such a distinctive racing culture — and why so many of its competitors became synonymous with toughness, independence, and mechanical ingenuity.

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The year is 1940. Lucy O’Reilly Schell sits on the last ocean liner to depart Italy for the United States of America before World War II completely engulfs the European continent. Accompanying her are some of European Grand Prix racing's stars, two Maseratis, her young son Harry, and a dream: She intends to win the Indianapolis 500.

It is a dream deferred by the death of her beloved husband Laury in a road accident — one that also left Lucy with injuries that she's still nursing on that ship. It is a dream nearly brought to a screaming halt by war, a dream she won't be able to realize from the pits of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, because even though she's a team owner, women are banned lest they distract the men.

It is a dream that will not come true, but Lucy O’Reilly Schell is not the kind of woman to worry about those kinds of things. After all, she fielded the quiet Delahaye that, with Jewish driver René Dreyfus behind the wheel, defeated the might of Nazi Germany's repressively dominant Mercedes and Auto Union teams at the 1938 Pau Grand Prix. 

Today on “Deadly Passions, Terrible Joys,” we're investigating the exceptional life of Lucy O’Relly Schell, a French-born American racing driver turned team owner who did her best to bring glory to French automakers during the build-up to the second World War.

#motorsport #motorsporthistory #indy500 #indianapolis500 #worldwarii #wwii #renedreyfus #lucyschell #lucyoreillyschell #racing #womeninracing #womeninmotorsport

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Episode Bibliography: 

https://www.newspapers.com/image/1028128781/?match=1&terms=%22lucy%20o%27reilly%22&_gl=1%2a1s2cxde%2a_up%2aMQ..&gclid=CjwKCAiAqrG9BhAVEiwAaPu5zinarN6sTwRXIAG8BQ7n5kyw7AKyBsnsc1bFahJmRyS6Uh9Oub71ohoCHcgQAvD_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds 

https://www.newspapers.com/image/552485268/?match=1&terms=%22lucy%20o%27reilly%22&_gl=1%2a1th56lx%2a_up%2aMQ..&gclid=CjwKCAiAqrG9BhAVEiwAaPu5zinarN6sTwRXIAG8BQ7n5kyw7AKyBsnsc1bFahJmRyS6Uh9Oub71ohoCHcgQAvD_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds

https://www.newspapers.com/image/314461808/?match=1&terms=%22lucy%20o%27reilly%22&_gl=1%2a1s2cxde%2a_up%2aMQ..&gclid=CjwKCAiAqrG9BhAVEiwAaPu5zinarN6sTwRXIAG8BQ7n5kyw7AKyBsnsc1bFahJmRyS6Uh9Oub71ohoCHcgQAvD_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds

https://www.english-heritage.org.uk/visit/inspire-me/blog/blog-posts/why-were-women-written-out-of-history-an-interview-with-bettany-hughes/ 

For much of its history, motorsport projected an image of hyper-masculinity, tradition, and exclusivity. Yet LGBTQ+ people have always been part of racing, even when the culture of the sport made openness difficult or dangerous.

Join motorsport historian Elizabeth Blackstock for a talk that explores the often-overlooked history of LGBTQ+ representation in motorsport through the stories of pioneering figures across different eras. From F1 drivers Lella Lombardi and Ralph Schumacher to modern racer/activists like Charlie Martin, we’ll understand what it has meant to be queer in racing and why motorsport has often lagged behind in acceptance when compared to other sports.

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In 1903, more than 220 competitors set off from Versailles bound for Madrid in what was supposed to be the greatest automobile race ever staged.

They never made it.

Within hours, drivers, mechanics, soldiers, spectators, and bystanders lay dead or dying along the roadside. Cars crashed into trees, burst into flames, and plowed into crowds. The death toll mounted so quickly that French authorities stopped the race before it even reached the Spanish border.

Newspapers around the world called it an "automotive holocaust." Critics demanded the end of motorsport. Governments questioned whether automobiles themselves were too dangerous for public roads.

Yet from the ashes of the Paris-to-Madrid disaster emerged many of the safety principles that still shape racing today.

In this episode of Deadly Passions, Terrible Joys, award-winning motorsport journalist and historian Elizabeth Blackstock explores the origins of city-to-city racing, reconstructs the catastrophic events of the 1903 Paris-to-Madrid rally, examines the public backlash that threatened to end motorsport forever, and explains how one of racing's darkest days ultimately helped create the modern sport we know today.

What made Paris-to-Madrid so deadly? Why did so many people die? And why did racing survive when so many believed it shouldn't?

#motorsport #motorsporthistory #racing #racinghistory #paristomadrid #parismadrid #rally #rallying 

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Bibliography:

Cars at Speed by Robert Daley

https://www.newspapers.com/image/1158528162/

https://www.newspapers.com/image/86387471/

https://motorracinghistory.com/paris-bordeaux-the-place-and-the-winners-motor-age-11-june-1903/ 

https://www.newspapers.com/image/135329349/

https://www.newspapers.com/image/138851587/

https://www.newspapers.com/image/818686274/

https://www.newspapers.com/image/818686950/

https://www.newspapers.com/image/245607524/

https://www.newspapers.com/image/827326457/

https://www.newspapers.com/image/369104003/

https://www.newspapers.com/image/1319288859/

https://www.newspapers.com/image/1140087214/

https://www.newspapers.com/image/1219567281/

https://www.newspapers.com/image/818686864/

https://www.newspapers.com/image/818686509/

It would be the darkest Month of May in Indianapolis 500 history.

In 1933, the Indianapolis Motor Speedway promised fans the safest race the Brickyard had ever seen. New rules, new technology, and a renewed focus on stock-based machinery were all meant to prove that America’s greatest race could survive the crushing weight of the Great Depression. Instead, the month became one of the bloodiest chapters in motorsport history.

Five men lost their lives before the checkered flag had even truly settled over Indianapolis.

In this episode of “Deadly Passions, Terrible Joys,” we trace the chain of events that transformed the 1933 Indianapolis 500 into the deadliest running of the race ever contested. From Eddie Rickenbacker’s controversial “junk formula” regulations and the return of riding mechanics to the brutal qualifying crashes, mechanical failures, and horrifying accidents that claimed the lives of Bill Denver, Bob Hurst, Mark Billman, Lester Spangler, and Monk Jordan, we'll reveal how such a dangerous event came to be.

#Indianapolis500 #Indy500 #indycar #MotorsportHistory #RacingHistory #AutoRacing #VintageRacing #IndianapolisMotorSpeedway #MotorsportPodcast #Motorsport #RacingPodcast #IndyCarHistory #AAAChampionship #EddieRickenbacker #LouisMeyer #WilburShaw #GreatDepression #1933Indy500 #HistoricRacing #MotorsportCulture #RidingMechanic #ClassicCars #AmericanHistory #DangerousSports #SpeedwayHistory #GoldenAgeOfRacing #MotorRacing #HistoricMotorsport #OpenWheelRacing #Brickyard

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Order Racing with Rich Energy: https://mcfarlandbooks.com/product/racing-with-rich-energy

Bibliography: 

https://www.indystar.com/story/sports/motor/2015/05/21/indianapolis-500-indy-500-will-overhead-1933-newspaper-headline-mistake-history/27678645/

https://www.hemmings.com/stories/in-all-but-one-small-town-in-america-louis-meyer-won-the-1933-indianapolis-500/#comments-block 

https://www.newspapers.com/image/105233097/?match=1&terms=%22speedway%22 

https://www.newspapers.com/image/313430554/?match=1&terms=%22speedway%22 

https://www.newspapers.com/image/873257022/?match=1&terms=%22speedway%22 

https://www.newspapers.com/image/105160745/?match=1&terms=%22Indianapolis%20500%22

https://www.newspapers.com/image/311189214/?match=2&terms=%22speedway%22 

https://www.newspapers.com/image/105155396/?match=2&terms=%22speedway%22 

https://www.newspapers.com/image/105160354/?match=1&terms=%22Indianapolis%20500%22 

https://www.newspapers.com/image/311162451/?match=2&terms=%22speedway%22

https://www.newspapers.com/image/311183898/?match=1&terms=%22speedway%22

https://www.newspapers.com/image/105151490/?match=1&terms=%22speedway%22 

https://www.newspapers.com/image/873257006/ 

https://www.newspapers.com/image/873255772/?match=1&terms=%22speedway%22

https://www.newspapers.com/image/313422288/?match=1&terms=%22Indianapolis%20500%22 

https://www.newspapers.com/image/873256688/?match=1&terms=%22speedway%22 

https://www.newspapers.com/image/873256688/?match=1&terms=%22speedway%22

Long before the name Offenhauser became synonymous with Indy glory, there was Harry Miller: a self-taught machinist and visionary whose engines transformed racing forever. Between the 1920s and the dawn of World War II, Miller-built cars dominated American motorsport with stunning speed, elegant engineering, and an obsessive devotion to craftsmanship. 

But behind the brilliance lay financial chaos, broken partnerships, spiritual obsession, and the crushing reality of an industry evolving faster than one man could control.

In this episode, we explore how Los Angeles became an unlikely cradle of racing innovation through the dangerous spectacle of board track racing; how Miller, Fred Offenhauser, and Leo Goossen formed one of the most important engineering partnerships in motorsport history; and how the Miller empire collapsed even as its creations continued winning races for decades.

From the futuristic Golden Submarine to the legendary Miller 122 and 91, this is the story of the machines that reshaped the Indianapolis 500 — and the flawed, brilliant men who built them.

#indycar #indy500 #indianapolis500 #indianapolismotorspeedway #harrymiller #offenhauser #motorsport #motorsporthistory

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Bibliography

• Board Track: Guts, Gold & Glory by Dick Wallen

• The Miller Dynasty: A technical history of the work of Harry A. Miller, his associates, and his successors by Mark L. Dees

• Offenhauser: The Legendary Racing Engine and the Men Who Built It by Gordon Eliot White

• City of Speed: Los Angeles and the Rise of American Racing by Joe Scalzo

• https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/nobody-walks-in-la-the-rise-of-cars-and-the-monorails-that-never-were-43267593/ 

• https://medium.californiasun.co/los-angeles-motordrome-6f22dd973808 

• https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1987-10-14-sp-9194-story.html 

• https://www.stutzclub.org/frederick-moscovics/ 

• https://archive.org/stream/armourengineer18inarmo/armourengineer18inarmo_djvu.txt