1963 Trenton 100 (partially found footage of USAC Championship Car Season race; 1963)

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1963trenton1001.jpg

Program for the race.

Status: Partially Found

The 1963 Trenton 100 was the opening race of the 1963 USAC Championship Car Season. Occurring on 21st April at the Trenton Speedway, the race would ultimately be won by A.J. Foyt in a Meskowski-Offenhauser, breaking several track records in the process.

Background

The 1963 Trenton 100 was the sixth running of the event, with the annual race lasting 100 miles.[1] It was one of three 1963 USAC Championship Car Season races to commence at Trenton Speedway;[2] the Trenton 150 occurred on 28th July, while the Trenton 200 commenced on 22nd September, both of which were won by A.J. Foyt.[3][4] Trenton would continue hosting IndyCar races until 1979 before it was dropped from the schedule and demolished in 1980.[5]

Prior to the race, qualifying commenced with Lloyd Ruby winning the pole position in a Lotus-Climax with a record speed of 106.414 mph.[6][1] This would be the first time that the Formula One-spec Lotus would compete in this race type in America.[6] Directly behind him was Foyt, with Meskowski-Offenhauser driver Parnelli Jones lining up third out of 22 competitors.[1]

The Race

With the starting order decided, the 1963 Trenton 100 commenced on 21st April.[1] Foyt shot into the lead on the first lap, defending the first position for 21 laps.[6][1] However, Ruby fought back, taking the lead back on lap 22, although Foyt repassed him on lap 31.[6][1] The race then centred around Foyt, Ruby, and Watson-Offenhauser driver Eddie Sachs.[6] While the Offenhauser cars had superior straight-line speed, Ruby remained in contention as his Lotus was better in the corners.[6] However, Ruby would retire after 40 laps following a gearbox failure.[6][1] While Sachs carried on, he too would not complete the race, retiring after 74 laps when a rings issue occurred.[6][1]

This allowed Foyt to control the remainder laps, while also breaking the 20, 40, and 50 mile track records with an average speed of over 103 mph.[6] He therefore claimed victory and $4,442 in prize money, also setting an overall average speed record of 102.491 mph.[6][1] Jones would finish seven seconds behind Foyt in second, while Jim Hurtubise took third in a Kuzma-Offenhauser, him and Jones the only other drivers on the lead lap.[1][6]

Availability

According to IndyCar on TV, 45 minutes of highlights were televised by ABC on 4th May 1963, alongside Japanese Judo Championships.[7] The broadcast has yet to resurface however, although a few minutes of fan footage of the event can be found on YouTube.

Gallery

Video

Fan footage of the race.

Image

  • Roger Penske and Foyt at the event.

    Roger Penske and Foyt at the event.

See Also

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 1.7 1.8 1.9 Racing-Reference detailing the qualifying and race results of the event. Retrieved 26th May '22
  2. ↑ Racing-Reference detailing the 1963 USAC Championship Car Season schedule. Retrieved 26th May '22
  3. ↑ Racing-Reference detailing the results of the 1963 Trenton 150. Retrieved 26th May '22
  4. ↑ Racing-Reference detailing the results of the 1963 Trenton 200. Retrieved 26th May '22
  5. ↑ Racing Circuits detailing the history of the Trenton Speedway. Retrieved 26th May '22
  6. ↑ 6.00 6.01 6.02 6.03 6.04 6.05 6.06 6.07 6.08 6.09 6.10 The New York Times reporting on Foyt winning the race. Retrieved 26th May '22
  7. ↑ IndyCar on TV detailing the ABC broadcast of the race. Retrieved 26th May '22
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