The Indianapolis Star from Indianapolis, Indiana • Page 204

-j ii i Taw. "'mmr-i "nrn 'f -rrr JIMMY CLARK: A LEGACY THAT RACES ON By BOB COLLINS URING the month of May in It My i at Hockenheim, Germany, he was recognized as the greatest racing driver in the world. Many said he was the greatest of all time. RACE drivers live with accidents and death. But Jim's fatal accident sent shock waves through the racing world.

He drove with such superb skill, with such complete control of himself and his machine it just didn't seem possible that he would die in a race car. Almost to a man, the racers said, "Something must have broken." It simply didn't enter anyone's mind that Jim would make a mistake. Clark was a shy man with simple tastes. He actually was embarrassed by his fame. He genuinely loved to help people and his small acts of kindness and attempts to aid those less successful were not forgotten.

Jim's funeral at Duns, in the Scottish countryside he loved, was attended by mourners from all over the world. I witnessed an incident which showed the impact he had on other people. A few months after Jim was killed I was in a hotel lobby at Monza, Italy, noted for, among other things, its auto racing. The hotel had overbooked by what appeared to be 1,000 persons all angry, of course. The irate visitors were shout- leather purse and a scroll.

In the traditional closing ceremony, the most immediate past winner will slip a jacket, made of the Clark family tartan, onto the shoulders of the newest member of one of auto racing's most exclusive clubs. Rules for entering are restrictive in their simplicity. They read that the award shall be given annually "to the person in racing who by his conduct, both on and off the track, best exemplifies the spirit of Jim Clark." The man is selected by his peers, the previous winners. And the vote must be unanimous. (In the early years the selections were made by a panel of news media representatives.

But each year one dropped off and was replaced by a Clark Award winner.) The winners take the voting seriously, sometimes agonizing for weeks before selecting a winner. The award ceremony is a poignant moment. And it almost is a sure bet the winner will speak sincerely, sometimes emotionally, about Jim Clark and what the award means to him. Who, then, was the man whose name inspires such respect from a group of athletes known for their go-it-alone philosophy? Jim Clark was a meteor who flashed brilliantly, if all too briefly, in auto racing. At the time of his death, April 7, 1968, on a track Indianapolis party chairmen and would-be hosts and hostesses frantically scour the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, hoping to land a race driver any race driver as the main attraction at their big party.

The invitations are many, the acceptances few. Race drivers are busy men. They consider the cockpit of their race cars their offices. They spend the day at the track and when 6 p.m. arrives they are tired, just like other working men.

Thus, they keep their party appearances to a minimum. But the Jim Clark Award committee has no problem landing racing celebrities. The 10th annual Jim Clark dinner will be Thursday at the Indianapolis Athletic Club. The guest list is limited to 200. And the list of previous winners of the award who will attend reads like the speakers table at an auto racing Hall of Fame dinner.

Their names and faces would be recognized anywhere in the country in some cases, the world. Previous winners were: Johnny Rutherford, Mario Andretti, Dan Gurney, the late Peter Rev-son, Bobby Allison, Peter DePa-olo, Wally Dallenbach, Tom Sneva and Clarence Cagle. The 1978 winner will be announced at the dinner. Jimmy Clark was a shy Scot when accepting honors, but confident in his racer (top). lHE AWARD has little monetary value.

The recipient will receive 33 Churchill crowns in a.