The Indianapolis News from Indianapolis, Indiana • 21

Monday. May 18. 1981 THE INDIANAPOLIS NEWS Bobby Up Front For 9th Time 500 Rpnllv Family Affair (M 'I! i jr sr I a. ft io Unser (center), Mike Mosley (left) and A. J.

Foyt. AP. Bobby Unser believes up front is where it counts. So next Sunday hen the Cith 500-Mile Race starts, this ageless racing veteran from Albuquerque. N.M..

will be as up front as you can Ret- For the second time in 19 races he has captured the pole, but it will be a record ninth time that he has taken the green flag from the front row. "I've been every place, but the main thing is to be up front" said the 47-year-old elder member of the Unser racing clan after he qualified Saturday at an average speed of 200 546 miles per hour. "I think if you start on the front row you're in better shape. I don't think you can always pick where you're going to end up. I think a person is just lucky to get there." Unser has been "lucky" more times than anybody in history.

He first earned a spot on the front row in 1968 when he qualified third fastest. He went on to win his first 500 that year. He followed with a third in 1969. third in 1971. his first pole in 1972, second in 1973.

third in 1975. second in 1977, third last year and first again this year. The pole to him, though, doesn't mean that much, he said. "It's nice to have it." he allowed after he turned laps in his Norton Spirit Penske-Cosworth of 200.714. 201.342, 200.758 and 199.380.

"It's nice for the sponsors. To me that's the main thing. The money we make off it doesn't even pay for the effort we put in just for the pole. "I tell people my main interest is winning the race. I just totally feel that way.

But I try hard qualifying. "I had nothing to gain, but I had a tremendous amount to lose. Look where Rick (teammate Rick Mears) is. He had to jump in the other car and had no time to prepare himself. I could have been in the same position." Mears made a charge in his Gould Charge Penske at wresting the pole away from Bobby, but a $20 coil failed after the 1979 Indianapolis winner had swooped through consecutive laps of Sneva, who once was a Roger Penske driver himself, responded with a laugh and a quip.

"First of all. it's not very smart for a man that old to try for 200," said the 32-year-old Spokane, native. "Second, we are without sponsorship, we're a racer and we were not extending ourself If we had been trying to go fast, they'd be in serious trouble. "I think he was a little off base on that statement. I didn't know he had been bad-mouthing me before qualifying.

They said I didn't know what I was doing. If I ever do know what I'm doing, they'd better stand back." Sharing the front row with Bobby on race day will be quiet Mike Mosley, who snoved his Dan Gurney stock block-powered Chevy Eagle into the middle of the front row with an average of 197.141. and legendary A.J. Foyt, seeking his fifth 500 victory from outside of the first file. Foyt qualified his Valvoline-Gilmore Coyote a week ago at 196 078, which was the fastest of nine who made the field By WAYNE FUSON.

Sports Editor 'THOUGHTS of a railbird while A watching the wild and wooly qualifications for the 65th 500-Mile Race: The 500 has been a family affair through the years. Nine sets of brothers have raced against each other, according to Speedway historians. The latest, of course, are Gary and Tony Bettenhausen. whose late father also was a 500 driver and former national champion. Other brothers who have raced against each other: Bobby and Al Unser.

Don and Bill Whittingtott. Jim and Dick Rathmann. Tom and Jerry Sneva. Johnny Parsons and Pane ho Carter 4 half brothers). George and Hal Robson.

Harry and Bill Endicott Gaston, Louis and Art Chevrolet. Speaking of family ties in the 500, the Unser name has been in the race more than any other. Bobby, the 1981 pole winner, now has qualified for 19. Brother Al is getting ready for No. 16 and their late brother Jerry was in one.

That's a total of 36 times an Unser has been in the race. The Bettenhausen clan ranks next. Tony Sr. was in 14, son Gary in 13 and now Tony Jr. is getting ready for his first.

Dick and Jim Rathmann were in 23. The Rookies Josele Garza, the merry Mexican who qualified sixth at a speed of 195 101. has to be the odds-on favorite to win rookie of the year honors. In fact, he's the best rookie qualifier since the late Mark Donohue qualified fourth in 1969. Other hot rookie qualifiers were Mario Andretti.

who was fourth best his first year 1965) and Parnelli Jones, who was fifth fastest in 1961. Genius Department When practice began at the Speedway May 2, the estimates of the pole speed were in the mid-190s. What happened? Both pole winner Bobby U. and Tom Sneva, the track qualifying record holder, topped 200 for the four lap test. The average field of the 33 starters is over 191, nearly 6 mph faster than the 1980 average even though the moveable skirts on the cars, which most drivers thought enabled them to go faster, have been outlawed.

Obviously, the genius of the car builders and the engine men is being evidenced. For years some have felt the cars were going too fast and steps have been taken to slow them down. Once Sneva set the existing records of 203 620 for one lap and 202.156 for four, there have been various attempts to cut back the speed. BRITISH ACCENT It's a front row of Bobby 200 938 and 199 956. Late in the day he then jumped in the backup car and qualified at 194 018 and took a back-of-the-field start.

Actually. Bobby Unser wound up as the second fastest qualifier. Track record-holder Tom Sneva shoved his foot to the floorboard of his George Bignotti-prepared March and ripped off laps of 202.429. 201.207. 200 000 and 199 159 for an average of 200.691.

But because the car arrived late and was not ready to place in line the first qualifying weekend, it was not eligible for the pole and will start in the rear ranks. Bobby Unser said Sneva's speed did not bother him and that "I take my hat off to them." But then in the next breath he added. "I don't think it made much sense." "If I did that I think maybe Roger would think maybe I wasn't the guy for him." he exclaimed. "You have nothing but to lose. What is he going to gain from it? He damn near hit the wall several times.

And if he does) a whole year goes click, click out of your life. I just can't see it." Our Saves on the first day. Although there were 27 cars still eligible to knock him backwards last Saturday, only Unser and Mosley. whose machine is called the Pepsi Challenger, were quick enough to slide in front of him. The front row has the experience of 54 previous races.

Of course, this is the 24th straight start for Foyt. who is the only driver who began his 500 career in the 1950s. This will be Foyt's fifth time to take the green from the front of the pack. Oddly, the 46-year-old Houston great has never won from the front. His victories came from seventh in 1961, fifth in 1964 and fourth both in 1967 and 1977.

This will be Mosley's first start up front. The best previous start for this 34-year-old Californian of few words was fifth in 1975. Dick Mittman. Tourney Postponed The race drivers golf tournament cosponsored by the News and the Speedway was postponed today because of inclement weather. Check charging and starting Install new rotor, new spark plugs Set timing to recommended specs Lubricate and adjust choke Adjust carburetor 6-cylinder cars.

$47. 8-cylinder cars. $49. V-i But the slowdowns all are temporary The genius of the racing fraternity always seems to find ways to make the cars go faster. Sneva had one lap at 202 429.

just a tick or two of the watch under his record lap. Where will the speed stop? Who knows. The track was supposedly built for a top speed of 100 mph. But there seems no stopping members of the go-go crowd. Even the advent of the stock block engine, which will be the rule rather than the exception next year, won't do it.

Mike Mosley, who qualified Dan Gurney's Eagle-Chevrolet V-8 at 197.141 to start in the middle of the front row, proved that Granted his stock block engine isn't very stock, it still is close to that which is supposed to prevail next year. Quick Change Artists When Pete Halsmer, the 37-year-old Purdue grad from Lafayette rolled his car into the qualifying lineup Saturday, his car had a sick engine. But his mechanics simply went to work and put a new engine in as the car was moved up the line. Impossible, some might think. But it wasn't.

Halsmer had only the three prequal-ifying warmup laps on the new engine before he averaged 187.705 for the 10 miles. The entire engine switch took only an hour or so. Normally it would take a full day. More racing genius at work. The Crowd Estimates of the crowd Saturday ranged between 100.000 and 125,000 and 50,000 yesterday.

Parking was something of a problem because of the muddy infield and thousands of cars were parked on the infield golf course. There were some complaints about infield traffic patterns late in the day tsome fans who tried to leave early couldn't get through the north tunnels) and some fans, especially those in the stands outside the southeast turn, said the concession stands weren't all open. The Snake Pit crowd, that group of revelers which usually puts on a show in the area inside the southwest turn, weren't "homeless" long. A new grandstand was built in the area for this year's race. But the Snakepit Society just moved farther around the track.

There were the usual drunks wallowing in the mud and girls displaying their charms for the benefit of the hordes of cameraman in the area. Ah yes, nothing like a weekend at the old brickyard. count the number of aging Eagles and McLarens that tried to make the field i. Thirteen of the Penskes are in the starting field, and one of them, Tom Bigelow's No. 56, is powered by a Chevy V-8.

For the first time in modern memory the starting field will not contain a car built or groomed by master mechanic A. J. Watson. Missing, too, is the stable of Sherman Armstrong who introduced March to the Speedway last year. The Drake-Offy engine which powered so many of Watson's creations also nearly missed the show for the first time since before World War II.

In a burst of speed which set off a controversy, and protest. Jerry Sneva placed the car to have been driven by Patrick Bedard in the last row. Some claimed Sneva was mechanically assisted, others believe it was what has come to be called a "banzai" ride. Just as "made in England" is stamped on a growing number of chassis, the Cosworth engine also has grown in availability and use. Larry Slutter builds them up from factory parts in California, and others are put together and massaged by Ed Pink.

They all originate in England, and there are 29 of them in the field for the 65th running of the 500-Mile Race. In addition to the Offy in the last row, and the Gurney stock-block in the first row, and Bigelow's Chevy in Row 5, Tom Klausler qualified a Chevy in 33rd place. The marvel of the qualifying weekend in which 109 cars were presented for qualifications, there were only two crashes of consequence and no severe injuries. There is no accurate count, however, of how many engines were blown up in the quest for speed. -J 1 GASOLINE JrNV ALLEY 12-Month Tune-Up You Gas AD Year Long Reutemann Wins Belgian ZOLDER.

Belgium (AP) Argentina's Carlos Reutemann scored a personal triumph at the Belgian Grand Prix in what was otherwise a bad weekend for Formula One racing. Reutemann won the rain-shortened event yesterday to increase his lead in the race for the 1981 world driver's championship and he set a record by scoring points in 15 successive races. But the weekend left two mechanics gravely injured, there were new rules disputes, drivers and mechanics delayed the race with protests, a leading driver blatantly ignored accident signals, and officials made controversial decisions. Reutemann took the checkered flag after 54 laps of a scheduled 70 laps when officials, nervous after a starting line accident, decided to end the race as light rain began to fall. He had moved into the lead on lap 19 when his Williams teammate and fierce rival, Alan Jones, the world champion from Australia, went out of the race while in the lead when his car's gearbox failed through a high speed corner.

Jones suffered burns on his leg when sprayed by scalding water from a broken radiator. Nelson Piquet of Brazil crashed while running second after 10 laps and charged that Jones pushed him off the track. Mario Andretti finished 10th in the race. Jody Ridley's victory at the Mason-Dixon 500 was a sweet one. It was his first Grand National win.

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GOODYEAR WILL MAKE THE ADJUSTMENT OR RE PLACEMENT FREE OF CHARGE' Oil Change Filter Includes our 9-point maintenance check: Transmission fluid Pouer steenng fluid Differential fluid Brake fluid Air filter Banetv cables aater level Belts Hoses Tire pressure condition Includes most imports and light trucks. Please call for appointment. and sticking In such cases you can help restore 2424 ANDES thanks to INDIANAPOLIS. IN 46205 TUNE-UP This famous oil treatment works in 10 minutes as you drive to often caused by lost performance WVNN S- ENGINE and lifters while it harmful deposits So highway torture GET TUNE-UP today HARDWARE Pre-Season Lube, Snecial: Air Conditioning Service By BILL PITTMAN Amid rumors and rumors of rumors at the Speedway, one thing became perfectly clear: If you want to go really Jast, take a March. 2' Bobby Unser sits on the pole with an of 200.545, but the swiftest of the swift is Tom Sneva with a single lap of 202.429 and four laps at an average of -200 691 in a car with an Oxford accent.

Nearly as amazing was the qualification of Bill Whittington yesterday in a 'car similar to Sneva 's. at 197.098. A 1 third March also is in the field with Don at the wheel. It There is nothing sensationally singu- lar about the March, designed by Robin Herd and produced in Oxford, England. are merely the latest of the super sophisticated aerodynamic designs to be inported from the Grand Prix cir- It may be singular, though, that George Bignotti and the Whittingtons essentially took them out of the crates produced outstanding speeds.

Although horsepower remains the name of the game at Indianapolis, this year's contest also is among such designers as Herd, Roman Slobodynski Geoffrey Ferris (Penske) Patrick Head (Longhorn). No new fcid on the block is John Ward, who won 'this year's Switzer Award for outstand-' design with his new Gurney Eagle. I The car made its debut last year at the Speedway, and underwent refinement last winter in Gurney's wind tunnel. -f did a lot of testing, and simply believed what the computer told us," Ward said. Gurney, who has sold two of the chassis and three of the engines.

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torn My. Jerry Sneva was yesterday's final qualifier. AP..