After the delay, Johncock moved into the lead and dominated until the race was Here, we celebrate Arts remarkable life. The total distance covered was 1,450 feet (440m). The start was 2. He died after driving drunk and crashing into a tree in New York in 1956, at age 44. Judy is an author, speaker and publishing consultant. He died in Indianapolis, Indiana as a result of injuries sustained in practice during the first day of time trials for the 1973 Indianapolis 500. With Pollards legacy in mind, the Douglas County Speedway and ASA/Northwest Sprint car Racing Association hosts an annual Art Pollard Memorial race each year in July on a Saturday night. We will review the memorials and decide if they should be merged. Invalid memorial. google_color_bg = "ECF8FF"; Foyt had already went up that way and had walked back and grabbed a hold of me and said, She is the daughter of Art Pollard. He was very courteous as a driver, but very strong and aggressive on the trackbut with respect for the other driver.. But after the wreck, I looked like I was fifteen years old again. Robin Millers 2016 Christmas Gifts Suggestions including Art Pollard: The Life and Legacy of a Gentleman Racer by Bob Kehoe. Photo courtesy of Mike Pollard. Dallenbach also talked to Savage in the hospital, because he was hired to replace him. Map Foyt, although Foyt then took to teammate George Snider's car. He was very popular, very quiet, but on the race track, very successful, Carnegie said. Parts of my kneecap were smashed. The 1973 Indianapolis 500 remains one of the lowest points in American motor sports He hit the inside wall almost head-on at full speed. Rutherford A popular super-modified champion in the Western States in the 1960s to ultimately the Championship Car Series achieving the pinnacle of racing at the famed Brickyard in Indiana. Actually, it isnt the turbine, but the four-wheel drive and the engineering and the chassis. Auto Racer. Pollocks evolution from this point throughout the 1940s shows a struggle to find a process by which he could translate his entire personality into painting. "This is what everybody feared," ABC's Jim McKay told the worldwide television audience. He was a true sportsman, a very strong competitor, and wouldnt hurt a fly. (Jackson dropped his first name, Paul, about the time he went to New York in 1930.) Pieces tumbled down the track and Savage slid to a stop, still strapped in the cockpit amidst a pool of burning fuel, but fully conscious, somehow speaking to safety workers and medical officials. the blue McLaren-Offy of rookie David "Salt" Walther drifted to the right, Pollard raced at Indy seven times, finishing eighth in the 1967 race. Coming out of Turn 4 on the next lap, the rear of his 1,500-pound Eagle, heavy with 500 pounds of methanol, twitched. Art was buried in McMinnville Oregon. Family members linked to this person will appear here. I've been lifting weights since I was sixteen years old. Miller was surprised when Pollard said he would take the car out during pre-qualifying practice. This browser does not support getting your location. The pride of Roseburg and Medford, Oregon had driven his last lap. "He was like a family member. and trigger another explosion of fuel and car parts. Armando Moreno Teran - STP pit crewman For a while though, it was touch and go. Grandfather on the Pollard Side - Andrew Jackson Pollard . If you are a WordPress user with administrative privileges on this site, please enter your email address in the box below and click "Send". . My car hit another and then spun down the track with the wheels off it. I think he was probably the first driver that we had who helped local people. One of the top athletes probably in the country. Robin Miller, the long-time Indianapolis Star racing writer who now works as an IndyCar reporter for NBC Sports Network and the Speed network, recalled sitting with Pollard on the pit wall early pole day morning. Survivors were his widow, Patricia; a son Michael; a daughter, Judy Dipple of Speedway; and his mother, Mrs. Artie Pollard of McMinnville. People came to see the storied track's first 200-mph laps. Magazine and eBay Motors. Failed to remove flower. Art was buried in McMinnville Oregon. Becoming a Find a Grave member is fast, easy and FREE. In 1968, all three of Andy Granatelli/Colin Chapman designed turbines made the field on the first day of qualifications. It was one of the most miserable weekends of his life. Qualifying speeds were down nearly 10 mph, with Foyt winning the pole and Rutherford collecting the first of his three victories. Use Escape keyboard button or the Close button to close the carousel. Walther, 25, suffered a crushed kneecap and severe burns over most of his body. On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. Please try again later. Please enter your email address and we will send you an email with a reset password code. This relationship is not possible based on lifespan dates. Later Mike would often recall, You never saw him when he wasnt smiling., Bob Pollard (Arts brother) and his wife, Diane, were also living in California at the time. Try again. from behind at 60 mph and killed him. I mean, I was skinny. google_ad_client = "pub-8002195670072149"; When a race driver is killed on the track the first thing everybody says is,"That's too bad, he was a hell of a guy." In the obituary the next day, his past performances are listed and any other worthy achievements are mentioned. We will review the memorials and decide if they should be merged. Art qualified in the field for the 1972 race, but broke his leg in a post-qualifying accident and was unable to race. He always made time for the people he knew and for the fans, Judy Pollard enjoying Arts race car in their Medford driveway in 1967. hands. Art won $941.00 for his 14th place finish and Bobby Unser won the race. google_color_bg = "ECF8FF"; Its a shame she had to hear about Art over the radio, but thats the way things happen when a sporting event is being broadcast., As Harvel Pollard (Arts cousin) remembers, One of the fellows I coached with for a number of years wasnt feeling well that day. Savage lost control. The Art Pollard Day in May continued for decades after dads death. Pollard died in Indianapolis, Indiana, as a result of injuries sustained in a crash during practice on the first day of time trials for the 1973 Indianapolis 500. In 1968, he teamed up to drive one of Andy Granatelli's famous STP Lotus Turbines. Art was born November 13, 1957, in Denver, CO, to Arthur L. and Philomena "Minnie" (Schenfeld) Pollard. Wordfence is a security plugin installed on over 4 million WordPress sites. It was an unspectacular run. Savage, 26, suffered critical burns but survived 33 days. All photos uploaded successfully, click on the Done button to see the photos in the gallery. What I really admired about Bob Christie was that he was such a gentleman on the track. He was 88. Johncock's celebration wasn't much of a party. His best finish was tenth in 1960, and he finished 13th in three other races. And I told 'em: "Goddammit, somebody hit me from behind.". After four years in the Navy, he went to work at Hansen Chevrolet, where Art was a mechanic. Raw speed ruled. Reality set in quickly when, in a windy practice before pole qualifying, Pollard crashed in the first turn. "It really tries on a driver hard. Driver Art Pollard was killed in a horrific pole-day qualifying crash. The flames melted it and crinkled it all up.". Previously sponsored memorials or famous memorials will not have this option. March 18, 1972 - At Phoenix Art qualified 21st in the #11 Quality Racing Scorpion now with a turbocharged Foyt powerplant. May of 1973 was a deadly month at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, earning it the nickname Bloody May. Weve updated the security on the site. They wore the same uniform. Following a stint in the U.S. Coast Guard and a career in the high-tech industry, he turned to automotive writing on a full-time basis, beginning with the Oregonian newspaper in 1994. "Very sad, about as sad as you can get," Pat Patrick said 40 years later. ", Meanwhile in the pits, Teran, an STP crewman, headed toward the accident scene. Again on Wednesday, after another rain delay, the teams tried again. The fingertips on his charred left hand were amputated. I actually had an opportunity to meet him once in Lexington. Pollard was born in Dragon, Utah, but spent much of his youth in and around Los Angeles. interrupted again by rain, which, mercifully, caused it to be stopped at Lap 133 of the "I thought, my goodness, we're never going to recover from this," said the speedway's Carnegie. Are you sure that you want to delete this memorial? | The first part of May, 1968, Granatelli signed Art Pollard to replace Jackie Stewart. We just got on the plane and came home.". that much more safe.". Art's Parents - Artle Lee Pollard Sr. (1903-1964) & Bobbie Marie (Jaynes) Pollard (1907-2000). After these experiences, his work became semiabstract and showed the assimilation of motifs from the modern Spanish artists Pablo Picasso and Joan Mir, as well as the Mexican muralist Jos Clemente Orozco. Art's dad was born in Anderson, Texas. There wouldn't be another on-track fatality at IMS until Gordon Smiley in 1982. Died after a huge crash in a practice session for the 1973 Indy 500. Pollard frequently visited Larue Carter Memorial Hospital, a facility for mentally ill youth, and each May arranged for a busload or two of its children to come to the track for a picnic. He made speeches at schools and churches and visited the troops in Vietnam, but his pet project was the LaRueCarter Memorial Hospital for retarded children in Indianapolis. ToDo Jackson Pollock died in a car crash in the summer of 1956 at age 44. I had no brows and almost like a burr haircut. In time trials, with a car with the new air wing design, and running in high winds, the car went out of control and flipped several times at speeds over 190 miles an hour. Richards writes for The Indianapolis Star, a Gannett property. "My whole family was in tears. From his years with Benton through 1938, Pollocks work was strongly influenced by the compositional methods and regionalist subject matter of his teacher and by the poetically expressionist vision of the American painter Albert Pinkham Ryder. "I was down by the pit wall, steering left, and . Being a big race fan, I was fortunately allowed to go. Tuesday was wet, as well, and the drivers saw the red flag while on their parade lap. At 9:37 a.m., Pollard hit the outside wall in turn 1, spun to the inside, then flipped over, coming to a rest in turn two with flames and heavy damage. plastic cylinders and covering plates designed to minimize the force of impact. Learn more about managing a memorial . as good of friends as you can be when you race against each other," Thanks for your help! Swede Savage Fan site - articles and pictures, | He had suffered internal lung lesion due to flame inhalation, a broken leg, a fractured right arm, third-degree burns and a severe spinal injury. . Driver Salt Walther suffered disfiguring burns in a fiery first-lap crash that injured 13 spectators. They carried a full fuel load of 75 gallons. Art Pollard: The Life and Legacy of a Gentleman Racer by Bob Kehoe. If you notice a problem with the translation, please send a message to [emailprotected] and include a link to the page and details about the problem. Somewhere in my possessions I have an autographed photo of Art and the Indy car. "They looked exactly alike," Andy said, speaking in the hushed tones of grief 40 years later. ". Safety was the watchword for the 1974 Indianapolis 500. Mike, then 25 and a steel fabricator in Fresno, Calif., didnt want to believe what he was hearing. Johnny Rutherford won the pole position. When it snapped, Art lost a wheel, spun around and slammed into the third turn concrete." Article, "Hospital Room Looks Like a Greenhouse," Robin Miller, The Indianapolis Star, 1972 On-board fuel capacity was cut from 75 gallons to 40, turbocharger boost pressure He was a people magnet, and I feel privileged that he was my dad, for that reason. He qualified 12th, but due to mechanical trouble on lap 7, he finished 31st. POLLARD--Barbara, who retired in 2002 as the English Department Chairperson at the Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School of Music & Art and Performing Arts in New York City . one of the corners that was grabable," said Dallenbach, who is now the chief steward He died living his dream, doing what he loved; and it was a privilege for him to race at that level., Mike Pollard, was working as a steel fabricator for Fred Gerhardt in Fresno, California. This flower has been reported and will not be visible while under review. Billy Vukovich called me after I'd been out of the hospital a while and said "We just want to tell you we just inducted you into the Crispy Critter Club.". English google_page_url = document.location; The car was demolished. You have chosen this person to be their own family member. It was as if a message were being sent with the relentless rain that delayed, I was surprised to find the site honoring your brother, his career, and untimely death. Now engineers design and redesign cars and seats and helmets to minimize the effect on Once I got the news I called the hospital, and by then he had passed away.. The large wings of 1972-73 were reduced in size. A. Corrections? Tales He won two Indy car events in 1969, and finished second in the first two California 500s at Ontario Motor Speedway. Mike lives in Reno, Nev., and works at a jewelry shop. Then I thought: Well, shit. Updates? There was a problem getting your location. Note: Prior to 1965 Artwon 83 championship events in the Western Statesand Canada and became one ofSouthern Oregons biggest stars. A.J. And I looked in it. All three major accidents resulted in fireballs. Current IndyCars generate 670 horsepower. nationality American born May 5, 1927 hometown Dragon, Utah died May 12, 1973 place of death Indianapolis. google_color_url = "0033FF"; There are no volunteers for this cemetery. Don Caskey was on his tractor when his wife Shirley called him inside on May 12, 1973. Art Pollard. Main His work and example had enormous influence on them and on many subsequent art movements in the United States. "Swede wasn't much older than my son (Steve)," Patrick said. He is believed to be the first driver from Southern Oregon to race at Indy. Teran, a mechanic on Graham McRae's car, sprinted down pit lane to see if he could be of help to his injured teammate. while injuring a dozen spectators. I found on Findagrave.com. Eventually I began to work with the weights. The chassis dug into the grass and flipped upside-down, slid a short distance and then flipped back over as it reached the pavement again in turn two, finally coming to a stop in the middle of the track. Born in Dragon, Utah, Pollard died in Indianapolis, Indiana, as a result of injuries sustained in practice for the 1973 Indianapolis 500. They were going to cut off the left hand at first, but the doctor felt he could save it. Walther's Art Pollard's story deserves to be told, from his birth to his untimely death. You can also read the documentation to learn about Wordfence's blocking tools, or visit wordfence.com to learn more about Wordfence. Parking Translation on Find a Grave is an ongoing project. I suppose there is truth in the 7 degrees of separation theory. "I thought I was blind until I flipped up my visor. recalled pole-sitter Johnny Rutherford. He is also one of the first American painters to be recognized during his lifetime and after as a peer of 20th-century European masters of modern art. Championship events in the hospital, because he was hired to replace Jackie.... Works at a jewelry shop the fingertips on his tractor when his wife Shirley him! Told, from his birth to his untimely death 33 days deadly month at Indianapolis Motor,... An autographed photo of Art and the engineering and the Indy car events in 1969, and the drivers the... 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