1930 Indianapolis 500

18th Indianapolis 500
Indianapolis Motor Speedway
Indianapolis 500
Sanctioning body AAA
Date May 30, 1930
Winner Billy Arnold
Winning Entrant Harry Hartz
Average speed 100.448 mph (161.655 km/h)
Pole position Billy Arnold
Pole speed 113.268 mph (182.287 km/h)
Most laps led Arnold (198*)
*All time race record
Pre-race
Pace car Cord L-29
Pace car driver Wade Morton
Chronology
Previous Next
1929 1931

The 18th International 500-Mile Sweepstakes Race was held at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway on Friday, May 30, 1930. The race was part of the 1930 AAA Championship Car season.

Pole position winner Billy Arnold took the lead on lap 3, and led the entire rest of the race. He led a total of 198 laps (all consecutive), which stands as an all-time Indianapolis 500 race record. Arnold was accompanied by riding mechanic Spider Matlock.

Arnold was the first driver to complete the entire 500 miles in under five hours (over 100 mph average speed) without relief help. Pete DePaolo finished the 1925 race in under five hours, but used a relief driver for 21 laps. Arnold would eventually be named the first member of the prestigious 100 mph Club.

The race was marred by the death of Paul Marshall. He was acting as riding mechanic for his brother Cy when their car hit and flipped over the wall. His brother survived with serious injuries.

Rules changes and the "Junk" formula

The 1930 race ushered in a series of substantially new engine rules and specifications. The allotted displacement was increased from 9112 cu. in. (1.5 L) to 366 cu. in. (6.0 L). Superchargers were banned with the exception of two-cycle engines, and riding mechanics were made mandatory once again. In addition, the traditional mandate of a maximum 33-car field was lifted.

Contrary to popular belief, the rules changes were not made in response to the stock market crash of 1929. The rules package is sometimes referred to disparagingly as the "Junk Formula" or the "Junkyard," and a common misconception is that it was implemented in order to "dumb down" the cars and maintain full fields during the Great Depression.

Speedway president Eddie Rickenbacker had decided to make the changes in order to lure back the passenger car manufacturers, and make the cars on the track resemble more those sold to the motoring public. Rickenbacker's desire was to move away from the supercharged, specialized racing machines that had taken over the Speedway through the 1920s. The rule changes were in fact being laid out as early as 1928, and were approved by the AAA Contest Board in early January 1929.[1]

Race schedule

Race schedule – May 1930
Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat
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10
 
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24
Time Trials
25
Time Trials
26
Time Trials
27
Time Trials
28
Time Trials
29
 
30
Indy 500
31
 
Color Notes
Green Track Available for Practice
Dark Blue Time trials
Silver Race day
Blank No track activity

Practice

The deadline for entries to be submitted was midnight on May 1. The track was made available for practice a couple days later, with the first car taking to the track on or around Tuesday May 6.[2] Most cars did not arrive at the Speedway until the second full week, with activity picking up mid-month.

By Monday May 19, a total of ten cars had taken to the track, with Louis Schneider (105 mph) posting the fastest lap thus far.[3] On Tuesday May 20, the focus of attention was on the 201-c.i.d, 16-cylinder, Sampson Special of Louis Meyer. The car was now completed and wheeled out of its garage at the Steinhart Brake Services building. It was cranked up for the first time, and ready to deliver to the Speedway. Back at the track, Shorty Cantlon turned a lap of 109 mph.[4]

On Wednesday May 21, Louis Meyer took to the track for the first time, blistering the bricks with a lap of 110.56 mph in the 16-cylinder machine. Meyer immediately established himself as a favorite for the front row.[5] Meanwhile, Harry Hartz, who had not yet taken any laps in his front wheel drive Miller Special, was still expected to qualify come Saturday.

On Thursday May 22, Ralph Hepburn (112.20 mph) and Billy Arnold (111.83 mph) took laps in Harry Hartz's Miller Special. They were the two fastest laps thus far for the month. Speculation was growing that Hartz was preparing to hand the car over to either Hepburn or Arnold, but no official arrangement had been announced.[6] As late as Friday night, Hartz was still insisting to the press that he was intending to race the car himself.[7]

Time trials

Qualifications was scheduled for five days, spanning from Saturday May 24 through Wednesday May 28. Four-lap qualifying runs were utilized, and cars were allowed up to three attempts. The minimum speed required was 85 mph. Time trials would end each day at sundown.[6]

Saturday May 24

The first day of time trials was held Saturday May 24, scheduled for 11 a.m. to 7:01 p.m. L. L. Corum was the first car to qualify.[8] Car owner Harry Hartz took the #4 Miller Special out for a shake-down qualifying attempt. After one official lap of 110.429 mph, he parked the car and handed it over to Billy Arnold. Arnold proceeded to win the pole position with a four-lap run of 113.268 mph.

One day after smacking the wall, Ernie Triplett qualified sixth. After practicing on Friday at over 111 mph, and being a favorite for the pole position, Louis Meyer fell short of expectations. Meyer qualified second, owing to an ill-conceived gear ratio change the team decided to make on Saturday morning.

No major incidents were reported.

Pos No. Name Lap 1
(mph)
Lap 2
(mph)
Lap 3
(mph)
Lap 4
(mph)
Average Speed
(mph)
14United States Billy Arnold113.208113.364113.279113.222113.268
21United States Louis Meyer (W)111.552111.843111.552110.227111.290
316United States Shorty Cantlon (R)110.281110.146110.200108.630109.810
423United States Louis Schneider104.883106.282106.534106.749106.107
518United States Chet Gardner (R)106.597105.485105.746105.423105.811
617United States Ernie Triplett105.646105.646105.907105.275105.618
722United States Russ Snowberger104.191104.275104.749105.018104.577
815United States Phil Shafer101.237102.576102.904102.412102.279
925United States Leslie Allen (R)101.569102.064101.925102.122101.919
1036United States Cy Marshall (R)100.334100.976100.874101.203100.846
1133United States Frank Farmer100.111100.402100.581101.374100.615
1214United States Lou Moore100.30199.91198.87999.86799.867
1335United States J. C. McDonald (R)98.91298.80399.03299.06498.953
1429United States Joe Caccia (R)96.56797.60397.95498.31897.606
1541United States Chet Miller (R)96.63997.01497.76298.03997.360
1638United States Claude Burton (R)93.76096.27794.95795.39095.087
172United States L. L. Corum (W)94.46894.37993.73093.94694.130
1839United States Johnny Seymour92.89893.30393.56593.74093.376
1932United States Charles Moran (R)88.75789.98289.14491.08489.733
 4United States Harry Hartz110.429   Incomplete

Sunday May 25

Only two cars completed qualifying runs on Sunday May 25. Peter DePaolo was forced to change engines after crankshaft damage suffered on Saturday. Tony Gulotta put in the 12th-fastest speed thus far in the field, but as a second day qualifier, lined up in 20th starting position.

Rookie owner/driver Julius C. Slade quit his run after only two laps, then eventually would hand the car over to Roland Free.[10] Rick Decker also pulled in after only two laps.

Pos No. Name Lap 1
(mph)
Lap 2
(mph)
Lap 3
(mph)
Lap 4
(mph)
Average Speed
(mph)
209United States Tony Gulotta100.022100.62699.82399.668100.033
215United States Peter DePaolo (W)99.71299.491100.615100.01199.956
 31United States Rick Decker96.05194.548  Incomplete
 28United States Julius C. Slade (R)84.77885.553  Incomplete

Monday May 26

Three cars completed qualifying runs on Monday May 26, filling the field to 24 cars. Bill Cummings led the speed chart for the day, with a run of 106.173 mph, the fourth-fastest car in the field. Cummings car arrived late in the day, and he completed his run after 6 p.m., shortly before the track closed for the day. Cummings day was not without incident, as he nearly involved in an accident along with Peter DePaolo as they drove the car to the Speedway grounds.

Four other drivers took to the track, but failed to complete their runs. Bill Denver quit after two laps. Rick Decker, making his second attempt, blew an engine after completing only one lap. Likewise, Julius C. Slade, also making his second attempt in two days, threw a rod on his final lap. Babe Stapp took to the track just before sundown, but pulled off the track apparently before starting the attempt.

Pos No. Name Lap 1
(mph)
Lap 2
(mph)
Lap 3
(mph)
Lap 4
(mph)
Average Speed
(mph)
226United States Bill Cummings (R)105.820106.496105.610105.770106.173
2310United States Mel Kenealy (R)102.916103.448103.448103.496103.327
247United States Jimmy Gleason93.61393.69193.84893.68293.709
 44United States Bill Denver (R) 91.50191.380 Incomplete
 31United States Rick Decker92.507engine  Incomplete
 28United States Julius C. Slade (R)87.95188.03788.054engineIncomplete
 8United States Babe Stapp    Incomplete

Tuesday May 27

Six cars made qualifying attempts on Tuesday May 27, with all six running to completion. Wilbur Shaw led the speed chart for the day, with a four-lap average of 106.132 mph. There were no major incidents reported.

A day after practicing over 100 mph, Joe Huff did not disappoint, putting in the second-fastest speed of the afternoon. Rick Decker, who threw a rod and blew the engine in his #31 Decker Special on Monday, spent the day working a new engine. Decker made a deal with Fred Clemmons, owner of the #48 Hoosier Pete entry. Clemmons was unable to secure a chassis for his 4-cylinder Hoosier Pete engine, so he allowed Decker to install it in his car. The team expected to be out on the track for Wednesday.

Juan Gaudino (#52) and Fred Fansin (#53) officially scratched their entries, after they failed to arrive. At the end of the day, the field was filled to 30 cars. About twelve hopefuls remained, looking to qualify on Wednesday.

Pos No. Name Lap 1
(mph)
Lap 2
(mph)
Lap 3
(mph)
Lap 4
(mph)
Average Speed
(mph)
253United States Wilbur Shaw103.986107.565107.862105.214106.132
2634United States Joe Huff (R)100.852101.203100.212102.471101.178
2719United States Speed Gardner94.54796.28896.12395.29995.585
2826Italy Baconin Borzacchini (R)96.49496.41194.74793.27495.213
2945United States Marion Trexler (R)92.43192.76493.13993.58492.978
3042Italy Letterio Cucinotta (R)90.82791.44592.15691.92191.584

Wednesday May 28

The final day of qualifications was held on Wednesday May 28, with time trials officially ending at sundown (7:04 p.m.) A total of eight cars managed to qualify for the race bringing the field to 38 cars. With an entry list featuring as many as 46-47 possible qualifiers, a total of four failed to qualify, and three cars never arrived. No cars were bumped or "crowded out."

Deacon Litz was the fastest qualifier for the day, with a run of 105.755 mph. After two failed attempts, Rick Decker finally made the field, after he finished installation of the Hoosier Pete engine. Fred Roberts and Rollin May failed to complete their attempts. Roberts threw a rod, and May was too slow to meet the 80 mph minimum speed. Doc MacKenzie never made it out to the track, and Sam Greco threw a rod with only thirty minutes left in the day.

Pos No. Name Lap 1
(mph)
Lap 2
(mph)
Lap 3
(mph)
Lap 4
(mph)
Average Speed
(mph)
3112United States Deacon Litz104.676106.070106.132106.157105.755
328United States Babe Stapp104.834105.895104.118104.969104.950
3324United States Dave Evans97.17197.43498.99396.68197.342
3421United States Zeke Meyer (R)94.99795.47094.77796.19595.357
3548United States Rick Decker92.14792.05392.14792.83192.293
3644United States Bill Denver (R)90.68091.18590.12690.61690.650
3728United States Roland Free (R)89.41989.55289.68689.90189.639
3846United States Harry Butcher (R)86.60586.94887.13387.32887.003
 37United States Fred Roberts (R)80.928   Incomplete
 51United States Rollin May(R)77.640   Incomplete

Starting grid

Row Inside Middle Outside
1 United States Billy Arnold United States Louis Meyer (W) United States Shorty Cantlon (R)
2 United States Louis Schneider United States Chet Gardner (R) United States Ernie Triplett
3 United States Russ Snowberger United States Phil Shafer United States Leslie Allen (R)
4 United States Cy Marshall (R) United States Frank Farmer United States Lou Moore
5 United States J. C. McDonald (R) United States Joe Caccia (R) United States Chet Miller (R)
6 United States Claude Burton (R) United States L. L. Corum (W) United States Johnny Seymour
7 United States Charles Moran (R) United States Tony Gulotta United States Peter DePaolo (W)
8 United States Bill Cummings (R) United States Mel Kenealy (R) United States Jimmy Gleason
9 United States Wilbur Shaw United States Joe Huff (R) United States Speed Gardner
10 Italy Baconin Borzacchini (R) United States Marion Trexler (R) Italy Letterio Cucinotta (R)
11 United States Deacon Litz United States Babe Stapp United States Dave Evans
12 United States Zeke Meyer (R) United States Bill Denver (R) United States Rick Decker
13 United States Roland Free (R) United States Harry Butcher (R)  

Alternates

Failed to qualify

Sources:[15]

Race recap

First half

Louis Meyer in his 16-cylinder Miller grabbed the lead at the start, out-dueling polesitter Billy Arnold on the first lap. Meyer led laps 1 and 2, then Arnold took the lead on lap 3. Arnold would not relinquish the lead the rest of the afternoon.

On the grid, Rick Decker's engine failed to crank, and he did not start the race. When the crew finally got his car running, it lasted only 8 laps. Chet Gardner was out on the first lap after he spun and brushed the wall on the north end, damaging his left front wheel. Gardner became the first driver in Indy history to drop out of the race without completing a single lap.

A huge crash broke out on the leader's 23rd lap. Fred Roberts (driving relief for Pete DePaolo) lost control and crashed in turn three. He collected the car of Deacon Litz, who suffered a broken arm. Litz's riding mechanic Lloyd Barnes suffered a cut to the head. The cars of Johnny Seymour, Babe Stapp, Lou Moore, and Marion Trexler also got caught up in the incident.[16] Stapp's car rode up the wall, but he was not seriously injured. Jimmy Gleason's car suffered damage driving through the debris, and he drove back to the pits. He dropped out with what was discovered to be broken timing gears.

After leading early, Louis Meyer was forced to make a pit stop on lap 22 to repair a broken throttle connection. He lost over four minutes in the pits, and dropped as far down as 13th place. He returned to the track, and started charging back up the standings.

On the leader's 31st lap, Cy Marshall wrecked in turn three. The driver was pinned under the wreckage, but survived. His brother, riding mechanic Paul Marshall, was thrown from the car, and died of a fractured skull.

Second half

Billy Arnold won over second place Shorty Cantlon by a margin of over seven minutes (about 4 laps). Arnold was not challenged by any of the other competitors in the second half. During a pit stop on lap 111, Arnold did not request relief help, and managed to drive the entire 500 miles without relief.

Arnold led a total of 198 laps (laps 3–200) to set an all-time Indianapolis 500 record for most total laps led (198), and most consecutive laps led (198).

Second place Shorty Cantlon was relieved by Herman Schurch for laps 97 through 151.[17]

Louis Meyer worked his way back into the top five by lap 140, but was unable to close the gap on Arnold. Meyer held fourth place over the final 50 laps, and finished sixteen minutes behind.

Box score

Finish Start No Name Qual Rank Laps Status
1 1 4 United States Billy Arnold 113.268 1 200 4:58:39.72
2 3 16 United States Shorty Cantlon (R)
(Relieved by Herman Schurch Laps 97-151)
109.810 3 200 +7:17.46
3 4 23 United States Louis Schneider 106.107 6 200 +11:25.49
4 2 1 United States Louis Meyer (W) 111.290 2 200 +16:18.35
5 22 6 United States Bill Cummings (R)
(Relieved by Freddy Winnai Laps 113-149)
106.173 4 200 +21:56.39
6 33 24 United States Dave Evans 97.342 24 200 +25:24.78
7 8 15 United States Phil Shafer 102.279 13 200 +31:17.65
8 7 22 United States Russ Snowberger 104.577 11 200 +37:47.24
9 9 25 United States Leslie Allen (R)
(Relieved by Fred Lecklider Laps 51-115)
(Relieved by Stubby Stubblefield Laps 116-200)
101.919 14 200 +50:71.79
10 17 2 United States L. L. Corum (W) 94.130 29 200 +52:52.37
11 16 38 United States Claude Burton (R) 95.087 28 196 Flagged
12 30 42 Italy Letterio Cucinotta (R) 91.584 34 185 Flagged
13 15 41 United States Chet Miller (R) 97.360 23 161 Flagged
14 38 46 United States Harry Butcher (R) 87.003 38 127 Flagged
15 23 10 United States Mel Kenealy (R) 103.327 12 114 Valve
16 34 21 United States Zeke Meyer (R) 95.357 26 115 Rod
17 6 17 United States Ernie Triplett 105.618 9 125 Piston
18 13 35 United States J. C. McDonald (R)
(Relieved by Johnny Krieger Laps 105-112)
98.953 21 112 Fuel tank leak
19 37 28 United States Roland Free (R) 89.639 37 69 Clutch
20 20 9 United States Tony Gulotta 100.033 18 79 Valve
21 11 33 United States Frank Farmer 100.615 17 69 Crash
22 35 44 United States Bill Denver (R) 90.650 35 41 Rod
23 26 34 United States Joe Huff (R)
(Relieved by Ted Chamberlain Laps 8-27)
(Relieved by William Gardner Laps 28-48)
101.178 15 48 Valve
24 25 3 United States Wilbur Shaw 106.135 5 54 Wrist pin
25 14 29 United States Joe Caccia (R)
(Relieved by Rick Decker)
97.606 22 43 Crash
26 10 36 United States Cy Marshall (R) 100.846 16 29 Crash T3
27 19 32 United States Charles Moran (R) 89.733 36 22 Crash T3
28 24 7 United States Jimmy Gleason 93.709 30 22 Timing gears
29 12 14 United States Lou Moore 99.867 20 23 Crash T3
30 31 12 United States Deacon Litz 105.755 8 22 Crash T3
31 32 8 United States Babe Stapp 104.950 10 18 Crash T3
32 18 39 United States Johnny Seymour 93.376 31 21 Crash T3
33 21 5 United States Peter DePaolo (W)
(Relieved by Fred Roberts (laps 8-20)
99.956 19 20 Crash T3
34 29 45 United States Marion Trexler (R) 92.978 32 19 Crash T3
35 27 19 United States Speed Gardner 95.585 25 14 Main bearing
36 28 26 Italy Baconin Borzacchini (R)
(Relieved by Jimmy Rossi (laps 4-7)
95.213 27 7 Magneto
37 36 48 United States Rick Decker 92.293 33 8 Oil tank
38 5 18 United States Chet Gardner (R) 105.811 7 1 Spun T1
[18]

Note: Cars not finishing were awarded positions in the order in which they left the track, regardless of lap count

Statistics

Lap Leaders
Laps Leader
1–2 Louis Meyer
3–200 Billy Arnold

Total laps led
Laps Leader
Billy Arnold 198
Louis Meyer 2

Race details

Chet Miller

One of the most famous nostalgic stories of Indianapolis 500 lore occurred with driver Chet Miller during the 1930 race. Just short of the mid-way point, Miller was in for a pit stop in his Fronty-Ford. The car, which was made up mostly of Model T parts, was discovered to have a broken right front spring. Race officials would not let Miller return to the track until repairs were made, so the crew began a search for suitable replacement parts.

Within a short time, the crew spotted an unattended Model T, that ostensibly belonged to a spectator, parked nearby in the infield. With the owner nowhere in sight, the crew proceeded to remove the spring they needed, and subsequently installed it on Miller's race car sitting in the pit area. After a stop of over 41 minutes, Miller was back out on the track with the borrowed spring, and drove to a 13th-place finish.

Following the race, with the vehicle's owner still not located, the crew went back to the infield and re-installed the spring on the unknown spectator's Model T. It is believed that the owner of the car was never aware of the entire situation.[21][22]

Notes

Works cited

References

  1. The History of the 500 - WFNI/WIBC: Episode 10, 2013
  2. "Speedway Appetizers". The Indianapolis News. May 7, 1930. p. 22. Retrieved April 6, 2015 via Newspapers.com.
  3. "Speedway Appetizers". The Indianapolis News. May 20, 1930. p. 23. Retrieved April 6, 2015 via Newspapers.com.
  4. "Speedway Appetizers". The Indianapolis News. May 21, 1930. p. 18. Retrieved April 6, 2015 via Newspapers.com.
  5. 1 2 "Speedway Appetizers". The Indianapolis News. May 21, 1930. p. 18. Retrieved April 6, 2015 via Newspapers.com.
  6. 1 2 "Speedway Appetizers". The Indianapolis News. May 23, 1930. p. 37. Retrieved April 6, 2015 via Newspapers.com.
  7. "Speedway Appetizers". The Indianapolis News. May 24, 1930. p. 17. Retrieved April 6, 2015 via Newspapers.com.
  8. "Corum, Caccia, and Moran Also Qualify". The Indianapolis News. May 24, 1930. p. 1. Retrieved April 6, 2015 via Newspapers.com.
  9. 1 2 "Battle of Cylinders to Close on Wednesday". The Indianapolis News. May 26, 1930. p. 18. Retrieved April 2, 2015 via Newspapers.com.
  10. "Julius Slade driver stats". ChampCarStats.com. Retrieved April 3, 2015.
  11. "Several Fast Cars Yet to Qualify for Race". The Indianapolis News. May 27, 1930. p. 22. Retrieved April 2, 2015 via Newspapers.com.
  12. "Twelve Lines of Cars May Face Race Starter". The Indianapolis News. May 28, 1930. p. 28. Retrieved April 2, 2015 via Newspapers.com.
  13. "Thirty-Eight Qualify for Start of Big Race". The Indianapolis News. May 29, 1930. p. 10. Retrieved April 2, 2015 via Newspapers.com.
  14. The Talk of Gasoline Alley - 1070-AM WIBC, May 14, 2004
  15. Fox, Jack (1994). The Illustrated History of the Indianapolis 500 (4th ed.). Carl Hungness Publishing. p. 400. ISBN 0-915088-05-3.
  16. "Record Crowd Gets All Kinds of Thrills". The Indianapolis News. May 30, 1930. p. 1. Retrieved April 6, 2015 via Newspapers.com.
  17. "Cantlon's Good Run". The Indianapolis News. May 31, 1930. p. 14. Retrieved April 6, 2015 via Newspapers.com.
  18. "Indianapolis 500 1930". Ultimate Racing History. Archived from the original on 16 January 2012. Retrieved 16 January 2012.
  19. Blazier, John E. and Rollings, Tom (1994). Forgotten Heroes of the Speedways: The Riding Mechanics.
  20. "The Talk of Gasoline Alley" - 1070 WIBC: May 6, 2002
  21. Davidson, Donald (2006). Autocourse Official History of the Indianapolis 500. Autocourse. p. 70.
  22. The Talk of Gasoline Alley - 1070-AM WIBC, May 6, 2007
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