Posted on 01/14/2018 5:26:29 PM PST by God luvs America
Dan Gurney, an accomplished and versatile racer whose pioneering innovations in race car manufacturing played an integral role in motorsports, died Sunday at age 86 of complications from pneumonia.
Gurney won seven IndyCar races, five NASCAR Cup races and four Formula 1 races from 1962 to 1970, and he teamed with A.J. Foyt to win the 1967 24 Hours of Le Mans. Only Mario Andretti and Juan Pablo Montoya have wins in the top levels Formula 1, IndyCar, NASCAR and sports cars.
"With one last smile on his handsome face, Dan drove off into the unknown just before noon today," the Gurney family said in a statement. "In deepest sorrow, with gratitude in our hearts for the love and joy you have given us during your time on this earth, we say 'Godspeed.'"
Racing legend Mario Andretti offered condolences on his Twitter account.
Gurney, a Long Island native, was responsible for creating the wicker bill still used in race cars as well as the aviation industry. He also was one of the first to start using a full-face helmet.
Gurney was one of the founders of the Championship Auto Racing Teams, which sanctioned open-wheel races from 1979 to 2008.
I loved Dan Gurney. My favorite All-American racer.
Stirling Moss, Jackie Stewart, Graham Hill ... so many greats of his time. RIP
Alfa built 6 cyl car engines?
That story is pure gold.
What do you think the object was? Maybe a pocket knife?
Probably during his Toyota partnering days, read about him frequently borrowing the most base Toyota mini-van for mountain trips. Talked bout having great fun humiliating hot-shot “sports car” drivers with a humble mini-van.
RIP, sorry to hear it.
Good story..thanks.
IIRC
A wicker bill is also
called a “Gurney Flap.”
“It seems like I recall him racing Camaro’s or Mustangs or whatever else was in that class.”
You might want to include Dodge Challengers. He campaigned them as part of his AAR (All-American Racer) Trans-Am Team.
How many drivers would hoist the hood to fix their car vs. wait like a prima donna to be fetched back to the pits?
As a little boy I was fixated on race cars.
Good days, those days.
The guy was top drawer for sure.Prayers for his family.
I am not sure how far back the leatherman tool goes tho I do know it was the first one of it’s type. Lots of people carried a pocket knife called a “lineman’s knife. It was two blades one of which ended in a flat blade screwdriver and that blade locked very securely and could have been used with little fear of it accidentally closing. The other blade was a simply spear point blade.
Lots of people including me, carried them back then. Of course Swiss Army knives were also popular at that time as well as now.
saw him race here at the Glen, F1, Can/Am, Trans/Am, real class act
RIP.
Dan Gurney and his Eagle were awesome. Gurney won the Belgian GP at Spa Francorchamps during the ‘67 F-1 season, back when F-1 and Spa were extremely dangerous.
Nothing will ever again compare to the drivers and cars of that era.
R.I.P. Mr. Gurney, you were a class act.
A friend of mine was on the same Ferrari team
I don't recall it being called "IndyCar" back then. USAC was the sanctioning body, as I recall, followed by CART. Indy Racing League didn't come along until decades later.
The Fake News liberals at ABC lie even when they don't need to.
One of my best friends was a porche trained mech in the mid 50’s.
He did a bunch of racing stuff but mostly super at suspension tuning at Laguna seca in California.
He taught me a bunch of stuff, way beyond machines.
I was going through his phone after he died and I found MARIO ANDRETTIs phone number.
You pegged correctly exactly when CART took over from USAC. All downhill ever since.
A great American.
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