100th Indy 500: Darkest days in Speedway History

The Indianapolis 500 is the world's most spectacular

sporting event because of speed, because of competition, and because of the danger that lurks in every turn. 

Safety has made incredible strides. No driver has lost his life during the race in 43 years, not since 1973. Only two drivers have perished in practice in the past 20 years, none since young Tony Rena while tire testing in 2003.

But make no mistake. The Speedway can bite at any moment. Just last year three veteran drivers -- Helio Castroneves, Ed Carpenter and Josef Newgarden -- went upside down in practice crashes. Popular driver James Hinchcliff suffered life-threatening injuries, his life saved only by the incredible actions taken by emergency responders at the scene. 

It's part of the race. So here is my list of the darkest days in Speedway history.

10.  May 30, 1931:  Defending Indianapolis 500 winner Billy Arnold crashed while leading on Lap 162. His rear tire bounced out of the Speedway and across the street, where it struck 11-year-old Wilbur Brink playing in his backyard at 2316 Georgetown Road, killing him instantly. 

9.  May 12, 1961 and May 17, 1996:  Tony Bettenhausen and Scott Brayton.  Fans develop special attachments to certain drivers. Two of those, more than a generation apart, were Tony Bettenhausen and Scott Brayton. Bettenhausen was a two-time national champion known affectionately as the Tinley Park Express. On a Friday afternoon before the first day of qualifying, Bettenhausen agreed to test a car for his friend Paul Russo, who was having trouble getting the car up to speed. A piece in the front suspension failed throwing the car into the wall on the main straight, killing Bettenhausen instantly. Scott Brayton had already won the pole position for the 1996 Indy 500 for Team Menard. The following Thursday,while testing his backup car, he ran over debris on the front straight causing his right rear tire to deflate between turns 1 and 2. Brayton's car was still going near 200 mph when he hit heavily, killing him instantly.

8.    May 21, 1935:  Three drivers were killed in qualifying.  Johnny Hannon, a rookie driver, lost control in Turn 4 on his first lap at racing speed. This incident led to implementing Rookie Tests.  Later that day, driver Stubby Stubblefield crashed in Turn 1, killing both the driver and his riding mechanic Leo Whitaker. 

7.  May 30, 1933: Three were killed during the race in two separate accidents.  The second riding mechanic era (1930-1937) doubled the lives at risk. On lap 79, driver Mark Billman was killed in a Turn 2 accident, but his riding mechanic survived. On lap 132,  Les Spangler and his riding mechanic "Monk" Jordan were killed in a two-car crash between Turns 1 and 2. 

6.  May 30, 1939:   A horrendous three car accident on lap 109 claimed the life of defending race winner Floyd Roberts, whose car went over the outside wall and crashed into a tree. Drivers Chet Miller and Bob Swanson were also involved, Swanson's car catching fire, and Miller's car flipping. Two spectators were also injured. Roberts is one of only two Indy 500 winners killed in the race as defending champion.

5.   August 19-21, 1909:  Before the Speedway was covered in bricks in 1910 and the inaugural Indianapolis 500 held in 1911, the Speedway held shorter races on a questionable surface or tar and gravel.  In a three day period in August, 1909, one driver, two riding mechanics and two spectators were killed in two separate accidents. The racing was halted. The incidents prompted the Speedway to resurface the track with 3,200,000 paving bricks.  

4.  May 30, 1960: As the popularity of the 500 grew in the 1950s, entrepreneurs began constructing make-shift towers and scaffolding in the infield on race morning, often build on the back of trucks. General admission spectators would be charged a small fee to get a better view of the race. During the parade lap for the start of the 1960 race, one of those homemade scaffolds collapsed, killing two and injuring more than 80. Since that incident, erection of scaffolds or other such viewing structures has been prohibited by the Speedway.

3.  May 30, 1955:  Invincible two-time champions Bill Vukovich was killed while leading in an effort to win his third 500 in a row.  Future champion Rodger Ward spun coming out of Turn 2. Al Keller and Johnny Boyd spun trying to avoid Ward. Vukovich touched wheels with Boyd, sending Vuky's car into a high-speed cartwheel, first hitting a bridge support, then flipping outside the track, landing upside down and on fire. Despite gory headlines such as "Vuky Burns to Death," he died instantly of a basilar skull fracture when his head hit the bridge support. His death, followed two weeks later by a car crashing into the crowd at LeMans killing 82 spectators, led for calls to ban auto racing.

2.  May 30, 1973:  Rain and horrible accidents made 1973 the year no one wanted to remember at Indianapolis. Speeds had jumped nearly 30 mph in three years. In practice on the first day of qualifying, popular driver Art Pollard was killed when he lost control in Turn 1. Two weeks later, rain delayed the start of the race for four hours until 3 p.m. When the green flag fell, Salt Walther crashed into Jerry Grant, throwing Walther's car upside down and into the fence, throwing flying parts and flaming fuel into the stands, injuring 11. Salt Walther's car spun upside down the main straight, his legs visible to the huge crowd. Eleven cars were involved, and the race was stopped. Though seriously injured, Walther survived. The rest of the day was rained out. So too was the next day. When the race finally resumed on Wednesday, May 30, young driver Swede Savage was among the leaders. On lap 59, he crashed horribly coming out of Turn 4, his car exploding, leaving Savage sitting in a pool of flames in the middle of the track, his entire car obliterated around him. Savage crew member Armando Teran, 23, jumped onto pit lane where he was hit by a fire truck headed to the accident. Teran suffered fatal injuries. Savage died over a month later, perhaps due to a tainted blood transfusion. 

1.  May 30, 1964:  The Eddie Sachs and Dave McDonald crash on lap 2 of the 1964 race remains the most horrifying moment in Indianapolis 500 history. Nothing before nor after has evoked the same level of sheer terror and disbelief. Coming out of Turn 4, MacDonald, who was running 10th, spun and crashed into the inside wall, the car instantly exploding into a fireball. The burning car slid across the track into the path of oncoming cars at full racing speed. The popular Sachs, known as the Clown Prince of Racing, hit MacDonald's car and the Sach's car also exploded. The two cars were both running on gasoline, something unusual for Indianapolis where methanol was the primary fuel. The black smoke clouds that obscured the sun were unlike anything ever seen before or since at Indianapolis. For the first time in race history, the race was stopped for an accident. Seven cars were involved. Sach's death, which was caused instantly by the impact and not the fire, was announced shortly before racing resumed. Before the race ended, MacDonald was also pronounced dead from his injuries.