Mitch G.
05-18-2009, 02:55 PM
I love tracing a race car's history, and heritage, real race cars that were built by real craftsman. NO computer aided drafting, no wind tunnels, no rooms of engineer's, and overpaid technicians. Here's the story of one of those cars. Eddie Kuzma, a well known championship (Indy) car, and sprint car builder got a order in late 1950 to build a new champ car for J.C. Agajanian to add to his stable of race cars. These cats all came out of southern California, the hot bed of all things race car and hot rod. Debuting for the 1951 Indy 500 the Agajanian Kuzma #2, known as the "Grant Piston Ring Special".
http://autoracingmemories.com/forums/picture.php?albumid=36&pictureid=377
Here's the Agajanian team in 1951, Walk "little dynamo"Faulkner is at the wheel of the new Kuzma, that's J.C. Agajanian in the stetson behind the #2 car. Faulkner finished the 1951 Indy 500 in 15th place. The AAA champ cars went to Darlington South Carolina for a July 4th 250 mile race on the paved 1.3 mile oval. At the time Darlington was America's first paved "super speedway", besides the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Faulkner won at a average speed of 104+ mph! Back on the dirt 1/2 mile at Williams Grove, PA for a 25 mile non-points race on July 29, 1951 Troy Ruttman the California Midget, and hot rod sensation, subs for Faulkner and wins. August 26, 1951 at the paved 1 mile oval in Milwaukee, WI for a 200 mile championship event, and Faulkner wins again. For the rest of 1951 this car with Faulkner at the wheel gets these results, 4th at DuQuoin, IL 09/01/51, 2nd at DuQuoin, IL 09/03/51, 2nd at Syracuse, NY 09/08/51, 2nd Detroit, MI 09/09/51, 6th at Phoenix, AZ 11/04/51 and finishes 2nd in the AAA national championship points. Troy Ruttman is at the wheel for Agajanian and the now #98 ,for the 1952 season.
http://www.autoracingmemories.com/forums/picture.php?albumid=36&pictureid=380
Here's a shot of the 1952 Indy 500, which Ruttman won (that's him outside 4th place, in the #98 with the "A" in the front nerf bar) when Bill Vukovich had the steering break with a couple laps to go. Vukovich was driving a brand new Kurtis "Roadster", the Offy engine to left of the driver, lowering the cars center of gravity. This would be the last win by a traditional "upright" champ car, the engine in front and center of the car, drive shaft running between the drivers feet.
http://autoracingmemories.com/forums/picture.php?albumid=36&pictureid=379
Here is Troy Ruttman, Indy 500 winner at the controls of the "Aggie" #98 at Williams Grove, PA, this is the Indy winning car. Ruttman finished 3rd at Williams Grove, Won at Raleigh, NC on 07/04/52, Bill Vukovich takes over for a injured Ruttman, and wins the 100 miler at Detroit, MI on 08/31/52, wins again at DuQuion, IL, and the AAA champ cars run at Denver's Centennial Horse track on 09/28/52 and Vukovich wins there too. All these tracks were dirt 1 mile ovals, unless sated otherwise.
http://autoracingmemories.com/forums/picture.php?albumid=36&pictureid=381
http://autoracingmemories.com/forums/picture.php?albumid=36&pictureid=378
Here's Vukovich in the seat of the #98 in Denver, and a shot of Centennial Horse track, South Denver looked a lot different in 1952. For 1953 Tony Bettenhausen drove the #98 at the Indy 500, the car getting 9th after Bettenhausen needed a relief driver. Agajanian had a new Kuzma built for 1953, Chuck Stevenson driving for a still injured Ruttman. The 2 year old Kuzma sat as a back up car. In 1955 up and coming midget hot shot Roger Ward is tabbed to drive the Kuzma, now owned by Ernie Casale, with "Astro-Blue" the sponsor, now a white and blue #27. On lap 57 of the Indy 500, Ward loses control on the back chute, hits the wall, flips causes a chain reaction crash that collects several cars including the leader Bill Vukovich. Vukovich has won Indy in 53, and 54 and is the odds on favorite for winning 3 straight, but he is killed in the crash.
http://autoracingmemories.com/forums/picture.php?albumid=36&pictureid=382
Roger Ward in the "Astro-Blue" #27, Kuzma dirt car, Indy 1955 note the "A" in front nerf bar.
By now the car is getting old, and shows up mostly just at Indy, even though it's out dated and Indy is dominated by cars of the "Roadster" design. Billy Garrett finishes 16th at Indy in 1956 the car still in Astro-Blue livery, now #41. The car is starting to go from owner to owner, usually to lower budgeted teams, and for rookie drivers. AAA is no longer in the racing business after 1955, and the United States Auto Club (USAC) is the new sanctioning body for major league auto racing in the United States.
http://autoracingmemories.com/forums/picture.php?albumid=36&pictureid=383
The USAC National Champ cars show up at the dirt mile in Sprigfield, IL August 16th 1958, for the traditional 100 miler, Jud Larson driving for John Zink takes the pole, no surprise. The surprise is Denver midget champ (1946,47 and AAA National Midget Champ 1952), and Colorado native, Johnny Tolan puts the old Kuzma on outside front row! The car now known as the "Greenman-Casale Spl." Tolan comes in 15th, the car is #19. You can see the "A" still in the front nerf bar, Tolan is outside of Larson in the #5 leading. Tolan finishes 1958 like this: 6th at Milwaukee (paved 1 mile oval), 5th at DuQuoin, IL (dirt mile), 9th at Syracuse, NY (dirt mile)
11th at the Indy Fairgrounds (dirt Mile), 18th at Trenton, NJ (mile paved), 8th at Sacramento, CA (dirt mile), 10th at Phoenix, AZ (dirt mile). Not much is seen of the car after that, but amazingly it starts showing up in the early 1960's. March 22, 1964 Bobby Unser drove the car now owned by the "Lynch Mob", #28, Unser qualifies the 14 year old car 7th on the paved mile in Phoenix, AZ, ahead of several roadsters, and even a rear engine car!
http://autoracingmemories.com/forums/picture.php?albumid=36&pictureid=384
Here's Dick Atkins in the car at Sacramento, CA in 1965 Atkins brought the old war horse in 12th, against a field of much newer cars.
http://autoracingmemories.com/forums/picture.php?albumid=36&pictureid=385
Here's Atkins, against the rear engine Indy of Marion Andretti, at Phoenix, AZ in late 1965.
http://autoracingmemories.com/forums/picture.php?albumid=36&pictureid=323
Dee Jones in the car that won the 1952 Indy 500, now in hot laps at Phoenix International Raceway in 1965, Carl Williams in a roadster behind Jones, and Lloyd Ruby in a rear engine car in the back.
http://autoracingmemories.com/forums/picture.php?albumid=36&pictureid=376
The Lynch team must have owned the car for sometime, it showed up in a book titled "The great racing cars&drivers" by Charles Fox, in 1973, it was still in the red, white and blue "Lynch Mob" colors, #87, here's a shot from that book. Over the years the car ended up being restored, and is now owned by the "Peterson Automotive Museum". Here are some shots of the car fully restored to it's 1952 Indy winning condition. These were taken at the USAC dirt champ car race at Del Mar, CA in 1996. The late Troy Ruttman was there at the time and was reunited with his most famous car, here he is seated in the wonderful Eddie Kuzma creation.
http://autoracingmemories.com/forums/picture.php?albumid=36&pictureid=388
http://autoracingmemories.com/forums/picture.php?albumid=36&pictureid=387
http://autoracingmemories.com/forums/picture.php?albumid=36&pictureid=386
So ends the journey, luckily a happy ending, for a terrific race car, it survived without too much damage for those days, and is now a living tribute to the era, the man who built it, and the legends that drove it, what a race car!
http://autoracingmemories.com/forums/picture.php?albumid=36&pictureid=377
Here's the Agajanian team in 1951, Walk "little dynamo"Faulkner is at the wheel of the new Kuzma, that's J.C. Agajanian in the stetson behind the #2 car. Faulkner finished the 1951 Indy 500 in 15th place. The AAA champ cars went to Darlington South Carolina for a July 4th 250 mile race on the paved 1.3 mile oval. At the time Darlington was America's first paved "super speedway", besides the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Faulkner won at a average speed of 104+ mph! Back on the dirt 1/2 mile at Williams Grove, PA for a 25 mile non-points race on July 29, 1951 Troy Ruttman the California Midget, and hot rod sensation, subs for Faulkner and wins. August 26, 1951 at the paved 1 mile oval in Milwaukee, WI for a 200 mile championship event, and Faulkner wins again. For the rest of 1951 this car with Faulkner at the wheel gets these results, 4th at DuQuoin, IL 09/01/51, 2nd at DuQuoin, IL 09/03/51, 2nd at Syracuse, NY 09/08/51, 2nd Detroit, MI 09/09/51, 6th at Phoenix, AZ 11/04/51 and finishes 2nd in the AAA national championship points. Troy Ruttman is at the wheel for Agajanian and the now #98 ,for the 1952 season.
http://www.autoracingmemories.com/forums/picture.php?albumid=36&pictureid=380
Here's a shot of the 1952 Indy 500, which Ruttman won (that's him outside 4th place, in the #98 with the "A" in the front nerf bar) when Bill Vukovich had the steering break with a couple laps to go. Vukovich was driving a brand new Kurtis "Roadster", the Offy engine to left of the driver, lowering the cars center of gravity. This would be the last win by a traditional "upright" champ car, the engine in front and center of the car, drive shaft running between the drivers feet.
http://autoracingmemories.com/forums/picture.php?albumid=36&pictureid=379
Here is Troy Ruttman, Indy 500 winner at the controls of the "Aggie" #98 at Williams Grove, PA, this is the Indy winning car. Ruttman finished 3rd at Williams Grove, Won at Raleigh, NC on 07/04/52, Bill Vukovich takes over for a injured Ruttman, and wins the 100 miler at Detroit, MI on 08/31/52, wins again at DuQuion, IL, and the AAA champ cars run at Denver's Centennial Horse track on 09/28/52 and Vukovich wins there too. All these tracks were dirt 1 mile ovals, unless sated otherwise.
http://autoracingmemories.com/forums/picture.php?albumid=36&pictureid=381
http://autoracingmemories.com/forums/picture.php?albumid=36&pictureid=378
Here's Vukovich in the seat of the #98 in Denver, and a shot of Centennial Horse track, South Denver looked a lot different in 1952. For 1953 Tony Bettenhausen drove the #98 at the Indy 500, the car getting 9th after Bettenhausen needed a relief driver. Agajanian had a new Kuzma built for 1953, Chuck Stevenson driving for a still injured Ruttman. The 2 year old Kuzma sat as a back up car. In 1955 up and coming midget hot shot Roger Ward is tabbed to drive the Kuzma, now owned by Ernie Casale, with "Astro-Blue" the sponsor, now a white and blue #27. On lap 57 of the Indy 500, Ward loses control on the back chute, hits the wall, flips causes a chain reaction crash that collects several cars including the leader Bill Vukovich. Vukovich has won Indy in 53, and 54 and is the odds on favorite for winning 3 straight, but he is killed in the crash.
http://autoracingmemories.com/forums/picture.php?albumid=36&pictureid=382
Roger Ward in the "Astro-Blue" #27, Kuzma dirt car, Indy 1955 note the "A" in front nerf bar.
By now the car is getting old, and shows up mostly just at Indy, even though it's out dated and Indy is dominated by cars of the "Roadster" design. Billy Garrett finishes 16th at Indy in 1956 the car still in Astro-Blue livery, now #41. The car is starting to go from owner to owner, usually to lower budgeted teams, and for rookie drivers. AAA is no longer in the racing business after 1955, and the United States Auto Club (USAC) is the new sanctioning body for major league auto racing in the United States.
http://autoracingmemories.com/forums/picture.php?albumid=36&pictureid=383
The USAC National Champ cars show up at the dirt mile in Sprigfield, IL August 16th 1958, for the traditional 100 miler, Jud Larson driving for John Zink takes the pole, no surprise. The surprise is Denver midget champ (1946,47 and AAA National Midget Champ 1952), and Colorado native, Johnny Tolan puts the old Kuzma on outside front row! The car now known as the "Greenman-Casale Spl." Tolan comes in 15th, the car is #19. You can see the "A" still in the front nerf bar, Tolan is outside of Larson in the #5 leading. Tolan finishes 1958 like this: 6th at Milwaukee (paved 1 mile oval), 5th at DuQuoin, IL (dirt mile), 9th at Syracuse, NY (dirt mile)
11th at the Indy Fairgrounds (dirt Mile), 18th at Trenton, NJ (mile paved), 8th at Sacramento, CA (dirt mile), 10th at Phoenix, AZ (dirt mile). Not much is seen of the car after that, but amazingly it starts showing up in the early 1960's. March 22, 1964 Bobby Unser drove the car now owned by the "Lynch Mob", #28, Unser qualifies the 14 year old car 7th on the paved mile in Phoenix, AZ, ahead of several roadsters, and even a rear engine car!
http://autoracingmemories.com/forums/picture.php?albumid=36&pictureid=384
Here's Dick Atkins in the car at Sacramento, CA in 1965 Atkins brought the old war horse in 12th, against a field of much newer cars.
http://autoracingmemories.com/forums/picture.php?albumid=36&pictureid=385
Here's Atkins, against the rear engine Indy of Marion Andretti, at Phoenix, AZ in late 1965.
http://autoracingmemories.com/forums/picture.php?albumid=36&pictureid=323
Dee Jones in the car that won the 1952 Indy 500, now in hot laps at Phoenix International Raceway in 1965, Carl Williams in a roadster behind Jones, and Lloyd Ruby in a rear engine car in the back.
http://autoracingmemories.com/forums/picture.php?albumid=36&pictureid=376
The Lynch team must have owned the car for sometime, it showed up in a book titled "The great racing cars&drivers" by Charles Fox, in 1973, it was still in the red, white and blue "Lynch Mob" colors, #87, here's a shot from that book. Over the years the car ended up being restored, and is now owned by the "Peterson Automotive Museum". Here are some shots of the car fully restored to it's 1952 Indy winning condition. These were taken at the USAC dirt champ car race at Del Mar, CA in 1996. The late Troy Ruttman was there at the time and was reunited with his most famous car, here he is seated in the wonderful Eddie Kuzma creation.
http://autoracingmemories.com/forums/picture.php?albumid=36&pictureid=388
http://autoracingmemories.com/forums/picture.php?albumid=36&pictureid=387
http://autoracingmemories.com/forums/picture.php?albumid=36&pictureid=386
So ends the journey, luckily a happy ending, for a terrific race car, it survived without too much damage for those days, and is now a living tribute to the era, the man who built it, and the legends that drove it, what a race car!