 | |||||
| Indianapolis Motor Speedway | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Indianapolis 500 | |||||
| Sanctioning body | AAA | ||||
| Date | May 30, 1934 | ||||
| Winner | Bill Cummings | ||||
| Winning Entrant | H. C. Henning | ||||
| Average speed | 104.863 mph | ||||
| Pole position | Kelly Petillo | ||||
| Pole speed | 119.329 mph | ||||
| Most laps led | Frank Brisko (69) | ||||
| Pre-race | |||||
| Pace car | LaSalle Model 350 | ||||
| Pace car driver | Willard "Big Boy" Rader | ||||
| Starter | Seth Klein[1] | ||||
| Honorary referee | Roy D. Chapin[1] | ||||
| Estimated attendance | 140,000[2] | ||||
| Chronology | |||||
| |||||
The 22nd International 500-Mile Sweepstakes Race was held at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway on May 30, 1934. The winner was the number seven car driven by Bill Cummings, an Indianapolis native, at an average speed of 104.863 miles per hour. Cummings led for 57 laps total, including the last 26.[3] Of the 33 cars that began the race, only 12 were running at the finish, although there were no crashes resulting in serious injuries. One serious incident involved George Bailey, whose car went over the outside wall, but resulted in only a broken wrist to the driver. The finish was the closest in the history of the race to that point, with second-place finisher Mauri Rose within 100 yards of Cummings at the finish (officially 27.25 seconds behind). Rose would also file a protest that Cummings had illegally gained ground during a "slow-down" period following a crash.[4]
Cummings was accompanied by riding mechanic Earl Unversaw. The race was part of the 1934 AAA Championship Car season.
- ^ a b Fox, Jack C. (1994). The Illustrated History of the Indianapolis 500 1911-1994 (4th ed.). Carl Hungness Publishing. p. 22. ISBN 0-915088-05-3.
- ^ Ogle, Carl F. (May 31, 1934). "Boy Who Listened to Racers' Drone In 1914 Realizes Childhood Ambition". The Indianapolis Star. p. 1. Retrieved June 3, 2017 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Reference at www.indy500.com". Archived from the original on 2008-05-14. Retrieved 2008-06-19.
- ^ "CUMMINGS VICTOR IN 500-MILE RACE". The New York Times. 31 May 1934. Associated Press as printed in the New York Times May 31, 1934, page 26, sports. (requires subscription to read full article)
