I don't know if this has been posted yet but another racing legend has departed. Dan Gurney was an odd-ball race car driver being 6'4" tall...he must have been a bit crazy too (check out the picture of him "launching a speedster sans helmet in 1956!

Mr. Gurney...Rest in peace.

Cracker

An except below from an article by Ryan McGee:

"How cool was Dan Gurney?

You might already know the statistical part of his racing life. The first man to stand atop the podium in the world's four major racing classifications: Formula One, IndyCar, Sports Cars and NASCAR. The winner of 51 races in all, earning 98 trips to the podium during a behind-the-wheel career that spanned 312 events in 20 counties. In 1967 he had what might have very well been the greatest three-week span for any man to ever hold a steering wheel, when he started second in the Indianapolis 500; won the 24 Hours of Le Mans while co-driving with A.J. Foyt, the man who'd just beaten him at Indy; and then traveled north to win the F1 Belgian Grand Prix in a car of his own construction, still the only American to do so."


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Porsche 908 (GRP F1) - What roll bar???
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From Porsche:

Porsche mourns the death of Dan Gurney
Dr. Ing. h.c. F. Porsche AG mourns the death of Daniel Sexton Gurney. The racing driver and Formula 1 pilot died on January 14, 2018 at the age of 86. Porsche owes its only success as a vehicle manufacturer in the Formula 1 World Championship to Gurney, who won the 1962 French Grand Prix in Rouen in an eight-cylinder Por-sche 804. Just a week later Gurney led from start to finish to triumph at the Solitude racetrack near Stuttgart; his team-mate Joakim Bonnier took second place to secure a one-two for the air-cooled Porsche Type 804 in front of its home crowd.

Driving appearances for the Swabian sports car manufacturer in 1961 and 1962 would leave lasting memories; as Gurney once reflected, “It was with Porsche that I really learned how to drive–because they gave me cars that didn’t constantly break down and I could lay down the kilometres faster than ever before.” Gurney was con-sidered to be an all-round talent in the field of motorsport: The American enjoyed plenty of success throughout his career and was the first driver to win races in For-mula 1, NASCAR and the IndyCar Series, as well as sports car races, including with his own team. With the invention of the “Gurney flap”, he improved aerodynamic efficiency by adding a spoiler to the rear wing. He was also the first driver to spray champagne on the podium, inadvertently starting a tradition that is now imitated all around the world.

Porsche also helped him to find lifelong happiness in his private life in the 1960s when he married his wife Evi, the former German motor sports journalist and secre-tary to the Porsche Racing Manager Huschke von Hanstein.

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They don't make 'em like that anymore. Thoughts and prayers.

My all-time driving hero and wonderful person. RIP Dan.

A graduate of the post-war southern California hot rod/sports car phenomenon
Drove a flathead Ford to Bonneville before 1950.
Drove for Porsche to it's only F1 victory.
Only American builder/driver to win a F1 race.
He did it all.
RIP

He stands tall in racing history. So tall the the Ford GT40 had a distinctive bump on the driver's side to allow him to sit in the car 'comfortably. He was also prominent in the early promotion of the Mercury Cougar with a special model in 1967 designated the "Dan Gurney Special" and a very rare, heavily optioned model in '68 called the XR7-G (for Gurney).

RIP

R.I.P. Mr. Gurney, Godspeed.

Gurney had great success at the Riverside International Raceway. I was at this race in 1965. I saw Foyt spin at turn 8 and his terrible crash at turn nine. At the podium, I boosted my friend on my shoulders, we elbowed our way through the auto journalists in the crowd, yelled "hey Dan", he looked down and waved. We snapped a pick with my Kodak Instamatic and made a great 8X10. I don't know what happened to that pic. I wish I had it back. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oMt0LhpJGlE

Always my hero. When Sue and I went to The Indy 500 in 1987, Dick Simon gave us his Paddock Press Box seats. We went and sat down, a short time later, a tall blond haired man and another fellow sat down next to us. It was Dan Gurney! We introduced ourselves to him and chatted the entire race. A true gentleman.

Charlie

.....All my respects,to Dan Gurney& peace to his family!
(true racing icon)

One of the best drivers ever !

My Hero!

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I'll be installing a Flap in his honor....

In the mid-90s, I was riding my cafe'd Honda 400 (see motorcycle pics thread) on Ortega Hwy in southern california. I pull up at a roadside cafe and park in the lot next to half a dozen weird low-rider bikes. Clearly custom-built, but strange. Seats six inches above the ground. Unconventional. You might even call them ugly.

I go in and get a coke and a sandwich. I come out and some tall guy is looking at my 400. I recognize Dan Gurney. He and I talk about the bike. He points at the front brake and seems impressed. I'm fucking thrilled about his comments.

Then he offers me a ride on one of those strange bikes. He says it's an Alligator. This one is powered by a Yamaha single. No way I'm gonna turn this down.

I get on the bike and rail through the Ortega canyon section. Tight, tight, tight. The bike handles surprisingly well, once I got used to the feet-forward riding position. I go about five miles and turn around.

Back at the cafe, Dan keeps pressing me about how it worked. "Did you really get on it?" he wants to know. I defer answering his question. "Yeah, yeah, I got on it" I say, but he insists, "Did you really work it?" Finally, I say, "Dan, I had it into the limiter in three gears."

Dan smiled. That's what he wanted to hear.

I'm certain I didn't ride that bike to its potential. I'm certain there are other riders who could have ridden that thing better than me. But Dan didn't care. He was a hot-rodder, a gear-head, a racer, a gregarious cool guy with a big heart. He handed the keys to his custom bike to a stranger and his only request was that it be flogged to its limit.

Dan, thanks. I'll miss you.

Great story,,


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Funny Dave I had a related experiance.
I met & got to drive with Dan a few yrs back at Pacific Raceways (SIR) in conjunction with the Annual 4th of July Historic races hosted by SOVREN.
He and Parker Johnstone were guest Instructors. We were kicking around MB 240 Kompressor's provided by the local dealer, but when it came time for a ride along we piled into a pair of S600 AMG sedans! Man those massive sleds could MOVE!
Dan didn't get along with that car as well as Parker did. Ill never forget flying into turn 2 (w/Parker driving) while I was sitting shotgun, his R. arm draped over the seat, glancing back over his shoulder to narrate to those in the back seat all the while drifting the car through 2a/b & blasting it down the hill~!! It was an experience. Dan was getting on in yrs, and IMHO didn't seem as enthused about his participation, having probably done hundreds of these events. During the lunch break I saw he sat alone & ventured over to engage him. I recalled that he was also a Motorcyclist and knew he had designed & produced his own unique MC., so I introduced myself explained that I was a past MC roadracer & that this was my home track, then asked him about his "Gator".
MAN.. his eyes lit up, a broad smile erupted & he started jabbering like child on Christmas day! We talked the entire lunch about motorcycles & his own MC experience's.
I think it was a year later while in Seaside CA over the MOTOGP weekend at Laguna Seca I happened to spot a PU truck with this odd bikes in the back & out walk's Dan & his son who were also attending the race. I didn't think he would remember our past meeting but sure as hell he remembered, and started jabbering again.. efusing about the Gator they had with them!
You'll be missed Dan!