Chapter Eleven
The Race
There is that delightful story of the description of an
elephant by the three blind men who had approached the animal from different
angles. The man who felt the trunk said it
was a tree; the one confronted by the side was certain it was a rough wall,
while the third man grasping the tail was just as sure it was a rope. This tale illustrates the reasonableness of
differences in points of view in the “recollections of events.”
Mr. Alec Ulmann has published a
very informative book which he titled “The Sebring Story” (1) which, from
his angle of approach, is no doubt, entirely accurate but there are other
angles which would have to be considered in order to give a more complete
Sebring story. One of these angles dealt
with the initial efforts to establish the race and the furnishing and
conditioning of the physical property on which the race was run. There were times when, from this angle,
prospects of running the race appeared like a rough blank wall.
Mr. Ulmann opens his narrative
with events which took place in 1950 which was the date of the first
running. He tells of the groundwork and
the infighting that occurred in the various racing circles but he only touched
lightly on the situation in Sebring in preparation for all the early events,
and his text indicates that, at that time, he had as little interest or
knowledge of local conditions as the local people had of the racing setup.
Approximately two years before the first race, two men who
introduced themselves as Sam Collier and Phil Stiles, set their airplane down
on the Air Terminal runway and asked for the manager. To their abrupt question as to whether the
airport streets and runways could be made available for sports car racing, the
manager (Allen Altvater) replied that a decision on this subject would have to
be made by the City Council but, if they would outline their plans, he would
gladly present them to the Council.
During a trip by auto over all the paved surfaces of
streets, ramps and runways, they outlined their thinking which apparently had
not reached any planning phase but was more in the nature of something they
would like to get organized but, for the purposes of getting permission to use
the field, they proposed the following general ideas: a group of sports car
owners (construed to include men of substantial means) wanted to promote races
among themselves, by invitation only, not for money or prizes but merely for
friendly competition. (In a jocular
manner, one man mentioned the name of a wealthy person who is internationally
known and who was known to boast about his cars. When the other man stated that this personage
would accept an invitation but not show on race day, the opinion was voiced that
if the famous person could be persuaded to post a $10 entry fee, he would race
just to protect his investment.
The original proposal would exclude any spectators but it
was suggested that some steps would have to be taken to prevent people or
animals from inadvertently straying onto the course because even if the affair
was strictly private, there would be sufficient numbers of curious people to
create a hazardous condition. To offset
the costs of protection, the agreement was reached that, if a group could be
found that would be responsible for policing the course, a gate fee could be
charged but it was stipulated that those interested in the race wanted no part
in the gate arrangements or protection measures but the local group would have
no voice in the rules or the running of the race.
The format of this proposition was given to the Sebring
City Council and its members indicated their approval. No immediate or definite action was taken to
firm up the plans or to set up an organization but apparently Mr. Collier and
Mr. Stiles talked to others including Mr. Ulmann and
promoted quite a little interest.
In the meantime, the prospects were discussed around
Sebring and it was agreed that the only organization with enough suitable
personnel to handle a project of this nature would be the Sebring Firemen. They evidenced a strong interest and a
willingness to sponsor the undertaking and the Chamber of Commerce offered its
cooperation. In the fall of 1950, Mr.
Stiles and Mr. George Huntoon returned to Sebring
with some firm plans and the following memorandum from the airport management
was sent to the City Council:
To the members of the City Council:
No
doubt you will be asked in the near future for approval of an agreement to
operate a road race on the Air Terminal on 31 December of this year, to be
sponsored by Sebring Firemen, Inc. This
is the same activity to which you gave your consent approximately two years ago
and is under the same management as that which has been operated for the past
three years at Watkins Glen, New York, in the summertime.
It
is our understanding that through the cooperation of Mr. C. D. Richardson of
the American Industrial Sales Corporation, the sponsors will have adequate
financing and man power to do all the work needed to actually run the race and
I presume that some arrangements will be made to provide physical improvements
that are needed to prepare for such an event.
As you know, the finances of the Terminal will not permit any extensive expenditures at this particular time although we are
prepared to do a certain amount of work which would be normally done at some
time or other such as clearing the runways of weeds and the minor amount of
repairs to streets. However, should work
be necessary beyond which we would normally expect to do, we would not have the
money for that purpose in our funds and arrangements would have to be made in
some other manner. For the work which we
would expect to do we would also have to ask for the use of our road repair
equipment.
We
would like to cooperate heartily with the Sebring Firemen in this venture as we
have always believed that it would be of incalculable value to the town as a
whole, not only from the point of view of furnishing much needed tourist
entertainment but it would bring a great deal of money into the town to the
hotels, restaurants, filling stations and garages at a time when they are not
overcrowded.
It
is also our understanding that such a race would give wide spread national
publicity to the community from several different angles and it was planned for
a date when many would be enroute to Miami for the
New Year’s game and would probably stop overnight here for this event. We se only a few disadvantages.
No
doubt the general chairman of the event, Mr. Forest Howard, will approach the
Council at an early date seeking permission to enter into a contract with the
management and we would strongly recommend that such a contract be authorized
subject to a provision to be made to hold the city harmless in the event of
loss or accident.
For several reasons, the City Administration wanted to
eschew any involvement in the race but did give the Firemen permission to use
the property. And the Firemen, to a man,
threw their energy into the project.
They learned many valuable lessons.
The first year’s event was comparatively simple to handle as spectators
were relatively few in number but even so, every member of the Firemen was
needed to sell tickets, patrol the sidelines of the course and flag the
corners. The patrolling was done by
dozens of men in Jeeps and on horseback.
For flagmen at each of the turns, the older and less active members were
supplemented by personnel from the Chamber of Commerce.
Even though all operations were handled by strictly
volunteer, non-paid people, the expenses exceeded the income by more than
$2,000 and the differential in the second race was even greater. As promised, Mr. Richardson absorbed a large
part of these losses for which the Firemen voted him an honorary membership and
he had his name on the program as an official.
Anyone making an estimate of the attendance at the first
events would have been justified in thinking that the Firemen were making huge
profits instead of sustaining a substantial loss. In making his report of receipts, Floyd
Schumacher, the treasurer, stated that there were 2,800 paid admissions and an
equal number of passes. The contestants
and officials were the only ones authorized to issue passes for their pit crews
and functionaries. How the racing fraternity
fared financially is not known.
As Claude Richardson could not be expected to continue
indefinitely as an “angel” for expenses, and as the funds of the Firemen were
limited, a day of decision was reached.
The work involved was arduous for at least a week before each event and
race day was thoroughly exhausting - all in a losing financial battle so, a
vote was taken by the Firemen to continue or discontinue sponsoring the
race. A negative vote would have meant
the end of the program because it was generally conceded around town that if
the Firemen couldn’t make it go, no group could and, as the airport had
sustained substantial losses and damage, there was slight chance that the
government would look with favor on a similar operation in which the Firemen
were not involved.
The motion to “try it one more year” carried by the
slenderest margin.
One of the factors that influenced the negative votes of
the dissidents was the perfectly miserable weather that followed the downpour
described by Mr. Ulmann as the cause of delay of the
start of the second race. A typical
“cold front” moved in after the rain.
It was a balmy morning when the Firemen met at the airport
before dawn to “sweep the field” of spectators who had come out earlier or the
night before and who were hiding under warehouses or in the tall grass to avoid
payment of the $1.00 admission. So they
were totally unprepared with warm clothes when the cold moved in. As there were not enough Firemen to relieve
those on patrol and flagmen on the curves, these men could not leave their
posts so, by the midnight end of the race, they had nothing but unpleasant
impressions.
At that hour, it would have been impossible to find a
single vote in favor of a third race!
This
article appeared in the Sebring Historical Society,
Bulletin No.18, January 1975
(1) “The Sebring Story” by Alec Ulmann; Chilton Book Company, 1969.
From the minutes of the Sebring Firemen, Inc.,
meeting of November 3, 1950
Chief Howard reported on Auto Races we hope will be held at
Hendricks Field under the sponsorship of the Department. After a lot of discussion a motion was made
by Fred Baguley and seconded by Ray Graddy that a committee be appointed to work out the necessary
details pertaining to putting on the races.
Motion carried.
F. Howard, Ford Heacock, Bill
Mackey, Bob Butts, C. E. Weaver, A. C. Altvater and Jim Fulton were appointed
by the president to do all the work in connection with putting on the
race. The committee was given a
unanimous vote of confidence.
From Trivia, October 1985
RACE COMMITTEE REPORT
1 December 1950
The Race Committee met at
Mr. Richardson’s office with the Race Program Chairman, Phillip Stiles, Monday
night November 27, 1950.
The following suggestions
for the successful sponsoring of the race were offered to the Committee:
1. The Committee is asked to furnish 15 flagmen
over 25 years of age, each equipped with a yellow flag and a green flag 20” x
20”. Also signal lights for night.
2. One First Aid tent, 3 ambulances and 2 tow
trucks.
3. Two 4’ x 4’ signs. One painted yellow and lettered - No Passing
and one painted white saying pass. Two
lines painted across course at signs with corresponding colors. Also 9 turn signs same dimension. All signs painted with Scotchlight.
4. Lights installed over pit area and start and
finish line.
5. 22 areas on the course banked with hay bales
two high and 4’ apart.
6. Empty oil drums marking course on straight-aways.
Drums to be painted yellow, spaced 100 ft. apart. Approximately 212 drums needed.
7. Ham operators. (furnished by
A.I.S.)
8. Gasoline and oil furnished the drivers
free. It was suggested that an oil
company be contacted to furnish this fuel and in return be allowed a full page
ad in the program, a banner across the start finish line and the placing of
their truck with a sign in a conspicuous place for refueling the cars.
9. Also suggested that Champion spark plug
distributor be contacted to furnish spark plugs.
10. Between 4- and 50 pit benches must be
furnished. Benches to
be 2 1/2’ high, 2 ½’ wide and 8’ long.
11. The following tickets should be printed,
$1.00 General admission. 25 cents
students, $5.00 box seats, reserve seats at pit area $2.00. Other reserve seats
$1.00. All tickets should be printed
with stubs.
12. A bridge is recommended to span the course.
13. A rope or cable barrier should be put around
the course.
14. About 50 people should be lined up for
selling programs.
15. Trophies should be furnished for the 1st,
2nd, and 3rd places in the six classes represented.
16. Arm bands should be furnished for the
drivers, pit workers, officials and police.
17. Approximately 50 police are required. All dogs loose on the field must be
shot. Four of the
police to be mounted on horses.
18. Salute flares are desired to be shot at
intervals before the race.
19. State Road Department should be contacted for
painting stripes in center of course.
Respectfully
submitted,
Forrest
Howard
From the Sebring Historical
Society archives -
The above report is a
record of a meting that was held just a month before the running of the first
sports car race at the Sebring Air Terminal.
The purpose of the meeting was to make plans for the event which took
place on the 31st of December 1950.
Those who were a part of the first series of races will enjoy pleasant
memories generated by the report of Forrest Howard who was cochairman (with
Ford Heacock) of the Sebring Firemen’s Race Committee.
It will be noted that Phil
Stiles was acting as chairman of the Race Program Committee. The statement that the (Firemen’s) Race
Committee met with the Race Program Committee might be somewhat confusing but
it is easily explained. The Race Program
Committee had the responsibility of conducting the race, while the Firemen had
no authority in that area but were responsible for the track, the physical
facilities and spectator control.
The recommendations by Mr.
Stiles were made in the nature of suggestions.
He was deeply involved in the nationwide Sports Car Club and racing
activities and was well qualified to organize a race program. On the other hand, the Sebring Firemen had no
experience but this shortcoming was offset by a deep dedication to “get the
show on the road” no matter what the demands on their time and effort.
In spite of the fact that
the Firemen were “gung-ho” to put on a great and safe race, they had no
treasury balance with which to set up a racing operation but they did have excellent
credit and they used it to the limit.
They had to use all available credit to comply with suggestions one
through five.
Suggestion number six is
still a matter of wonder to all except Woodrow Harshman. He was given the responsibility of rounding
up several hundred barrels and he delivered.
The wonder is, where did he get them?
Number seven covered only
ham radios. For the first several years,
Bill Dutton headed the subcommittee that strung miles and miles of wires connecting
flag posts by telephone. Then, they had
to retrieve the tangled mess after all the excitement was over. A stupendous task!
To implement suggestion
number eight, Col. Richardson exercised all his business clout to pressure the
Pure Oil distributor (Green of Avon Park) to furnish fuel without cost.
American Industrial Sales
Corp. (Mr. Richardson was its president) furnished a large number of attractive
and suitable folding tables to serve as the suggested pit benches. As they were easily merged with racing
equipment, most of them failed to be found after the race. This was also the fate of the airport’s fire
extinguishers and even other articles of lesser value except as mementos.
Floyd Schumacher, in making
his report of the ticket sales, after the race, remarked that 2,800 tickets had
been sold while an equal number of passes had been issued. There were practically no sales of reserved
seats or “box seats.” In all, the
receipts were scarcely half of the expenditures. The Firemen’s tally of the losses for each of
the first two years was about $2,000.
While it is possible that
2,800 passes might be a slight exaggeration, it is true that a great number
were justified. Each contestant would
have drivers, pit crews and their families and, as there were more that fifty
entries, (each with a compliment of at least 10) they would account for no less
than 500. Then there were flagmen,
officials, guards, concession operators, program vendors, gate attendants, news
men, as well as people who lived on or worked on the airport. So, the estimate was not too far overstated.
During
the race, Sebring Firemen on horseback and in jeeps continuously patrolled the
shoulders of the course to control spectators.
No animals were reported on the property. This phase of the program was organized by
“Pink” McAdams.
From the Webpage entitled… “Forgotten History: The First Sebring Race – 12/31/1950”
http://www.ggw.org/~cac/Sebring/Sebring.html
“On New year’s Eve, 1950, this sleepy Florida town
became the site of America’s revived interest in long-distance endurance racing
when airport runways at Hendricks Field, just outside Sebring, were pressed
into service for top-speed competition.
“Alec Ulmann,
an aeronautical engineer, had been looking for storage sites for war-surplus
aircraft to be converted to civilian use or to be rebuilt for the air forces of
smaller nations. While visiting
Hendricks Field, Ulmann, an auto-racing enthusiast,
saw in the mile-long runways the possibilities of a smaller-scale Le Mans
endurance race there. Obsessed with the
concept, he worked with Sebring business friend, C. D. Richardson, to organize
such an event as soon as enough interest in the world of auto racing could be
mustered.
“Hendricks Field had few amenities for
spectators; no grandstands, security, ticket booths or public address system,
and few lavatories. By enticing the
local firemen’s association to become involved and with a small group of sports-car
enthusiasts, Ulmann, Richardson and Ulmann’s wife, Mary, set out to put together America’s
first modern-day major endurance auto race, a ‘Little Le Mans’.
“After the first hour of racing, the
handicap formula showed, to everyone’s amazement, that the No. 19, the little Crosley driven by Frits Koster
and Ralph Deshon, was in first place. In a close
second was Jim Kimberly’s No. 55 2-litre Ferrari.
“At the end of the second hour, No.
27, a Mercury-powered Allard had to drop out, leaving 26 cars in the racing
pack. The Crosley
Hotshot remained in the lead, but the No. 20 Fiat driven by Bob Keller edged
ahead of Kimberly’s Ferrari.
“As darkness began to fall, the headlights came on.
Marshall Lewis replaced Jim Kimberly in the Ferrari, and overtook Keller’s
Fiat. But despite many changes of
position and the loss of more cars, the Crosley never
dropped out of the lead.”
Sebring’s First Race