Championship Auto Racing Teams (CART) was a sanctioning body for American open-wheel car racing that operated from 1979 until dissolving after the 2003 season. CART was founded in 1979 by United States Auto Club (USAC) Championship Division team owners who disagreed with the direction and leadership of USAC, with the then-novel idea of team owners sanctioning and promoting their own series collectively instead of relying on a neutral body to do so. Through the 1980s, CART's Indy Car World Series became the pre-eminent open-wheel auto racing series in North America, featuring street circuits, road courses, and oval track racing. CART teams continued to compete at the USAC-sanctioned Indianapolis 500, which was effectively integrated into the series schedule.
Lucas Oil Indianapolis Raceway Park is an auto racing facility in Brownsburg, Indiana, about 10 miles (16 km) northwest of downtown Indianapolis. It includes a 0.686 mi (1.104 km) oval track, a 2.500 mi (4.023 km) road course, and a 4,400-foot (1,300 m) drag strip which is among the premier drag racing venues in the world. The complex receives about 500,000 visitors annually.
The United States Auto Club (USAC) is one of the sanctioning bodies of auto racing in the United States. From 1956 to 1979, USAC sanctioned the United States National Championship, and from 1956 to 1997 the organization sanctioned the Indianapolis 500. USAC serves as the sanctioning body for a number of racing series, including the Silver Crown Series, National Sprint Cars, National Midgets, Speed2 Midget Series, .25 Midget Series, Stadium Super Trucks, and Pirelli World Challenge. Seven-time USAC champion Levi Jones is USAC's Competition Director.
Sprint cars are high-powered open-wheel race cars, designed primarily for the purpose of running on short oval or circular dirt or paved tracks. Historically known simply as "big cars," distinguishing them from "midget cars," sprint car racing is popular primarily in the United States and Canada, as well as in Australia, New Zealand, and South Africa.
Midget cars, also speedcars in Australia, is a class of racing cars. The cars are very small with a very high power-to-weight ratio and typically use four cylinder engines. They originated in the United States in the 1930s and are raced on most continents. There is a worldwide tour and national midget tours in the United States, Australia, Argentina and New Zealand.
Rodger Morris Ward was an American racing driver best known for his open-wheel career. He is generally regarded as one of the finest drivers of his generation, and is best known for winning two National Championships, and two Indianapolis 500s, both in 1959 and 1962. He also won the AAA National Stock Car Championship in 1951.
Kurtis Kraft was an American designer and builder of race cars. The company built midget cars, quartermidgets, sports cars, sprint cars, Bonneville cars, and USAC Championship cars. It was founded by Frank Kurtis when he built his own midget car chassis in the late 1930s.
Dirt track racing is a form of motorsport held on clay or dirt surfaced banked oval race tracks. Dirt track racing started in the United States before World War I and became widespread during the 1920s and 1930s using both automobiles and motorcycles, often running on horse racing tracks. There are a myriad of types of race cars used, from open wheel Sprint cars and Modifieds to stock cars. While open wheel race cars are purpose-built racing vehicles, stock cars can be either purpose-built race cars or street vehicles that have been modified to varying degrees. There are hundreds of local and regional racetracks throughout the United States. The sport is also popular in Australia, New Zealand, Canada, South Africa and the United Kingdom.
Concord Speedway was a motorsports facility located in the town of Midland, North Carolina, southeast of Concord, North Carolina. The complex featured a 1⁄2-mile asphalt tri-oval and a 1⁄4-mile asphalt oval.
The 78th Indianapolis 500 was held at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Speedway, Indiana on Sunday, May 29, 1994. The race was sanctioned by United States Auto Club (USAC), and was included as race number 4 of 16 of the 1994 PPG IndyCar World Series. For the second year in a row, weather was not a factor during the month. Only one practice day was lost to rain, and pole day was only partially halted due to scattered showers. Warm, sunny skies greeted race day.
John Wayne Parsons is an American race car driver. He is the son of 1950 Indianapolis 500 winner Johnnie Parsons. He drove Indy cars in the USAC National Championship, and also drove USAC championship dirt cars. Parsons made twelve starts at the Indianapolis 500, with a best finish of 5th in 1977 and 1985.
Dan Drinan is an American sprint car driver from Indianapolis who failed on three separate attempts to qualify for the Indianapolis 500. His first attempt came in 1996, the first year that the Indy Racing League sanctioned the race. Drinan crashed his 1991 Lola chassis, the oldest chassis entered as a potential qualifier, during practice although it is unlikely that his outdated chassis and Buick engine could have produced the speed necessary to make the field. Drinan bruised his lung and fractured his foot in the crash. He returned in 1998 and his Mann Motorsports Dallara again failed to find the necessary speed to make the field. His final attempt was in 2000, when he was given an outdated Dallara and a small crew by Hemelgarn Racing, but the car never handled properly and Drinan again crashed during practice, preventing him from qualifying. Drinan has continued to be a top level competitor in USAC sprint car and midget racing. After leaving the IWX team through force, he now is supporting his young son in his own racing program Danny Drinan Jr who has promising potential for the future to come. In 2013-2016, Drinan and his son competed in USAC & QMA quarter midget competition in a creation out of Drinan's shop called the "F1 Shark" and had great success, winning a number of races. His son then moved on to run 600CC micro sprints after that.
Robert Santos III is an American professional racing driver from Franklin, Massachusetts. He graduated in 2004 from Tri-County Regional Vocational Technical High School. Santos, nicknamed "Bobby New England", is the grandson of Bobby Santos, a former modified racer. His sister, Erica Santos, is also a racecar driver. He is the cousin of former University of New Hampshire quarterback Ricky Santos.
Microstock is a form of full roll cage go cart or kart racing that originated in New Jersey invented by Bill and Bob Wagner.
Michael James Lewis is an American race car driver born on December 24, 1990, in Laguna Beach, California to parents Steve Lewis and Loretta Lewis. As a young, up-and-coming Race Car Driver, Michael has competed in a diverse number of racing vehicles including Formula 3, Formula BMW, Ford Focus Midgets, Touring Cars, Late Model Stock Cars, Quarter Midgets, & Go-Karts. Michael also officially tested a Formula One car for Scuderia Ferrari F1 in the F60 chassis on November 15, 2011. Michael's passion for racing is paramount and he enjoys every aspect of his racing career. The Laguna Beach, California native is known for his professionalism, work ethic, and he lives every day for motorsport.
Kevin Swindell is an American former racing driver and entrepreneur, who has competed in USAC and NASCAR competition. He has won 77 races in various dirt racing series including the Chili Bowl Nationals. Swindell is the son of three time World of Outlaws Sprint Car champion Sammy Swindell. Swindell owns and operates Swindell Speedlab, a clothing brand as well as Victory Fuel, a brand of flavored water.
The Northeastern Midget Association (NEMA) is a sanctioning body of short track auto racing in the United States and is the oldest sanctioning body of midget car type open wheel racing in North America.
Bridgeport Speedway is a dirt speedway located in the community of Bridgeport in Logan Township, Gloucester County, New Jersey, that consists of a high banked, progressive 4/10 mile 0.375-mile (0.604 km) and a 1/4 mile 0.25-mile (0.40 km) oval located within the bigger track. The Super DIRTcar Series races at the track. Jason Leffler died in an accident at the track in 2013.
Kokomo Speedway is a quarter mile (0.4 km) dirt semi-banked oval racing track in Kokomo, Indiana. The track hosts weekly Sunday night races during the American summer months. It has hosted or currently hosts national tours for sprint, late models, midget, and ARCA stock cars.
Joey Iest is an American professional stock car racing driver. He competes part-time in the ARCA Menards Series West, driving the No. 88 Ford Fusion for Naake-Klauer Motorsports.
