At last weekend’s Brickyard Invitational at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway five members of Albuquerque’s foremost racing family, the Unsers, drove on the big old track at the same time for the first time ever. Four-time winner Al, his three-time winning brother Bobby and his two-time winning son Al Jr., were joined by Bobby’s son Robby and his cousin Johnny—whose father Jerry died from injuries sustained in a practice session crash at the Speedway in 1959—as all took exhibition laps at the famous facility in vintage racecars related to the family’s history there.
Al drove the 1970 Johnny Lightning Special Colt-Ford in which he won his first 500, while Bobby returned to the 1981 Norton Spirit Penske PC9-Cosworth that carried him to his third 500 triumph, and Al Jr. drove the 1983 Coors Light Silver Bullet Eagle-Cosworth from his rookie year. Robby got to drive his father’s 1968 race-winning Rislone Eagle-Offy, while Johnny, in the absence of any of his father’s cars, took the wheel of a 1963 Watson-Offy roadster originally driven by Eddie Sachs.
Al Jr., Johnny and Robby also drove in Saturday’s Indy Vintage Pro-Am, which featured 33 Indy 500 starters paired with amateur drivers for a race on the Speedway’s infield road course. That race was won by Bob Lazier, who finished 13th in the 1981 500, and Jim Caudle in a 1969 Chevrolet Corvette (above), 48.9 seconds ahead of the 1967 Ford Mustang of seven-time 500 starter Mark Dismore and his partner Scott Hackenson.
More than 500 cars turned out for the Sportscar Vintage Racing Association’s second outing at the Speedway, with races taking place on the 2,439-mile, 14-turn road circuit, while exhibition runs were made on the 2.5-mile oval. For complete information, please visit www.svra.com
