Tommie van Ostade wrote:Thanks EB for the info. I'd like to know more about the Riverside race. Was car hopping allowed back then, even in mid-race?
Yes, very much so, I remember Andretti swapping cars 2 or 3 times in the following year's race, but just lost out to Bobby Unser by a miniscule margin.
Foyt took over Roger McCluskey's car and came home fifth, giving him 160 out of the 300 points offered for 5th place, and he won the championship by 80.
Foyt always had the advantage in '67 by virtue of winning Indy - races were worth proportionally more points if they were longer mileage (2 points per mile for the winner). So Foyt got 1,000 for Indy alone, whereas Andretti's win in the Hoosier Hundred was only worth 200 points.
Back to Riverside, it was a great battle between Gurney, Clark (until his early retirement), Bobby Unser and Andretti. Gurney won it in the end, despite a lengthy pitstop due to a puncture. The top 3 all led the race at some point during the last 6 laps.
Tommie van Ostade wrote:What car was Clark in if he wasn't racing in a Lotus?
A Vollstedt. Did very well too, until missing a gear and being forced to retire. Rolla had offered him a drive at the same event the following year, but of course fate intervened.
Tommie van Ostade wrote:Wasn't Jim Hartubise the last driver with a front-engined car?
The last that I know of. His tantrum in 1978 when he jumped in someone else's car in protest at not being allowed to qualify was a sad incident, but he actually brought the Mallard back as late as 1981. He did of course drive rear engined cars in the 1970s at Indy too, but I guess his dream was to make the field once again in a front engined car.
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