Roger McCluskey was a GREAT driver and a true gentleman. Easy to see why he was one of my heroes back in the 1960's and 70's!

Being from Wisconsin I've read a lot about this accident. Norm Brown was trapped inside his car, and his burns and other injuries ended his career. Contrary to what the narrative implies, Bay Darnell was not trapped, there were photos in the Milwaukee papers of him running from his car. He was mostly a stock car driver, and I don't think he raced Indy cars again after this. Ronnie Duman vaulted over the other two cars and hit the wall upside down, dying instantly when his head hit the wall (His helmet lay on the track split in two). He and Brown were both from Michigan and were said to be best friends.

I grew up watching this show I love it

I used to watch Car and Track on Speedvision, I remember this episode. I loved this show, it was fascinating watching these old race highlights.

Thanks for posting this! Anybody under the age of 40 may find this hard to believe but this is how we got our race fix back then. 15 minutes worth of highlights on a show like "Car and Track" or Wide World of Sports, usually a week or two after the race had been run so we already knew who won it but we didn't care we just wanted to see some racing! Btw, about 10 days before this Ronnie Duman got his biggest payday ever finishing 6th in the Indy 500 and earning a little over $19,000. I wonder if he got to spend any of it.

@chargermaster586

6 жыл бұрын

markko17 Hard to believe its been 50 years just seeing that 1968 airing on Screen makes feel like dam its been 50 years.

@carywiesner769

5 жыл бұрын

And Duman had had such bad luck at Indy before that. 4 starts, 4 DNF's, including getting badly burned in the 1964 wreck that killed Eddie Sachs and Dave McDonald. He must have been feeling good about the direction his career was headed coming into Milwaukee . I also recall reading somewhere that he fell to the back of the pack at the start of the race, possibly because his turbocharger didn't engage right away. What a terrible piece of luck.

@timford3599

9 ай бұрын

@@carywiesner769 The first time that I watched this video, I recalled exactly what you so correctly mentioned about Ronnie and the horrible burns that he got in the conflagration at Indy 1964 on the second lap (RIP Eddie Sachs & Dave Mcdonald.) Until I had a chance to read your comment, I wondered if anyone recalled the irony of his death at Milwaukee and his fate as a rookie at the 500 in 1964? Very astute of you, Cary, for remembering that situation and then mentioning it. Nicely done my friend!

Horrible crash - Norm Brown was a home town local driver - one of his race car was kept in a garage 3 short blocks away-- I used to peek thru the windows and Dream

thevmanvj It was great to see “Hard Luck Lloyd” win one. By he same token, the death of Ronnie Duman reminded us of how dangerous that period of racing really was....especially in Indy Cars and Formula-1. The survival rate in that period of driving was about 1 in 3.

@MrChristopherHaas

3 жыл бұрын

Damn right.

The turbines were incredible. Everyone went nuts as each one broke. They were completely silent, just a "whoosh".

I remember my Dad telling me about Duman burning . He was right there in turn 2

Great Stuff, even almost Fifty years later.

If the fire crews would have gotten to Ed Elisian that quickly in 1959 he probably could have been rescued.

This may be the only time I've ever hear Pelican Joe called "Joey"

@timford3599

9 ай бұрын

Well, that's just part of the "Back in the Day" verbiage that Bud Lindeman used in the 1960's. But, he gets a pass since his show was just about the only way we got to see ANY auto racing at all! I still get a chuckle out of the way he refers (lovingly) to some of the drivers as "Boy."

@blugold94

6 ай бұрын

I bought a few of the Indy 500 radio broadcasts from the '60's and 70's and the radio crew led by Sid Collins also would use "Joey" at times.

Graham Hill lost a wheel at Indy and Leonard lost one a week later. Was it a big surprise that the 1969 Lotus Indy cars had to withdraw because of wheel hub failures? I know Ronnie Duman's grandson and always feel sick when I see how Ronnie died. He was the last driver to join the Champion 100 Mile Per Hour Club. His grandson's father was also from a racing family and Indy driver Chet Gardner was a great Uncle.

Remember this era like it was yesterday. I lived in Trenton NJ and saw this era up close and personal. Mourned Duman's death. Amazing compared to today how the "men" kept racing when death happened. Now a days the show is over.

My wife and I were there and witnessed the accident.

If I may nitpick a little, the narration about the big crash has an error. All three drivers were not trapped in their cars; in the footage immediately after the crash you can see Bay Darnell running to the infield. Darnell wasn't too badly burned but Brown's injuries ended his career. And one of the ironies of this accident is that Ronnie Duman and Norm Brown were both from Michigan, and were long-time friends.

Drivers today have no clue just how dangerous this sport was compared to today. And its still dangerous. And racing still can and will kill. It just comes with the territory