The 1980 Sports Illustrated issue featuring Johnny Rutherford on the cover after earning his third Indianapolis 500 victory rests on the sidepod of the car he drove to that dominant win, the Chaparral.
WOW!! SI putting a three time Indy 500 winner on its cover. I guess there WAS racing before NASCAR came to Indiana! And this cover boy didn't get the SI jinx. 1980 was his greatest single season in Indy cars, even with his landing upside down at the season finale in Phoenix. HEY, they raced INDY cars at Phoenix?!
I wish I could have been there to see JR and this car on the track again. I'll bet it sounded great too. Does anyone remember that there were at least 12 different chassis types in that race? And no one was asking JR when he was going to make the jump to NASCAR. Those were the days...
WOW!! SI putting a three time Indy 500 winner on its cover. I guess there WAS racing before NASCAR came to Indiana! And this cover boy didn't get the SI jinx. 1980 was his greatest single season in Indy cars, even with his landing upside down at the season finale in Phoenix. HEY, they raced INDY cars at Phoenix?!
I wish I could have been there to see JR and this car on the track again. I'll bet it sounded great too. Does anyone remember that there were at least 12 different chassis types in that race? And no one was asking JR when he was going to make the jump to NASCAR. Those were the days...
Johnny and IMS, thanks for the memories!