R.I.P. Al Unser

Godspeed Big Al, one of the greatest racers of all time...

https://www.nbcnews.com/news/sports/al-unser-four-time-winner-indianapolis-500-dies-82-rcna8334

Legend

rip

Another great gone. Gods speed Al.

This is how I like to remember him, hard on the gas, crossed up, and slinging dirt! God speed Big Al!

Damn. Talk about great - hell, iconic - racing families...

If people are ever in Albuqueque, NM. You need to check out the Unser Museum there!

RIP Al!

I'd love to visit that museum. I visited the Pikes Peak Hill Climb Museum in Manitou Springs, CO, at the base of the mountain.
What a great museum with all of the Hill Climb cars. Lots of Unser stuff in there, as the Unser Family is King of that Mountain. The Peak has a new angel!

In the 70s, up here in our area, the end of the season races at several local (within 100 miles) put up big money to win. Those races attracted many big name racers to our area. The Unser boys would make the trip up from Alabama to run some of those big money races when they could put together a few back to back to run. I seemed to remember Al was at one of the tracks running a few big names and the local boys. As the lap count got shorter, Big Al was coming up through the pack fast, but ended up in 2nd (just barely) at the finish line. If the race would have been another lap longer, there wasn't much doubt who would have won.
Of course the crowd went wild when the local boy won, but I suspect, looking back now, that the real truth was the Unser boys knew how to put on a great show. I suspect the promoter probably covered the difference of the payout between 1st and 2nd. Huge crows were there to watch the local boys run against the big names.
For this 14 year old kid, that race was a memorable one. Gene

With the Cotton Owens '68 Charger @ Daytona.

Wasn’t it Al that performed that PRO BLEND test in a Viper ?