Swede Savage. From The Orange Show Speedway to the Indy 500
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- Опубліковано 4 жов 2024
- Swede Savage could have been the best race car driver of all time according to a racing magazine in 1970.
To say Swede had roots in the Inland Empire would be an understatement. Even his roots had roots.
In 1928 his Grandfather Philip Savage was a renowned surgeon in San Bernardino, but he was concerned with the availability of health care in San Bernardino, so he did something about it. He started St. Bernardines Hospital that opened in 1931. 15 years later his grandson David Savage was born on the 4th floor.
By the time David (who started going by Swede) was 10 years old he was wining races at the Orange Show Speedway. In his mid-teens he started racing motorcycles, and by the time he was a Senior at Pacific High School, he had a segment done on ABC Wide World of Sports about his riding abilities. The next year racing legend found out about Swede, and within a couple of years he was racing in the Indianapolis 500.
Sadly, hid career also ended at Indy in 1973. He was in a horrible crash that he survived and was recovering from those injuries but died 33 days later from complications involving the health care he was receiving. Ironically, he is buried in Mountain View Cemetery, right across the street from where he was born 26 years earlier.
In this episode Host Chuck Street talks with Swedes biographer Ted Woerner and one Swedes old friends Tom Giudice.
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I went to OMS and saw the 500 from 1970 - 1974 with my dad. Got Swede's autograph and got a great pic of him walking by the Winner's Circle in 1972. I was 14. The people of the I.E. were proud to have a real race car driver make it big. I saw the Questor grand prix too with pops. And the Champion motorcycle race, plus Miller High Life 500. Jerry Karl's 200 mph qualifying lap and later that day Bobby Unser's 4 lap 200mph qualifying average. Evel too. I remember like it was yesterday watching on ABC Swede's accident and wiping my eyes when seeing what happened. FOHI 1976.
The Quester Grand Prix was an exhibition race on the Ontario road course. Formula One vs American Formula A cars. Formula A was America's premier open wheel road racing series.
The Chevy engines were 305 cubes, but RACING engines.
The reason there were only 10 Indy Car races in 1972 was that after 1970 they dropped the dirt races and the road races from the schedule.
The show STILL goes on NOW.