Denise McCluggage

McGluggage's trademark; the white helmet with the red dots

Denise McCluggage (born January 20, 1927 in El Dorado , Kansas ; † May 6, 2015 in Santa Fe , New Mexico ) was an American racing driver , journalist and photographer .

Career

McCluggage came into contact with motorsport early in her life. She spent her childhood in Kansas and then attended Mills College on San Francisco Bay . Her first newspaper job was at the San Francisco Chronicle .

Through a friend, she got in touch with a local MG dealer and bought her first sports car there. She drove her first car races at small club events. In 1954 she went to New York to work as a sports journalist for the New York Herald Tribune . The MG was swapped for a Jaguar XK 140 and she started racing on a more professional basis.

McCluggage pioneered equality in the United States, both in motorsport and in journalism. In both worlds, she was confronted with an all-male society that saw women very much as an accessory to their own work. She quickly made a name for herself through dedication and fighting spirit. She drove all major road races from the mid-1950s and quickly gained respect from her male colleagues. Her trademark was the white helmet with the red dots. In the 1960s she also came to Europe, contested the 1000 km race on the Nürburgring and took part in the Monte Carlo Rally . She drove Porsches , Maseratis and racing cars of many brands. She often formed an all-women team with her compatriot Pinkie Rollo . The two women competed repeatedly for the North American Racing Team in the second half of the 1960s .

In the late 1960s, she ended her racing career and became the editor of the major US auto magazine AutoWeek .

Honors

• Admission to the Automotive Hall of Fame (2001)

statistics

Sebring results

year	team	vehicle	Teammate	Teammate	Teammate	placement	Failure reason
1958	Alfred Momo	Fiat-Abarth 750 Zagato	Ruth Levy			failure	Gearbox damage
1959	Alejandro de Tomaso	Osca S750	Isabelle Haskell	Alejandro de Tomaso	Ricardo Rodríguez	Rank 18
1960	Camoradi USA	Osca 187S	Pinkie Rollo			failure	Oil loss
1961	Denise McCluggage	Ferrari 250 GT SWB	Allen eager			Rank 10
1962	North American Racing Team	Osca S1000	Allen eager			failure	accident
1963	Ecurie Safety Fast	MGB	Christabel Carlisle			failure	Bearing damage
1967	Northern Vermont Racing Team	Ferrari 275 GTB / 4 NART Spyder	Pinkie Rollo			Rank 17

Individual results in the sports car world championship

season	team	race car	1	2	3	4th	5	6th	7th	8th	9	10	11	12	13	14th	15th	16	17th	18th	19th	20th	21st	22nd
1957	Denise McCluggage	Porsche 550	BUA	SEB	MIM	ONLY	LEM	KRI	CAR
									13
1958	Alfred Momo	Fiat-Abarth 750	BUA	SEB	TAR	ONLY	LEM	RTT
				DNF
1959	Alejandro de Tomaso	Osca S750 Osca S1500	SEB	TAR	ONLY	LEM	RTT
			18th		DNF
1960	Camoradi Racing	Osca 187S	BUA	SEB	TAR	ONLY	LEM
				DNF
1961	Denise McCluggage	Ferrari 250 GT	SEB	TAR	ONLY	LEM	PES
			10		DNF
1962	North American Racing Team	Osca S1000	DAY	SEB	SEB	MAY	TAR	BER	ONLY	LEM	TAV	CCA	RTT	ONLY	BRI	BRI	PAR
					DNF											DNF
1963	Ecurie Safety Fast	MGB Mini	DAY	SEB	SEB	TAR	SPA	MAY	ONLY	CON	ROS	LEM	MON	WIS	TAV	FRE	CCE	RTT	OVI	ONLY	MON	MON	TDF	BRI
					DNF																		DNF
1967	Northern Vermont Racing Team	Ferrari 275 GTB	DAY	SEB	MON	SPA	TAR	ONLY	LEM	HOK	MUG	BRH	CCE	ZEL	OVI	ONLY
				17th

Web links

Commons : Denise McCluggage  - Collection of Pictures, Videos and Audio Files

• Image: Denise McCluggage and Stirling Moss 2008
• Denise McCluggage: 1927-2015
• Excerpt from Denise McCluggage's acceptance speech on the occasion of the induction into the Automotive Hall of Fame (2001 ) (accessed on May 8, 2015)
• Sam Roberts: Denise McCluggage, Auto Racing Pacesetter, Dies at 88. In: The New York Times, May 9, 2015 (English)

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Fast Ladies: Female Racing Drivers 1888 to 1970 , by Jean-François Bouzanquet, ISBN 978-1-84584-225-3 , page 115, accessed May 8, 2015.
2. ↑ Color photo of McCluggage with her white helmet with red dots , accessed on May 8, 2015.