Ralph DePalma

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DePalma with his mechanic Tom Alley in August 1912. Alley later became a racing driver himself.
Ralph DePalma in the Packard record car 905 with V12 aircraft engine (1919)
DePalma in the Packard '905' Special 1919

Ralph DePalma (born January 23, 1884 in Troia , Italy , † March 31, 1956 in South Pasadena , USA ) was an American automobile racing driver .

Career

Ralp DePalma was born in Italy . His family emigrated to the United States when he was eight years old. As a 22-year-old he began to compete in motorcycle races before switching to automobile racing in 1909. That year the American Automobile Association (AAA) began to host a national championship.

DePalma was immediately successful in automobile racing. In 1911 he won the first championship race on the Milwaukee Mile . He lost the Indianapolis 500 miles in 1912 in a dramatic way: after leading almost the entire race from the third lap - he led 196 of the 200 laps - a piston broke on his Mercedes . At this point there were only two laps left. He and his mechanic had to push the vehicle to the finish, and DeParlma finished twelfth. In the further course of the season he was able to secure the championship title. On October 5, 1912 , he was nearly killed in an accident at the Vanderbilt Cup on the Milwaukee Mile. He spent a long time in hospital, but recovered and was able to race again from the spring of 1913.

In 1912 and 1914 he won the Elgin National Trophy in Elgin , Illinois . In 1914, he achieved what he saw as the greatest victory in his own eyes, beating Barney Oldfield and winning the Vanderbilt Cup in Santa Monica , California . DePalma was fired from the Mercer racing team because of Barney Oldfield. In a Mercedes "Gray Ghost" DePalma showed a tactical masterpiece and beat Oldfield, who was traveling in a significantly faster vehicle. This year he was also able to win his second championship. The following year, he finally took the long-awaited victory at the Indianapolis 500.

Ralph DePalma was a tough competitor, but one of the most popular drivers among his fellow racing drivers as well as fans because of his athleticism, a quality he displayed on and off the track. In June 1917 he lost to Barney Oldfield in a series of 10 to 25 mile match races on the Milwaukee Mile. On 12 February 1919, he went on the Daytona Beach Road Course , Florida with the Packard 905 a new world speed record with a speed of 149.875  mph (241.2  km / h ) over a mile. In 1920 international races in the USA and Europe, the 3-liter capacity limit for engines was introduced. DePalma started this year with the French automobile manufacturer Ballot . His ballot was one of the fastest in qualifying for the Indianapolis 500 in 1920 , but bad luck haunted him in the race. DePalma traveled with other Americans in 1921 to Le Mans to there at the France Grand Prix participate. There he was second behind Jimmy Murphy in a Duesenberg .

In 1916 he founded the De Palma Manufacturing Company for the production of aircraft engines and automobiles. In the Hollywood film high-speed from 1920 he got a small role, and in 1924 he played the champion Drama Racing for Life of Wilfred Lucas .

When Ralph DePalma ended his racing career, he had contested 2,889 races and won 2,557 of them. He died in South Pasadena in 1956 and was buried in Culver City . The Mercedes in which he lost the Indianapolis 500 in 1912 is on display in the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Hall of Fame Museum .

DePalma was the brother of Indy 500 contestant John DePalma and the uncle of 1923 Indy 500 winner Peter DePaolo .

literature

  • Rick Popely: Indianapolis 500 Chronicle . Publications Ltd., New York 1998, ISBN 0-7853-2798-3 .

Web links

Commons : Ralph DePalma  - collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Indianapolis 500 1915
personal data
SURNAME DePalma, Ralph
BRIEF DESCRIPTION American racing car driver
DATE OF BIRTH January 23, 1884
PLACE OF BIRTH Troy
DATE OF DEATH March 31, 1956
Place of death South Pasadena