Published: May 28, 2016
Local connections talk about Sunday’s 100th running of the Indianapolis 500
By NICHOLAS DETTMANN
Daily News
Thirty-six years have passed since Sun Prairie’s Billy Engelhart, a
2010 inductee into the Southeastern Wisconsin Short Track Hall of Fame
in Hartford, finished 11th at the Indianapolis 500 — his only “500.”
He wishes he could’ve done better. He knows he could’ve done better.
That’s why it still brings a slightly sour taste in the Hall of Famer’s
mouth.
“I think we could’ve been top five or top six,” Engelhart said. “I think the car was capable of it.”
“I still feel bad the way things went,” he added.
Outside of that, he’s honored to be a small part of what has been a Memorial Day weekend tradition since 1911.
The Indianapolis Motor Speedway celebrates its 100th running of the Indianapolis 500 on Sunday.
“There’s such tradition,” Engelhart said. “The pageantry and the buildup for the 500 is unprecedented.”
Engelhart is not alone when it comes to local connections to the Indy 500.
Duane Sweeney was the chief starter and flag man for 17 Indy 500s
(1980-1996). He was inducted into the Southeastern Wisconsin Short
Track Hall of Fame in 2007. He died in 2004 at the age of 81.
Hartford’s Norm Hornitschek worked as a pit crew member in five Indy
500s — the last being in 2011 with James Hinchcliffe, Sunday’s pole
sitter.
“It’s kind of
priceless,” Hornitschek said about being involved in the Indy 500. “I
always feel like I’m a part of it. Race day is going to be pretty
special. It hasn’t sunk in yet about how epic this is going to be.”
Hornitschek’s first Indy 500 was in 2005 with Sebastien Bourdais. He missed the 2006 and 2007 races, and returned in
2008 with the late Justin Wilson. Then Hornitschek was with Robert
Doornbos in 2009, Hideki Mutoh in 2010 and Hinchcliffe in 2011.
For a crew member, it’s another day at the track.
“It’s a long, long day,” Hornitschek said. “To beat the traffic, you have to leave at 4 or 5 in the morning.”
The race doesn’t typically start until around noon.
One of the most memorable moments for Hornitschek at the 500 is when
he and his crew mates push off the car onto the track in qualifying and
they hear the car go through the other turns on the 2.5-mile, four-turn
race track.
“The speed is something not everybody gets to experience,” Hornitschek said.
He returned to the speedway in 2014 as a fan. It changed his outlook on the event.
“It was more appreciation of being a fan,” Hornitschek said.
For Engelhart, he remembered the large crowds that’d line the inside and outside of the track. “It was a
tremendous thing to see,” he recalled. In the 1980 race, which was
won by Johnny Rutherford, there were 10 rookies, including
Engelhart. And one of the first things the rookies were told was the
crowd and what it does to a driver’s perception.
“We had never been on the track with the place so full,” Engelhart said. “It just closes on you. It seemed like everything was so narrow. The whole thing closed on you because of the tremendous attendance. It had a mental affect on you.”
He admitted he didn’t want to believe what was said in the rookie meeting. The rookies learned quickly they weren’t joking.
“I don’t think any of us grasped what it would seem like on race day
when you’re three abreast and all these people are in there,” Engelhart
said. “It’s totally different.”
Thirty-six years are between now and Engelhart’s lone Indy 500
appearance. He admitted it still gets to him. He remembers it almost
like it was yesterday.
“You keep telling yourself you’re not going to get involved,” he said.
“But when race day morning gets around … I don’t think there’s anything
more emotional than the buildup for the Indy 500.
“It gets me every year.”
In the race, his nerves didn’t settle down until about lap 30 of the
200-lap event, or the first pit stop of the race. Unfortunately, those
first 30 laps were adventurous.
He missed a shift when the green flag flew. Then he overrevved the
engine causing an engine problem. It lost a cylinder. It eventually
came back, but it was a struggle to pass cars when that happened.
Once everything cleared up, Engelhart charged through the field and settled for an 11thplace finish. “I feel blessed to have had the opportunity,” he said, adding it’s special to have been a small part of it.
“As a driver, you always feel like you could’ve done better. You
wished you were a bigger part of it. Still, it’s amazing that it’s gone
on for 100 years.”
Reach sports editor Nicholas Dettmann at ndettmann@conleynet.com.
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