Monday, March 26, 2012

Vintage Photo of the Day: Wilbur Shaw


I had the privilege of being the sports editor of the Post-Tribune of Northwest Indiana (www.post-trib.com), in Merrillville, Ind., for about five years (2003-2008). During some spring cleaning, I ran across this photo of Wilbur Shaw being “ticketed.” Where is this taking place? My guess would be Lowell because of the (Red?) Devil Delicatessen in the background (Lowell High School’s athletic teams are the Red Devils). 

Based on some other photos I found, it appears that the 1951 winning Belanger car, driven by Lee Wallard, was part of some sort of celebration parade, and perhaps Wilbur Shaw, then president of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, was on hand. Car owner Murrell Belanger had ties to Lowell, so that all makes sense, but again this is all conjecture on my part. For more on Murrell Belanger, please see the nice story written by my friend William LaDow on his website http://speedwaysightings.wordpress.com/. Bill has written many great stories that originally appeared in the Post-Tribune. He also has an extensively researched book about famed mechanic Ray Nichels coming soon.

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