30 Days in May Bonus: No. 8, Jan Opperman, 1976 Routh Meat Packing Eagle/Offy

 

Majeske collection

Jan Opperman put the Routh Meat Packing entry in the show for the
1976 Indianapolis 500.

Welcome to our monthlong countdown celebrating notable drivers and cars from the Indianapolis 500!

Now and then during the 1970s, my dad was able to wrangle a pit or garage pass. In 1976, he was wandering about with his Polaroid camera (!) when Jan Opperman stopped him and asked if he could take his photo for his USAC license. He offered to pay my dad for his time and film. My dad said, no, that’s OK. How about signing an autograph for the kids instead? Jan happily obliged, dad took his photo, Opperman thanked him again, and my dad had an interesting story to tell around the dinner table that night.

The Routh Meat Packing entry originally was No. 75 and assigned to rookie Gary Allbritain. Allbritain, however, crashed twice earlier in the season, and USAC officials decided he wasn’t quite ready for the Speedway and denied him a rookie test.

Opperman, meanwhile, was entered in the No. 42 Don Mergard’s Spirit of Truth Eagle/Offy, which he qualified on the first weekend of qualifications. During this era, it was fairly common for drivers to switch teams (and vice versa) in an attempt to find the right combination to secure a spot in the 33-car field. After being bumped early on the final day of qualifications, Opperman jumped in the Routh car, which had been abandoned by Steve Krisiloff in favor of the No. 92 First National City Travelers Checks Eagle/Offy, which he qualified on the third day of time trials. (Jerry Karl also practiced in the No. 8 on the last day of qualifications.) Opperman warmed up the car at 5:39, didn’t take the green flag, and went back into the qualifying line. He got one more attempt at 5:59 and bumped Eldon Rasmussen.

Altogether, six cars were bumped in 1976, with the “Racing Hippie” providing literally last-minute drama.

The 1976 Indianapolis 500 was the shortest ever, halted by rain and declared official after a meager 102 laps. Johnny Rutherford was the winner in the Hy-Gain/Goodyear McLaren/Offy. It was the last of the venerable Offenhauser’s 27 victories at Indianapolis.

Opperman moved up from dead last to place 16^th when the rains hit. Considering the many challenges for both driver and team, this was a well-earned result.

Sadly, this was Opperman’s final Indianapolis 500. He was badly hurt in the Hoosier Hundred later in 1976, recovered, but then suffered devastating injuries in 1981. He died on September 4, 1997, in the care of his parents. Famed Indianapolis DJs Bob and Tom held a few fund-raisers over the years to try to defray costs for Opperman’s care.

Jan Opperman was an American original, considered by many the first and maybe the best “outlaw” racer. He was a member of the National Sprint Car Hall of Fame’s inaugural class in 1990. To learn more about this legend, I can recommend “Odyssey: Jan Opperman’s Racing Diary.” Also available is “Dialed In: The Jan Opperman Story,” which I’m hoping to read in the near future.

 

Majeske collection

I have another sister, but in May of 1976, she was still in the garage, so to speak.

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