30 Days in May: No. 19, Spike Gehlhausen, 1976 Spirit of Indiana McLaren/Offy

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

Penske Entertainment/Indianapolis Motor Speedway

Rookie Spike Gehlhausen drove the colorful Spirit of Indiana in the 1976
Indianapolis 500, but unfortunately a mechanical problem ended his race
before the green flag.

The Spirit of Indiana entries appeared in the Indianapolis 500 in 1975 and 1976, each with a rookie driver from Indiana and each with No. 19 because Indiana is the 19^th state.

In 1975, short-track star Sheldon Kinser (Bloomington) finished 12^th. For 1976, Spike Gehlhausen (Jasper) got the assignment. Spike’s dad, Carl Gehlhausen, was a longtime owner in USAC in the Midget, Sprint, Championship Dirt and Championship divisions. In 1973, an up-and-coming Tom Sneva won several features in the family’s soon-to-be-banned rear-engine sprint car. 

Race Day was a tough one as the Offy lost oil pressure before the green flag. Spike (given first name Daniel) competed in four more Indianapolis 500s, with a best finish of 10^th in 1979.

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