Blue Crown Spark Plug Special racecar. (Image
source: Bing.com)
As that’s definitely not a “Shaken, not Stirred” intended pun. Get it?
Like much past history I try delving into here
upon No Fenders. Even after having finished my monstrous six part Blue Crown
Spark Plug Saga Wayback in Gory 2009. The year of my debutante Indianapolis 500
race, where some pesky Brazilian was making His own history following a tax
trial, I still feel like I know only the rudimentary facts about Lou Moore…
Lewis Henry Moore was born on September 12,
1904 in Hinton, Oklahoma, before His family migrated to California. Reportedly
at age 16, He became a mechanic and started building and racing cars, having
bought an old Ford Model T.
Moore made His rookie debut at the Indianapolis
Motor Speedway in 1928, qualifying eighth and finishing runner-up behind Louis
Meyer for that year’s 16th running of the Indianapolis 500.
Moore’s crowning accomplishment as a driver was
winning the 1932 Indianapolis 500 pole. Along with His second place finish, He
scored a brace of third place finishes between 1933-34.
Interestingly, Moore also competed in the 1934
Tripoli Grand Prix, held on May 6th that year. With this Formula Libre event
being won by the great Achille Varzi aboard an Alfa Romeo Tipo-b P3. With Moore
finishing seventh in a Miller 3.0-litre racecar.
Yet Moore is best known for his racing exploits
as a team owner, beginning in 1937, after having retired from driving the year
prior.
More entered one car for Mauri Rose in 1937,
which finished 18th, retiring with an oil line failure.
The following year, His entry for driver Floyd
Roberts won the first of His eventual five victories as a car owner. Yet sadly,
Roberts was killed in the 1939 Indy 500 aboard the same car.
Mauri Rose drove once again for Moore,
finishing third in the 1940 race at the Brickyard. Following the race, Lucy
O’Reilly Shell sold Her two Ecurie O’Reilly Maserati 8CTF’s to Lou Moore.
For 1941, Moore entered an unprecedented four
racecars at the Speedway, with the two Elgin Piston Pin Maserati’s driven by
Rose and Duke Nalon. While a further two Wetteroth Offy’s (Offenhauser) were
entered as the Noc-Out Hose Clamp Specials for Floyd Davis and Cliff Bergere.
Rose would start from pole aboard His No. 3
Maserati, before retiring on lap-60 due to spark plug issues. Moore then
inserted Mauri into the hapless Floyd Davis’s No. 16 Wetteroth Offenhauser
entry and the rest was history, with Rose winning the race, while Davis was
nowhere to be found afterwards…
For 1946, Moore didn’t enter any racecars and moonlighted
as Cliff Bergere’s chief mechanic. Interestingly, this was the ex-Floyd Roberts
1938 winning Champ Car, and Bergere claimed His one and only Indy 500 pole
aboard it that year, before finishing an unheralded P16. As the Noc-Out Clamp
racecar ironically was listed as Out of Oil…
The year’s 1947-49 cemented Moore’s legacy as a
winning team owner, when His Blue Crown Spark Plug front wheel drive Diedt
Offenhauser “Specials” won the race an unprecedented three years in-a-row.
The 1947 race saw “the thrill of Victory, and
Agony of defeat”. As rookie Bill Holland led a dominant 143-laps and was
leading when confused by Lou Moore hanging out an EZ sign for both drivers.
And while Holland was cruising to victory at
reduced speed, He simply waved to teammate Mauri rose, who He thought was
unlapping Himself on lap-193. With Rose going onto claim His second
Indianapolis 500 victory, to Holland’s disbelief!
Rose won again in 1948, leading another 1-2
Blue Crown Spark Plug sweep. And then in ’49, Holland was circumspect when the
EZ sign came out once again while leading. As Rose was disobeying team orders
again, yet this time His magneto packed-up with eight laps remaining and
Holland finally won at Mother Speedway. And Moore fired Rose immediately
following the race.
Thus Moore not only had won five Indianapolis
500 race’s, but became the first ever team owner to win three consecutive
events. A feat that has only been accomplished once more by Team Penske between
2001-03.
Meanwhile, Moore’s legacy as the winningest
Indy 500 team owner stood for 38 years until El Capitano’, nee Roger Penske won
His sixth Borg Warner trophy in 1987. While we all know that Roger and Team
Penske have gone onto win a staggering total of 20 Indianapolis 500’s between
1972 and 2025.
To read my very
long, detailed Mega six parts Blue Crown Spark Plug Specials Saga, with
pictures provided by Dean Jackson. Whose father Purvis was the proprietor of
Blue Crown Spark Plugs, please visit the following No Fenders link below.
http://www.nofenders.net/2012/05/blue-crown-spark-plug-specials-saga.html
Aftermath
Lou Moore died at the age of 51 on March 25,
1956. Complaining of a headache, Moore was rushed to hospital where He died of
a brain hemorrhage, according to the Indianapolis Star.
Ironically, I just listened to Marshall
Pruett’s podcast with Ed Justice Jr, who dryly noted that Lou Moore was
considered the “Roger Penske” of His day, but wasn’t Roger!
Chip Ganassi, who just won His sixth Indianapolis 500 as a team owner, took 66 years to surpass the great Lou Moore’s accomplishment! While Andretti Global remains tied with Moore for five wins apiece…
