The Amelia Island Concours d'Elegance announced today that the supercharged, Miller 91, front drive Indianapolis 500 racer that set a speed record in 1928, will be making an appearance at the 18th annual Amelia Island Concours d'Elegance on March 10, 2013. Leaving its permanent home at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Hall of Fame Museum, the historic car be part of the Concours' "Cars of Harry Miller" class, which will honor the work of legendary American race car designer Harry Miller.
Leon Duray was behind the wheel of the 1928 Indy 500 Pole Winner when it set a speed record of 124.018 mph during qualifying, and although he never won the race, he set a speed record that still has the experts scratching their heads 85 years later. Sadly, the Indy pole winner led the first 59 laps of the race, but retired with overheating problems. It took seven years of technological progress and a 55 per cent increase in engine size to outrun the Duray Miller's blistering record qualifying lap.
After the 1928 Indy 500, Duray took the car and his other Miller 91 front drive racer, a sister ship of the 1928 Indy 500 Pole Winner, to Europe for a record breaking season, setting four free-standing international records - one for the one kilometer, one mile, five kilometers and five miles. With his success, Duray then sold the pair to Ettore Bugatti who was investigating a four wheel drive project. Duray's record setting Millers spent World War II hidden in France and both cars were repatriated in 1959.
The 1928 Indy 500 pole winner was then sent to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Hall of Fame Museum where a thorough and faithful restoration by the Museum's staff returned it to its exact appearance of May 30, 1928. Its sister ship received a similarly careful and detailed private restoration and was donated to the Smithsonian Institution's Museum of American History, where it is on display today.
"The Miller 91 front drive racer is a national treasure," said Bill Warner, founder and Chairman of the Amelia Island Concours d'Elegance. "It's the epitome of the American race car builders' art.
We're extraordinarily grateful that the Indianapolis Speedway Museum will send the 1928 pole winner to 'The Amelia' to help us honor the exquisite work of Harry Miller."About The Amelia Island Concours d'Elegance
Now in its second decade, the Amelia Island Concours d'Elegance is among the top automotive events in the world. Always held the second full weekend in March, "The Amelia" draws nearly 250 rare vehicles from collections around the world to The Golf Club of Amelia Island and The Ritz-Carlton, Amelia Island for a celebration of the automobile like no other. Since 1996, the show's Foundation has donated over $2 million to Community Hospice of Northeast Florida, Inc. and other deserving charities on Florida's First Coast. The 18th annual Amelia Island Concours d'Elegance is scheduled for March 8-10, 2013. For more information, visit
No comments:
Post a Comment