1969 Indianapolis 500

53rd running of the Indianapolis 500 February 2025 53rd Indianapolis 500 Indy500winningcar1969.JPG USAC 1969 USAC season Andy Granatelli May 30, 1969 Mario Andretti Clint Brawner & Jim McGee2011 100th Anniversary Indianapolis 500 Official Media Guide Indianapolis Motor Speedway Corporation/IMS Public Relations 2011 Statistics 176 English https://doctorindy.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/2011-Indy-500-Media-Guide.pdf 156.867 mi/h km/h on 3:11:14.71 A. J. Foyt 170.568 mi/h km/h on Foyt Mark Donohue Mario Andretti (116) Purdue Band Mack H. Shultz Tony Hulman Chevrolet Camaro SS Jim Rathmann Pat VidanFox Jack C. The Illustrated History of the Indianapolis 500 1911-1994 Carl Hungness Publishing 4th 1994 22 en 0-915088-05-3 275,000Many Saw None Of Race But They Were Orderly https://www.newspapers.com/clip/11433522/ Michael P. Tarpey The Indianapolis Star 15 Newspapers.com May 31, 1969 June 2, 2017 ABC's Wide World of Sports Jim McKay, Rodger Ward 1968 1970 The 53rd International 500 Mile Sweepstakes was an auto race held at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Speedway, Indiana on Friday, May 30, 1969. It was the third round of the 1969 USAC Championship Car season. Polesitter A. J. Foyt led the race in the early stages, looking to become the first four-time winner of the 500. Near the halfway point, however, a lengthy pit stop to repair a broken manifold put him many laps down.2001 Indianapolis Record Book - Indianapolis Star/News Despite a hard-charging run towards the end, Foyt wound up managing only an eighth-place finish. Lloyd Ruby, a driver with a hard-luck reputation at the Speedway, was leading the race just after the midpoint. During a pit stop on lap 105, he accidentally pulled away with the fueling hose still attached. A hole was ripped in the fuel tank, and Ruby was out of the race. The incident put Mario Andretti in the lead for the rest of the way.https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=P1pIAAAAIBAJ&sjid=rQEEAAAAIBAJ&pg=7207%2C1180379 Toledo Blade Ohio Taylor Jim Andretti wins in Brawner's baby May 31, 1969 14https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=KtpaAAAAIBAJ&sjid=1GwDAAAAIBAJ&pg=7035%2C5565250 Pittsburgh Post-Gazette Associated Press Andretti wins Indianapolis 500 race May 31, 1969 8https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=URMfAAAAIBAJ&sjid=IlAEAAAAIBAJ&pg=7058%2C5966931 Pittsburgh Press UPI 'Losers' roar to Indy 500 victory May 31, 1969 7https://www.si.com/vault/1969/06/09/610438/la-dolce-indy Sports Illustrated Chapin Kim La Dolce Indy June 9, 1969 24 Mario Andretti led 116 laps total and won for car owner Andy Granatelli.https://www.newspapers.com/image/105999479 Official Speedway Finish June 1, 1969 The Indianapolis Star 2017-07-22 4-2 en Newspapers.com Andretti's victory capped off an up-and-down month of May. He entered the month as a favorite, but during practice, he crashed his primary car, a radical four-wheel-drive Lotus. Andretti suffered burns but was able to qualify a back-up car in the middle of the front row. Mario Andretti's 1969 Indy 500 win is the lone victory at the race for the storied Andretti racing family. As of 2026, no Andretti has won the Indianapolis 500 since. Likewise, it was a triumphant first victory for owner Granatelli, after a long presence at Indianapolis - and a long string of disappointments, first with Novis, and then with the Turbines. Andretti, nursing an overheating engine, crossed the finish line about two laps ahead of second place Dan Gurney. While Foyt and Andretti qualified 1st-2nd, Leon Duray "Jigger" Sirois's pit crew inadvisably waved off his qualifying run on pole day. It would go down in history as one of the most famous gaffes in Indy history. After five drivers were killed at the Speedway in the decade of the 1960s, the month of May 1969 was relatively clean, with no major injuries. The only injuries for the month were during two practice crashes. Mario Andretti suffered burns to his face, and Sammy Sessions, who suffered a fractured knee cap. Al Unser actually suffered the most serious injury of the month, when he crashed his personal motorcycle in the infield. He suffered a broken leg the night before time trials was to begin, and had to sit out the race. Bud Tingelstad served as his replacement in the Vel's Parnelli Jones Racing entry. The car in which Andretti won the 1969 Indy 500 is owned by the Smithsonian, while a replica has occasionally been on display at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Museum. Rule changes For 1969, not a single front-engined car managed to qualify for the race, and ultimately, one would never do so again. All 33 cars in the field were rear-engined piston-powered machines. After the famous near-miss failures of the controversial STP Granatelli Turbine machines in 1967 and 1968, USAC imposed additional restrictions that effectively rendered them uncompetitive. The annulus inlet was further reduced from 15.999 in2 to 11.999 in2, and the Granatelli team abandoned the project. USAC stopped short of an outright ban on turbine cars, and it was not the last time one would be entered. However, a turbine car would never manage to qualify for the race again. By 1969, USAC had slowly begun to relax the rules regarding wings. While bolt-on wings were still not allowed, similar devices such as airfoils and spoilers were permitted, as long as they were an integral part of the bodywork.Racing Design Had European Accent https://www.newspapers.com/clip/42801774/1969_indy_500/ The Indianapolis News 32 Newspapers.com May 29, 1969 January 22, 2020 Several cars arrived at the track with a myriad of aerodynamic devices.First wings at Indy, with Mario Andretti and Bobby Unser https://racer.com/2019/12/30/first-wings-at-indy-with-mario-andretti-and-bobby-unser/ Marshall Pruett Racer.com December 30, 2019 January 22, 2020 January 2, 2020 https://web.archive.org/web/20200102004022/https://racer.com/2019/12/30/first-wings-at-indy-with-mario-andretti-and-bobby-unser/ dead Goodyear arrived at the track in 1969 with a new, low-profile, wider tire.Goodyear Stars Work Again As Soon As '69 Race Ends https://www.newspapers.com/clip/42802211/1969_indy_500/ The Indianapolis Star 40 Newspapers.com May 30, 1969 January 22, 2020 Race schedule The 1969 race was the most recent Indy 500 scheduled for a Friday; the Uniform Monday Holiday Act was implemented in 1971 and Memorial Day became a three-day holiday weekend (Saturday–Monday) annually. Only one other subsequent year (1973) would the race be scheduled for a weekday. In 1970–1972, the race was scheduled for a Saturday, and beginning in 1974, the race has been scheduled for a Sunday. Race schedule – May, 1969SunMonTueWedThuFriSat     1Opening Day 2Practice 3Practice 4Practice 5Practice 6Practice 7Practice 8Practice 9Practice10Practice11Practice12Practice13Practice14Practice15Practice16Practice17Pole Day18Time Trials19Practice20Practice21Practice22Practice23Practice24Time Trials25Bump Day26 27 28Carb DayParade29Meeting30Indy 50031Banquet Color Notes Green Practice Dark Blue Time trials Silver Race day Red Rained out* Blank No track activity * Includes days where trackactivity was significantlylimited due to rain Practice and time trials The track opened on May 1 to light activity for the first few days. By Tuesday May 6, activity had picked up, and the top drivers were lapping in the 165 mph range. On Wednesday May 7, A. J. Foyt turned a lap of 169.237 mph, establishing himself as the top driver during the first week of practice. During the second week of practice, Mario Andretti took over the speed chart. On Monday May 12, he ran a lap of 170.197 mph, then followed it up on Wednesday May 14 with a lap of 171.657 mph. Al Unser was close behind with a lap of 169.141 mph. On Thursday May 15, A. J. Foyt joined the "170 mph" club with a lap of 170.875 mph. By the end of the week, three drivers were over 170. Roger McCluskey posed a 170.283 mph on Friday May 16, the day before time trials was scheduled to begin. Through two weeks, though, no drivers had topped Joe Leonard's track record of 171.959 mph set in 1968. Saturday May 17 – Jigger Sirois Pole day was scheduled for Saturday May 17 from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. However, rain threatened to wash out the afternoon. At the time, the qualifying rules were a bit unclear and they did not necessarily provide extensions for or lay out provisions in case of a rain delay or a rain stoppage during the pole position round. Only cars that made an attempt before the rains came (and before the track was scheduled to close at 6 o'clock) would be eligible for the pole position. Rookie Leon Duray "Jigger" Sirois drew the #1 spot in the qualifying order. At 4:12 p.m., the track was dry and finally opened for qualifying. Sirois took to the track for his first qualifying attempt (of three permitted). He completed his first three laps at: Lap 1 – 161.783 mph Lap 2 – 162.279 mph Lap 3 – 160.542 mph On his fourth and final lap, his pit crew – seemingly dissatisfied with the run thus far – displayed the yellow flag and waved off the run. The qualifying attempt was aborted, and Sirois returned to the pits. At the time, the rules were strict in that once a car received the checkered flag to complete a qualifying attempt, no further attempts were permitted - regardless of how many attempts were left of the allotted three. Arnie Knepper was the second car in line, and pulled away for his warm up laps. Rain began to fall again before Knepper even saw the green flag. The track was then closed for the day. That evening, Al Unser Sr., who had won the season opener at Phoenix, took to the infield to pass the time during the rain delay. He climbed on his motorcycle, and started riding around with Parnelli Jones. In a small jump over a ditch, he toppled and the kickstand came down and pierced his left leg. He suffered a compound fracture to his left tibia, and was taken to the hospital.Unser's luck bad again at Indianapolis Unser was put in a cast, and was sidelined for a month and a half. Sunday May 18 Rain washed out time trials for the second day in a row. It was the first time in modern history that the entire first weekend of time trials was lost due to rain. Pole qualifying was rescheduled for Saturday May 24. At 1:04 p.m., a few cars make it out on the track for practice, but that lasted for only 18 minutes. Heavy rain and a tornado watch in the area closed the track for the day. It was quickly noticed by media and fans that had Jigger Sirois' crew not waved off his final lap on Saturday, he would have been the lone qualifier of the weekend and would have sat on the coveted provisional pole position for at least an entire week. Saturday May 24 After 23 days of waiting, and two rainouts, the field was finally ready to begin time trials. On Wednesday May 21, pole favorite Mario Andretti suffered a serious crash in turn four during a practice run. He suffered burns to his face, but no other serious injuries. His four-wheel drive Lotus machine was destroyed, and Andretti would have to qualify a back-up car. A. J. Foyt won the pole position with a speed of 170.568 mph. A total of 25 cars completed runs. After his practice crash, Mario Andretti qualified the Brawner-Hawk for the middle of row one. Due to his facial burns, Mario asked his twin brother Aldo to stand in for him during the traditional front row photo session. The news of Foyt winning the pole was relayed to the astronauts on Apollo 10.https://history.nasa.gov/afj/ap10fj/as10-day8-pt32.html Apollo 10 - Day 8 part 32: Housekeeping, navigation and comms tests NASA.gov 172:53:37 Duke Apollo Flight Journal Corrected Transcript and Commentary March 18, 2019 July 20, 2020 Sunday May 25 The field was filled to 33 cars with two cars bumped. For the first time in modern history, the field lined up coincidentally by speed from top-to-bottom. In the final hour, Jerry Grant blew his engine during his qualifying attempt. The track was oiled down badly, requiring a lengthy clean-up. After a delay of at least 24 minutes, qualifying resumed with several cars still in line, and time running out. Jigger Sirois had already waved off his second attempt, then dropped a valve on his third and final attempt. As it ended up, Sirois's first attempt on May 17 would have been fast enough to qualify for the race (ranked 31st) and possibly, depending on interpretation of the rules, win the pole position. Sirois never managed to qualify at Indy in subsequent years, and became a source of popular folklore. After rain affected Pole Day again in 1970, the rules were amended such that all cars would have at least one opportunity to make a qualifying attempt for the pole position, even if Pole Day were to be rained out, delayed or halted for rain, and/or stretched into a second (or third) day. Al Miller (156.440 mph) completed an attempt in a turbine machine, but was eventually bumped. He was poised to be the second alternate, but was disqualified due to an illegal air intake restrictor plate. At the 6 o'clock gun, Peter Revson bumped out Rick Muther, and the field was set. Bob Veith, who had brushed the wall on his previous qualifying attempt, was the first car left waiting in line. Starting grid (W) = Former Indianapolis 500 winner; (R) = Indianapolis 500 rookie RowInsideMiddleOutside 1 6 USA A. J. Foyt gold W silver 2 USA Mario Andretti 1 USA Bobby Unser gold W silver 2 66 USA Mark Donohue orange R silver 12 USA Gordon Johncock 82 USA Roger McCluskey 3 38 USA Jim McElreath 67 USA LeeRoy Yarbrough 8 USA Gary Bettenhausen 4 48 USA Dan Gurney 44 USA Joe Leonard 40 USA Art Pollard 5 10 USA Jim Malloy 59 USA Sonny Ates orange R silver 84 USA George Snider 6 45 USA Ronnie Bucknum 36 USA Johnny Rutherford 15 USA Bud Tingelstad 7 22 USA Wally Dallenbach Sr. 4 USA Lloyd Ruby 29 USA Arnie Knepper 8 90 USA Mike Mosley 11 USA Sammy Sessions 9 USA Mel Kenyon 9 42 NZL Denny Hulme 98 USA Bill Vukovich II 62 USA George Follmer orange R silver 10 16 USA Bruce Walkup orange R silver 95 AUS Jack Brabham 57 USA Carl Williams 11 21 USA Larry Dickson 97 USA Bobby Johns 92 USA Peter Revson orange R silver Alternates First alternate: Rick Muther orange R silver (#26)The Talk of Gasoline Alley - 1070-AM WIBC, May 14, 2004 Second alternate: none (Al Miller's car was disqualified) Failed to qualify Al Miller (#51, #71, #72, #75, #96) – Bumped; attempt was later disqualified due to illegal turbine air intake restrictor Jigger Sirois orange R silver (#14) – Wave off Jerry Grant (#17, #69, #78, #96) – Blown engine during qualifying attempt Bobby Grim (#16, #71, #89, #94) – Blown engine during qualifying attempt Bob Veith (#79, #90) – Hit wall during qualifying attempt Jim Hurtubise (#56) – Incomplete qualifying attempt Les Scott orange R silver (#34, #50, #89) – Wave off 50em George Benson orange R silver (#89) Chuck Booth orange R silver (#51) Scott Carr orange R silver – Withdrew during rookie orientation Max Dudley orange R silver (#61) Cy Fairchild orange R silver (#51) Charlie Glotzbach orange R silver (#52) Bob Harkey (#14) – No refresher test Graham Hill (#70) – Withdrew Dee Jones orange R silver (#37, #51) Lothar Motschenbacher orange R silver Pat O'Reilly orange R silver (#51) – Driver declined, no license Johnny Parsons orange R silver Sam Posey orange R silver (#94) Jochen Rindt (#80) – Withdrew, injured Dave Strickland orange R silver (#34) Al Unser (#3, #15) – Withdrew, injured Roger West orange R silver (#75) Denny Zimmerman orange R silver (#67, #68)1969 International 500 Mile Sweepstakes http://www.champcarstats.com/races/196903.htm ChampCarStats.com 27 June 2015 Race recap thumb|right|270px|The Eagle driven to 6th place by Joe Leonard Start On the grid, LeeRoy Yarbrough's car failed to start, and the field pulled away, leaving him behind. On the pace lap, Yarbrough was able to get his car cranked, and frantically charged to catch up to the pack. He jockeyed to find his rightful starting position in row three, but managed only to make it mid-pack as the field took the green flag. Going into turn one, Mario Andretti took the lead from the middle of the front row, with polesitter A. J. Foyt following in second. Bruce Walkup, meanwhile, was out on the first lap with a transmission failure. First half Andretti led the first five laps, then Foyt took the lead going into turn one. One of the weaknesses of the turbocharged Fords used by Andretti (and several other top drivers) was overheating. So Andretti eased slightly and Foyt took over. Foyt would lead for 66 laps in the first half. The early stages of the race saw heavy attrition and a series of unscheduled pit stops. Several cars were out before lap 30, including Art Pollard, Ronnie Bucknum, Johnny Rutherford, and Jim McElreath, who had a fire as the car went down into turn one. McElreath was able to stop the car in turn 1 and got out uninjured, bringing out the first of only two yellow light periods. Retiring to the pits early was Gordon Johncock and Bobby Unser, as well as Jack Brabham, whose Repco-Brabham V8 engine would eventually suffer ignition failure. The second of two yellow light periods came out on lap 87 when Arnie Knepper broke a suspension piece, causing him to crash in turn 4. He hit the outside wall and came to rest near the entrance to the pit area. Wally Dallenbach spun under the yellow and dropped out with a bad clutch. On lap 99, A. J. Foyt headed to the pits with a split manifold. He spent over twenty minutes in the pits as the team made repairs. However, he did return to the race. With the Foyt team scrambling to diagnose A.J.'s troubles, the team neglected to signal George Snider to the pits, and Snider ran out of fuel on the track. Snider was eventually pushed back to the pits and rejoined the race, but he lost a considerable number of laps.No Board Shown Snider; Boss' Stop Proves Costly https://www.newspapers.com/clip/5173827/snider_and_mccluskey_run_out_of_fuel/ The Indianapolis Star 31 Newspapers.com May 31, 1969 August 8, 2018 In the first half, Andy Granatelli's three-car effort was down to one as both Art Pollard and Carl Williams were out early. Mario Andretti was the only Granatelli car still running. After years of disappointment, including the frustrations of the turbines the past two years, Andretti was still in position to finally give Granatelli his first 500 victory. Second half After leading ten laps up to that point, Lloyd Ruby went into the pits on lap 105. As the team was refueling the car, Ruby started to pull away too soon, with the hose still attached. A large hole was ruptured in the side of the fuel tank, and all the fuel spilled out onto the pavement. Ruby was out of the race, leaving Mario Andretti alone in front. On lap 150, Joe Leonard was black-flagged for leaking fluid. He made a long pit stop to replace a punctured radiator, returned to the race, and managed a 6th-place finish. A. J. Foyt, after returning from repairs, was now among the fastest cars on the track. His hard charging second half saw him finish in 8th place. Mario Andretti dominated the second half, and won comfortably over second place Dan Gurney. But Andretti's race was not without incident. On one occasion, he nearly hit the wall in turn two. On his final pit stop, he knocked over chief mechanic Clint Brawner, and nearly stalled the engine as he was pushed away. His transmission fluid was low, the clutch was reportedly slipping, and despite an extra radiator added by Brawner behind the driver's seat after qualifying, engine temperature was overheating.http://www.racer.com/indianapolis-500-centenary-countdown-the-one-that-didnt-get-away/article/196903/ Indianapolis 500 Centenary Countdown: The One That Didn't Get Away Racer.com 2011-02-23 2013-09-25 https://web.archive.org/web/20130928070659/http://www.racer.com/indianapolis-500-centenary-countdown-the-one-that-didnt-get-away/article/196903/ 2013-09-28 Despite the complications, Andretti maintained over a full-lap lead late in the race and cruised to victory. Car owner Andy Granatelli, who abandoned the turbine cars after the heartbreaks of 1967 and 1968, planted a famous kiss on Andretti's cheek in victory lane. There were no yellow lights during the second half, and the final 110 laps were run under green. Andretti ran the whole race without changing tires. In victory lane, an emotional happy Mario stated: "I wanted to win this race so bad that you can't believe it. I will be having to pinch myself for the rest of the night. I am happy for Andy and STP. This is my biggest win and it's awesome." Box score The top four racers were allowed to complete the entire 500 mile race distance. Eight additional cars were running as of the race finish, but were flagged off the track not having completed the entire distance. Andretti's race completion time of 3:11:14.71 was the fastest ever as of 1969. FinishStartCarNo.NameChassisEngineTiresQualifyingSpeedLapsTime/Retired122USA Mario AndrettiBrawnerFord V-8Firestone169.851200 156.867 mph21048USA Dan GurneyEagleFord-WeslakeGoodyear167.341200 +2:13.03331USA Bobby Unser gold W silverLolaOffenhauserGoodyear169.683200 +3:26.744249USA Mel KenyonGerhardtOffenhauserGoodyear165.426200 +5:53.6153392USA Peter Revson orange R silverBrabhamRepco-Brabham V8Goodyear160.851197Flagged (-3 laps)61144USA Joe LeonardEagleFord V-8Goodyear167.240193Flagged (-7 laps)7466USA Mark Donohue orange R silverLolaOffenhauserGoodyear168.903190Flagged (-10 laps)816USA A. J. Foyt gold W silverCoyoteFord V-8Goodyear170.568181Flagged (-19 laps)93121USA Larry DicksonVollstedtFord V-8Goodyear163.014180Flagged (-20 laps)103297USA Bobby JohnsShrikeOffenhauserFirestone160.901171Flagged (-29 laps)111310USA Jim MalloyVollstedtOffenhauserGoodyear167.092165Flagged (-35 laps)122311USA Sammy SessionsFinleyOffenhauserGoodyear165.434163Flagged (-37 laps)132290USA Mike MosleyEagleOffenhauserGoodyear166.113162Piston14682USA Roger McCluskeyCoyoteFord V-8Goodyear168.350157Split Header151815USA Bud TingelstadLolaOffenhauserFirestone166.597155Engine161584USA George SniderCoyoteFord V-8Goodyear166.914152Flagged171459USA Sonny Ates orange R silverBrabhamOffenhauserGoodyear166.968146Magneto182542NZL Denis HulmeEagleFord V-8Goodyear165.092145Clutch19512USA Gordon JohncockGerhardtOffenhauserGoodyear168.626137Piston20204USA Lloyd RubyMongooseOffenhauserFirestone166.428105Fuel Tank211922USA Wally Dallenbach Sr.EagleOffenhauserGoodyear166.49782Clutch222129USA Arnie KnepperCecilFord V-8Goodyear166.22082Crash T423867USA LeeRoy YarbroughVollstedtFord V-8Goodyear168.07565Split Header242995AUS Jack BrabhamBrabhamRepco-Brabham V8Goodyear163.87558Ignition253057USA Carl WilliamsGerhardtOffenhauserFirestone163.26550Clutch2698USA Gary BettenhausenGerhardtOffenhauserGoodyear167.77735Piston272762USA George Follmer orange R silverGilbertFord V-8Firestone164.28626Engine28738USA Jim McElreathBrawnerOffenhauserGoodyear168.22424Engine Fire291736USA Johnny RutherfordEagleOffenhauserGoodyear166.62824Oil Tank301645USA Ronnie BucknumEagleOffenhauserGoodyear166.63616Piston311240USA Art PollardLotusOffenhauserFirestone167.1237Drive Line322698USA Bill Vukovich IIMongooseOffenhauserFirestone164.8431Rod332816USA Bruce Walkup orange R silverGerhardtOffenhauserGoodyear163.9420Transmission gold W silver Former Indianapolis 500 winner orange R silver Indianapolis 500 Rookie Race statistics Lap Leaders Laps Leader1–5 Mario Andretti6–51 A. J. Foyt52–58 Wally Dallenbach59–78 A. J. Foyt79–86 Lloyd Ruby87–102 Mario Andretti103–105 Lloyd Ruby106–200 Mario Andretti Total laps led Driver LapsMario Andretti 116A. J. Foyt 66Lloyd Ruby 11Wally Dallenbach 7 Yellow Lights: 2 for 14 minutesNot Even A Scratch https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-indianapolis-news/153704315/ Indianapolis News Wayne Fusion 19 Newspapers.com May 31, 1969 August 20, 2024Lap-By-Lap Story Of 53rd 500 Race https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-indianapolis-news/153704400/ Indianapolis News Lyle Mannweiler 20 Newspapers.com May 31, 1969 August 20, 2024 Laps* Reason 26–31 Jim McElreath engine fire in turn 1 (8 minutes) 88–93 Arnie Knepper crash (6 minutes)* – Approximate lap counts Tire participation chartRace Score Card https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-indianapolis-star-1969-indy-500-scor/153041147/ The Indianapolis Star 1 Newspapers.com May 30, 1969 August 10, 2024Goodyear wins tire war 25-8 https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-indianapolis-news/153041853/ Indianapolis News Lyle Mannweiler 18 Newspapers.com May 29, 1969 August 10, 2024SupplierNo. of startersGoodyear 25 Firestone 8** – Denotes race winner Broadcasting Radio The race was carried live on the IMS Radio Network. Sid Collins served as chief announcer and Len Sutton served as "driver expert." At the conclusion of the race, Lou Palmer reported from victory lane. The broadcast came on-air with a 30-minute pre-race. The broadcast was carried on over 950 affiliates, including AFN, shortwave to troops in Vietnam, and the CBC. Foreign language translations were made in French, Italian, Spanish, and Portuguese. The broadcast was also carried in Mexico City on XEVIB. The broadcast reached an estimated 100 million listeners. Among the many visitors to the booth were O. J. Simpson, Oscar Robertson, Earl McCullouch, Irv Fried (Langhorne), Wally Parks, Dale Drake, Sam Hanks, and Duke Nalon. For the second year in a row, Senator Birch Bayh visited the booth, along with his teenage son, future senator Evan Bayh who also for the second year in a row correctly predicted the winner of the race (Mario Andretti). Later in the race, Senator Vance Hartke also visited, accompanied by Secretary of Transportation John A. Volpe. Indianapolis Motor Speedway Radio Network Booth AnnouncersTurn ReportersPit/garage reportersChief Announcer: Sid Collins Driver expert: Len Sutton Statistician: John DeCamp Historian: Donald DavidsonTurn 1: Mike Ahern Turn 2: Howdy Bell Backstretch: Doug Zink Turn 3: Ron Carrell Turn 4: Jim SheltonChuck Marlowe (north pits)Luke Walton (center pits)Lou Palmer (south pits) Television The race was carried in the United States on ABC's Wide World of Sports. The broadcast aired on Saturday, June 7. Jim McKay anchored the broadcast with Rodger Ward as analyst and Chris Economaki as pit reporter. The telecast featured a summary of time trials as well as pre-race interviews. During the race, McKay and Economaki served as roving pit reporters, and their interviews were edited into the final production. The broadcast has re-aired on ESPN Classic starting in May 2011. For the fifth year, a live telecast of the race was shown in theaters on a closed-circuit basis; once more, Charlie Brockman called the action. ABC TelevisionBooth AnnouncersPit/garage reportersAnnouncer: Jim McKay Color: Rodger WardChris Economaki Gallery Notes References Works cited 1969 Indianapolis 500 Press Information - Daily Trackside Summary Indianapolis 500 History: Race & All-Time Stats - Official Site 1969 Indianapolis 500 Radio Broadcast, Indianapolis Motor Speedway Radio Network 1968 Bobby Unser 1969 Mario Andretti 1970 Al Unser 156.867 152.882 mph(1968 Indianapolis 500) 157.735 mph(1971 Indianapolis 500) Category:Indianapolis 500 races Indianapolis 500 Category:1969 in American motorsport Indianapolis 500 Category:May 1969 sports events in the United States