16 replies to this topic

[ghinzani]

Ok quick question for those of you who remember the late Billy Vukovich III.

On http://www.dead-or-a...f/pages-nf/main they have his birthdate as 08/31/1963. Yet on http://www.cart.com/...ults.asp?ID=427 they have him racing in the 1980 Milwaukee 150 on June 18th... that would have made him 16? Surely some mistake? Im ure they probably mean his Dad but could it be possible that he raced that young? I know Josele Garza was 18 or 19 when he first ran Indycar but....

[Rob G]

That undoubtedly had to have been his father.

[Jim Thurman]

That definitely is Bill Vukovich Jr. in the Milwaukee race in 1980.

I use the italics for Jr. because technically he wasn't a junior. Different middle names.

Somehow he wound up being Bill Vukovich Jr. or Billy Vukovich.


Jim Thurman

[Rainer Nyberg]

The three generations of Vukovich, the man in question is Billy Vukovich III's father.

Bill Vukovich , born 13DEC1918 - killed 30MAY1955 during Indianapolis 500.
Bill Vukovich, jr or II , born 29MAR1944. Did 12 starts in the Indy 500.
Billy Vukovich III , born 31AUG1963 - killed 25NOV1990 during a Sprint car event at Mesa Marin Raceway, Bakersfield, Calif. He raced at Indy during 1988-1990.

A fine article on Vuky senior : http://espn.go.com/c...ovich_Bill.html

[ghinzani]

Thanks - I thought so, 16 is a bit young for CART !

[Jim Thurman]

Originally posted by Rainer Nyberg
The three generations of Vukovich, the man in question is Billy Vukovich III's father.

Bill Vukovich , born 13DEC1918 - killed 30MAY1955 during Indianapolis 500.
Bill Vukovich, jr or II , born 29MAR1944. Did 12 starts in the Indy 500.
Billy Vukovich III , born 31AUG1963 - killed 25NOV1990 during a Sprint car event at Mesa Marin Raceway, Bakersfield, Calif. He raced at Indy during 1988-1990.

Rainer put it perfectly and I left out the key element of explanation that it was Billy III's father at Milwaukee in 1980.

I was living in Bakersfield at the time of the accident. About five miles West of Mesa Marin, and a block off the road that went to the track. And about three blocks from the hospital.

I actually heard the ambulance that day. For some reason, as I heard the ambulance. I had an odd feeling and thought "I hope something bad didn't happen out at the track" Which is odd, because it was the highway that went on past Mesa Marin and up the river canyon. There were a lot of highway accidents past the track (in the canyon), people injured in or near the river, rock climbing, etc., so the ambulance could easily have been transporting someone for any number of other reasons. But I just had a feeling. When I read the time the accident happened, it proved that was the ambulance I heard I used to hear ambulances all the time coming from that way and never had that feeling before or after. The normal thought was another accident in the canyon.

And that feeling was nothing compared to a couple of other incidents.


Jim Thurman

[byrkus]

A bit OT: Bill Vukovich Sr. was born in Fresno, California, IIRC. However, for what I heard, his parents were actually from Slovenia (which at the time was still part of Austria-Hungary), and that his 'real' name should be something like Vili Vukoviè. Can anyone confirm that??

For,. if this is true, at least ONE world famous and legendary driver comes from our little country...

[Rainer Nyberg]

From : http://espn.go.com/c...ovich_Bill.html

"One of eight children, he was born on Dec. 13, 1918 in Alameda, Cal., and grew up in Fresno. His parents, John and Mildred, had changed their name from Vukurovich to Vukovich when they immigrated to the United States from Yugoslavia . John was a carpenter and owner of a farm. On December 13, 1932 -- Bill's 14th birthday -- he committed suicide."

The parents names, John and Mildred, does not sound very Yugoslavian so it seems like they also were changed along the line...


More on Vuky sr from the same source :

" Driving a Fuel Injection Special, Vukovich dominated the 1953 and 1954 races. The next year, the man nicknamed both the Mad Russian (for his charging driving style) and the Silent Serb (for his cool demeanor) sought to become the first driver to win three consecutive Indy 500s.

Perhaps Vukovich had a premonition about what would become his last race. About a week before it, he remarked that he didn't think he'd finish. Normally, Vukovich didn't call his wife Esther before a race, but on May 30, 1955, Vukovich telephoned her, asking when she'd be at the track. He waved to her at the start of the race.

Driving his Lindsey Hopkins Special, Vukovich took off where he left off the previous year, and took a huge lead. Then, on the 57th lap, tragedy struck. Three cars crashed in front of him. Vukovich had only about six feet of passable space by the outer wall, but a car spun into that space, sending Vukovich's car over the wall. Its nose hit first, bouncing, spinning and burning.

Before the flames from the car reached him, Vukovich was already dead, from a fracture at the base of his skull. He was 36.

A Hall of Fame driver, Vukovich was known for his intensity and will to win. A short, stocky man -- some said with bitterness in his eyes -- he enjoyed psyching out other drivers. He also was a master mechanic and he refined the science of the car's setup."

No clues to Slovenia in this story, but it was once part of Yugoslavia, so maybe Byrkus can be right...

[byrkus]

Thank you very much for information, Rainer. Those two names, John and Mildred, could easily be translated into Janez and Milka, which of course are very tipical slovenian names.

[Jim Thurman]

I should mention that there were two more Vukovich brothers...

Eli, who passed away last year, raced on the West Coast (Midgets, Sprints, Stock Cars). He won a race at Oakland (California) Stadium on the same day as one of Bill's Indianapolis 500 wins.

and...

Mike, who was Bill's mechanic in his Midget days.

And for the record, since it is so rarely mentioned...Bill Vukovich Sr.'s racing career started in cars called Semi-Stocks (sort of like Track Roadsters) on the 5/8 mile dirt oval Goshen Speedway, Goshen, California.

The name of the parents and where exactly they emigrated from has been cause for a lot of confusion. I've also read Vucerovich as the family name. What is correct?, I don't know

Sorry I can't be of more help with pinning that down at the moment.


Jim Thurman

[LittleChris]

I'm certain there's been a thread on the Vukovich's previously discussing their ancestry. Maybe put something into the search function ?

[Rainer Nyberg]

A picture of Vukovich II, car, an Eagle-Offy from the '73 Indy 500. It is from the International Motorsports Hall Of Fame at Talladega.

[dmj]

Originally posted by LittleChris
I'm certain there's been a thread on the Vukovich's previously discussing their ancestry. Maybe put something into the search function ?

http://www.atlasf1.c...hlight=Vukovich No final answer, however... Is someone here in contact with Bill Vukovich II? He should know... I would surely prefer if he is of Croatian ancestry but somehow most facts so far seem to point at him being a Serbian...

[Jim Thurman]

Originally posted by dmj

http://www.atlasf1.c...hlight=Vukovich No final answer, however... Is someone here in contact with Bill Vukovich II? He should know... I would surely prefer if he is of Croatian ancestry but somehow most facts so far seem to point at him being a Serbian...

I have no idea where Bill Vukovich II is now. He and his wife used to live in Coarsegold, California (up in the Sierra Nevada foothills above Fresno), but Champ Car/Indy Car beat writer Robin Miller mentioned earlier this year that Bill had suffered a mild stroke and they had moved.

Unfortunately, I can't remember where Robin Miller said he moved. Perhaps contact Robin Miller and check with him?


Jim Thurman

[Lotus23]

On Memorial Day, 1955, I was 17yo and just about to finish my senior year in high school. I'd been selected to memorize Lincoln's Gettysburg Address and that morning went out to a gathering at a local cemetary to recite it. I remember wanting to hurry and get home, as the 500 was about to be broadcast on the radio. Wasn't Sid Collins the announcer then?

It seems like yesterday that the accident happened and that Bill's death was later announced. One of my heroes was gone. Not a good day at all. IIRC, it was the last 500 run under the auspices of the AAA.

And of course LeMans was right around the corner. 1955 was a really bad year for racing.

[dmj]

http://home.pacbell....d_Articles.html
It seems that common knowledge among contemporary journalists was that Bill Vukovich was indeed of Slovenian ancestry. I hope forthcoming book about him, mentioned in another thread, will finally clear it up.

[Jim Thurman]

Originally posted by dmj
http://home.pacbell....d_Articles.html
It seems that common knowledge among contemporary journalists was that Bill Vukovich was indeed of Slovenian ancestry. I hope forthcoming book about him, mentioned in another thread, will finally clear it up.

dmj,

This seems reasonably reliable, but keep in mind how many of the journos of the time referred to him as "The Mad Russian". It seems the newspaper writers of the time who were in cities Vukovich raced in during his Midget days got past the incorrect nickname. Perhaps Vukovich himself set straight the writers he had direct contact with.

So I guess what I'm saying is: this would seem to confirm, but still might not be conclusive ;)

Hopefully the book will clear it up. I still think we could get an answer much more quickly by checking with Bill Vukovich Jr. directly. I have some questions I'd like to ask him about his short track days in California as well.


Jim Thurman