In celebration of the 50th year of USAC Silver Crown Champ Car racing in 2020, we are reviewing the past 49 years of series history. Please enjoy the season recap and results from each years of the series from its inaugural year in 1971 through 2019.
1971 USAC DIRT CHAMPIONSHIP SEASON REVIEW
Literally, USAC’s Championship Dirt Division is one year old. Figuratively, it is the oldest regular form of auto racing in existence.
The “big cars,” as they generally are known, have set the style for the sport of speed since the early part of the century. Until the advent of the rear-engine pavement cars during the 1960s, their front-engine models exclusively dominated the championship circuit.
From the days of Harry Harkness in 1902 to Al Unser in 1970, the ability to drive a bucking, front-powered open cockpit racer around mile-long dirt fairgrounds tracks was a prime requisite for a national driving champion.
Such AAA (the forerunner in sanctioning bodies) and USAC champions as Earl Cooper, Wilbur Shaw, Rex Mays, Ted Horn, Tony Bettenhausen and A.J. Foyt had been acknowledged as masters of the art of dirt track racing.
Technically, the cars are restricted to a minimum 96-inch wheelbase. Power limits are the same as those for the shorter sprint cars, which campaign basically on the half-mile tracks. An engine utilizing an overhead camshaft design is restricted to 256.284 cubic inches; stock block engines are permitted to go as high as 305.1 cubic inches.
In 1971, what with the complexities of racing, the emergence of more and more paved speedways and an ever more crowded, sometimes expensive schedule to meet, the dirt cars were taken from the Championship picture and assigned a division of their own.
Only four races, each a 100-mile race, comprised the schedule. Yet, capacity crowds turned out at each of the four stops – Nazareth, Pennsylvania; Springfield, Illinois; Du Quoin, Illinois, and the Indiana State Fairgrounds in Indianapolis, Indiana – attesting to the perennial popularity of the sliding, thundering and extremely colorful dirt cars.
Each of the four events had a different winner. Jim McElreath captured the opener at Nazareth, Foyt scored at Springfield, George Snider won at Du Quoin and Unser at Indianapolis.
Snider, who also registered second-place finishes at Springfield and Indianapolis, clinched the driving championship of the division. McElreath, with the original win and a third place at Springfield, led the point standings until the Du Quoin result. He ultimately finished as runner-up to Snider.
Public response to the Championship Dirt Division, as reflected in the large attendances, contributed to a total purse of $152,664.
Champion Driver
George Snider, USAC’s newly crowned national dirt track champion, matured swiftly in auto racing. He drove in the first of his 22 Indianapolis 500 races at age 24, in 1965.
Dirt racing, however, remains the specialty of the Bakersfield, California, native. It is where he has shown to his best advantage, whether it be in the big cars, the slightly smaller sprinters or in the midgets.
Snider, at 31 and the father of three, has placed among the top-three in nine of ten major USAC races. These were 100-mile dirt races on all but one of the occasions.
The husky, dark-haired former garage owner didn’t register a major score, however, until last Labor Day, September 6, when he came forth to pass Greg Weld with nine laps remaining and go on to win a 100-miler at Du Quoin, Illinois.
Snider also finished second to A.J. Foyt at Springfield, Illinois, and to Al Unser at the Indiana State Fairgrounds in Indianapolis, in earning his dirt track championship. He twice led the Springfield race before surrendering the spoils to Foyt in a fierce battle.
This hard-charging product of East Bakersfield High School drove in his first race, a stock car event, at the age of 20. The baptism occurred at Kearney Bowl in Fresno, California. It was at the same track a year later, in 1961, that Snider registered his first feature triumph, also in a stocker.
Kearney Bowl, a famed San Joaquin Valley short track, also provided him with his first USAC victory. It came in midget competition, shortly after George was introduced to the ranks in a similar race at San Jose (California) Speedway.
The year 1971 – despite its rewards in the dirt track division, the sprints where he earned victories at Cincinnati, Ohio, and Terre Haute, Indiana, and the midgets, where he registered an early season win at Corona, California – was not without its monumental frustration to Snider.
In the “Triple Crown” series of 500-milers on pavement he complied an unenviable record. He was 33rd and last at both the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and the Pocono International Raceway. In the series finale at California’s Ontario Motor Speedway, an early crash relegated him to 32nd position in a 33-car field.
George’s chief hobby is motorcycling, and he often enters weekend hill climbs and amateur cross-country events.
Champion Owner
Ralph Wilke, carrying on the winning car owner tradition of his late father, Bob, saw his G.C. Murphy Special earn the championship of USAC’s dirt track division in 1971 under the capable hands of George Snider.
Wilke’s father, an owner of first-class racing machinery since 1938, died in 1970. His cars had reached the pinnacle of success during a long reign that saw Rodger Ward drive them to Indianapolis 500 victories twice.
Ralph, now 40, was well equipped to take over not only the racing enterprise but the Milwaukee-based Leader Card concern, which produces all types of card materials.
In his racing background, Wilke owned and maintained his own championship division roadster, driven by Bobby Grim, for four years. “It was an era when the roadsters were fading out,” he notes, “but Bobby got us a third once at Trenton. That was our best showing.”
The younger Wilke is equally proud of a midget he owned and maintained through the years from 1959 through 1967. It was driven to many a victory by Ward, Parnelli Jones, Don Branson, Len Sutton, Jim Hurtubise and Bob Tattersall.
Wilke, a resident of Franklin, Wisconsin, kept the Leader Card team together upon his father’s death, with the famed A.J. Watson continuing his reign as chief mechanic. The crew suffered genuine misfortune when it lost its number one driver, Mike Mosley, to injury for much of the championship season. Mosley, a winner at Trenton in the spring, crashed during the Indianapolis race and did not return to action until the final race of the season at Phoenix.
Mosley missed the entire dirt racing campaign, but Snider filled in amply, steering the white Offenhauser-powered No. 4 to the championship.
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McELREATH WINS NAZARETH, LEADS DIRT LOOP
Nazareth, Pennsylvania………Jim McElreath took over the lead in USAC’s Dirt Track championship division with a victory in the 100-miler opener of the circuit at Nazareth National Speedway on Sunday evening, June 20.
McElreath went to the front after the two leaders who had staged a furious duel during the first three-quarters of the race – Al Unser and Gary Bettenhausen – tangled in an accident in the second turn of the five-turn 1-1/8-mile dirt track.
A marker tire kicked up by another car cut Unser’s brake line, so he was unable to brake going into the corner on the 70th lap. He hit the outside fence and Bettenhausen spun to miss him. Neither driver was injured. Bettenhausen continued on to finish fifth.
McElreath, who had been more than one lap behind the pair of flying leaders, breezed to victory with relative ease after taking over the front spot.
McElreath drove the Chevy-powered McElreath Special, which he owns.
Arnie Knepper was second in the CHEK Special. Newcomer Don Hawley turned in a credible performance to finish third.
Sammy Sessions disregarded a black flag given on the 79th lap and continued to run in apparent second position to the end. He was not scored beyond the time he was give the black flag, dropping him to ninth place.
USAC DIRT CHAMPIONSHIP RACE RESULTS: June 20, 1971 – Nazareth National Speedway – Nazareth, Pennsylvania
QUALIFYING: 1. Larry Dickson, 40, STP-36.51; 2. Al Unser, 1, Vel's Parnelli Jones-36.93; 3. Greg Weld, 60, STP-36.99; 4. George Snider, 4, Leader Card-37.19; 5. Joe Saldana, 39, Seymour-37.23; 6. Gary Bettenhausen, 24, Gerthoffer-37.37; 7. Tom Bigelow, 84, Gehlhausen-37.72; 8. Billy Vukovich, 36, Rogala-37.90; 9. Jim McElreath, 14, McElreath-37.91; 10. Bob Harkey, 52, Harkey-37.95; 11. Carl Williams, 70, Smith-38.09; 12. Johnny Rutherford, 18, Delrose-38.11; 13. Rollie Beale, 25, Kilman-38.76; 14. Arnie Knepper, 44, CHEK-39.00; 15. Ralph Liguori, 58, Flynn-39.24; 16. Don Hawley, 22, Senter-39.32; 17. Jerry Karl, 31, Mataka-40.10; 18. Karl Busson, 48, Hart-40.58; 19. Dick Tobias, 17, Ruppert-42.23; 20. Bill Puterbaugh, 64, Conklin-51.13; 21. Sammy Sessions, 98, Agajanian/Faas-NT; 22. Jim Reynard, 75, Reynard-NT; 23. Lee Kunzman, 57, Brenn-NT.
FEATURE: (88 laps) 1. Jim McElreath, 2. Arnie Knepper, 3. Don Hawley, 4. Billy Vukovich, 5. Gary Bettenhausen, 6. Bob Harkey, 7. Jerry Karl, 8. Ralph Liguori, 9. Sammy Sessions, 10. Al Unser, 11. Dick Tobias, 12. Jim Reynard, 13. Greg Weld, 14. Karl Busson, 15. Carl Williams, 16. Johnny Rutherford, 17. Tom Bigelow, 18. George Snider, 19. Rollie Beale, 20. Bill Puterbaugh, 21. Larry Dickson, 22. Joe Saldana, 23. Lee Kunzman. 1:01.658
FEATURE LAP LEADERS: Laps 1-32 Al Unser, Laps 33-41 Gary Bettenhausen, Laps 42-69 Al Unser, Laps 70-88 Jim McElreath.
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FOYT ENDS DROUGHT WIN WITH REIGN AT SPRINGFIELD
Springfield, Illinois………A victory famine of almost two years was finally put to rest by A.J. Foyt with one of his patented displays in a the 100-miler Sunday at the Illinois State Fairgrounds in Springfield.
Foyt, 36, of Houston, Texas, registered his first open cockpit win since the 1969 Hoosier Hundred in Indianapolis by winning the Tony Bettenhausen 100 before a packed audience at the Springfield one-mile oval.
The 43rd career win for the all-time USAC winner didn’t come easy. He had to forge to the front on the 92nd lap to collect a close victory from tenacious George Snider of Bakersfield, Calif. after a mid-race pit stop for a tire.
It was the second time during the sunny afternoon that Foyt had sped to the front from far back in his bright orange Ford-powered racer.
Jim McElreath of Arlington, Texas maintained his division point lead with a closing rush that earned him third place. Don Hawley, the former motorcycle racer from Gardena, Calif., was fourth, followed by another Californian, defending USAC National Midget champ Jimmy Caruthers.
Five other cars also were on the same lap as the leaders at the finish. From sixth place on, they were Rollie Beale, Toledo, Ohio; Merle Bettenhausen, Tinley Park, Ill.; Bob Harkey, Indianapolis, Ind.; Carl Williams, Grandview, Mo., and Larry Dickson, Marietta, Ohio.
Mario Andretti, three-time USAC National champ from Nazareth, Pa., also was running on a soured Plymouth engine at the finish but was a lap down behind Arnie Knepper, Belleville, Ill., and Sammy Sessions, Nashville, Mich.
It was a relatively incident-free race that still saw four yellow flags. The only serious situation of the day saw Johnny Rutherford, Ft. Worth, Texas, lose a wheel and bash the third-turn fence on lap 50.
It was no easy afternoon for Foyt. He had started back in 11th position after Greg Weld, Kansas City, Mo., had led the parade of qualifiers with a 34.86-second charge in his red Ford-powered STP Special.
Foyt quickly moved up, however. He was sixth after only three laps, fourth after 20 and second behind Snider on the 26th. He finally grabbed the lead coming down the front stretch to complete 29 laps.
He stayed there until the Rutherford accident, when he suddenly ducked into the pits to change – of all things – a worn left rear tire. He got back out on the track quickly and caught up with the slowed field.
The green flag came out again on lap 57, and by the 64th circuit, Foyt was eighth. In another trip around, he was sixth, then fifth. Fourth at 75 laps, he vaulted past Andretti and Caruthers in another round and set sail for Snider once again.
A yellow flag on lap 84, when Salt Walther, Dayton, Ohio, lost a tire and required a tow, helped Foyt move up on the leader. When the green again came out on lap 92, Foyt zigged, zagged, zigged again and finally passed Snider in the third turn.
He finished the race in one hour, 8.31 seconds, at an average speed of 87.557 mph.
The only other leader of the day was Dickson, whose Chevy-powered mount was up front for the first 23 laps.
USAC DIRT CHAMPIONSHIP RACE RESULTS: August 22, 1971 – Illinois State Fairgrounds – Springfield, Illinois – Tony Bettenhausen 100
QUALIFYING: 1. Greg Weld, 60, STP-34.86; 2. Gary Bettenhausen, 16, Gerhardt-35.03; 3. Larry Dickson, 40, STP-35.40; 4. Johnny Rutherford, 18, Delrose-35.61; 5. Mario Andretti, 5, STP-35.64; 6. Jim McElreath, 14, McElreath-35.83; 7. George Snider, 4, Leader Card-35.91; 8. Rollie Beale, 25, Kilman-36.02; 9. Bill Puterbaugh, 19, MVS-36.17; 10. A.J. Foyt, 9, Foyt-36.25; 11. Billy Vukovich, 24, Gerthoffer-36.27; 12. Bob Harkey, 52, Harkey-36.29; 13. Lee Kunzman, 57, Brenn-36.38; 14. Joe Saldana, 31, Mataka-36.40; 15. Don Hawley, 22, Senter-36.51; 16. Sammy Sessions, 98, Agajanian/Faas-36.61; 17. Jim Malloy, 84, Gehlhausen-36.73; 18. Merle Bettenhausen, 99, Hunt-36.81; 19. Karl Busson, 48, Hart-37.01; 20. Jimmy Caruthers, 36, Rogala-37.06; 21. Arnie Knepper, 44, CHEK-37.07; 22. Carl Williams, 94, Vatis-37.33; 23. Ralph Liguori, 58, Flynn-37.59; 24. Salt Walther, 77, Walther-37.77; 25. Dick Tobias, 17, Ruppert-37.99; 26. Larry Cannon, 47, Blacker-38.28; 27. Jim Reynard, 75, Reynard-39.54; 28. Billy Thrasher, 30, Steck-44.21; 29. Tom Bigelow, 70, Smith-NT; 30. Ronnie Burke, 33, Burke-NT.
FEATURE: (100 laps) 1. A.J. Foyt, 2. George Snider, 3. Jim McElreath, 4. Don Hawley, 5. Jimmy Caruthers, 6. Rollie Beale, 7. Merle Bettenhausen, 8. Bob Harkey, 9. Carl Williams, 10. Larry Dickson, 11. Arnie Knepper, 12. Mario Andretti, 13. Salt Walther, 14. Greg Weld, 15. Karl Busson, 16. Johnny Rutherford, 17. Bill Puterbaugh, 18. Joe Saldana, 19. Gary Bettenhausen, 20. Jim Malloy, 21. Billy Vukovich, 22. Lee Kunzman, 23. Ralph Liguori. 1:08:31.00
FEATURE LAP LEADERS: Laps 1-23 Larry Dickson, Laps 24-29 George Snider, Laps 30-51 A.J. Foyt, Laps 52-92 George Snider, Laps 93-100 A.J. Foyt.
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SNIDER SNARES Du QUOIN, SERIES POINT LEAD
Du Quoin, Illinois………George Snider inserted himself into the top spot of inaugural USAC Dirt Championship by storming past Greg Weld on the 91st lap to win the Ted Horn Memorial on Monday at the Du Quoin (Ill.) State Fairgrounds.
Weld had set the entire pace after qualifying fastest and burst into the lead from the pole position at the outset. Snider hounded him throughout until the opportunity came to pass on the 92nd lap of the 100-lap event.
Billy Vukovich, Bill Puterbaugh, Arnie Knepper and Don Hawley finished on the same lap with the lead pair in that order.
McElreath, victor at Nazareth, Pa., who’d held the point lead from the outset of the season, failed to qualify because of engine problems while Foyt, the winner at Springfield, was plagued by tire problems throughout and finished ninth, three laps behind the leaders.
USAC DIRT CHAMPIONSHIP RACE RESULTS: September 6, 1971 – Du Quoin State Fairgrounds – Du Quoin, Illinois – Ted Horn Memorial
QUALIFYING: 1. Greg Weld, 60, STP-34.73; 2. Larry Dickson, 40, STP-35.16; 3. Mario Andretti, 5, STP-35.34; 4. George Snider, 4, Leader Card-35.71; 5. Arnie Knepper, 44, CHEK-35.73; 6. Lee Kunzman, 57, Brenn-35.81; 7. Jimmy Caruthers, 36, Rogala-35.83; 8. Billy Vukovich, 24, Gerthoffer-35.97; 9. Merle Bettenhausen, 99, Hunt-36.13; 10. A.J. Foyt, 9, Foyt-36.13; 11. Sammy Sessions, 98, Agajanian/Faas-36.30; 12. Tom Bigelow, 70, Smith-36.31; 13. Bill Puterbaugh, 15, Spalding-36.35; 14. Johnny Rutherford, 18, Delrose-36.36; 15. Joe Saldana, 31, Mataka-36.43; 16. Don Hawley, 22, Senter-36.48; 17. Ronnie Burke, 33, Burke-36.50; 18. Bob Harkey, 52, Harkey-36.50; 19. Bruce Walkup, 39, Seymour-36.52; 20. Larry Cannon, 47, Blacker-36.61; 21. Ralph Liguori, 58, Flynn-36.67; 22. Jim Malloy, 84, Gehlhausen-36.68; 23. Carl Williams, 94, Vatis-36.68; 24. Salt Walther, 77, Walther-36.71; 25. Dick Tobias, 17, Ruppert-36.90; 26. Gary Bettenhausen, 16, Gerhardt-36.96; 27. Art Pollard, 29, Two Jacks-36.98; 28. Karl Busson, 48, Hart-37.26; 29. Billy Thrasher, 30, Steck-38.00; 30. Jim Reynard, 75, Reynard-40.93; 31. Duke Cook, 69, Jordan-NT; 32. Jim McElreath, 14, McElreath-NT; 33. Rollie Beale, 25, Kilman-NT.
FEATURE: (100 laps) 1. George Snider, 2. Greg Weld, 3. Billy Vukovich, 4. Bill Puterbaugh, 5. Arnie Knepper, 6. Don Hawley, 7. Bob Harkey, 8. Johnny Rutherford, 9. A.J. Foyt, 10. Ronnie Burke, 11. Joe Saldana, 12. Salt Walther, 13. Lee Kunzman, 14. Merle Bettenhausen, 15. Larry Cannon, 16. Jimmy Caruthers, 17. Mario Andretti, 18. Carl Williams, 19. Jim Malloy, 20. Tom Bigelow, 21. Larry Dickson, 22. Ralph Liguori, 23. Sammy Sessions, 24. Bruce Walkup. 1:03:24.82
FEATURE LAP LEADERS: Laps 1-91 Greg Weld, Laps 92-100 George Snider.
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AL WINS BATTLE BUT SNIDER CAPTURES THE WAR AT HOOSIER HUNDRED
Indianapolis, Indiana………George “Ziggy” Snider became the first USAC champion to be crowned for 1971 when his runner-up finish to Al Unser in the Hoosier Hundred on September 11 locked up the first separate dirt track division title for him.
The 30-year-old Bakersfield, Calif. driver finished only 5.3 seconds behind Unser in the nationally televised affair carried over ABC’s Wide World of Sports.
Unser’s victory was his first since the Rex Mays 150 of the Marlboro Championship Trail on June 6 and ended a frustrating string of races in which Unser was sidelined either by mechanical failure or accidents.
Snider finished the four-race dirt track division schedule with 520 points to 420 for Jim McElreath, the runner-up.
Snider won the 100-miler at Du Quoin, Ill., was second at both Springfield, Ill. and the Hoosier Hundred and was 18th at Nazareth, Pa.
McElreath, the winner at Nazareth and third at Springfield, finished sixth in the Hoosier Hundred.
Larry Dickson placed third, the only other driver on the same lap with Unser and Snider.
A.J. Foyt and Billy Vukovich, who staged a stirring duel for fourth place in the Hoosier Hundred with Foyt finally winning out, deadlocked for third place in the standings with 360 points each.
Don Hawley, who had finished in the top six in each of the USAC dirt races, saw his chances at the title go down the drain when he failed to qualify fast enough to make the race.
Al started on the pole by virtue of a 106.667 qualifying lap in his Ford-powered Johnny Lightning Special.
Mario Andretti, who was on the outside of the front row in the STP Plymouth, passed Unser on the first lap and led for the first two circuits. But Al got back ahead of him on lap three and was never headed the rest of the way.
The dirt championship is Snider’s first crown since joining USAC in 1964. He also is a regular campaigner on the Marlboro Championship trail and in the sprint cars and drives midgets on occasion.
George’s luck in USAC’s 500-mile races on the Marlboro Championship Trail has been just as bad this season as his luck in the dirt hundreds has been good. Snider was 33rd and last at both Indianapolis and Pocono and was 32nd at Ontario.
Merle Bettenhausen, who finished 10th, was selected as Hoosier Hundred Rookie of the Year.
USAC DIRT CHAMPIONSHIP RACE RESULTS: September 11, 1971 – Indiana State Fairgrounds – Indianapolis, Indiana – Hoosier Hundred
QUALIFYING: 1. Al Unser, 1, Vel's Parnelli Jones-33.75; 2. Mario Andretti, 5, STP-34.43; 3. Art Pollard, 29, Two Jacks-34.58; 4. Larry Dickson, 40, STP-34.60; 5. Arnie Knepper, 44, CHEK-34.71; 6. George Snider, 4, Leader Card-34.77; 7. Bill Puterbaugh, 19, MVS-34.99; 8. Johnny Parsons, 3, Federal Engineering-35.16; 9. Carl Williams, 94, Vatis-35.19; 10. Sammy Sessions, 98, Agajanian/Faas-35.23; 11. Jim McElreath, 14, McElreath-35.24; 12. Johnny Rutherford, 18, Delrose-35.26; 13. Karl Busson, 48, Hart-35.27; 14. Roger McCluskey, 6, Hopkins-35.29; 15. Jimmy Caruthers, 36, Rogala-35.40; 16. Don Nordhorn, 15, Spalding-35.54; 17. A.J. Foyt, 9, Foyt-35.57; 18. Joe Saldana, 31, Mataka-35.60; 19. Gary Bettenhausen, 16, Gerhardt-35.61; 20. Bruce Walkup, 39, Seymour-35.62; 21. Bob Harkey, 52, Harkey-35.64; 22. Billy Vukovich, 24, Gerthoffer-35.71; 23. Merle Bettenhausen, 99, Hunt-35.91; 24. Jim Malloy, 84, Gehlhausen-36.03; 25. Dick Tobias, 17, Ruppert-36.07; 26. Tom Bigelow, 70, Smith-36.10; 27. Lee Kunzman, 57, Brenn-36.25; 28. Larry Cannon, 47, Blacker-36.27; 29. Ronnie Burke, 33, Burke-36.36; 30. Billy Thrasher, 30, Steck-36.45; 31. Rollie Beale, 25, Kilman-36.48; 32. Don Hawley, 22, Senter-36.51; 33. Salt Walther, 77, Walther-36.71; 34. Jim Reynard, 75, Reynard-37.25; 35. Ralph Liguori, 58, Flynn-NT; 36. Greg Weld, 60, STP-NT.
FEATURE: (100 laps) 1. Al Unser, 2. George Snider, 3. Larry Dickson, 4. A.J. Foyt, 5. Billy Vukovich, 6. Jim McElreath, 7. Sammy Sessions, 8. Bill Puterbaugh, 9. Arnie Knepper, 10. Merle Bettenhausen, 11. Bob Harkey, 12. Don Nordhorn, 13. Jim Malloy, 14. Carl Williams, 15. Johnny Parsons, 16. Joe Saldana, 17. Mario Andretti, 18. Gary Bettenhausen, 19. Karl Busson, 20. Johnny Rutherford, 21. Jimmy Caruthers, 22. Bruce Walkup, 23. Roger McCluskey, 24. Art Pollard. 1:01:52.85
FEATURE LAP LEADERS: Laps 1-2 Mario Andretti, Laps 3-100 Al Unser.
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1971 USAC DIRT CHAMPIONSHIP DRIVER POINTS
1. (520) George Snider, Bakersfield, Calif.
2. (420) Jim McElreath, Arlington, Texas
3. (360) A.J. Foyt, Houston, Texas
4. (360) Billy Vukovich, Fresno, Calif.
5. (340) Don Hawley, Gardena, Calif.
6. (320) Arnie Knepper, Belleville, Ill.
7. (230) Al Unser, Albuquerque, N.M.
8. (210) Bob Harkey, Indianapolis, Ind.
9. (170) Larry Dickson, Dayton, Ohio
10. (170) Bill Puterbaugh, Indianapolis, Ind.
11. (160) Greg Weld, Independence, Mo.
12. (110) Sam Sessions, Nashville, Mich.
13. (100) Gary Bettenhausen, Tinley Park, Ill.
14. (100) Jimmy Caruthers, Anaheim, Calif.
15. (90) Merle Bettenhausen, Tinley Park, Ill.
16. (80) Rollie Beale, Toledo, Ohio
17. (60) Jerry Karl, Manchester, Pa.
18. (50) Ralph Liguori, Tampa, Fla.
19. (50) Johnny Rutherford, Fort Worth, Texas
20. (40) Carl Williams, Grandview, Mo.
21. (30) Ronnie Burke, Houston, Texas
22. (20) Dick Tobias, Lebanon, Pa.
23. (20) Joe Saldana, Brownsburg, Ind.
24. (10) Jim Reynard, Chester, N.Y.
25. (10) Salt Walther, West Carrollton, Ohio
26. (10) Don Nordhorn, Wadesville, Ind.
1971 USAC DIRT CHAMPIONSHIP ENTRANT POINTS
1. (520) Leader Cards, Inc., Milwaukee, Wis. (#4)
2. (420) Jim McElreath, Arlington, Texas (#14)
3. (360) A.J. Foyt Enterprises, Houston, Texas (#9)
4. (340) Louis Senter, Los Angeles, Calif. (#22)
5. (340) United Championship Racers, Inc., Syracuse, N.Y. (#24)
6. (320) CHEK, Inc., Belleville, Ill. (#44)
7. (230) Vel’s Parnelli Jones Ford, Inc., Torrance, Calif. (#1)
8. (220) Don Rogala, Erie, Pa. (#36)
9. (210) Bob Harkey, Indianapolis, Ind. (#52)
10. (170) STP Corporation, Des Plaines, Ill. (#40)
11. (160) STP Corporation, Des Plaines, Ill. (#60)
12. (130) Wib Spalding, Granite City, Ill. (#15)
13. (110) Agajanian-Faas Racers, Inc., Yorba Linda, Calif. (#98)
14. (90) Joe Hunt, Los Angeles, Calif. (#99)
15. (80) Ron Kilman, Toledo, Ohio (#25)
16. (80) Mataka Bros., Maplewood, N.J. (#31)
17. (50) Walt Flynn, Indianapolis, Ind. (#58)
18. (50) T.D. Enterprises, Joliet, Ill. (#18)
19. (50) MVS, Inc., Indianapolis, Ind. (#19)
20. (40) Vatis Enterprises, Inc., New York, N.Y. (#94)
21. (30) Danny Burke, Houston, Texas (#33)
22. (20) Russ Ruppert, Dover, Pa. (#17)
23. (10) Helen Reynard, New York, N.Y. (#75)
24. (10) Walmotors, Inc., Dayton, Ohio (#77)