Tom Sneva

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Lore & Background

Tom Sneva's career began far from the cockpit. Born in Spokane to Edsol "Ed" and Joan, his first powered vehicle was a go-kart received at age fourteen; by eighteen he was racing stock cars. After graduating from Lewis and Clark High School, where he played football and basketball, he attended Eastern Washington State College and played a year of college basketball. He then taught math and physical education at the high school in Sprague. At Indianapolis in 1977, driving the Norton Spirit McLaren M24/Cosworth for Roger Penske, Sneva became the first driver to qualify for the Indianapolis 500 at 200 mph or more, with a one-lap track record of 200.535 mph on May 14. He won two races in 1977, including a 1-2 finish for Team Penske at the Pocono 500, and became the first driver in Team Penske history to win a championship. In 1978, despite not winning a race, he won the championship with five second-place finishes and sixteen top-fives. Despite this, Penske released him after 1978; Penske later said in a 2009 interview that disagreements on the direction of the team caused the split. Sneva exercised a stock option on Penske Automotive Group shortly after his dismissal, a prudent decision that paid dividends down the road. In 1984, Sneva became the first to qualify for the Indianapolis 500 over 210 mph, with one and four lap track records of 210.689 mph and 210.029 mph on May 12, driving the Texaco Star March 84C/Cosworth for Mayer Motor Racing. His 1983 win in the Texaco Star March 83C/Cosworth for Bignotti-Cotter Racing led to his nickname "the Gas Man." That win was also the last of George Bignotti's record seven Indianapolis 500 wins as a chief mechanic. For Sneva, the victory was sweet revenge, as he had been fired by Roger Penske in 1978 despite having won back-to-back USAC championships.

In Their Own Story

The 1983 Indianapolis 500 came down to a thrilling late-race duel with Penske driver Al Unser and the lapped car of Unser's rookie son, Al Jr. Al Unser Jr. was widely criticized after the race for trying to impede Sneva to help his father win, as well as having passed several cars under caution, and jumping the final restart for which he received a two-lap penalty. Sneva's second-place finish in 1980 is notable as it is one of only two occasions of such a finish by a driver starting last, and one of only three times the driver who started last (33rd) led laps during the race. During that period, racing for Jerry O'Connell, Sneva became one of the first drivers at Indianapolis to race with a spotter, an idea he attributed to his time coaching football, where common practice was to have an observer sitting high up in the media center. In 1981, Sneva charged hard from his 20th starting position to lead early, but his untested Blue Poly March 81-C/Cosworth had a clutch failure. One year later, Sneva was in a duel with eventual winner Gordon Johncock and eventual runner-up Rick Mears when his engine in the Texaco Star March 82-C/Cosworth began losing power and eventually failed near the end. Sneva suffered one of the most famous crashes at Indianapolis during the 1975 race, his second. After touching wheels with Eldon Rasmussen, 26-year-old Sneva flipped up into the catch fence and tore his car in half, suffering mostly minor burns on 15% of his body. He walked to the ambulance but was placed in the intensive care unit at Methodist Hospital, mainly for lung issues due to the fire retardant. Describing the crash years later Sneva quipped, "In a situation like that it's important to talk to yourself: 'Faint, you coward, faint!'"

Reader's Guide

**Era at the Club:** Tom Sneva competed in the USAC National Championship and the PPG Indy Car World Series from the 1970s through 1992. He primarily raced in Indy cars, and was named to the Motorsports Hall of Fame of America in 2005. **Playing Style:** Sneva was an outstanding qualifier, winning the pole position three times (1977, 1978, 1984). His driving style was more apropos to bias ply tires; some observers attributed his decline in success to the switch to radial tires (the series transitioned to radials over a period from 1985 to 1987). He was known for fast qualifying, second-place finishes, near misses and several crashes. **Greatest Achievements:** Won the Indianapolis 500 in 1983. Won two consecutive USAC National Championships for Indy cars in 1977 and 1978. First driver to break the 200 mph barrier at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway (1977). First to qualify over 210 mph at Indianapolis (1984). Earned 13 career Indycar wins and 14 pole positions. **Legacy:** Sneva's career at the Indianapolis 500 was known for fast qualifying, second-place finishes, near misses and several crashes. He crashed during the Indianapolis 500 in 1975, 1979, 1985, 1986, 1987, 1988, and 1992, a record for crashes during the race. After his Indy victory in 1983, he never finished the race again. He showed versatility by competing in eight NASCAR Winston Cup Series events, earning a seventh in the 1983 Daytona 500. After retiring from driving, he was a color commentator for ABC television network's Wide World of Sports program and called several Indianapolis 500s.

Did You Know?

• Sneva was a math teacher and junior high principal before becoming a professional race car driver.
• He became the first driver to break the 200 mph barrier at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in 1977 with a one-lap track record of 200.535 mph.
• Sneva's 1983 Indianapolis 500 win was the last of George Bignotti's record seven wins as a chief mechanic.
• He crashed during the Indianapolis 500 seven times (1975, 1979, 1985, 1986, 1987, 1988, 1992), a record for crashes during the race.
• Sneva was one of the first drivers at Indianapolis to race with a spotter, an idea he attributed to his time coaching football.