Harry Ingle

[E1pix]

Over my 60 years of loving our sport, one of the coolest people I’ve ever met was Harry Ingle.

This past week, I’d finally found his email address and sent him a letter. I wrote him as if we’d seen each other last week, as I tend to do, though this fall will mark 50 years since I last had.

Three hours later, I Googled Harry to show my wife a photo I’d found online about a year ago, of Harry on the Super Vee podium at Watkins Glen, with a life-loving smirk on his face that was Pure Harry.

I meant to buy that print and now wish I had, it’s gone now and instead I found this:
https://rrdc.org/2024/02/05/harry-ingle-1943-2024/

Harry was a bit of a Legend in the early days of Formulae Vee and Super Vee. He won the Formula Vee Runoffs in 1970, when the event first graced Road Atlanta. It had to feel like a home race to Harry in being close to his Charlotte, North Carolina home.

But the first I knew of Harry was in Super Vee, when I was 12, and asked him for the first of probably a half-dozen times to autograph my programs at Road America and Road Atlanta. I think it was at the former in 1974, Harry just smiled and said something like “You again?”

I ran into him near Turn 4 during a Runoffs Prod car race, I think also in ‘74, when we hung on the fence together and watched much of the race. I probably asked mostly inane questions, but he genuinely made me feel like part of the game — and I never forgot that.

Harry had a real chance at the Big Time. He clearly had all the talent, and made a brief attempt at Formula 5000 in 1973, in perhaps the toughest year that series ever enjoyed. I believe he had close to a Top 10 qualifying effort in a very-early race, in the McLaren M22 that really wasn’t a very good car — and presumably well underfunded.

That shortened attempt in F5000 was run by Ed Zink, which was appropriate in most of Harry’s success coming in Zink cars. Harry owned or at least co-owned the company for a time — and I believe was Ed’s nephew but I never confirmed that, before the company was sold to our very own Steve Lathrop.

He would have been a sponsor’s dream in every way a driver needs to be, but had a very bad crash at Road America — and that was the end of it, in most senses. I recall little of what he said about it later, but think he ended up in the woods.

Harry won his second National Championship that Fall, and I got another autograph. He was second in the Super Vee pro series three times from 1972 through 1974, to Bill Scott, Bertil Roos, and Elliot Forbes-Robinson respectively, and I’ve long wondered how things might have worked out for him if he had won any of those titles.


This image matches my childhood memories of Harry in a wonderful way. I cannot recall him ever not smiling:
https://www.gettyimages.ie/detail/ne...hoto/144063977


Thank You for being so gracious to this kid, Harry. Race in Perpetuity.

Edit: If anyone knows of any errors I’ve made, please let me know. The web has so little about Harry I want to make sure this is all accurate.

[BLS]

That is sad news. Harry was one of the very best drivers. He was my instructor at my first SCCA driving school, 1973 Road Atlanta. I had met him before that going to the races as crew to my friend Paul that was driving a Zink FV. My first car was a Zink kit I picked up in Charlotte and Harry gave me some advice about the construction.

In 1975 I was running the Chimney Rock hill climb and went up early just behind John Finger (King of the Hill). When I arrive at the top, John and Harry were sitting on the stone wall chatting. John motioned me over and after a few minutes said "Harry, you were always the best at Savannah, Barry is going there next week, tell him what he needs to know". Now, I'm a 21 year old kid at this point with very little experience but I have been to one race at Savannah (now Roebling Road). Harry gives me that look and says "If it rains, do not put on rain tires" and "When the green waves never lift off the throttle until the checker".

Huh. The first is easy, I don't have rain tires because they are not in the budget.
2nd. No way. I've been to Savannah and you don't ever need to shift out of 4th but it certainly cannot be run flat out. But I also know Harry is a bit cryptic at times, and being to shy to ask how that's possible I just puzzled over it a while. And then it came to me - Harry did not say not to use the brake. So, left foot braking, something I had heard of but never tried. And it worked. It took me a while to learn it, but it worked for me in any turn not requiring a downshift. I was a smoother driver as a result and much more consistent, and not just at Savannah.

I won several regional races at Savannah, best national finish was 3rd, I think in '78. I once ran in a race that started with rain pouring down ('77 IIRC), with every car on rain tires except mine, where a certain NE FF driver told me not to do it and even reported me to the Chief Steward who told him there was no rule about rain tire use. By the 3rd lap I had lapped every car with times that were only about 2-3 seconds from dry times. As Harry knew, the crushed seashell pavement (then not now) was very porous such that the track had no standing water other than some puddles, mostly off line. At the awards ceremony the chief mentioned that fellow that thought driving in the rain was dangerous on slicks... He smiled.

Thanks Harry! RIP, you had an good impact on a lot of people.


1973, first Zink, 20 years old

[E1pix]

That’s fantastic Barry, thanks for your memories.

And, great photo!