Final Checker falls for SCCA multiple time National Champ

[Michael Rand]

Dan Carmichael took the final checkered flag this morning at age 96.
After an amazing life as a naval aviator flying fighters off carriers in the Pacific in WWII. Dan was a triple ace pilot with 13 confirmed and two additional acknowledged shot down. An ace being 5 confirmed "kills".
He starting racing when the navy said he was to old to test fly jets anymore ultimately winning three SCCA National Championships starting with CSR in 1969 and 1970 and then Formula Atlantic in 1995 at the ripe age of 75.
He was well known as an athlete in Columbus Ohio winning the Ohio Amateur Golf championship 1960. Also a successful and established architect designing mainly schools and hospitals.
A graduate of Princeton in 1941 Dan and wife Patti Teachnor Carmichael had three children Tracy now 66, Danny now 64 and Sally now 61. Dan was predeceased by Patti's passing n 2008.
Dan's close racing bud Charlie Dietrich, who always referred to him and called Dan "Ace", passed just a year ago and undoubtedly they are rehashing their races, won and lost, as races always do.

[BruceRace]

Although I never met Dan, I offer my condolences to the family…and THANKS to Dan for his service, and many driving thrills! I saw him at Mid-O, in a new(at the time) Ralt….I think he lapped most of the field!!!!

[DaveW]

RIP, Dan. A long life well lived.

[John LaRue]

I am sorry for your loss. What a hero...one of the greatest from the great generation.

John

[Amon]

Saw him win at Mid-Ohio in 95', quite an inspiration! RIP!!

Mark

[Mike B]

Sorry to hear this, Mike. Dan was one of the guys on a short list of people I really wanted to meet. A real-life hero in so many aspects.

[kea]

I remember seeing Dan and Charlie race when I first started SCCA in 1971. And I was more then please when at Indianaplois Raceway Park (IRP) in 1982, they walked over to my paddock spot to introduce themselfs. I now was racing a Ralt RT-1 in super-vee trim, but from a distance, they thought I was another F/Atl. From that point on, they were friends and to me, Dan was known as Ace..
I last saw Dan, accompanied by Terry Myr, watching the action at Mid-Ohio's Carousel turn during the last Run-Offs held there.
I always admired Dan's skill and patience when racing. For the first lap and 1/2, he was patient, waiting for everything to be ready, tires temps, what ever. Then he would turn it up and just disappear as my little Ralt just couldn't keep up.
At his last National Championship, he was like a train leaving the station. Once he was up to speed he never missed a beat while the leader at the time, got so rattled, that he beat his car until it failed.
Such skills and talent.
I miss both those guys.

I'm sorry for your families loss.
Keith Averill

[stonebridge20]

My Grandfather (WW2 B17 captain with 25 missions over Germany) and I got to spend some time with Dan out at Nelson Ledges back in 92 when I was running Atlantics. It was one of those conversations between three people where two spoke and one listened very closely. Dan was a great man and my Grandfather at 94 still is.
I'll never forget going into Oak Tree in the lead on lap one with Dan so close that I could see his eyes through the clear visor he had in my mirrors. I thought to myself,....This old guy must be the real deal. He was!

Rand, To you and Tracy, a prayer will be said tonight.

Agnif

[Beartrax]

A life well lived!
I'm sorry for you loss, Mike.

[M.Sauce]

Wow a great man from the greatest generation. What a life he lived. My father was from the same generation with similar WWII experience but was a bomber pilot (B25-26 B17). The experiences they had were incredible. I raced against him once at IRP in an Anson SV. He had a brand new 88 Ralt FA. A truly remarkable man. R.I.P.

[Steve Demeter]

A big hole now exists on the earth.

Dan was simply the neatest guy I have had the privilege of knowing.
A fierce competitor and a true gentleman in every sense of both.

Vaya Con Dios and Godspeed Dan.

[greg pizzo]

I was privileged to meet Dan a few times and talk with him at the track !! I watched in AWE at Road Atlanta when he barrel rolled his Swift DB4 not once or twice but 3 times at Turn 1 each time at the 1991 Runoffs! I was amazed he continued to get back in the car full well knowing it would likely happen again .. turns out he was waiting for some Fast Forward rear stub axles to arrive to replace the OEM VW parts ! I guess he wanted get at last SOME laps while they were en rout. At that time I had no idea how special this guy was. He would just talk to you
I believe he went on to a top 5 that year !
The next time I saw Dan was nearly a decade later at Mid-Ohio runoffs, we were pitted in a Garage right next to Him, Both Keith Nunnes and I expressed how cool it was to have him there ! He just acted so surprised anyone could see him as anything special, I'm sure he knew but was so gracious about it all! I had him sign a NO FEAR t-shirt (seemed fitting) he was amazed anyone would think he was somebody! we watched him at 80 or 81 years old climb into his Ralt RT41 and qualify 5th in a field of KIDS! Come race day he had a problem on the first lap and fell way back ( I mean like 15th) and eventually clawed his way back to 5th again if my memory serves ! AMAZING !! Being from the west coast it was a real treat to see him run and meet him! One of those people I will never forget ! very sorry to hear of his passing, but truly a life WELL LIVED !!

[Tigaman]

Prayers to you, Tracy and the family.

He is a legend...

[Bob Coury]

I fits saw Dan race in the 70's at Nelson. Prayers are with him and his family.

[Ralph Z.]

It's incredible what some people can achieve in a lifetime.

[Terry Hanushek]

What an incredible life ... very sad to hear of his passing

Condolences to Mike and Tracy

Terry

[Jnovak]

I was there and watching when he won the Runoffs at Mid-Ohio in 95. I did not ever get the chance to meet him but stood around him as one of a crowd of well wishers. I was in TOTAL AWE of all of his accomplishments. I also knew of his flying record and showed my wife his record as a WW2 Ace when we were at the air and space museum. I got to tell her that he was also a great racer as well as a real hero.

We should all hope to grow up to be just a little like this great man. RIP Dan.

[efoxfield]

I'm proud to say I raced with Dan.
He was my hero and a part of the Greatest Generation.
Ed Midgley

[Shelly Sadwin]

Mike and Tracey
I'm so sorry for your loss
I got to meet him once and was memorized by his stories
RIP Dan

[steve kramer]

RIP Dan.
I had the privilege of meeting Dan when I lived and race in Ohio in the 90s. He is probably the nicest gentlemen I have ever met in racing. Great supporter of our region (OVR).
Around 1997 we were at Grattan and Dan was there in his FA, it was hot as hell, humid, a Michigan summer day. We were paddocked on the road to the scales, and from there we could see a lot of the track. We watched Dan run in second place until about 2 laps from the end, when he passed Mike Shank for the win, and put a few seconds on him in those two laps. Mike at the time was a young guy, Dan was in his 70s. We are in the heat melting when Dan, in the line for the scales, is being pushed by - we ask if he needs a water or something - nah, he's fine, didn't even look like he was sweating.
A great man, a great life.

[provamo]

probably late eighties at a hot and humid Nelson Ledges regional...... i am a stupid punk running one of my clapped out fords and there is this guy FLYING in a ( yellow, i think ) Swift Atlantic

after practice i go over to the car and there is this "old" guy tinkering on the machine...........and i say " hey your kid is really fast in this thing" and he says
"that was my father!"

[Paddy O'Brien]

The one thing about racing a FF and FC in Central Division SCCA in the 1980's and 90's was that Dan Carmichael would lap you at some point in the race in his Atlantic. And if you saw him coming and pointed him by he would ALWAYS wave a polite thanks in return. It got to be kind of funny, once I tried to make the old buggar not wave at me so I actually held Dan up in T2 at IRP just to make him pass me in the very busy and fast T3-4 section. But sure enough, while entering the back straight, out pops his hand. So here was a guy well into his eighties driving in a corner at 120 mph with one hand on the wheel, and he is thinking about his manners! Dan is a roll model for all of us.

[last]

Sad to hear of Dan's passing. He was truly one of a kind that did some amazing things during his lifetime. I was fortunate to see some of it firsthand & close enough to hear stories of the rest.
nick fuhs

[RussMcB]

Sorry to hear this news. Such an impressive person. I'm glad we had him in our racing community. My condolences to all affected by his passing.

[glenn cooper]

probably late seventies at a hot and humid Nelson Ledges regional...... i am a stupid punk running one of my clapped out fords and there is this guy FLYING in a ( yellow, i think ) Swift Atlantic

after practice i go over to the car and there is this "old" guy tinkering on the machine...........and i say " hey your kid is really fast in this thing" and he says
"that was my father!"

THAT is my smile for the whole month of August!
I have heard many of the stories, and they all seem to come back to the same thing - a quality human being. Humble, gracious, humorous...
Godspeed, Racer.
There will be tears for sure, from family and loved ones, but in short order that will be turned into a celebration of life for a fine man, one we all hope to emulate, especially his on track abilities.

Three Cheers for Dan!

[David Locke]

When I started racing in the CenDiv in the late seventies, Dan Carmichael and Chuck Dietrich were my heroes. Although they were in a different class (in more ways than one), I often paddocked near them when I ran my 2-liter car as an ASR in Nationals. They were true gentlemen and always willing to lend a hand or offer advice to the new kid on the block. I'll always treasure the stories they told and the time I was privileged to spend around them.

I was well aware at the time of Dan's background as a WWII fighter pilot in the Pacific, which was especially interesting since my "crew chief" Dad was also a WWII veteran with 19 missions over Germany as a gunner on a B26. A while back I shared with my Dad the Columbus Dispatch article and video when Dan was inducted into the Ohio Military Hall of Fame. Sad that a year later they're both gone -- my Dad at the end of April, and now Dan just three months later. RIP.

[steve kramer]

A great tribute that captures the man:
http://www.dispatch.com/content/stor...hallenges.html

[Mark_Silverberg]

My Dan Carmichael story occured in the summer of 1987. By that time the legendary status of Dan Carmichael was well established. The FA racers from St. Louis spoke of him with a tone of respect which was often researved for the best pro drivers.

I got to meet the man that year at IRP at the summer national in July. I dropped by his trailer Friday evening to see him and check out his car.

I was a freshly graduated engineer working in the aerospace industry and mentioned that I was working on the F/A-18. Dan's response was very telling of the man he was - not just by what he said - but also how he said it. He looked me in the eye and said "You are fortunate to work on such a fine aircraft". He said it in a way that showed he respected and admired what I did.

The fact that a man with his accomplishments would take the time to compliment some young kid he just met, and the impact it had on me, is a life lesson I carry to this day.

[lucky13]

It is one thing to accomplish a lot in your life but to do so much while remaining a humble gentleman is extremely rare. Mr. Carmichael was a special individual. RIP.

[SteveFried]

Today (8/8/14) I had the honor of attending the funeral of my fallen friend,I ALWAYS knew Dan was a VERY special man but after the services it hit home what a privilege it was for me to become his friend at least in his racing life! The same word keeps being repeated, HUMBLE, if anyone had a right to toot his own horn it was surly Dan but that wasn't his style being a TRUE OFFICER AND A GENTLEMAN.

Here's my special "Dan Memory", it was at the earlier talked about 91 Runoff's at Atlanta. We got to the track during one of the last pay test days that I couldn't afford to partake in so was just setting up our paddock spot. Of course I had an ear open to when the Atlantic's would be on the track so I could walk down and check out the competition. I was standing about mid pit lane on the outside fence watching when I see Dan flying through the bridge turn starting down the hill when his sub-axle breaks and he starts a series of barrel rolls. Two years earlier I had gone UNDER Scott Liebler as he flew through the air in the exact same spot and was killed on our first lap of the Runoffs. Knowing this I take off running down pitlane, I have NO medical training so don't know what I could do and was totally against rules but I felt I NEEDED to get to him. By the time I reach him he was just climbing out of the car which had landed on it's wheels. He see's me and I'll NEVER FORGET what I saw, He had just taken off his helmet and with a BIG SMILE & WAVE he say's "HI STEVE" like we had just saw each other in the paddock and his LITTLE mishap was no big deal! I ask him if he's OK and he say's SURE! Of course the med staff MADE him go to the hospital to get checked out. Later that evening still at the track I see him in the passenger seat of a car pulling in in his NOMEX UNDERWEAR, I ask how it went and he said he was fed up with the waiting around at the hospital so he walked out!

I may have been able to run with him on the track but in being a man in the "real world" he was MANY laps ahead of me, just wish I could have a small part of the attributes he possessed.

GODS SPEED DAN!!!

Steve Fried

[Ron Tebo]

Columbus Dispatch – August 1, 2014 pg. C1-C10
Honored vet thrived on challenges Rob Oller
The retired speed bag hangs illuminated inside its own glassed-in enclosure at the Columbus Athletic Club, a tribute to Dan Carmichael, who hit people not with his hands but with his humility.
Carmichael, who died yesterday in Columbus at age 95, could have stood in the middle of a party room and regaled his audience with stories of how he was the winning pitcher for the Princeton baseball team in the first televised sporting event, a 2-1 win over Columbia in 1939.
If he wanted, the 1936 Columbus Academy graduate could have bragged about how he won the Ohio Amateur golf championship in 1960, or how at age 77 he won an open-wheel race — the Formula Atlantic national championship — at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course in Lexington in 1995.
And if those accomplishments did not impress you, Carmichael could pile it on with pilot stories from WWII, when as a Navy airman he was credited with shooting down 13 enemy aircraft. One air battle, in particular, is both riveting and enlightening in the way Carmichael graciously complimented even those who meant him harm.
“I had my hands full and this fella was making runs on me, attacks on me,” Carmichael said in a 2010 Veterans Day video shot by Academy student Elizabeth Vaziri. “He would use what we call a beautiful overhead run. He was a very good pilot.”
Carmichael survived the dogfight and safely crash-landed his damaged F6F Hellcat fighter plane onto an aircraft carrier.
As he once said, “I never got shot down. I just got shot up.”
So Carmichael could have puffed his chest and challenged anyone to top his achievements. But he never did. Instead, the humble architect challenged only himself, and by doing so inspired others to aim higher.
“I became a better person just by being around Dan,” said longtime friend Tom Lynch, who got his butt kicked by Carmichael in handball — and pretty much everything else — despite being 20 years younger.
Back to the speed bag: As a 6-foot-1, 175-pound all-around athlete, Carmichael was into cross-training before it became fashionable, using one pursuit to benefit another. The mental discipline required for golf helped calm him on the pitcher’s mound. And while he did not box, pummeling a speed bag helped maintain the hand-eye coordination necessary for his later love of racing cars at 165 mph.
“I can still hear it,” friend Bob Schmitz said of the thump, thump, thump coming from the bag as Carmichael’s fists flailed away.
Another friend, Jim Merkel, still marvels at how an elderly Carmichael smacked the leather when men half his age would not dare try it.
“He’s the only guy at the club who could make that bag hum,” Merkel said.
The takeaway worth noting, beyond Carmichael having the modesty not to trumpet his own successes, is that he mastered multiple pursuits. Variety produces in the participant a perspective that appreciates the mechanics of rebounding a basketball, the fortitude to race a snowmobile 120 mph over ice and the understanding of the best angles by which to beat an opponent in handball.
Unlike many of today’s high-schoolers who focus on one sport, Carmichael earned 16 letters in football, basketball, baseball and golf at Academy, then excelled in basketball, baseball and golf at Princeton from 1937 to ’41.
That kind of across-the-board success deserves a special respect that often eludes those whose feats are more focused on a single athletic endeavor.
And still, Carmichael’s greatest attribute was his strong character: a mix of kindness, fairness and integrity.
“Straight as an arrow,” Merkel said.
Carmichael’s son, Dan, shared how his dad fought hard to stay alive over the past week, comparing the struggle to “falling from his fighter plane through the air, pistols in both hands still shooting at the enemy.”
For Carmichael, his was always an inner fight. No antipathy toward others. And yet few who came into contact with him came away untouched. The man left a mark.
Rob Oller is a sports reporter for The Dispatch. roller@dispatch.com


In 2013 Dan Carmichael received the Silver Star for his actions as a fighter pilot in WWII.

and open this up...




http://www.veterantributes.org/Tribu...?recordID=2117

[aspenripper]

I wish I would have had a chance to shake his hand. Condolences to Tracy , Mike and the entire family.

What a remarkable life he had. I clicked on apex this morning catch up. Thank you to all for sharing your stories. When my kids get out of bed they have some reading to do.

Thank you for your service Captain Daniel Archibald Carmichael

The Vargo Family