1965
INDIANAPOLIS 500

“The Short Way Around”
plus
“The Flying Scot”
and
“The Indianapolis 500”

“The Short Way Around”, “The Flying Scot” (The Jim Clark Story) and the “1965 Indianapolis 500” are three vintage films about the 1965 Indianapolis 500 and all three are now available on a new 84-minute DVD from “Rare Sportsfilms, Inc”. These films make an appropriate trio, as Jim Clark won the 1965 race, and “The Flying Scot” is the story of his racing life up through 1965. These rare films have been carefully and beautifully restored by “Rare Sportsfilms Inc.”, maker of the very finest quality nostalgic racing DVDs!

With an introduction by Charlie Brockman of USAC, the DVD begins with “The Short Way Around” by Championship Racefilms for Firestone. Narrated by Sid Collins, the film has interviews with 1925 winner Peter DePaolo, Sam Hanks, Rodger Ward and rookie Mario Andretti. Young Mario is shown with mechanic Clint Brawner removing the rookie stripes from the rear of his car. Throughout practice and qualifications are shown numerous spins and crashes, including those of Jim Hurtubise, Parnelli Jones, Rodger Ward and the Bobby Unser-Ebb Rose crash which damaged the big STP Novi of Andy Granatelli. In addition to the great drivers of the era, you’ll see many racing officials, mechanics and personalities, such as Harlan Fengler, Bob Wilkie, J.C. Agajanian, A.J. Watson, Paul Johnson, Al Dean, Colin Chapman, Donald Davidson, George Bignotti and others!

“The Flying Scot” is the story of a racing partnership started in 1958 when Jim Clark embarked on a dangerous but glory-filled road with Colin Chapman, English race car designer of the rear engine Lotus, a car which in the years ahead would come to revolutionize racing thousands of miles away at Indianapolis. This film will take you to Jim’s roots in Duns Scotland where he and his father maintained a 1200-acre estate located near the border country between Scotland and England. Covered is his success on the Grand Prix circuit where Lotus and Chapman gained fame. Jim won the World Driving Championship in 1963, and is shown winning the British Grand Prix at Silverstone for the fourth straight time. Included are live interviews with his friends, parents and car-builder Chapman. In 1963 Clark and Chapman bring a Lotus to Indianapolis and qualify in the front row. Scenes of the race show Clark proving the worth of Lotus’ lightweight, rear engine design by finishing second behind winner Parnelli Jones. Scenes of Chapman’s Lotus factory in England are also captured in this film, along with the 1964 race at Indy, in which Clark qualifies on the pole, only to suffer a broken suspension during the race that eliminates him. The story contains interviews with Jim himself back on his farm in Scotland, before he returns to Indy in 1965. He again qualifies on the front row and this time becomes the first foreign driver since 1916 to win the race, and driver of the very first rear engine car ever to win at Indy!

“The Indianapolis 500” by Dynamic Films is narrated by Ralph Camargo, and is a more exciting film of the 1965 race at Indy. This film was produced for Ashland Oil instead of Firestone, and is totally different than the opening film, “Short Way Around” by Championship. Shown throughout are different closeups of drivers, officials and the racing personalities at the speedway including A.J. Foyt, Andretti, Ward, Parnelli, Dan Gurney, ”Aggie”, Chapman, Bignotti and others. Covered also is practice and the exciting qualifications along with different shots of several spins and crashes which took place during the month of May and in the race itself. Qualifications in 1965 were as exciting as any in the history of the speedway. With this beautiful COLOR film, you are there as Len Sutton is first to make a qualification attempt. After Sutton qualifies, young Andretti takes to the track and stuns the crowd by breaking Jim Clark’s year old record of 158.828! On deck is Jim Clark, and he answers the challenge with a new track record of his own: 160.729! However A.J. Foyt is the very next out on the track and the flying Texan rips off a spectacular run of 161.233 to grab the pole for the race! Three consecutive record-breaking runs have treated the fans to the fastest 15 minutes in the history of sports! Later Jim Hurtubise is shown qualifying the #59 Tombstone Life Novi, the actual sound of which is worth the price of this DVD all by itself! Some interesting scenes of the downtown festival parade are shown before the 33 cars take the green flag for the start of the race on Memorial Day! Jim Hurtubise in the #59 Novi is first out of the race, but others follow. Roger McCluskey loses a clutch. Dan Gurney has timing gear problems. Bud Tingelstad is shown spinning out and crashing on his 115th lap. Action in the pits is covered and helps determine the outcome of the race. Clark’s pit crew includes the well-known Wood brothers of stock car racing fame. On one of his stops Clark gets back out in only 17 seconds! Meanwhile A.J. Foyt, leading the race, stalls in his pit and loses valuable time as Clark regains the lead. Eventually Foyt retires with transmission trouble. By the end of the race, Clark has almost a two lap lead and sets a new record speed for the 500 miles. Parnelli is second and rookie Andretti, a “boy to watch in the future” finishes third!