Jim Kimberly in the OSCA coming down the hill into turn five.

Text by Robert Birmingham
Photos by Glen Glendenning

Road America June Sprints, 23-24, 1956

After an exuberant late 1955, an abbreviated time to sit back and smell the roses was shortened even more when the Chicago Region SCCA received approval to hold two race weekends at Road America, the first on June 23 – 24, 1956 and another on September 8 – 9. If that wasn’t ambitious enough, the National Association for Stock Car Racing’s (NASCAR) Grand National Series secured a race date in August. Clearly all involved, Clif Tufte and his extended team, local merchants and SCCA officials, had their winter hours spoken for to assure competing drivers and their respective teams, area merchants and attending fans from across the Midwest and beyond had safe, enjoyable and profitable summer.

Chicago Region officials were quick to review and address the previous year’s inaugural event as it pertained to driver and fan safety and the important role needed to be played by volunteers, mostly inexperienced corner workers. SCCA had yet to have a corner worker’s manual and therefore workers and marshals performed at risk to themselves and to hard charging racers.

In this article we will only cover the 1956 June Sprints.

Upon presentation to Clif Tufte and his lead staff, it was clear both organizations were on the same page. Tufte and crew addressed the need to make improvements to the overall physical plant – muddy paddock and other grassy areas needed to be seeded, haybale and snow fence placement moved, clearly crowd control and spectator comfort were paramount. Based on 1956 concession sales, coupled with an expected increase, a need to review and plan was imminent. There was a lot to do.

The June weekend program consisted of six races, three on Saturday June 23 and three on Sunday. Friday’s practice was not without perilous moments. Walt Hansgen had an off-road, twice roll-over excursion after Corner 6 in the Cunningham entered D Jag that ended with little more than aches, pains and paint scrapes on his helmet. Sunday’s 150-mile feature race was very competitive but in the end it was Carroll Shelby’s Ferrari 121LM taking checkered flag.

James Orr, Devin Panhard, placed 10th in race 6.

D Jag, Sherwood Johnston, DNF in Race 7.

Allard, Walt Grey, finished 14th, race 7.

Allard of Tim McGrade would finish 17th in race 7.

D Jag, Lou Brero, placed second to Shelby in race 7.

Walt Hansgen in the Cunningham D Jag DNF’d in race 7.

Major R.J. Wyllie in the Lotus during practice.

Bill Kimberly, Jim’s nephew, in a TR3 would place last in race 2.

Bill Lloyd, Maserati, placed 7th in race 7.

Phil Stewart, Maserati, came in 6th ahead of Bill Lloyd in race 7.

Jim Kimberly in OSCA number 5 getting even with Briggs Cunningham in OSCA #61.

James Rowland Lee in the Frazer-Nash.

Ed Crawford, #69, battles it out with Jack McAfee in dueling Porsches. McAfee would win race 3.

GM’s Firebird was on hand as well.

Note: No Ferraris!? We have saved photos of both the Ferraris and Corvettes at Road America for another article in VeloceToday. Also, for those who are interested in the race statistics, a great source is racingsportscars.com

Paul Goldsmith took the Jag MK VII to victory in the under 3.5 liter race. Photo courtesy of Bernie Silverberg Collection,

Story by Bob Birmingham
Photos by Glen Glendenning unless otherwise noted

NASCAR at Road America

On the weekend of August 11-12, 1956 a NASCAR group of mostly good ‘ol southern boys took to Road America in two events. On Saturday a 100 mile race for European and American cars under 3.5 liters and Sunday the 250 mile feature for American made stock cars. Saturday’s grid had a mixture of small European sedans, an American Studebaker and one Jaguar VII Saloon, the latter driven to victory by NASCAR’s Paul Goldsmith.

Carroll Shelby in John Edgar’s Ferrari 410S leads Dan Gurney in Frank Arciero’s Ferrari 375 Plus at Palm Springs on April 13, 1958. One of the many photos I shared with the Ferrari Archivist.

Story and Photos by Allen R. Kuhn
From the VeloceToday archives, March, 2022

I would like to start this series of short stories – they are not Galleries as before – by telling a true story about Graham Gauld, and how he saved our skin when we were in Italy/France in 2006 for our seven-week tour of the Continent. The story really began in Maranello, so bear with me….