Rasmussen at the 2014 Indianapolis 500.

Eldon Rasmussen (7 July 1936 – 5 June 2022)[1] was a Canadian driver in the USAC Championship Car series. He raced in the 1971 and 1973–1979 seasons, with 23 career starts, including the 1975, 1977, and 1979 Indianapolis 500.

Career

Rasmussen was born in Standard, Alberta, on July 7, 1936. In lap 125 of the 1975 race Tom Sneva, attempting to lap Rasmussen, ran over his left front wheel and was launched into the Turn 2 wall, exploding and disintegrating before tumbling to a stop. The spectacular nature of the accident, and the fact that Sneva escaped serious injury, have led to its being replayed on television.

In his Champcar career, Rasmussen finished in the top ten 3 times, with a best finish in 7th position in 1975 at the Ontario Motor Speedway in Ontario, California. He built his own race chassis which he dubbed the "Rascar" which he campaigned with limited success from 1973 to 1979. In all 3 of his Indy starts, Rasmussen qualified his Rascar on the last row.

Eldon Rasmussen was a fabricator of race parts in Indianapolis for years and was inducted into the Canadian Motorsport Hall of Fame.[2]

Indianapolis 500 results

Year Chassis Engine Start Finish
1974 Rascar Foyt Failed to Qualify
1975 Rascar Foyt 32nd 24th
1976 Rascar Foyt Failed to Qualify
1977 Rascar Foyt 32nd 13th
1978 Rascar Foyt Failed to Qualify
1979 Antares Offy 33rd 23rd

Notes

  1. ↑ Indianapolis 500 Veteran Rasmussen Dies at 85
  2. ↑ "CMHF HOF". Archived from the original on 2011-02-09. Retrieved 2011-01-02.

See also

List of Canadians in Champ Car


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