We've lost another great American!
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We've lost another great American!
http://www.autoweek.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080828/FREE/808289993/1508/newsletter02
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I got to have a brief conversation with him at the inaugural USGP at Indianapolis...I was peeved that they didn't bring him out and introduce him to the crowd before the race when they were introducing all the past Indy 500 winners. True to everything I ever read about the man, he was very gracious about it and didn't seem like he felt snubbed at all.
Sad to see another gentleman racer gone. RIP Phil.
truly one of the greats, I have been monitoring his condition for the last few days, and it seemed as though he was getting better. unfortunately I am too young to have seen him drive, but he has always been one of my heroes. Truly a great loss.
my condolences to his family and friends.
Back in the mid-nineties, I attended the Newport Beach Concours on the grounds of UC Irvine. I'm admiring a Stanley Steamer when a man dressed in a sport coat and slacks holding a wrench emerges from underneath the car. It was Phil Hill. Evidently, one of his customer's cars developed a problem and Phil dove right in. Must be nice to have a former Formula 1 champion wrenching on your car.
Mr Hill was one of the few drivers who actually knew about the cars he drove. His contemporaries, Foyt, Gurney, Andretti, and Ginther, were also very capable mechanically. Imagine today's drivers possessing those skills. Do any come to mind?
Those guys were a special breed. Perhaps that's why they were so successful internationally. We'll never see anyone like them again. Appreciate them while they're still here. Goodbye, Mr Hill. We hardly knew ye.
Several years back a good friend co-drove a 24hr race with Phil's son early in his career. Of course he hung around the paddock throughout the race, and was evidently very gracious to the entire team, and not only looking after his son's best interest.
How can you say anything bad about a man that claimed his 2.9 Alfa was among his favorites!
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