Bob Burman, American Hero

Bob Burman was one of the great American talents of the Heroic Age. By 1913 he had firmly established himself among the sport's brightest lights. All eyes were on him headed into an Indianapolis 500 that had at last the international participation Indianapolis Motor Speedway Founder and President Carl Fisher and his partners had coveted from the get-go. Unrest in Europe that would lead to devastating conflagration and a rich purse of $20,000 were incentives for some important European team entries.
 

The most important of the Euros was the Peugeot of eventual winner Jules Goux, almost indisputably the finest racing machine in the world at the time. Two Italian Isottas made the grid - but only just barely - arriving something short of 72 hours in advance of the starter's red flag. The other foreign invader was a Sunbeam in the hands of the brilliant French wheelman, Albert Guyot, who would record his first of four Indianapolis 500 top-six finishes.
 
Predictably, patriotic railbirds studied the entry list for an American hero. Gone were the first two winners of the "500," both not only of USA manufacture but Indianapolis as well with the Marmon (1911) and the National (1912) deciding to rest on their laurels. The respective drivers, Ray Harroun and Joe Dawson were not a part of the field although the latter lobbied teams for a seat and came close only to run out of time. Fans looked to "Wild" Bob Burman, the land speed record holder and survivor of numerous scrapes from discovering his car's limits the hard way.
 
Burman was entered in the Keeton, pictured here. The newspapers bought into Bob as the great American hope. To some extent he was. As always, he was fast. The car, though, seemed unsorted as niggling problems haunted it throughout the practice days leading up to the race. He started 21st - a position still determined by date of entry, not time trials - and led by lap 20. He was still ahead at 100 miles but his hopes were dashed when his engine burst into flames shortly thereafter.
 
"Wild" Bob dropped some 20 laps behind but re-entered the race and, in the parlance of the era, scorched the bricks to recover for one spot just short of a payday - flagged off the course while still running eleventh. Meanwhile, Goux dominated. Aided and abetted by the temporarily retired driver and National Motor Vehicle Company Johnny Aitken who saved the day by coaching the Peugeot drivers on tackling the brick running surface. Early practice with Michelin tires showed excessive wear and Aitken recommended a shift to Firestone that may well have made the difference.
 
Sadly, Burman had but three years to live. He lost his life the 1916 Carona, California road race in an incident that saw three spectators depart this world with him.