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Bobby Unser

1934-

American race car driver

Bobby Unser came from a family of racecar drivers. He made a name for himself as a driver who pushed himself and his cars to the limit. He drove fast and hard all of the time, and has won numerous racing championships throughout his career, including three Indianapolis 500 titles. Unser has been the center of controversy because of his sharp opinions about what is fair and just, both on and off the track.

Born to Race

Robert William Unser was born on February 20, 1934 in Colorado Springs, Colorado to a family destined to race. His grandfather, Louis Unser, was a mechanic whose three sons were the first to ride up Pike's Peak, a 14,110 foot high mountain on the edge of the Great Plains, in the 1920s. This was the first race of what

would become an annual tradition. Of the 40 competitors, only the Unser boys made it to the top. The Unsers dominated both Pike's Peak and the racing profession in the years to come.

One of the Pike's Peak pioneers, Jerry Unser, married schoolteacher Mary Craven and had four sons—fraternal twins Jerry, Jr. and Louie, Robert (known as Bobby), and Al Unser, Sr. In 1956 Jerry Unser moved his family to Albuquerque, New Mexico where he opened a garage and gas station called Jerry Unser Motors on Route 66. His four boys helped him in the garage. The boys bought an old Model A Ford from their father, fixed it up, and began driving. When the boys were teenagers they began driving racecars on the short tracks in New Mexico, Colorado, and Arizona.

Jerry, Jr., Bobby Unser's older brother, became the first Unser racecar champion, winning the 1957 United States Auto Club (USAC) stock car championship. Tragically he died in 1959 from a crash during a practice run for the Indianapolis 500. Louie Unser, Bobby's other older brother, started a racing career but was later diagnosed with multiple sclerosis and was unable to continue racing. This left racing open to the two younger Unser boys. At age 16, Bobby Unser won his first race at the Southwest Modified Stock Car Championship, which he won again the following year.

In 1953 Unser enlisted in the United States Air Force, a decision he later regretted because he had wanted to spend more time racing. He trained at Warren Air Force Base in Cheyenne, Wyoming where he studied automotives. He continued racing during his free time and his brother Louie served as his manager. After basic training Unser pulled some strings to get stationed in Albuquerque so that he could pursue his racing career. In 1954 he married his first wife, Barbara Schumaker, and the couple had two children together. Unser finished his military service in 1955 and then focused solely on racing.

Became a Racing Champion

In 1955 Bobby Unser debuted at Pike's Peak, dubbed "Unser's Peak" because of his family's history of success at the hill climb. He finished fifth that year, behind his two brothers. A year later he won his first of a record 13 championships at Pike's Peak. He won six straight titles from 1958 to 1963. His streak ended in 1964 when his younger brother Al won the race. However, his sweetest victory at "Unser's Peak" came ten years later when he tied his uncle's record of nine wins. "The Unser brothers raced at Pike's Peak to beat each other and most of all to beat Uncle Louis," Unser told Karen Bentley in The Unsers.

Unser's professional racing career took off in 1963 when he raced in his first Indianapolis 500. He crashed early and placed thirty-third. His first Indy-car win came in 1967 at Mosport, Ontario. A year later he not only won his first Indianapolis 500, but also set the record as the first driver to race over 170 miles per hour at Indianapolis. In 1969 Unser won his first USAC National Driving Championship.

Bobby Unser earned a reputation as a driver who not only liked to drive fast, but who also pushed himself and his cars to the limit. On the contrary, younger brother Al Unser was a much more patient driver with a more laid-back personality than Bobby. Al Unser kept the competition tight within the family. Two years after Bobby's first Indianapolis 500 win, Al won the prestigious race and followed up with a second consecutive win in 1971. "It would get tense between me and Al about who would win," Bobby Unser told Karen Bentley, "but it never stayed. We were able to separate business and family — we never really got in a fight."

However, Bobby Unser was not going to let his little brother have all of the glory. In 1972 Unser set another Indianapolis 500 record for the fastest qualifying time at 195.94 miles per hour. In 1974 he won his second USAC National Driving Championship and a year later he won his second Indianapolis 500. In the late 1970s Unser also won several races for Championship Auto Racing Teams (CART). In 1980 he became the first driver to win the California 500 four times.

Indy Controversy Led to Retirement

Unser's biggest and most controversial win came at the 1981 Indianapolis 500. Unser had started the race in the pole position. Three and a half hours later he won the race, beating Mario Andretti by only 5.3 seconds. This was Unser's third Indianapolis 500 win and at the age of 47 he was the oldest driver to win the race. However, when the race was over, Andretti complained that Unser had passed illegally during the race. On lap 149 Unser was coming out of the pits during a yellow flag and had passed seven cars, even though passing is not allowed during a yellow flag. Upon reviewing the videotapes, race officials decided that Unser should be penalized one lap for this infraction, which meant that Andretti was the new winner of the race. This was the first time in Indy history that a winner had been stripped of a victory. Unser and car owner Roger Penske were furious and they filed protests. "We weren't cheating," Sports Illustrated quoted Unser from a press conference following the incident, "We had the fast car, no matter what the decision." Eventually a USAC appeals panel overruled the decision. Unser was reinstated as the 1981 champion, but he was fined $40,000 for the passing infraction. Despite the victory, Unser was bitter about the whole experience and no longer desired to race Indy cars.

In 1982 Unser decided to retire from Indy racing. "For the first time I realized that I had been thinking only of Bobby Unser, and perhaps it was time to think about my family," the New York Times quoted Unser. By this time Unser had been married three times. He had two children, Bobby Jr. and Cindy, with his first wife Barbara Schumaker. He also had two children, Robby and Jeri, with his second wife Norma Davis.

Being a professional racecar driver meant that Unser was not home most of the time. "Successful as my racing has been, my family life, in a lot of ways, has been a failure," wrote Unser in The Bobby Unser Story. "You're not successful unless you spend part of every day with your kids." By the time Unser decided to retire, his son Bobby, Jr. and his nephew Al, Jr. had already begun their racing careers and his younger son Robby was also showing an interest in the sport. Unser wanted to be available to help the next generation of Unser drivers.

More Controversy Off the Tracks

Although Unser retired from Indy cars, he did not stop racing altogether. In 1983 Unser was the owner and manager of the car that won Pike's Peak, driven by his nephew, Al, Jr. Three years later Unser himself won the race, setting a record 13 wins at "Unser Peak." In 1991 Unser participated in the 24 Hours of Daytona Race with his brother Al, his nephew Al Jr., and his son Robby. In 1993 he set a new land speed record of 223.709 miles per hour racing a gas-modified roadster. The same year he also won the Fastmasters Championship for drivers over 50 years old.

Unser also did not leave the public spotlight when he retired. In 1987 he began working as a commentator for ABC Sports Television. Unser's commentary was very blunt and he did not always agree with his coworkers on the air. Unser later found another media outlet for his expertise; in 2001 he began writing a column about off-road vehicles for Sports Afield magazine.

This was not the only public attention Unser received after his retirement. In 1994 Unser made national news for assaulting a police officer at the Albuquerque International Airport. He was stopped by the police officer for speeding, began arguing with the officer, and then pushed her. He was charged with misdemeanor assault, resisting arrest, and careless driving.

Two years later Unser had another encounter with the law. In December of 1996 he and a friend, Robert Gayton, were snowmobiling in the mountains near Unser's ranch in Chama, New Mexico. Both snowmobiles broke down and the pair spent two days trying to find their way home on foot. They had no food or water and they had to endure temperatures as low as minus 20 degrees Celsius, as well as 70 mile per hour winds. Luckily Unser and his friend survived the experience without injury. However, it was later discovered that Unser had been driving in the San Juan Wilderness of the Rio Grande National Forest near the Colorado and New Mexico border. Unser had violated the Wilderness Act of 1964 by riding his snowmobile in a federally protected area. Unser was convicted of the misdemeanor on June 12, 1997. The maximum penalty was $5,000 and six months in jail, but Unser was only fined $75 because of his harrowing ordeal in the mountains. Despite the small fine, Unser was outraged by the conviction and as a matter of principle he filed an appeal. The conviction was upheld by the Tenth United States Circuit Court of Appeals on January 5, 1999.

Whether on or off the track Unser was never afraid to speak his mind, particularly when he felt he had been treated unjustly. Bobby Unser has helped build the legacy of the Unser family in racing through his own prestigious career as well as by mentoring the next generation of Unser racers.

CONTACT INFORMATION

Address: 7700 Central Ave. SW, Albuquerque, NM 87105. Phone: (505) 831-1500.

SELECTED WRITINGS BY UNSER:

(With Joe Scalzo) The Bobby Unser Story. Doubleday, 1979.

FURTHER INFORMATION

Books

Almanac of Famous People. Detroit: Gale, 1998.

Bentley, Karen. The Unsers. New York: Chelsea House Publishers, 1996.

Scalzo, Joe, and Bobby Unser. The Bobby Unser Story. New York: Doubleday, 1979.

St. James Encyclopedia of Popular Culture. Detroit: St. James Press, 2000.

World Almanac and Book of Facts. Primedia Reference, 2000.

Periodicals

Anderson, Dave. "Sports of the Times: Con Is In and Conscience Is Out." New York Times (May 28, 1981).

Andrews, Edmund L. "Patents: A Device to Foil Radar." New York Times (January 27, 1990): 37.

Axthelm, Pete, and Jon Lowell. "Indy Downshifts Unser." Newsweek (June 8, 1981): 107.

"A Bitter Bobby Unser." New York Times (September 4, 1981).

"Bobby Unser and Friend Are Alive and Well." Calgary Herald (December 23, 1996).

"Bobby Unser Grabs Pole for the Indy 500. " New York Times (May 17, 1981).

"Bobby Unser Jr. Arrested After Flunking Sobriety Test." Associated Press (March 11, 1997).

"Bobby Unser Seeks Trial; Son Is Arrested." Washington Post (March 12, 1997): C02.

"Bobby Unser, Son in Legal Wrangles." USA Today (March 12, 1997).

"Bobby Unser to Enter Racing Hall of Fame." United Press International (April 27, 1990).

"Bobby Unser Win Didn't Come Easily." Dayton Daily News (May 11, 1997).

"Bobby Unser's Conviction of Snowmobiling in Wilderness Upheld." Associated Press (January 5, 1999).

"Bobby Unser's Son Wins at Pikes Peak." Charleston Daily Mail (July 5, 1994).

Carey, Jack. "Bobby Unser Accused." USA Today (May 19, 1994).

Dorsey, Chris. "Unser Drives You Wild." Sports Afield (March 2001): 10.

El-Bashir, Tarik. "Another Indy 500 Brings Another Unser to the Track." New York Times (May 20, 1998).

Jones, Robert F. "A Fierce and Fiery 500. " Sports Illustrated (June 1, 1981): 22-27.

Kindred, Dave. "Mears Victor at Indianapolis Second Try: Mears Backs Off, Wins as Bobby Unser Falters." Washington Post (May 28, 1979).

Kirshenbaum, Jerry. "Attention, Auto-Racing Fans, There's Been Another Lead Change at Indy." Sports Illustrated (October 19, 1981): 35.

Kohler, Judith. "Bobby Unser Convicted of Violating Federal Wilderness Act." Associated Press (June 12, 1997).

Kohler, Judith. "Race Car Champ Bobby Unser Convicted of Violating Federal Wilderness Act." Associated Press (June 13, 1997).

Korte, Tim. "Bobby Unser Says He Will Appeal Judge's Ruling." Associated Press (June 23, 1997).

Lefevre, Lori. "Spinning His Wheels." Mediaweek (February 26, 2001): 46.

Long, Gary. "Bobby Unser Behind Wheel Once Again." Toronto Star (January 14, 1991).

Mabin, Connie. "Federal Trial Begins for Race Car Champ Bobby Unser." Associated Press (June 11, 1997).

Massey, Barry. "Bobby Unser Takes 1994 Case to State's Highest Court." Associated Press (November 12, 1997).

May, Tim. "Bobby Unser: Without Stars, Indy a Shadow of Former Self." Columbus Dispatch (May 12, 1998).

Moran, Malcolm. "Bobby Unser Wins Indy 500 Marred by Crashes, Fires." New York Times (May 25, 1981).

Moran, Malcolm. "Reluctantly, Unser Bows Out." New York Times (December 23, 1982).

Moses, Sam. "I Will Go Fast Until the Day I Die." Sports Illustrated (January 11, 1982): 66-79.

"New Mexico Supreme Court Won't Rule in Bobby Unser Appeal." Associated Press (November 17, 1997).

"Race Driver Bobby Unser Reported Missing." Record (December 22, 1996).

Tuschak, Beth. "Bobby Unser Survives Two Days in Mountains." USA Today (December 23, 1996).

Other

"2000 Colorado Springs Sports Hall of Fame Class of Inductees." Colorado Springs Sports Corporation. http://www.thesportscorp.org/events/09200hof_unser.htm (November 7, 2002).

About Bobby Unser Jr. http://unser.hypermart.net/AboutUs.html (November 7, 2002).

"Bobby Unser." CART World-Drivers. http://www.cartworld.free-online.co.uk/drivers/bunser (November 7, 2002).

"Bobby Unser Stays Busy In Life After Racing." Indianapolis 500. http://www.indy500.com/press/1998/bunser.html (November 7, 2002).

Indianapolis 500. http://www.indy500.com (November 7, 2002).

Statement of Bobby Unser on Wilderness. http://www.wildwilderness.org/wi/unser.htm (November 7, 2002).

Sketch by Janet P. Stamatel