Ray Harroun

Ray Harroun (born 12 January 1879 in Spartansburg, Pennsylvania; † January 19, 1968 ) was an American race car driver.

Harroun went in 1911 as the first winner of the 500 miles of Indianapolis in the motorsport history.

After he was for a time worked as a mechanic, he began in 1906 with the racing. In 1910 he won the AAA National Championship and began at Marmon as chief engineer. The company asked him for the new 500 - mile race to develop a vehicle and drive. Harroun developed a revolutionary concept.

The racing cars of that era were usually heavy two-seater, in which the driver and a mechanic were sitting. The mechanic was responsible for informing the driver about what happened behind him. Harroun designed a lightweight, streamlined single-seater. To replace the mechanic, he added a rear view mirror. The vehicle functioned exceptionally well in Indianapolis. It peaked at the victory with an average speed of 74.602 mph

For Harroun it was the last race. Later Harroun introduced a carburetor which was a predecessor of modern injection systems. In addition, he developed in 1914 a kerosene- burning Maxwell. This racing car has been used for almost 15 years.