"Auto Racing Isn't Dangerous" Clip from Interview with Al Unser, Sr., 2009

Artifact Overview

Even in a family of racing legends, Al Unser, Sr., stood out. He earned 39 wins in national championship races and three national titles. He earned two overall victories at Pikes Peak and an IROC championship. But his defining achievements were his four wins at the Indianapolis 500. The Henry Ford interviewed Unser at the Unser Racing Museum in 2009.

Al Unser, Sr., was a member of the Unser racing dynasty, the younger brother of race car drivers Jerry and Bobby Unser, and father of driver Al Unser, Jr. Al Unser began driving modified roadsters, sprint cars, and midgets in his native Albuquerque, New Mexico, in the 1950s. In 1960 he drove the Pikes Peak Hill Climb and came in second to his brother Bobby. He won the race in 1964. Unser excelled at winning 500-mile races. He won eight, including four Indianapolis 500 wins -- in 1970, 1971, 1978, and 1987. Unser competed in the Indy 500 for the last time in 1993. Al Unser was a founder of the Unser Racing Museum in Albuquerque, which opened to the public in 2005.