1956 Indianapolis 500
The 40th International 500-Mile Sweepstakes was held at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway on Wednesday, May 30, 1956. The event was part of the 1956 USAC National Championship Trail and was also race 3 of 8 in the 1956 World Championship of Drivers.
| Indianapolis Motor Speedway | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Indianapolis 500 | |||||
| Sanctioning body | USAC | ||||
| Date | May 30, 1956 | ||||
| Winner | Pat Flaherty | ||||
| Winning team | John Zink | ||||
| Average speed | 128.490 mph (206.785 km/h) | ||||
| Pole position | Pat Flaherty | ||||
| Pole speed | 145.596 mph (234.314 km/h) | ||||
| Most laps led | Pat Flaherty – 127 laps | ||||
| Pre-race ceremonies | |||||
| Pace car | DeSoto Fireflite | ||||
| Pace car driver | L. Irving Woolson | ||||
| Starter | Bill Vanderwater | ||||
| Estimated attendance | 125,000-150,000 | ||||
| Chronology | |||||
| |||||
The 1956 race was the first to be governed by the United States Automobile Club. AAA withdrew from auto racing the previous August. Another change would have a more immediate effect on the current race. The track had been paved over with asphalt with only about 600 yards of the main stretch still remaining brick.
The 1956 race is also known in Indy 500 lore as "Cagle's Miracle." Torrential rains pummeled the Speedway in the days leading up to the race. The track was full of standing water, access tunnels were completely flooded, and the infield was a muddy quagmire. The conditions threatened to postpone or outright cancel the race. Speedway superintendent Clarence Cagle supervised a massive cleanup effort, in which hundreds of thousands of gallons of water were pumped out of the tunnels and the infield. Cagle and his crew worked non-stop for 48 hours straight, some without sleep, and had the track ready just in time for race morning.