Dan Gurney chosen to receive Edison-Ford Medal
Dan Gurney (foreground) with A.J. Foyt at Le Mans in 1967. Photos courtesy Ford Motor Company unless otherwise noted.
He’s raced in Formula One, IndyCar, NASCAR, and various sports car series across multiple decades, and even tasted victory with co-driver Brock Yates in the 1971 Cannonball Baker Sea-to-Shining-Sea Memorial Trophy Dash. As a driver alone, Dan Gurney’s list of accomplishments is staggering, yet his resume also includes stints as a race car designer and even motorcycle constructor. On October 29, in recognition of Gurney’s remarkable lifetime of achievements, The Henry Ford in Dearborn, Michigan, will present the affable Californian with the Edison-Ford Medal, awarded only once before in its 25-year history.
Gurney prepares to climb aboard the GT40 Mk IV at Le Mans, 1967.
The medal, which bears the likenesses of both Henry Ford and Thomas Edison, is intended to honor individuals who “fully leverage the creative, innovative and entrepreneurial spirit that resides in every one of us,” according to The Henry Ford’s Curator of Transportation, Matt Anderson. Its previous recipient was W. Edwards Deming, whose work in Statistical Product Quality Administration laid the groundwork for Japan’s economic rebirth in the postwar years. It hasn’t been given since 1989, which certainly adds to the award’s prestige (and exclusivity).
Logging flight time at the 1966 German Grand Prix. Photo courtesy All American Racers.
According to Anderson, Gurney was a logical choice for the medal; although other racers have since posted wins in Formula One, IndyCar and NASCAR competition (including Mario Andretti and Juan Pablo Montoya), Gurney remains the only American to win a Formula One race (the 1967 Belgian Grand Prix) in a car of his own design and construction. Out of 312 races started during his career, Gurney posted wins in 51 of them, while achieving a podium finish in another 47 events. Put another way, every time Gurney climbed in the cockpit, there was roughly a one-in-three chance he’d finish no worse than third in any given race.
At Le Mans in 1967, seconds before Gurney invented the champagne shower. Photo courtesy All American Racers.
Gurney retired as an active driver in 1970, choosing to focus his energy on All American Racers, which built and prepared cars for sports car and open-wheel racing. With Gurney as a driving force, the company achieved an impressive 83 pole positions and 78 victories at events ranging from the Indy 500 to the 24 Hours of Daytona. As if this record of achievement wasn’t enough, he’d later go on to develop the Gurney Alligator, a semi-recumbent motorcycle that offered superior handing, thanks to its low center of gravity and reduced frontal area.
Gurney, with helmet, poses with Parnelli Jones (in sport coat) and the Bud Moore Engineering staff in 1966.
Another factor in the selection of Gurney for the Edison-Ford Medal was his ties to several automobiles that permanently reside within The Henry Ford, including the 1967 24 Hours of Le Mans-winning Ford GT40 Mk IV, which Gurney shared with A.J. Foyt; the Ford-powered Lotus 38 that Jim Clark used to win the 1965 Indianapolis 500 (it was Gurney who brought together Colin Chapman and Ford); and the futuristic Mustang I concept, which Gurney debuted to a stunned crowd at Watkins Glen in October of 1962.
Factor in his other innovations, such as the Gurney Flap and AAR’s “rolling wind tunnel,” built from a belt sander and room fan to test the at-speed aerodynamics of scale models, and it only becomes more obvious that Gurney represents the best candidate for an award honoring entrepreneurial spirit.
Although the October 29 event in Dearborn, Michigan, was initially described as a private event limited to Gurney’s family, friends and colleagues, Anderson let slip that a limited number of tickets will be made available to the general public. Information, when it becomes available, will be posted to TheHenryFord.org.
36 Comments - Leave a Reply
36 Responses to “Dan Gurney chosen to receive Edison-Ford Medal”
Leave a Reply
Featured Posts
A worthy candidate for this award if their ever was one. Congrats, Dan!
Is that an abandoned MGC Sebring to the right of the ’66 German GP picture.
At first glance it looked like a Citroen, but that couldn’t be, probably an MGC. What’s amazing is that it was left there, as the Grand Prix goes on. I would think even in the old days that was unacceptable, and given that two weeks ago an F-1 driver was critically injured when (under caution) he slid off the track and into a vehicle that was lifting another car off the track.
There couldn’t be a better candidate – three cheers, Dan!!
Couldnt happen to a better person!
CONGRATULATIONS DAN!!!!!!!!FOR A WELL DONE JOB!!!!!
Congrats Dan!! Can’t think of anybody better deserving.
Who’s the guy in the suit wearing the googles? Looks like he’s getting ready for a champagne spray—
CONGRATULATIONS, DAN!
[ I'm still slightly puzzled as to why he was chosen - Deming was obvious - but so many of us have been fans of this wonderful guy for so many decades that perhaps I lost sight of the SCOPE of his achievements. ]
Of course, it didn’t hurt that both recipients just happened to have made significant contributions to FMC: Gurney’s was outlined [with his usual thoroughness] by Kurt, above; what was NOT mentioned about Deming was that he saved Ford’s ass in 1981 when Deming, at the tender age of 81, was called upon by FoMoCo to act as a consultant and stem their losses. In typical Deming fashion, he pointed out that the greatest inefficiency lay within upper management itself!
Anyway, – KUDOS! Happy endings are always the best.
Congrats to Dan. A great driver, builder and person.
Gurney for President!!!
It’s been done.
.. and I still have my ‘campaign button’, from the late ’60′s I believe.
Just a darn shame he didn’t win!!!!!!
1964
It was 1964, a cool idea from Car and Driver – I think I remember that one of the Cobra Daytona coupes carried a “Gurney for President” bumper sticker at Le Mans.
It turned out that at the time Gurney was too young to serve as President, and that was that. Great fun, though.
Caption for the Bud Moore Engineering photo:
Front row,from LH: Parnelli Jones, Dan Gurney, Mercury Racing coordinator for FoMoCo Fran Hernandez(behind goggles), and Bud Moore. The men in the back row were all
employees of Bud Moore Engineering. Bud Moore Engineering was responsible for preparing the Trans Am Mercury Cougars for the track.
Congratulations to Dan –a truly talented and decent human being. Will you and Evie adopt me?
Well deserved!
Congratulations for a great career!
Dan’s the man, DAN GURNEY FOR PRESIDENT!!!
For those to young or those who may have forgotten Dan Gurney is not just any driver or another innovator, he is by far the greatest driver in American history. You name it, he drove it, and won in it. No one comes close. And a great person on top of that. Congratulations Dan, and much deserved.
Way yo go got to see him race at Indy congratulations
Congratulations, this couldn’t have happened to a more worthy guy. With all his accomplishments it’s often overlooked that Dan got his start in hot rods. As a young member of the Detonators car club he put his time in on the dry lakes of Southern California. It’s now a full circle back to Dearborn.
One of the greatest drivers of all time.
And a great person as well. Good job.
Thank you Kurt, well done, Dan.
congratulations, Dan Gurney.
Such as deserved recipient. Australia had Jack Brabham as winner of Grands Prix in a car of his own design and build. Dan has contributed so much to the world of motor racing, both in competition and the technological side. Many, many congratulations Dan. Thanks to Hemmings for the article. Thanks Al Carley.
It would be very hard to name a larger talent in all of motorsports, when you consider the range & depth of Gurney’s achievements and contributions; as a driver, Foyt is the nearest equal I can think of, but Gurney accomplished more outside the cockpit than most humans, and certainly any drivers that come to mind. That’s not a disparagement of any other driver, but more a measure of why Gurney is so rightfully revered and respected.
He’s always been a hero of mine, and I consider his Eagle F1 one of the most beautiful cars ever built.
The only thing he did NOT do at LeMans in 1967 was make the coolest remark after the race, which award goes to Foyt, who said “Do I win Rookie Of The Year?”
But otherwise he’s totally cool and richly deserves the award…
Jim Rosenthal
Dan’s the man ! way to go !
Well-deserved.
The last American to design the car, drive it and win a Formula 1 race.
Awesome, Dan, congrats. 1970 AAR Cuda : the car that launched a million muscle car fans!
Great going for the All American Racer. I had the pleasure of working for Gurney and the thrill of being on the podium at LeMans (just to his right).
Being 67 years old, Dan Gurney will always be one of my American motorsports heroes. But Edward Deming is also very special. He came to Rochester, NY to lecture Kodak, Xerox, Bosch & Lomb, GM-Delco, etc. “Separate the vital few from the trivial many.” A true “hot rodder and race team manager”.
Time for Car and Driver to crank up the “Dan Gurney for President” campaign again.