For those who came before us, and for those who will come after
From the grandstands, a Racing to End Alzheimer’s car is little more than a blur. At 200 miles per hour, the purple and white livery flashes by and, in an instant, a rush of senses gives us something to root for. The sound of shifting gears on a skillful pass, the lingering smell of rubber after a perfect turn, the feeling of satisfaction that comes with a podium finish. We care so deeply in the moment, but distance and speed often leave us with little time to think about why.
Then the race ends, the track goes quiet and the car rolls back into the paddock. It’s here, up close, that the contours of our purpose are clear. What was once a nearly indistinguishable streak of purple and white becomes a web of names, dozens of individual stories that join to form the backbone of our work.
Racing to End Alzheimer’s is, above all else, a community. People, each with their own story, who have come together in pursuit of the eradication of a disease that has touched the lives of so many.
Just a couple of weeks ago, we were reminded yet again of Alzheimer’s reach. Jean Jennings, a giant in the racing world, passed from complications related to the disease.
On the shoulders of giants
Jean was one of the most important and indispensable voices in racing journalism. She came by the work honestly, only picking up the pen after having spent years turning wrenches. That experience translated directly to her style, which set the reader behind the wheel of a demolition derby car or hurtling across the country in a beer van during One Lap of America.
Jean’s accomplishments, as editor of Car and Driver and co-founder of Automobile magazine, set her in the pantheon of wordsmiths at large. Especially for those who have ever spent an afternoon being guided through a high-speed daydream by her deft turns of phrase, she will be missed dearly.
Unfortunately, Jean is not the only racing legend to have succumbed to Alzheimer’s. Another monumental racing journalist, Brock Yates, preceded her by eight years.
Brock, who was a colleague of Jean’s at Car and Driver, was best known for his conception of the Cannonball Run. The borderline legal mad dash pitted drivers against each other in a grueling race from coast to coast. Almost immediately, the races embedded themselves in car culture lore, representing the daring, rebellious undercurrent of the sport. These days, the more legal One Lap honors Yates while putting participants through equally laborious conditions as in the event’s early days.
In the same year that Brock passed, Carl Haas also came to the end of his life after a battle with Alzheimer’s. Carl was one of the most decorated Indy car team owners in history, whose name will always be connected to the likes of Mario Andretti and Paul Newman. His success, to the tune of 107 races and eight season championships, made him a frequent visitor of the winner’s circle, where he almost always had his trademark cigar clamped between his teeth.
Wherever these racing legends go after they pass, they will be sure to meet Bill France Sr., a true pioneer of the sport who died from complications related to dementia in 1992. Bill’s footprint on American motorsports was as large as any. From his early days as a mechanic in Daytona Beach, Florida, to his creation and management of the behemoth racing enterprise NASCAR, Bill was a car guy through and through. If not for him, the stock car racing that has embedded itself in the very marrow of this country’s bones would not exist. If you like NASCAR, thank Bill France Sr.
Arm in arm
When Racing to End Alzheimer’s was founded in 2017, one of our primary goals was to ensure that those affected by this disease did not feel alone. Alzheimer’s can be an isolating disease, one that makes you feel like nobody else in the world could possibly understand what you are going through. But the truth is that Alzheimer’s leaves millions of people in its wake, many of whom feel exactly the same way.
Along with the champions that fill our car’s livery, names like Jean Jennings, Brock Yates, Carl Haas and Bill France Sr. remind us of the reach of this disease, and why we are fighting so hard to find a cure.
So next time you watch that purple and white streak past at blistering speed, or read the names printed on the side of the car in a quiet moment, remember that you are not alone. We are here, and we intend to end Alzheimer’s. One race at a time.
