Practice and Time Trials
The biggest story of practice was the appearance of Janet Guthrie, who was attempting to become the first female driver to qualify for the Indianapolis 500. Considerable media attention followed her through the month, however, the first two weeks of practice were plagued with various troubles. Upon her arrival at the airport, her flight lost her luggage (which included her helmet and driving suit). On the first day of practice, teammate Dick Simon was shaking the car down, but suffered an oil leak. On the second day, he burned a piston and a turbocharger fire. Guthrie was unable to take to the track until Monday. Her first foray in the machine was short-lived, as she burned a piston after only seven laps at speed.
On Tuesday, Guthrie started her rookie test, and despite low oil pressure and overheating, she made it through the first phase. On Thursday, she was trying to finish the second phase, but rain cut the run short. She finally completed her rookie test on Monday May 17, with a top lap of 171.429 mph.
The veterans practice was led by Johnny Rutherford, Al Unser, Sr. and A. J. Foyt. In the third year of a rules package mean to slow the cars down, there was no expectations of record speeds for 1976. Top speeds were in the high 180 mph range, with the best lap (189.833 mph) going to Rutherford.
The most serious crash of practice was that of rookie Eddie Miller. He lost control coming out of turn one, and spun to the inside. The car hit an earth embankment, flipped over wildly, cleared two fences, then came to rest upside-down near the bleachers. Miller suffered a neck fracture, and would never return to Indy.
Read more about this topic: 1976 Indianapolis 500
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