Racing legend Dan Gurney passed away around noon today. He was 86. He died of complications from pneumonia. CD
Sad, in his 80s? Was a great racer, saw him out at Riverside in the early 60s, if memory serves me correct.
Someone at ESPN (Ryan McGee?) says "... all you need to know about Dan Gurney you can see in this photo from Riverside '56."
I got to photograph a Gurney AAR Eagle a few months ago. It actually goes across the auction block in two days. I'll be there when it crosses the auction block. It feels kind of weird, now. It will be interesting to see what happens in the crowd when it rolls up the ramp. CD .
I hope this doesn't come across as morbid to anyone given the timing, but I suspect the same timing will also bump the price up more than just a bit.
I've met a bunch of racers, including Carroll Shelby, Sir Stirling Moss, Mario Andretti, and Jim Hall, among others. I had the honor of photographing Carroll Shelby and Mario Andretti for magazine articles -- the Shelby shot was a cover. All of those guys have autographed my photos of them or their cars. Jim Hall graciously took his Chaparral 2E out of the museum for me to photograph, and signed the magazine cover for me. I have those photos framed and hanging in my office. But, I never got to meet Dan Gurney. My friend and mentor, Al Satterwhite has tons of photos of him, but I was never in the same place at the same time as Mr. Gurney. Al was the one who emailed me that Dan Gurney had died. CD
Yeah, it is morbid, but the same thought came to my mind, too. It is natural to wonder about those things. That's why I said before that it was kind of weird thinking about that photo shoot, and the auction on Wednesday. That is completely beyond our control, so don't sweat it. I'm not. CD
I had a chance meeting with Dan Gurney at Mid-Ohio years ago. He was leaning against a tree enjoying the shade watching practice for the IMSA GTP race. I said hello & he told me why he was there without me even asking. He was watching his driver Willy T Ribbs & how he was taking the carousel turn. He told me he tried to get to all the corners over the weekend to see how his cars were doing because "you can't seem much from the pits".