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Russ Snowberger
Summary
Russell Snowberger (October 8, 1901 – September 28, 1968) was an American racecar driver and owner active from the 1920s through the 1950s. After his lengthy Indianapolis career, Snowberger continued his affiliation with the "500" by sponsoring entries throughout the 1950s.
He was born on October 8, 1901 in Denton, Maryland.
Snowberger drove his first race in 1921 at the fairgrounds at Harrington, Delaware. By the middle 1920s Russ was becoming a consistent winner including the first 100 miler run at Langhorne, Pennsylvania. Russ won the national motor racing association championship in 1926. He was a
fierce competitor on the board superspeedways as well as the dirt tracks.
In 1927 he joined American Automobile Association and was in the starting lineup at 1928 Indianapolis 500. Snowberger's car was the first one to drop out with mechanical problems but Russ drove relief for Jimmy Gleason and led the race for eleven laps. Ironically the winning car was prepared by Russ for him to drive in the race however the owner had to sell it shortly before the
race needing the money. In November of that same year Russ was one of the Studebaker team drivers to run 24 hours non stop at the Atlantic City
board track.
With the Great Depression came rule changes by AAA to keep auto racing alive. Now allowing stock block engines, men like Russ with small budgets could
compete. In 1930 Russ finished 2nd in five of the seven champ car races that season. In the other two races he blew a head gasket at Altoona and
finished 8th in the Indy 500. He most likely would have done better if not for a 17 minute pit stop for a broken shock tower repair. With a total
investment of fourteen hundred dollars he finished 4th in the AAA championship. For the entire season he spent a dollar and a quarter for gasket
material and ended up winning over $10,000. in prize money. More than most bank presidents showed for the year.
For 1931 Russ won the coveted pole position at Indianapolis with the same car and Studebaker engine. A record lasting 54 years until 1985.
Official source
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