Briggs Cunningham
Encyclopedia
Entrepreneur
An entrepreneur is an owner or manager of a business enterprise who makes money through risk and initiative.The term was originally a loanword from French and was first defined by the Irish-French economist Richard Cantillon. Entrepreneur in English is a term applied to a person who is willing to...
and sportsman, who raced automobiles and yachts. Born into a wealthy family, he became a racing car constructor, driver, and team owner as well as a sports car
Sports car
A sports car is a small, usually two seat, two door automobile designed for high speed driving and maneuverability....
manufacturer and automobile collector.
He skippered the victorious yacht
Yacht
A yacht is a recreational boat or ship. The term originated from the Dutch Jacht meaning "hunt". It was originally defined as a light fast sailing vessel used by the Dutch navy to pursue pirates and other transgressors around and into the shallow waters of the Low Countries...
Columbia in the 1958 America's Cup
America's Cup
The America’s Cup is a trophy awarded to the winner of the America's Cup match races between two yachts. One yacht, known as the defender, represents the yacht club that currently holds the America's Cup and the second yacht, known as the challenger, represents the yacht club that is challenging...
race, and invented the eponymous device, the Cunningham
Cunningham (sailing)
In sailing, a cunningham or cunningham's eye is a type of downhaul used on a Bermuda rigged sailboat to change the shape of a sail. Sailors also often refer to the cunningham as the "smart pig"....
, to increase the speed of racing sailboats.
He was featured on the April 26, 1954 cover of Time
Time (magazine)
Time is an American news magazine. A European edition is published from London. Time Europe covers the Middle East, Africa and, since 2003, Latin America. An Asian edition is based in Hong Kong...
magazine, with three of his Cunningham racing cars. The caption reads: Road Racer Briggs Cunningham: Horsepower, Endurance, Sportsmanship. He became an early member of the Road Racing Drivers Club (RRDC), an invitation-only club formed to honor notable road racing drivers
Road racing
Road racing is a general term for most forms of motor racing held on paved, purpose-built race tracks , as opposed to oval tracks and off-road racing...
.
The October 2003 Road & Track
Road & Track
Road & Track is an American automotive enthusiast magazine. It is owned by Hearst Magazines, and is published monthly. The editorial offices are located in Newport Beach, California.-History:...
magazine article, "Briggs Swift Cunningham—A Life Well Spent", states that "by building and sailing his own ships, and building and racing his own cars, Briggs Cunningham epitomized the definition of the American sportsman." He was inducted into the America's Cup Hall of Fame
America's Cup Hall of Fame
The America's Cup Hall of Fame, located at the Herreshoff Marine Museum of Bristol, Rhode Island, USA, honors individuals for outstanding achievement in the America's Cup sailing competition...
in 1993, the Motorsports Hall of Fame of America
Motorsports Hall of Fame of America
The Motorsports Hall of Fame of America is a Hall of Fame and museum for American motorsports legends. It was originally located in Novi, Michigan and it moved to the Detroit Science Center in 2009.-Museum:...
in 1997, and named to the International Motorsports Hall of Fame
International Motorsports Hall of Fame
The International Motorsports Hall of Fame is a Hall of Fame dedicated to enshrining those who have contributed the most to auto racing either as a driver, owner, developer or engineer...
in 2003.
Cunningham died in Las Vegas, of complications from Alzheimer's Disease
Alzheimer's disease
Alzheimer's disease also known in medical literature as Alzheimer disease is the most common form of dementia. There is no cure for the disease, which worsens as it progresses, and eventually leads to death...
, at the age of 96.
Automobile manufacture and competition
Introduced to motorsports as a youngster when his uncle took him to road racesRoad racing
Road racing is a general term for most forms of motor racing held on paved, purpose-built race tracks , as opposed to oval tracks and off-road racing...
just after the first world war, Cunningham began international racing in 1930 with his college friends Barron, Miles, and Samuel Collier
Barron Collier
Barron Gift Collier was an American advertising entrepreneur, who became the largest landowner and developer in the U.S. state of Florida, as well as, the owner of a chain of hotels, bus lines, several banks, and newspapers. He also owned a telephone company and a steamship line.Collier was born...
, who in 1933 founded the Automobile Racing Club of America (renamed the Sports Car Club of America
Sports Car Club of America
The Sports Car Club of America is a club and sanctioning body supporting road racing, rallying, and autocross in the United States. Formed in 1944, it runs many programs for both amateur and professional racers.-History:...
(SCCA) in 1944). He continued in competition for 36 years.
By 1940 he was building sports cars for others to race. His first race as a driver was with his Bu-Merc, a modified Buick
Buick
Buick is a premium brand of General Motors . Buick models are sold in the United States, Canada, Mexico, China, Taiwan, and Israel, with China being its largest market. Buick holds the distinction as the oldest active American make...
chassis with Buick engine, and Mercedes-Benz
Mercedes-Benz
Mercedes-Benz is a German manufacturer of automobiles, buses, coaches, and trucks. Mercedes-Benz is a division of its parent company, Daimler AG...
SSK body, at Watkins Glen
Watkins Glen International
Watkins Glen International is an auto race track located near Watkins Glen, New York, at the southern tip of Seneca Lake. The facility is owned by International Speedway Corporation...
shortly after World War Two. Some of his other hybrids involved Cadillacs, Chryslers, and Fords. Cunningham was one of the first to purchase a Ferrari
Ferrari
Ferrari S.p.A. is an Italian sports car manufacturer based in Maranello, Italy. Founded by Enzo Ferrari in 1929, as Scuderia Ferrari, the company sponsored drivers and manufactured race cars before moving into production of street-legal vehicles as Ferrari S.p.A. in 1947...
barchetta
Barchetta
A barchetta was originally an Italian style of open 2-seater sports car which was built for racing. Weight and wind resistance were kept to a minimum, and any unnecessary equipment or decoration were sacrificed in order to maximize performance....
, which was raced along with other marques he constructed or owned.
In 1950 Briggs Cunningham entered two Cadillac
Cadillac
Cadillac is an American luxury vehicle marque owned by General Motors . Cadillac vehicles are sold in over 50 countries and territories, but mostly in North America. Cadillac is currently the second oldest American automobile manufacturer behind fellow GM marque Buick and is among the oldest...
cars for Le Mans
1950 24 Hours of Le Mans
The 1950 24 Hours of Le Mans was the 18th Grand Prix of Endurance, and took place on June 24 and 25 1950.-Official results:-Did Not Finish:-Statistics:* Fastest Lap - #5 Louis Rosier - 4:53.5* Distance - 3465.12 km...
, one a stock-appearing Cadillac Coupe de Ville, the other a special-bodied sports car
Sports car
A sports car is a small, usually two seat, two door automobile designed for high speed driving and maneuverability....
dubbed "Le Monstre." They finished 10th and 11th overall. On December 31, 1950 Cunningham participated in the Sam Collier Memorial Race, the first automobile race held on the Sebring Airport race track. He finished second in his Aston Martin
Aston Martin
Aston Martin Lagonda Limited is a British manufacturer of luxury sports cars, based in Gaydon, Warwickshire. The company name is derived from the name of one of the company's founders, Lionel Martin, and from the Aston Hill speed hillclimb near Aston Clinton in Buckinghamshire...
DB2 Vantage LML/50/21, the first Vantage produced.
By 1956 Team Cunningham, which also fielded other marques, was described as a dominant force in SCCA sports car racing
Sports car racing
Sports car racing is a form of circuit auto racing with automobiles that have two seats and enclosed wheels. They may be purpose-built or related to road-going sports cars....
— a distinction the team retained for the next decade. The team traveled in a caravan with tractor trailer vans that contained the automobiles, mechanics and equipment, and set up in the pits to serve every mechanical or personal need of the team. This contrasted with the typical arrival into the pits of a single race car on a trailer, and was described as "impressive" by driver Lake Underwood
Lake Underwood
Lake Underwood was an American entrepreneur who competed as a champion in the racing of prototype automobiles and motorcycles...
. The team's chief mechanic was Alfred Momo.
C-3
Most Cunningham automobiles were high-performance prototypes that Briggs Cunningham and his team built specifically for racing in the 1950s. A few, adapted for street use, were personal vehicles. In 1952, Cunningham introduced the Continental C-3 road car. Production began in his West Palm Beach plant where his team of mechanics installed 331-cubic-inch ChryslerChrysler
Chrysler Group LLC is a multinational automaker headquartered in Auburn Hills, Michigan, USA. Chrysler was first organized as the Chrysler Corporation in 1925....
hemi V-8s
Hemi engine
A Hemi engine is an internal combustion engine in which the roof of each cylinder's combustion chambers is of hemispherical form.- History :...
in racing chassis. These were shipped to Turin, Italy to be fitted with aluminum and steel bodies by coachbuilder
Coachbuilder
A coachbuilder is a manufacturer of bodies for carriages or automobiles.The trade dates back several centuries. Rippon was active in the time of Queen Elizabeth I, Barker founded in 1710 by an officer in Queen Anne's Guards, Brewster a relative newcomer , formed in 1810. Others in Britain included...
Vignale
Vignale
Vignale was an Italian automobile coachbuilder company. Carrozzeria Alfredo Vignale was established in 1948 at Via Cigliano, Turin by Alfredo Vignale in Grugliasco, near Turin ....
, after which they were returned to the Florida plant for completion. 25 Continental C-3s were produced: 20 coupes and five convertibles. They sold for $8,000 to $12,000. Notable owners included Nelson Rockefeller
Nelson Rockefeller
Nelson Aldrich Rockefeller was the 41st Vice President of the United States , serving under President Gerald Ford, and the 49th Governor of New York , as well as serving the Roosevelt, Truman and Eisenhower administrations in a variety of positions...
and a member of the Du Pont family
Du Pont family
The Du Pont family is an American family descended from Pierre Samuel du Pont de Nemours . The son of a Paris watchmaker and a member of a Burgundian noble family, he and his sons, Victor Marie du Pont and Eleuthère Irénée du Pont, emigrated to the United States in 1800 and used the resources of...
. 24 of the cars are known to have survived.
C4-R
24 Hours of Le Mans
The 24 Hours of Le Mans is the world's oldest sports car race in endurance racing, held annually since near the town of Le Mans, France. Commonly known as the Grand Prix of Endurance and Efficiency, race teams have to balance speed against the cars' ability to run for 24 hours without sustaining...
race caused a stir on both continents. His team was already a favorite with the Le Mans fans, and the announcement demonstrated his commitment to fielding a winning team of American drivers and automobiles.
One of the cars, the Chrysler-powered Cunningham C-4R built by The B. S. Cunningham Company of West Palm Beach, Florida
West Palm Beach, Florida
West Palm Beach, is a city located on the Atlantic coast in southeastern Florida and is the most populous city in and county seat of Palm Beach County, the third most populous county in Florida with a 2010 population of 1,320,134. The city is also the oldest incorporated municipality in South Florida...
and driven by Phil Walters and John Fitch
John Fitch
John Fitch may refer to:* John Fitch * John Fitch , early American inventor, built the first steamboat in the United States in 1786* John Fitch , Massachusetts settler for whom Fitchburg, Massachusetts is named...
, finished 18th out of 60 starters. The other, driven by George Rand and Fred Wacker Jr. failed to finish.
In 1952 the Cunningham C-4R of Briggs Cunningham and Bill Spear finished fourth overall at Le Mans
1952 24 Hours of Le Mans
The 1952 24 Hours of Le Mans was the 20th Grand Prix of Endurance, and took place on June 14 - 15 1952 at Circuit de la Sarthe.Less than a decade after World War II, Mercedes-Benz scored a 1-2 victory with their Mercedes-Benz 300SL which was equipped with a 3.0L I6 engine that had less power than...
.
A Cunningham C-4R won the 1953 Sebring 12 Hours. At Le Mans
1953 24 Hours of Le Mans
The 1953 24 Hours of Le Mans was the 21st Grand Prix of Endurance, and took place on June 13 and 14 1953. It was also the third round of the World Sportscar Championship....
Walters and Fitch finished first in class and third overall with a C-5R, and the two other Team Cunningham cars finished seventh and tenth. They returned to take third and fifth place in 1954
1954 24 Hours of Le Mans
The 1954 24 Hours of Le Mans was the 22nd Grand Prix of Endurance, and took place on June 12 and 13 1954. It was also the fourth round of the World Sportscar Championship.-Official results:-Not Classified:...
.
These years were to be the high point of achievement for Cunningham-built cars at Le Mans. With victory unattained, the effort was described as a "gallant failure" by American journalist Ozzie Lyons. Later in 1954, Cunninghams finished fifth and sixth in the Reims
Reims-Gueux
Reims-Gueux was a triangular motor racing road course near Reims, France, which hosted 14 French Grands Prix.Reims-Gueux was first established in 1926 on the public roads between the small French villages of Thillois and Gueux. The circuit had two very long straights between the towns, and teams...
12 Hour sports car race.
C6-R
At Le Mans1955 24 Hours of Le Mans
The 1955 24 Hours of Le Mans was the 23rd Grand Prix of Endurance, and took place on June 11 and 12, 1955. It was also the fourth round of the World Sportscar Championship....
in 1955 the Cunningham C6-R, fitted with an Offenhauser
Offenhauser
Offenhauser was an American racing engine manufacturer that operated from 1933 to 1983.The Offenhauser engine, familiarly known as the "Offy", was developed by Fred Offenhauser and his employer Harry Arminius Miller, after maintaining and repairing a 1913 Peugeot Grand Prix car of the type which...
engine, retired from the race. This was attributed to transmission trouble and the poor quality of the French petrol.
Team successes with other marques
In addition to Cunninghams, the team raced FerrariFerrari
Ferrari S.p.A. is an Italian sports car manufacturer based in Maranello, Italy. Founded by Enzo Ferrari in 1929, as Scuderia Ferrari, the company sponsored drivers and manufactured race cars before moving into production of street-legal vehicles as Ferrari S.p.A. in 1947...
, Jaguar
Jaguar (car)
Jaguar Cars Ltd, known simply as Jaguar , is a British luxury car manufacturer, headquartered in Whitley, Coventry, England. It is part of the Jaguar Land Rover business, a subsidiary of the Indian company Tata Motors....
, Maserati
Maserati
Maserati is an Italian luxury car manufacturer established on December 1, 1914, in Bologna. The company's headquarters is now in Modena, and its emblem is a trident. It has been owned by the Italian car giant Fiat S.p.A. since 1993...
, O.S.C.A.
O.S.C.A.
Officine Specializzate Costruzioni Automobili - Fratelli Maserati SpA was an Italian brand of sports car automobiles, usually abbreviated to O.S.C.A., OSCA or Osca.- History :...
, Porsche
Porsche
Porsche Automobil Holding SE, usually shortened to Porsche SE a Societas Europaea or European Public Company, is a German based holding company with investments in the automotive industry....
, and other sports cars. One set a record in 1954 that remains unbroken: driven by Stirling Moss
Stirling Moss
Sir Stirling Craufurd Moss, OBE FIE is a former racing driver from England...
and Bill Lloyd, Cunningham's 1.5-liter O.S.C.A. MT4 (Maserati Tipo 4) become the smallest-engined car ever to win the Sebring 12 Hours race, and also the first to win on wire wheels
Wire wheels
The rims of wire wheels are connected to their hubs by wire spokes. Although these wires are generally stiffer than a typical wire rope, they function mechanically the same as tensioned flexible wires, keeping the rim true while supporting applied loads.Wire wheels are used on most bicycles and...
. The team won at Sebring again the following year, this time with a Jaguar D-Type
Jaguar D-type
The Jaguar D-Type, like its predecessor the C-Type, was a factory-built race car. Although it shared the basic straight-6 XK engine design with the C-Type, the majority of the car was radically different...
. In 1964 Briggs Cunningham and Lake Underwood won the 3.0 Liter Prototype class at Sebring with their jointly-owned Porsche 904 GTS
Porsche 904
The Porsche 904 is an automobile which was produced by Porsche in Germany in 1964 and 1965. It was officially called Porsche Carrera GTS due to the same naming rights problem that required renaming the Porsche 901 to Porsche 911.- History :...
, and took first place in the 2-liter class and ninth overall in 1965, again with a 904 GTS.
Racing stripes
Cunningham's cars were the first to be painted with racing stripes. The traditional Cunningham racing colors were blue stripes on white automobiles. Carroll ShelbyCarroll Shelby
Carroll Hall Shelby is an American retired automotive designer and racing driver. He is most well known for making Mustangs for Ford Motor Company known as Mustang Cobras which he has done since 1965...
, who competed against Cunningham and his team, adopted the Team Cunningham colors and revived the stripes for his own brand of race cars.
Collection
Cunningham amassed a collection of automobiles that included the first Ferrari sold in the United States by Luigi ChinettiLuigi Chinetti
Luigi Chinetti was an Italian-born racecar driver, who emigrated to the United States during World War II and became an American citizen....
, and a Bugatti Royale
Bugatti Royale
The Bugatti Type 41, better known as the Royale, was a large luxury car with a 4.3 m wheelbase and 6.4 m overall length. It weighed approximately 3175 kg and used a 12.7 L straight-8 engine...
, one of only six made. To house the collection he opened the Cunningham Museum in Costa Mesa, California
Costa Mesa, California
Costa Mesa is a city in Orange County, California. The population was 109,960 at the 2010 census. Since its incorporation in 1953, the city has grown from a semi-rural farming community of 16,840 to a primarily suburban and "edge" city with an economy based on retail, commerce, and light...
. Eventually the vehicles were sold to his long-time friend Miles Collier
Barron Collier
Barron Gift Collier was an American advertising entrepreneur, who became the largest landowner and developer in the U.S. state of Florida, as well as, the owner of a chain of hotels, bus lines, several banks, and newspapers. He also owned a telephone company and a steamship line.Collier was born...
, to be combined with the Collier Automotive Museum collection in Naples, Florida
Naples, Florida
Naples is a city in Collier County, Florida, United States. As of July 1, 2007, the U.S. Census Bureau estimated the city's population at 21,653. Naples is a principal city of the Naples–Marco Island Metropolitan Statistical Area, which had an estimated total population of 315,839 on July 1, 2007...
, which also was open to the public at that time.
Legacy
Sebring Raceway
Sebring International Raceway is a road course auto racing facility located near Sebring, Florida.Sebring Raceway is one of the oldest continuously-operating race tracks in the United States, its first race being run in 1950...
's "Cunningham Corner" is named for Cunningham and his team.
Briggs Cunningham's only son, Briggs S. Cunningham III, together with Robert (Bob) Lutz and Lawrence (Larry) Black, resurrected his father's company in the late 1990s and introduced the Cunningham C7
Cunningham C7
The Cunningham C-7 Grand Touring car was first introduced to the public at the 2001 Detroit International . Had it gone into production, the C-7 would have represented the most expensive and perhaps the finest performance vehicle America has ever produced...
at the 2001 Detroit International Automobile show. No customer cars were built.
Briggs Cunningham's grandson Brian S. Cunningham, son of Briggs S. Cunningham III, raced in Formula 3 in 1994.
Drivers
Cunningham team drivers and Briggs Cunningham co-drivers included:- Dan GurneyDan GurneyDaniel Sexton Gurney is an American racing driver, race car constructor, and team owner.The son of a Metropolitan Opera star, he was born in Port Jefferson, New York, but moved to California as a teenager...
- Lake UnderwoodLake UnderwoodLake Underwood was an American entrepreneur who competed as a champion in the racing of prototype automobiles and motorcycles...
- Ivor BuebIvor BuebIvor Léon John Bueb was a sports car racing and Formula One driver from England....
- Stirling MossStirling MossSir Stirling Craufurd Moss, OBE FIE is a former racing driver from England...
- Jack BrabhamJack BrabhamSir John Arthur "Jack" Brabham, AO, OBE is an Australian former racing driver who was Formula One champion in , and . He was a founder of the Brabham racing team and race car constructor that bore his name....
- Bruce McLarenBruce McLarenBruce Leslie McLaren , born in Auckland, New Zealand, was a race-car designer, driver, engineer and inventor....
- Mike HawthornMike HawthornJohn Michael Hawthorn was a racing driver, born in Mexborough, Yorkshire, England, and educated at Ardingly College, West Sussex.-Racing career:...
- John FitchJohn Fitch (driver)John Cooper Fitch is a racecar driver born in Indianapolis, Indiana. He was the first American to race automobiles successfully in Europe in the postwar era...
- Roger PenskeRoger PenskeRoger S. Penske is the owner of the automobile racing team Penske Racing, the Penske Corporation, and other automotive related businesses. A winning racer in the late 1950s, Penske was named 1961's Sports Car Club of America Driver of the Year by Sports Illustrated...
- Walt HansgenWalt HansgenWalt Hansgen was a racecar driver from the United States. His racing career began as a road racing driver...
- Archie Scott Brown
- Paul RichardsPaul RichardsPaul Richards may refer to:* Paul Richards * Paul Richards , baseball player, manager, scout and executive* Paul Richards , American actor who starred in the ABC-TV 1963-64 series Breaking Point...
- Lucie Cunningham McKinney
- Bill Lloyd
- Phil Walters
- Sherwood Johnston
- Bill Spear
- Charles Stokey
- Charlie WallaceCharlie WallaceCharlie Wallace is a former English footballer who played for Aston Villa, Crystal Palace F.C. and Oldham Athletic A.F.C.....
- Ed CrawfordEd CrawfordCharles Edward Crawford, aka ed fROMOHIO, is an American best known as the lead singer and guitarist for fIREHOSE, an alternative rock band he formed in 1986 with former Minutemen members Mike Watt and George Hurley .-Biography:In 1985, Minutemen vocalist and guitarist D. Boon was killed in a van...
- John Gordon Benett
- Phil Forno
- Russ Boss
- Bill Kimberly
- Augie Pabst
- Denise McCluggageDenise McCluggageDenise McCluggage is an American auto racing driver, journalist, author and photographer. McCluggage was a pioneer of equality for women in the U.S., both in motorsports as well as in journalism....
- Bob Grossman
- Fred Windridge
- Dick ThompsonDick ThompsonDr. Dick Thompson is a retired American racecar driver. A Washington, D.C. dentist by trade, he is known as "The Flying Dentist". He won numerous Sports Car Club of America championships and was inducted in the Corvette Hall of Fame. Thompson brought credibility to the Corvette as a world-class...
- George G. Huntoon
External links
- http://www.briggscunningham.com/cmuseum.html
- http://www.rrdc.org/ look at deceased members list for the biography
- http://www.themaseraticlub.com/ITOL_Briggs.html Briggs Swift Cunningham II - tribute 2003
- http://www.briggscunningham.com/BSC%20Drivers.pdf full list of Team Cunningham drivers - presented on site along with many other informative pages
- http://www.jcna.com/library/news/jcna0050.html - a Costin Lister Jaguar raced by the Briggs Cunningham team in detail and with history - click for views
- http://www.briggscunningham.com/lemans54.html - the annual links at the bottom of the page lead to various years of production