- Item
- 1922
Part of Marvin Boland Photographs
ca. 1922. This freckled-face young man is Harlan Fengler. He was Harry Hartz's "mechanician" or riding mechanic at the 1922 Tacoma Speedway 250-mile race. Mr. Fengler had been Mr. Hartz's riding mechanic at the 1922 Indy 500 where the pair finished second. 1922 was the last year that the Tacoma Speedway was open for business and Mr. Hartz finished sixth in his #12 Duesenberg Special with a time of 2:47:11, averaging 89.9 mph. It was a disappointing finish for the team as Mr. Hartz had qualified second, behind eventual winner Jimmy Murphy, with a 107 mph average. Later Mr. Fengler became a race driver himself. At 20 years of age, he raced at Indy in 1923, finishing 16th. Future attempts at Indy were not successful. Although active on board tracks, Mr. Fengler retired from racing in 1927. After pursuing a variety of careers, he ended up as the Chief Steward at the Indianapolis Speedway in 1958, a position he held for 16 years. (Dorson: The Indy Five Hundred: An American Institution Under Fire, p. 63-article)
Fengler, Harlan; Automobile racing--Lakewood--1920-1930; Tacoma Speedway (Lakewood);