USRRC Part Two

After WWII, sports cars became more and more popular. As a consequence, road racing took hold in the U.S. For the most part, it was an amateur sport governed by the Sports Car Club of America, but after noticing the large crowds at some SCCA events, the United States Auto Club organized a professional series, starting in 1958.

According to SCCA Executive Director John Bishop, at a meeting held in the summer of 1961, the governing body—the National Board—instructed Bishop to organize a professional series. In a recent conversation, John told me that the meeting was quite contentious because some of the directors were opposed to abandoning SCCA’s amateur status. Nevertheless, the majority was in favor, so Bishop worked on putting together an SCCA-sanctioned USRRC during 1962, with the first event taking place in 1963. Meanwhile, the USAC series was fading, finally abandoned after the 1962 season.