24h Le Mans
The lure of sebring is magical. The sweet scent of orange blossoms greets visitors every march for america’s greatest sports car race an event second only to le mans in international prestige
Over 3,200 drivers have competed on the famous circuit that began as a World War II B-17 training base. Among those are drivers from various walks of life you might not expect. Famed journalist Walter Cronkite drove a Lancia at Sebring in the 1959 race. Astronaut Pete Conrad drove a Porsche in the 1971 12-hours. Olympic athlete Bruce Jenner drove at Sebring, winning the GTO class in 1986. Many other politicians, musicians, and other celebrities have raced on the legendary Florida circuit.
Certainly the most famous was Steve McQueen, who drove in the 1962 race with toothpaste businessman John Colgate. McQueen returned in 1970 to drive a Porsche with Peter Revson. Despite driving with a cast that protected his broken foot, McQueen nearly won the race, finishing only 23.8 seconds behind the Ferrari of Mario Andretti. Of course, Peter Revson did the majority of the driving, but McQueen will forever be remembered for the Sebring race he nearly won.
Dick Smothers from the popular and controversial Smothers Brothers television show of the 1960s was perhaps the most successful celebrity driver. He won class twice at Sebring, finishing 8th overall in 1969 aboard a Porsche 906E co-driven by Fred Baker. He then drove a Corvette to the GT class win in 1971, co-driving with John Greenwood.
James Brolin, Bobby Carradine, Paul Newman, Lorenzo Lamas, Gene Hackman and Craig T. Nelson also competed in Sebring’s 12 hours with marginal results. Robert Redford filmed movie scenes at Sebring for “The Great Waldo Pepper.”
Several celebrities have been car owners at Sebring. James Garner owned cars in the 1960s that raced at Sebring. More recently, Tim Allen was co-owner of Sebring entries. Joining the list this year is Patrick Dempsey, who has entered a Le Mans Prototype Challenge car for the American Le Mans Series. Although he will not drive at Sebring this year, he may be behind the wheel of an LMP2 entry next year.
And let us not forget “celebrity spectators.” Former President of the United States Jimmy Carter attended Sebring regularly in the 1950s and early 1960s. Jim Morrison, lead singer of the Doors, attended Sebring in the early 1960s while a college student in Florida. It is even rumored that Elvis once attended the Sebring 12 hours!
