Walt Hansgen facts for kids
| Born | October 28, 1919 Westfield, New Jersey, U.S. |
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| Died | April 7, 1966 (aged 46) Orléans, France |
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| Formula One World Championship career | |||||||
| Nationality |  American |
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| Active years | 1961, 1964 | ||||||
| Teams | Lotus, Cooper | ||||||
| Entries | 2 | ||||||
| Championships | 0 | ||||||
| Wins | 0 | ||||||
| Podiums | 0 | ||||||
| Career points | 2 | ||||||
| Pole positions | 0 | ||||||
| Fastest laps | 0 | ||||||
| First entry | 1961 United States Grand Prix | ||||||
| Last entry | 1964 United States Grand Prix | ||||||
| NASCAR Cup Series career | |||||||
| 3 races run over 2 years | |||||||
| First race | 1964 Race 38 (Bridgehampton) | ||||||
| Last race | 1965 The Glen 151.8 (Watkins Glen) | ||||||
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Walter Edwin Hansgen (born October 28, 1919 – died April 7, 1966) was a famous American racecar driver. He started his racing journey in road racing, which means racing on special tracks that look like regular roads. He made his first big Grand Prix race at 41 years old. Sadly, he passed away at 46 after an accident during a test drive for a famous race called the 1966 24 Hours of Le Mans.
Walt Hansgen's Racing Career
Walt Hansgen was a very successful driver in sports car racing. He won the SCCA Road Racing Championship four times. This was a big deal in American sports car racing.
He also raced in Formula One, which is one of the highest levels of car racing in the world. He took part in two Formula One Grand Prix races. His first race was on October 8, 1961, at Watkins Glen in New York. He earned two championship points during his Formula One career.
In 1964, Walt raced in the famous Indianapolis 500 race. He drove a special car called the MG Liquid Suspension Special. He finished 13th in that race. The next year, in 1965, he raced at the Indianapolis 500 again and finished 14th.
Walt was a top road racer throughout the 1950s and 1960s. He won many races at well-known tracks like VIR, Bridgehampton, and Watkins Glen.
He drove for important racing teams like Briggs Cunningham and John Mecom. In 1959, he won a Formula Junior race at the very first United States Grand Prix event in Sebring, Florida. He was driving a Stanguellini car. Later, in 1965, he won the Monterey Grand Prix at Laguna Seca Raceway. He was driving a Lola T70-Ford for John Mecom's team.
Walt also took part in long endurance races, which are races that last for many hours. These included the 24 Hours of Daytona, the Le Mans race, and the 12 Hours of Sebring. He was also known for helping another famous driver, Mark Donohue, start his professional racing career.
His Final Race
Walt Hansgen's life ended during a test drive for the Le Mans race on April 3, 1966. He was driving a powerful Ford GT 40 Mk2 sports car in the rain. A spokesperson for Ford said that his car seemed to have "aquaplaned" on the wet track. This means the tires lost grip on the road because of the water, making it impossible for him to control the car. He passed away a few days later, on April 7, 1966.
Books About Walt Hansgen
- Michael Argetsinger, Walt Hansgen, His Life and the History of Post-War American Road Racing, David Bull Publishing, 2006, ISBN: 1-893618-54-4
