Race car’s brakes failed

Nothing could stop the Sprit of Jay County three decades ago.

That’s no metaphor.

The Spirit of Jay County, a local entry in the coast-to-coast Interstate Batteries Great American Race, fell victim to brake problems as it traveled through the Rockies 30 years ago this week.

“We stop by dragging our feet,” George L. Reitenour, owner-driver of the 1936 Studebaker Dictator Coupe, said in a story published in The Commercial Review on June 27, 1988. “I’ve gone through three pairs of sneakers already.”

Although joking about the feet, the brake issue was no laughing matter. The problem began as the race — a road rally for pre-1937 vehicles — moved from the Sierras to the deserts of Nevada.

The red and silver Studebaker, which encountered mechanical problems the first day of the race after leaving Disney Land, developed a failing master brake cylinder.

To make matters worse for Reitenour and navigator Alfred Hadley, the high altitude began to take its toll on the racers too.

Reitenour, a former open heart surgery patient with only one functioning lung, had breathing problems as the race climbed to about 7,000 feet above sea level.

Sprit was equipped with an oxygen tank that was put to good use, and Reitenour was checked regularly by a Syracuse, Indiana, heart specialist who was also participating in the race.