PHOTO COURTESY OF THE INDIANAPOLIS MOTOR SPEEDWAY
Boyle Headquarters
In order to “Save The Boyle” we have initiated a fundraising campaign to raise $750,000. Donald Davidson, the esteemed historian for the Indiana Motor Speedway, has stated that the Boyle Racing Headquarters housed one of the most significant race teams in open wheel racing history. "Umbrella Mike" and names such as Wilbur Shaw and Cotton Henning were critical to racing from the 1920’s through the 1940’s at the Speedway.
In 1939 and 1940, driving the Boyle Maserati, Wilbur Shaw won the Indianapolis 500. After World War II, with the future of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in jeopardy, Wilbur Shaw approached Tony Hulman about purchasing the track from Eddie Rickenbacker...and the rest is history.
The building where many of these historic events took place is in danger of total collapse. The “Save The Boyle” committee needs your help in order to restore this important part of racing history.
PHOTO COURTESY OF THE INDIANAPOLIS MOTOR SPEEDWAY
Mike Boyle, "Cotton" Henning, Boyle Racing Headquarters, 1934
The Save The Boyle committee asks for your participation to restore this important structure.
The 1926 Indianapolis 500 saw a new type of team owner. He wasn’t an automaker, mechanic or parts manufacturer — he was a union boss. Mike Boyle was the head of the Chicago IBEW and one of history’s most powerful labor leaders. For “Umbrella Mike,” as he was known, this wasn’t enough. He was after something even greater: winning the Indianapolis 500.
Umbrella Mike’s Race Team was comprised of today’s legends. “Wild Bill” Cummings, Wilbur Shaw, Chet Miller and Harry “Cotton” Henning made Boyle Racing and its headquarters a driving force in Indianapolis. These men built a race team of unequaled mechanical advancement and fierce competitiveness for their time.
Umbrella Mike created a company to sponsor his racing interests. That company was Boyle Valve Products. During the late ’20s, ’30s and ’40s, the famed Boyle Red Triangle, the clovered pipe of Boyle Valve products or the moniker of the IBEW was always affixed to the side panels of his race cars.
Boyle’s first win came in 1934 with Bill Cummings piloting a Miller-powered Boyle Valve Special. His most notable wins came in 1939 and 1940, as Wilbur Shaw dominated in the legendary Maserati 8ctf Boyle Valve Special.
Without these victories, Wilbur Shaw would never have had the reputation or prestige necessary to encourage Tony Hulman to purchase the Indianapolis Motor Speedway from track owner and aviator Eddie Rickenbacker.
The legacy left by Umbrella Mike Boyle and his Boyle Racing Headquarters may be nothing short of the existence of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and the Indianapolis 500 today.