WATKINS GLEN, NY (WENY) -- If you like history, racing, and films, then Thursday night's event is made for you. Three films celebrating historical racing will be shown at the Watkins Glen Elementary School auditorium from 5 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.
"[Thursday] night's presentation will be three motorsports movies. [We'll show] 'The Legend of Stan Bowman,' 'Legends of Racing: AJ Foyt', and 'Shirley (The Story of Shirley Muldowney),'" said the Director of Visitor Services at the International Motor Racing Research Center, Kip Zeiter.
AJ Foyt is the first four-time winner of the Indy 500. Foyt won 14 major driving championships and was the 1975 Driver of the Year, among a long list of achievements. Stan Bowman was a United States Auto Club Sprint Car driver who won the first race he participated in at the 1962 Eldora Speedway. Shirley Muldowney is known as the 'First Lady of Drag Racing.' She was also the first woman to receive her license from the National Hot Rod Association to drive a Top Fuel dragster.
Zeiter encourages anyone who is able, to come out and watch the films.
"Not only are the topics exciting, obviously they deal with motorsports and that's what we're all about here... It's a look back in history... AJ Foyt was legendary, even if you're not a racing fan, everybody knows who AJ Foyt is. Shirley Muldowney may appeal to a somewhat more limited base and so will Mr. Bowman... The important thing about the Bowman movie is it's a great look back at what racing was like in the early to mid-60s and how extremely dangerous it was..." said Zeiter.
On Friday and Saturday, (11/1 and 11/2) there will be the eighth annual Michael R. Argetsinger Symposium on International Motor Racing History. There will be morning and afternoon sessions both days from 9 a.m. to about 5:30/5:45 p.m. The event is happening at Watkins Glen International's Media Center. Please enter through Gate 2.
The sessions are free to attend and no registration is required.
The list of events happening Nov. 1st and 2nd can be found below:
November 1st:
9 a.m. to 9:15 a.m.: Welcome and Introductory Remarks
9:15 a.m. to 10 a.m.: Remember When They Beat the 'Cup' Boys? Ray Elder, The Racing Farmers, and The Rise of the NASCAR Winston West Series - Daniel Simone
10 a.m. to 10:45 a.m.: Formula One at Watkins Glen: Sporting Gentlemen in a Small Town - James Miller
10:45 a.m. to 11 a.m.: Break
11 a.m. to 11:45 a.m.: The P2 Alfa: Fascist Icon - Paul Baxa
11:45 a.m. to 12:45 p.m.: Jean S. Argetsinger Memorial Keynote Address: Decades Make a Difference - Lyn St. James
Lunch & Lunchtime Zoom Sessions:
12:45 p.m. to 2:15 p.m. Group B Rally Revisited: Who Was Best, Audi's Mikkola, Rohrl and Mouton, Lancia's Alen and Toivonen, or Peugeot's Vatanen? - Jon Summers via Zoom
Nazi Rekordwochen (Record Weeks): 1939 The Final Act of an Automobile Speed Folly - Aldo Zana via Zoom
Afternoon Sessions
2:15 p.m. to 3 p.m.: Economic Engines: The Unexpected Consequences of US Regulatory Changes on Motorsports - Quinn Beekwilder
3 p.m. to 3:45 p.m.: Yes, FI VVIP Really is a Thing: Exclusive Visitor Attraction Experiences for Elite Individuals - Jean Williams via Zoom
3:45 p.m. to 4 p.m.: Break
4 p.m. to 4:45 p.m.: The Best Years of Our Lives (The Rebirth of Postwar European Motorsports) - Elton (Skip) McGoun
4:45 p.m. to 5:30 p.m.: Literature Review on Women in Motorsport - Michael Stocz
5:30 p.m. to 5:45 p.m.: Closing Remarks
6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.: Open Reception - Watkins Glen Area Chamber of Commerce (214 N. Franklin St. Watkins Glen, NY 14891)
November 2nd:
9 a.m. to 9:15 a.m.: Welcome and Introductory Remarks
9:15 a.m. to 10 a.m.: Poll Position: NASCAR Nation and National Politics - Mark Howell via Zoom
10 a.m. to 10:45 a.m.: From Power Puff to W Series: The Evolution of Women-Only Racing - Chris Lezotte
10:45 a.m. to 11 a.m.: Break
11 a.m. to 11:45 a.m.: Speed Racing in the Hands of Britannia? Empire and British Prestige in 1930s British Motor Racing - Katharine Worth via Zoom
11:45 a.m. to 12:45 p.m.: Perspectives on Motorsport Journalism, 1952-1972 - McPherson College: Luke Chennell, Kevin Yohn, & Kristie Sjoka
12:45 p.m. to 2:15 p.m.: Lunch & Lunctime Roundtable
Roundtable on the State of Field of Motor Sport History - H. Donald Capps, Moderator
Afternoon Sessions
2:15 p.m. to 3 p.m.: Studebaker at Indianapolis - Andrew Beckman
3 p.m. to 3:45 p.m.: David Crowther, the Ultimate Weekend Warrior - Alana Roberts
3:45 p.m. to 4 p.m.: Break
4 p.m. to 4:45 p.m.: Overview of E-Motorsports - Tom Adamich
4:45 p.m. to 5:30 p.m.: How to Beat the Mercedes-Benz W196: Alternative History Accelerates the Mid-Engine Revolution - Karl-Heinz Mertins
5:30 p.m. to 5:45 p.m.: Closing Remarks