Sebring International Raceway

A child was born in Green Park during the Sebring 12 hours:  FICTION  We have no evidence this ever happened. Remember, we are talking about a child being born in Green Park, not conceived. However, children were born at this location when it was a military base.   Several cars started the 1955 Sebring 12 Hours without permission, sneaking on to the track during the start.  FACT  Six drivers of reserve entries, unhappy they were not allowed to start, decided to go on the track at the start, they all did one or two laps and then got off the track.   Even though there was no Sebring race in 1974, devoted fans showed up anyway.  FACT  The actual number of fans who showed up that year is uncertain, estimated somewhere between 2,000 and 5,000.   The Governor of Florida was once given a tour on the Sebring circuit while the race was going on.  FACT  In 1950 Sebring promoter Alec Ulmann took Gov. Fuller Warren on a lap around the track while the race was in progress!   A Ford GT involved in a fatal accident back in 1966 is buried at the track.  FACT  A Ford GT driven by Bob McLean, in which he was killed during a fiery accident approaching the hairpin in 1966, was buried at nearby property. There was very little left of the car.  The remains of an Alfa Romeo also are buried near the circuit. We’re not telling where.   Peanuts comic strip artist Charles Schulz painted the 1964 Sebring poster.  FICTION  The artist in 1964 was named Shultz, spelled different than the Peanuts creator.   Jim Morrison, lead singer for the Doors, attended the Sebring 12 hours.  FACT  By all accounts, Morrison attended the 1962 and/or 1963 race. Remember, he was born in Melbourne Florida and attended St Petersburg Junior College and Florida State University.   Gene Hackman, James Brolin, Lorenzo Lamas, Paul Newman, Steve McQueen, David Carradine and James Garner are all actors who have driven in the 12 Hours of Sebring.  FACT (except Garner)  Yes, they all did except Garner, who was a car owner in the 1960s and attended Sebring regularly but never drove in the race.   All-time Sebring winner Tom Kristensen waved to fans at a Turn 10 campsite during a caution period while leading the 1999 Sebring 12 Hours.  MAYBE  Some fans swear he did. Tom will only say “I could have, I might have.”   The race was once red-flagged because an alligator was on the track.  FICTION  Alligators have made their way on to the track at Sebring, but not during the race.   During the 1957 Sebring 12 Hours, Stirling Moss slowed down at the Hairpin so someone could handle him a cold bottle of Coca-Cola.  FACT  Legendary photo journalist Bernard Cahier handed Moss the Coke at the Hairpin, and on the next lap Moss tossed the empty bottle!    The race was once yellow-flagged because the track was running out of fuel for the teams.  FACT  In 1983, a yellow flag was needed to allow a fuel truck to cross the track to bring more fuel. There were 83 cars in the race that year!   A notorious serial killer raced in the 12 Hours of Sebring.  FACT  Christopher Wilder, later to be discovered as the “Beauty Queen” serial killer, drove in the 1983 race. He was killed by police the following year trying to cross the border into Canada.   Apple co-founder Steve Jobs drove in the 12 Hours of Sebring.  FICTION  He attended the race in 1980, but he never drove in the race.   During the first two Sebring 12-hour races, armed patrols on horseback were hired to shoot stray animals that could have wandered on the circuit.  FACT  Wild boar and deer were a concern of the race organizers.   Dale Earnhardt had a “secret” test in a factory Corvette at Sebring shortly before he died.  FACT  Earnhardt and his son Dale Jr. tested with the Corvette team in December 2000.   The famous B-17 called “Memphis Belle” landed at Hendricks Field during Word War II.  FACT  The Memphis Belle landed at Hendricks Field as part of a War Bond drive and moral booster for the crews training in Sebring.   A Led Zeppelin concert scheduled at Sebring Raceway was cancelled at the last minute.  FICTION  In 1975, Led Zeppelin, BTO and the J. Geils Band cancelled a concert appearance at Palm Beach International Raceway, not Sebring. However, a Joe Cocker concert scheduled at the 1975 Sebring 12 Hours was cancelled only two weeks before the race.   The Sebring race was scheduled to relocate to West Palm Beach in 1967.  FACT  Yes, Alec Ulmann officially announced this but it obviously never happened, in part due to heavy rains that flooded the new track near West Palm Beach a few months before the race. Ulmann considered moving the race to Fort Lauderdale in 1957.   When preparing for the construction of the new pits in 1999, construction workers found live WWII era ammunition from Hendricks Field.  FICTION  Never happened. Nor did they find Jimmy Hoffa.   Roger Penske’s Chevrolet Lola was stolen after the 1969 Sebring 12 Hours.  FACT  While towing the car back from Sebring, the team stopped near Ormond Beach, where it was stolen (most of it was eventually recovered).   A movie starring Robert Redford was filmed at Sebring Raceway.  FACT  Portions of the 1975 movie “The Great Waldo Pepper” were filmed at the Sebring Airport and Raceway.   The car that won the first ever race at Sebring in 1950 was actually a spectator’s car.  FACT  Victor Sharpe of Tampa drove his Crosley Hot Shot to the Sam Collier 6-hour Memorial race in 1950. He was convinced to loan his car to drivers Ralph Deshon and Fritz Koster. They ended up winning the race, which was run on a handicap formula.   A spectator once arrived three months early to get in line for the race.  FACT  The earliest arrival was by Patrick Taylor of Palm Bay, Florida, who arrived on December 26th 2003, nearly three months before the race.   The 1974 race, before being cancelled, was changed to a 1,200 kilometer race (instead of 12 hours) to save fuel.  FACT  The sanctioning organization changed the race name to the “Sebring-Camel 1200 km” instead of “The 12 Hours of Sebring.” However, the race was never held.   The 12 Hours of Sebring was once a 24-hour race.  FICTION  For some reason this is one of the most common myths about Sebring. The race was NEVER a 24-hour race.   One of the victims of the Charles Manson family in 1969 was hair salon entrepreneur Jay Sebring, who named himself after the famous 12-hour race.  FACT  Sadly true. He real name was Thomas Kummer, but he chose Jay “Sebring” because he liked the name of the famous Florida sports car race.   Walter Cronkite once drove in the 12 Hours of Sebring.  FACT  The famous journalist drove a Lancia in the 1959 Sebring 12 Hours. On his first practice lap three days before the race, he witnessed a fatal accident when Edwin Lawrence crashed his Maserati at the Hairpin. Lawrence’s family comes to the 12 Hours race every year, camps at the track and holds a private memorial service.

1. ALL guests are REQUIRED to have fun. 

2. While having said fun, please be safe, act responsibly, and respect your neighbors. 

3. Our Legal Dept. and insurance carrier freak out over drones, golf carts, scooters, motorcycles, ATVs, buggies and bicycles. If you exercise bad judgment and bring them to the track, round-the-clock day care (aka, “Impound”) is provided for these vehicles. 

4. Children 12-and-under are admitted free with ticketed adult. (Daycare is NOT provided for these children.) 

5. Guests with special needs must pick up passes at Registration for special viewing and parking access. 

6. Hey, it’s sports car racing, and it runs rain or shine. So, don’t EVEN ask for a refund. 

7. WE LOVE PETS! Which is why we must insist that you LEAVE THEM HOME. They would rather be anywhere but a racetrack. 

8. Please do not create your own city, state or country by roping off an area of our beloved property. Guests may choose to reserve spaces by purchasing a reserved space, but NOT by marking territory with ropes and streamers. That just irritates people. 

9. Feel free to fire up your BBQ grills. However, most other fires are BAD, and therefore prohibited, i.e., fireworks, firearms, fuses, and burning furniture. 

10. Due to gravity, we limit scaffolding to 6-feet tall. 

11. If you gotta make a beer run, go to the house to turn off the stove, or need to do anything else beyond our gates, your TICKET AND A PASS-OUT must be presented for readmission. 

12. Cruising is a Sebring tradition that will live longer than you, especially if you choose to cruise without sitting securely with seatbelts fastened. CLICK IT! 

13. Not even the Sheriff’s Department takes a golf cart into Green Park. Don’t think you can. 

14. The Sebring Raceway staff is going to bed at noon on Sunday. So, please go home – with ALL of your stuff – before then.

Clark's Excellent 2017 Pictures

Clarks even better 2018 Photos