| Jimmy Snyder | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Birth Name: | James Leroy Snider | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Birth Date: | 10 March 1909 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Birth Place: | Chicago, Illinois, U.S. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Death Place: | East St. Louis, Illinois, U.S. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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James Leroy Snyder (March 10, 1909 – June 29, 1939) was an American racing driver.[1] He also played one game for the Milwaukee Badgers of the National Football League (NFL) in 1925.[2] [3] Aged 16 during his NFL debut, he was the youngest player in NFL history.
Snyder was part of the midget car racing "Chicago Gang" with Emil Andres, Tony Bettenhausen, Cowboy O'Rourke, Paul Russo, and Wally Zale.[4] These racers toured tracks in the Midwest and East Coast of the United States.
Snyder won the 1937 track championship at the Chicago Armory & Riverview.[5] He also set a new track record at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway for that season's Indianapolis 500.
Snyder appeared in five Indianapolis 500s. He won the pole for the 1939 Indianapolis 500, setting another new track record in the process. He finished second in the event.
Snyder died in East St. Louis, Illinois hospital on June 29, 1939, shortly after being injured in a midget racing accident in Cahokia, Illinois.
| Year | Car | Start | Qual | Rank | Finish | Laps | Led | Retired | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1935 | 39 | 30 | 112.249 | 29 | 22 | 97 | 0 | Spring | |
| 1936 | 43 | 16 | 111.291 | 32 | 30 | 21 | 0 | Oil leak | |
| 1937 | 5 | 19 | 125.287 | 1 | 32 | 27 | 24 | Transmission | |
| 1938 | 6 | 15 | 123.506 | 4 | 15 | 150 | 92 | Supercharger | |
| 1939 | 10 | 1 | 130.138 | 1 | 2 | 200 | 65 | Running | |
| Totals | 495 | 181 | |||||||
| Starts | 5 | |
|---|---|---|
| Poles | 1 | |
| Front Row | 1 | |
| Wins | 0 | |
| Top 5 | 1 | |
| Top 10 | 1 | |
| Retired | 4 |