| Gil Andersen | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Birth Name: | Gulbrand J. Andersen | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Birth Date: | 27 November 1879 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Birth Place: | Horten, Vestfold, Norway | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Death Place: | Logansport, Indiana, U.S. | ||||||||||||||||||||
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Gilbert J. Andersen (born Gulbrand, November 27, 1879[1] – September 20, 1930) was an American racing driver active during the formative years of auto racing.
Andersen was born on November 27, 1879, in Horten, Vestfold county, Norway.[2] Andersen and his family emigrated to Chicago, Illinois, in 1895, whereupon Andersen took the name Gilbert. He later became a citizen of the United States. He married Elsie Olsen on March 3, 1909, in Minneapolis, Minnesota.[3] He competed in the first six Indianapolis 500 races, appearing in annual races from 1911 through 1916.[2]
One of Andersen's major victories was in the 1913 Elgin National Road Races, which he won at an average speed of 71 mph.[4] On October 9, 1915, he set a new auto speed record of 102.6 mph, winning the first Astor Cup race at Sheepshead Bay. New York.[5] In 1928 Andersen established a new American stock car speed record, when he clocked 106.52 mph in a Stutz Blackhawk on the measured mile at Daytona Beach, Florida.[6]
Andersen worked as an engineer for the Stutz Motor Company. Stutz was in operation from 1911 and continued through 1935. He also was an engineer for the ReVere Motor Company,[7] located in Logansport, Cass County, Indiana.[8]
Andersen died of pulmonary tuberculosis on September 20, 1930, in Logansport, Indiana, at age 50.[2]
| Year | Car | Start | Qual | Rank | Finish | Laps | Led | Retired | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1911 | 10 | 10 | - | - | 11 | 200 | 0 | Running | |
| 1912 | 1 | 1 | 80.930 | 12 | 16 | 80 | 0 | Crash T3 | |
| 1913 | 3 | 14 | 82.630 | 11 | 12 | 187 | 18 | Camshaft gears | |
| 1914 | 24 | 16 | 90.490 | 11 | 26 | 42 | 0 | Cylinder bolts | |
| 1915 | 5 | 5 | 95.140 | 5 | 3 | 200 | 26 | Running | |
| 1916 | 28 | 3 | 95.940 | 3 | 13 | 75 | 0 | Oil line | |
| Totals | 784 | 44 | |||||||
| Starts | 6 | |
|---|---|---|
| Poles | 1 | |
| Front Row | 2 | |
| Wins | 0 | |
| Top 5 | 1 | |
| Top 10 | 1 | |
| Retired | 4 |