Taken from the vchs communities section of ICS web server

Taken from the vchs communities section of ICS web server..
----------------
The Sumar Racing Team

Anyone who spends much time in Indiana knows that the smells of a
Hoosier summer are unforgettable - honeysuckle, new-mown hay…and racing
fuel.

On July 7, 1995, fans at the Terre Haute Action Track thrilled to the
roar of USAC Silver Crown cars as the green flag fell on the inaugural
running of the Sumar Classic 100, a tribute to Terre Haute's own Sumar
Racing Team.

Much of the history of racing in Terre Haute was born from the presence
of hometown boy Tony Hulman, who made the Indianapolis Motor Speedway
the mother church of auto racing. It was only natural that his friends,
Chapman Root and Don Smith, would be bitten by the racing bug. In 1952
Root and Smith formed the Sumar Racing Team, named for their wives, Sue
Root and Mary Frances Smith. The Sumar Racing Team ran in AAA and USAC
sanctioned events at Monza, Italy; Milwaukee; Langhorne; Phoenix; Du
Quoin; Las Vegas; Sacramento; and, of course, Indy.

Sumar located its original garage facilities at 109 North 7th Street in
Terre Haute and raced under the masterful eye of Chief Mechanic John
Blouch. The first race they entered was the 1953 Indianapolis 500. In
that first run, the skillful Jimmy Daywalt presented Sumar with an
amazing sixth-place finish and was named Rookie of the Year. For the
next eight years the blue-and- white machines often paced the pack.

Drivers for Team Sumar included Daywalt, Marshall Teague, Johnnie
Parsons, Dick Rathman, Johnny Boyd, Bobby Grim, Gene Hartley and Pat
O'Connor. Sumar raced from 1953 until 1960, and Terre Haute cheered them
through all eight seasons.

Smith, a long-time racing promoter at the Action Track, currently serves
on the Indy Racing League board of directors and is Chairman and Chief
Executive Officer for First Financial Corp. A noted philanthropist, the
late Chapman S. Root was president of Associated Coca-Cola and grandson
of C.J. Root who developed and manufactured the original Coca-Cola
bottle.

Rob's note: Chief Mechanic John Blouch is/was the father of '58 Wiley
grad John Blouch and '60 Wiley grad (I think) Molly Blouch..  Marvin's note:  Cathie Blouch was the third daughter of John who also went to Wiley and graduated with me in 1961.