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George Waltman completes the 1968 24 Hours of Daytona solo

Submitted by on December 28, 20116 Comments

George Waltman sits in his Aztec Racing Morgan Plus 4 after single handedly completing the 1968 24 Hours of Daytona at Daytona International Speedway.

Waltman’s entry at Daytona that year is one of those stories that make racing fans shake their heads in wonderment.  George was from Great Neck, NY and he decided to enter his car in the third running of the 24 hour race at Daytona in 1968.  His entry was unusual because George drove the entire 24-hour race without benefit of a co-driver or pit crew.

On top of that he did not tow his race car from New York to Florida but drove the 1,000 plus miles by himself to the raceway.  Racing rules back then required that he had to take a one hour rest break out of every four he was on the track and he did comply.  During his break he would service the car, might take a nap, or get a bite to eat.  When leaving the pit area to take care of business or get something to eat he would place an “Out To Lunch” sign on the car.

Because had no pit crew he had to change tires and fuel the car himself whenever he pitted during the race.  Waltman persevered and was the last car running at the end of the 24 hours, and he finished 30th overall, some 335 laps behind the winner. He then changed the oil and drove the car back to New York.

By Lou Galanos

(Photo by ISC Images & Archives via Getty Images)

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  • http://jeffdowberbailbonds.com Jeff Downer Indianapolis, Indiana

    I cannot begin to tell you how much I love that story! In a Morgan to boot. Are those street tires on the car?

  • Louis Galanos

    Not sure about the tires but they do look like street tires. No doubt he scrounged whatever he could get from oil, gas and tire companies that were at the race. I also understand that some of the entries at Daytona took pity on him and assisted him if they could. BTW, during this time period some fellow drove the entire Sebring 12 Hour race in a Triumph TR-4 without a co-driver and finished. No wonder the ’60s and ’70s are often called the “Golden Age of Endurance Racing.”

  • Stig Richards

    My newest racing hero! And I thought I had it tough driving three hours (in my windscreen-less PRB… like a Caterham) to race a weekend, changing from road tyres to the slicks transported to the track by a friend, racing a few sprint races, and swapping tyres back to drive home.

    This guy though…. legend.

  • cw

    Great photo. George waltman is actually the person standing(or sitting on the door) behind the person in the drivers seat. He’s 3rd in from the left (viewing the picture) :)

  • Clark Lance

    Rest in Peace George. He passed away earlier this month. I was privileged to have know George for the past 10 years. George piloted B-29s in the Pacific during WW2, competed in the first Bahamas Road Races, finished solo drives at both Sebring 12 Hour and Daytona 24 Hour. Boy Scout, Bomber Pilot and Sports Car Racer……George Waltman was my friend and he will be missed by many who marveled at his accomplishments.

    Clark Lance

  • toly arutunoff

    Toly sez: I heard that he collected WW1-era seaplanes later in life. we were at Daytona and I thought about volunteering to co-drive with George but friends told me that’d be silly. I’m sorry I listened to them. I do remember the car on a jack or jackstands with someone checking the underneath while George took a nap after midnight. He rolled the Mog in the esses at Sebring but although the stewards couldn’t fine anything wrong with it after he drove back to the pits they decided to disqualify him from the race.