A Brief History On May 30, 1911, one of auto racing’s top 3 events was born with the initial running of the Indianapolis 500. (The other 2 of the 3 most prestigious auto races are the 24 Hours at Le Mans and the Monaco Grand Prix, with the 3 races combined referred to as the Triple Crown of Auto Racing.) Digging Deeper Built in 1909 as a primitive asphalt track (using gravel and tar) the fragility of the surface caused the owner to repave the track surface with 3.2 million bricks. Cost of the brick paving: $155,000, a big chunk…
Author: Major Dan
Major Dan
Major Daniel Zar is a retired veteran of the United States Marine Corps. He served during the Cold War and has traveled to many countries around the world. Prior to his military service, he graduated from Cleveland State University, having majored in sociology. Following his military service, he worked as a police officer eventually earning the rank of captain prior to his retirement.
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A Brief History On May 30, 1883, panicked public people pushed, prodded, poked, and pummeled each other in a mad dash to get away from the Brooklyn Bridge when an unfounded rumor circulated that collapse was imminent. Unfortunately, 12 people were stampeded to death because of this reckless and stupid rumor. Here we list 10 false rumors that spread through the public, often with decidedly negative effects, sometimes just a sad reflection on how gullible people can be. Digging Deeper 10. Brooklyn Bridge Collapse, 1883. Open only 6 days earlier, this mighty bridge cost 27 lives during its construction only…
A Brief History On May 29, 1940, the F-4U Corsair made its first flight. The Corsair would go on to great success in its combat career, shooting down 11 Japanese airplanes for every Corsair shot down. Here we list the 10 best fighter airplanes of all time, from World War I to today. As always, we welcome your opinions as to what other fighters deserve mention. Digging Deeper 10. Vought F4U Corsair, 1942. Built from 1942 to 1953, a longer production run than any other piston engine American fighter, 12,571 of these great planes were built. Some were still flying…
A Brief History On May 29, 1940, the F4U Corsair made its first flight, an event that spurred us to offer a list of the “10 Greatest Fighter Planes” on May 29, 2014. This year we counter that with listing 10 of the most under-appreciated, under-rated fighter planes of all time, planes that served well but did not get much press or credit for their contribution, or are often mentioned with caveats about being obsolete or with some deficiency or another. Here we attempt to list the best of that lot. Digging Deeper 10. Mikoyan and Gurevich MiG-17. A follow…
A Brief History On May 29, 2004, President George W. Bush dedicated the World War II Memorial on the National Mall in Washington, D.C. The memorial is between the Washington and Lincoln memorials, east of the Reflecting Pool. Digging Deeper The memorial is located on the former site of the Rainbow Pool, and covers 7.4 acres. The memorial incorporates a fountain, 2 arches (one marked “Atlantic” and the other marked “Pacific”) and 56 granite pillars (17 feet tall) inscribed with the name of each of the 48 states that existed at the time of the war plus Alaska (territory), Hawaii…