Crashes Mar Endurance Race

Exhaust problems in the Ferrari that once held a four-lap margin at Daytona International Speedway helped vault an Oldsmobile Mark III World Sports Car into the lead at the halfway point of the Rolex 24 Hours.

A misty rain made the speedway’s 3.56-mile circuit treacherous as darkness fell, prompting a rash of spins and crashes, as well as a blazing car fire, that brought out a series of full-course caution flags.

The worst of the accidents came in the seventh hour when a pair of GT-1 Porsche 911 Turbos tangled on the high-banked portion of the 3.56-mile road course.

The car driven by sports car veteran Bill Adam rolled rolled several times. Adam was not injured.