Sneva enjoys ‘dessert’ of his career

DETROIT – A man who grew up with a basketball often in his hands has been enshrined forever holding a steering wheel.

Spokane native Tom Sneva, 57, was inducted into the Motorsports Hall of Fame of America Thursday, capping an Indy racing career that included an Indianapolis 500 win, two national championships and a pair of record-setting performances.

Sneva, a fan favorite known for always making time to sign autographs, raced until 1992 and works as a racing coach for the Panther Racing Team.

Sneva’s charisma and his ability to connect with fans helped increase the popularity of Indy racing, said Indianapolis Motor Speedway owner and Indy Racing League chief operating officer Tony George, who presented Sneva during an induction ceremony at the State Theater.

“There is a great importance in our sport to gaining popularity among fans,” George said. “I think one of the most important things in doing that is accessibility. Tom Sneva has always been one of the most accessible people in our sport.”

Sneva, who was a teacher, principal and coach in his early 20s, admits his Hall of Fame career path has taken some strange twists. But Thursday’s induction was a sweet reward for decades of hard work, said Sneva, who lives in Phoenix.

“This is kind of like the dessert after dinner,” Sneva said. “I’ve been very fortunate to make a living at something I love.”

But perhaps not his first love. Growing up in an area where basketball courts were more common than race tracks, Sneva said he hoped to make his mark as a shooter – not as a driver.”

“There wasn’t very much of a racing scene in Spokane,” Sneva said. “That made it tough (to compete).”

He was the third-leading scorer on the 1966 Lewis and Clark City League championship basketball team and played for two years at Eastern Washington University before realizing he needed to find a new outlet.

“The market for slow, short white guys was not very big,” Sneva said.

But no one called Sneva slow when he got behind the wheel of a race car. Sneva, nicknamed “The Gasman,” stormed onto the Indy racing scene in 1974, qualifying for his first Indy 500. Sneva joined a special group of racers that year, said Bill Simpson, a fellow Hall of Famer, who shared a rookie year with Sneva.

“Only 360 guys had ever qualified for the Indy 500 at that time,” Simpson said. “When we qualified, it was big. It’s a small fraternity – a brotherhood.”

Sneva, however, quickly separated himself from the pack. He became the first driver to top the 200 miles per hour mark while qualifying for the 1977 Indianapolis 500 and then became the first to top 210 mph while qualifying for the 1984 Indianapolis 500. He finished the race three times in second place before winning it in 1983.

Sneva remains Washington’s only Indianapolis 500 champion, but said he hopes people remember more about him than his victories.

“I hope people will remember that I gave back to the sport,” Sneva said. “I’ve always worked to make the sport safer, more competitive and more entertaining.”