“Studebaker” is seldom the first marque that comes to mind when speaking of sports cars, yet in the early 1950s, the company’s Proving Ground hosted some of the nation’s largest SCCA gatherings. In the early 1960s, Studebaker invaded the Bonneville Salt Flats in a series of “engineering tests” to promote the company’s new high-performance models. This presentation will examine both events in detail; it will profile the attendees, both human and automotive, contemporary press coverage, and the impact of Studebaker performance initiatives on the company’s fortunes.

Bio

Andrew Beckman has been with the Studebaker National Museum since 1999 and currently serves as Archivist. He previously worked at the Sheboygan County Historical Society in Sheboygan, Wisconsin, and the Wade House State Historic Site in Greenbush, Wisconsin. Mr. Beckman hails from Manitowoc, Wisconsin, and holds a BA in History from the University of Wisconsin- Green Bay. In 2004, he completed the Modern Archives Institute at the National Archives and Records Administration in Washington, D.C. In 2009, he earned his mid-level certificate in Collections Preservation from the Campbell Center for Historic Preservation Studies in Mount Carroll, Illinois. Mr. Beckman is the author of The Studebaker National Museum: Over a Century on Wheels, and Studebaker’s Last Dance: The Avanti, and is a columnist for the Studebaker Drivers Club magazine, Turning Wheels.
In addition to his duties at the Studebaker Museum, Mr. Beckman is a member and Past President of the Society of Automotive Historians. He also serves as a commentator for The Henry Ford Museum’s Motor Muster and Old Car Fest.