He farmed chickens in Texas. He won dozens of American sports car races in the 1950s. He drove an Aston Martin DBR1 to win the 1959 24 Hours of Le Mans. He created the Cobra sports car. He went to Europe with the Cobra and beat Ferrari at Le Mans, and the Cobra became the first American car to win an international racing championship. He built the Ford GT40 Mk II and Mk IV that won the 24 Hours of Le Mans. He built fast Mustangs. He built fast Dodges. He was part of the creation of the Dodge Viper. He was a part of Ford's return to the business of fast street cars.
He is Carroll Shelby and no matter how you slice it, he's an American icon. And like any icon, there are great images to accompany his accomplishments. We present some of Shelby's better moments in this gallery by following him from his early behind-the-wheel-accomplishments through his current involvement with Ford's latest projects.
The following 51 images are the Art of Shelby.
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zoomzoomn says:
12:43 PM, 01/13/2010
Can you even imagine what it was like to be there in the hey-day? It must have been awesome!
50five says:
12:02 PM, 01/13/2010
An icon and a character for sure. A lot more could be done with his fascinating history. I just wish he would focus on preserving his legacy instead of getting into image tarnishing lawsuits and vouching for bogus products...M-Zax anyone?
mikedrud says:
10:08 AM, 01/13/2010
I love the photo of Carroll Smith in the cowboy hat (second panel of photos). In that pic, he looks like the coolest man on the planet.
Can the American auto industry recover? If we produced guys like Shelby, we can do anything. We need individuals like Shelby to enter the fray again and show that we're capable of producing the best products in the world.
Great photos.
firstclass says:
09:22 AM, 01/13/2010
I remember watching a documentary type show which showcased the construction of the Shelby GR-1 Concept. I remember everyone was hesitant to touch it. I love that Carroll Shelby realizes what a car is for. I remember he didn't hesitate to lean against it for that photo.
@-bodyblue
Some dodges would be nice...even the Rampage. A picture of Carroll Shelby piloting the pre-production Dodge Viper pace vehicle at the Indianapolis 500 would have been nice. And the Dodge Omni GLH which Shelby named GLH meaning-Goes.Like.Hell, was a perfect example of Shelby's humor.
bodyblue says:
08:58 AM, 01/13/2010
Not one pic of the Dodge years? I love the Mustang and Cobra pics but the Shelby Dodges were fun and crazy cars for the years they were produced.
isend2c says:
11:21 PM, 01/12/2010
I'm very glad to see this. He deserves having this, I mean, it is just a collection of pictures, but it shows respect for him and his accomplishments. It's great to see this kind of a photo series.