#99- Carl Edwards got to drive a 1901 Ford driven by Henry Ford himself to win in a two-automobile race at a horse racing track in Grosse Pointe on Oct. 10, 1901. Edwards drove the vintage racer while visiting Greenfield Village in Dearborn earlier this week. NASCAR is at Michigan International Speedway this weekend. ‘We got it up to 20 or 25 miles per hour on the road there, but they said it would go 73 back in 1901’ Edwards said. ‘It was scarier driving that thing 25 miles per hour than it was driving the corner here at 205.” The car was named ‘Sweepstakes” because the 1901 race was a sweepstakes race. Ford, struggling after the failure of his Detroit Automobile Company, entered a race against fellow automobile maker Alexander Winton in hopes of re-establishing some credibility. Ford trailed early, but rallied to defeat Winton. With his reputation restored, Ford went on to start Ford Motor Company in 1903.( Michigan Live )
