56 Facts About Paul Goldsmith

Paul Edward Goldsmith was an American racing driver.

In 1958, driving a Pontiac for Smokey Yunick, Paul Goldsmith won the final NASCAR stock car race on the Daytona Beach road course.

Paul Goldsmith co-owned a service-station in Royal Oak, Michigan, until 1952.

Paul Goldsmith began riding motorcycles soon after the end of the Second World War.

Paul Goldsmith's racing career began by accident in 1946, while spectating an event at Partington Pastures in Sterling Heights, Michigan.

Paul Goldsmith would race Harley-Davidsons throughout his cycling career, possibly inspired by Leo Anthony, a Michigan-born rider at the peak of his career in 1946.

Paul Goldsmith later finished second at the Iowa State Fairgrounds, the best finish of his career up to that point.

Paul Goldsmith scored his third and final podium of the season in an 8-mile national at Williams Grove Speedway, in Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania.

In 1952, Paul Goldsmith competed until midway though the season before scoring his first podium of the year, a third place in the Class C National Championship event, a 25-mile race held at the Illinois State Fairgrounds.

Paul Goldsmith prepared diligently for the event, fine-tuning his engine and testing repeatedly on local roads.

On lap 21, shortly before the midpoint of the race, Paul Goldsmith passed Kretz for the lead heading into the North turn.

Paul Goldsmith would run the remainder of the event unchallenged, setting a new record time of 94.45 MPH.

Paul Goldsmith's victory was Harley-Davidson's first at the event since 1940.

Paul Goldsmith followed up his victory at Daytona with a third place at the Ohio State Fairgrounds 10-mile event.

At Dodge City Raceway, in Dodge City, Kansas, Paul Goldsmith had built up a two-mile lead by the quarter mark of a 200-mile event, before running out of gas.

Paul Goldsmith was voted the AMA Most Popular Rider of the Year for his efforts during the season.

Paul Goldsmith inherited the lead on the eighth lap, as Leonard dropped out with a mechanical issue.

That season, the first in which the AMA applied a championship point system, Paul Goldsmith took a victory in the Charity Newsies, a 10-mile national at the Ohio State Fairgrounds half mile.

Paul Goldsmith finished second at the San Mateo 20-mile event, and took third place at a 5-mile event at Portland Meadows in Portland, Oregon.

Paul Goldsmith finished second on the half mile oval at the Meade County Fairgrounds' 5-mile event in Sturgis, South Dakota.

Paul Goldsmith finished the season second in the AMA National point standings, behind Leonard, his former pupil.

In 1955 Paul Goldsmith won his final AMA event, an 8-mile competition at Illiana Speedway, in Schererville, Indiana.

Paul Goldsmith was frequently racing stock cars by this time.

Paul Goldsmith recorded the final national podium of his career, a third at the Milwaukee Mile 9-mile event on August 27,1955.

Sometime before the 1956 AMA season, Paul Goldsmith signed with Yunick to race Chevrolets during the 1956 NASCAR Grand National season.

Paul Goldsmith told me I shouldn't be riding the bikes but driving full time for Chevy.

Paul Goldsmith first began racing automobiles in 1950, competing in regional events.

Paul Goldsmith experienced quick success, winning his first ever event driving a modified Ford roadster, in a race in Detroit.

Paul Goldsmith had previously impressed Yunick by acing an improvised series of tests developed by Yunick.

Yunick offered Paul Goldsmith a ride driving his Chevrolet on the NASCAR Grand National circuit.

The next event at Langhorne saw Paul Goldsmith considered a dark horse, due to his strong performance at Darlington, and his previous motorcycling experience at Langhorne.

In 1958, Paul Goldsmith was the winner of the final Grand National race at the famous Daytona Beach Road Course.

Paul Goldsmith would begin putting in thousands of miles of testing at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and Southwestern track.

Paul Goldsmith returned to racing in 1960, competing on the USAC circuit.

Paul Goldsmith earned a significant bonus for laps lead during the event, which took place on his 33rd birthday.

Paul Goldsmith opened the 1961 season with a victory in the Jimmy Bryan Memorial, held in Phoenix.

Paul Goldsmith won the 1961 USAC Stock Car national championship, with 7 poles, 10 wins, 16 top-five finishes in 19 races.

Paul Goldsmith won the second heat over Gurney, as was declared the overall winner.

Paul Goldsmith's won his second consecutive road-course event, the Peterborough Invitational Trophy at Circuit Mont-Tremblant, in Canada.

Paul Goldsmith finished second behind Ward in the first heat, and beat Ward in the second.

Paul Goldsmith won the USAC championship in 1962 with 6 poles, 8 wins, and 15 top-five finishes in 20 races.

The end of the season saw Paul Goldsmith seemingly ranked ninth in the points standings.

The day following the race, Henry Banks, USAC official and a former driver, announced that Paul Goldsmith had been suspended by USAC for a period of one year, and stripped him of his points earned during 1963.

Paul Goldsmith threatened to relocate to Mexico, which he claimed would allow him to compete as an FIA-licensed foreign driver.

Paul Goldsmith fell to 15th place during the opening lap, after going off-course at the first turn.

Paul Goldsmith finished in second behind he winner, Norm Nelson.

At the IRP oval two races later, Paul Goldsmith won over Nelson, driving the 150-mile event without pitting.

Paul Goldsmith won three more races heading into the final race of the season, but lost the championship to Norm Nelson during the final event of the season.

Paul Goldsmith competed in 8 races in the USAC Championship Car series, between 1958 and 1963 with 6 of those starts in the Indianapolis 500.

Paul Goldsmith finished in the top five twice at Indianapolis, following up a 5th-place finish in 1959 with a 3rd in 1960.

Paul Goldsmith participated in three World Drivers' Championship races at Indianapolis.

Paul Goldsmith finished in the top three once, and scored six World Drivers' Championship points.

For several decades following racing, Paul Goldsmith owned a series of ranches and restaurants.

Paul Goldsmith remained an active pilot and worker, and was the owner-operator of the Griffith-Merrillville Airport in Griffith, Indiana.

Paul Goldsmith died in Munster, Indiana, on September 6,2024, at the age of 98.

Paul Goldsmith has been inducted into the following halls of fame:.