The Ford Mustang GT-350 and GT-500 are striking in their splendor. Many films were made about the creation and designers of this memorable vehicle. Carroll Shelby is a legendary man who determined in many ways the whole era of life in America.
Biography
Carroll Hall Shelby was born on January 11, 1923 in Leesburg. He became world famous after creating versions of Ford cars. In his time, he founded a company that functions today. She specializes in the sale of modified Ford cars, and is also involved in tuning.
Carroll's father was a rural postman, and his mother a housewife. As a child, Shelby spent a lot of time lying in bed, since at the age of seven he had problems with a heart valve. Only by the age of fourteen had improved health. Shelby later says that his health problems simply outgrew.
Carroll Shelby: personal life
The famous designer married more than once and has several children.
List of Carroll Shelby's wives and children:
- Jeanne Fields. He married her on December 18, 1943. A year after the marriage, their firstborn was born - the girl Sharon Ann. The couple also got two more sons - Michael Hall and Patrick Burt. After seventeen years of marriage, the couple decided to divorce.
- Cleo Patricia Margarita became Carroll Shelby's second wife on September 3, 1997. He lived with her until his death. They did not get common children.
Carroll Shelby: life before the race
Immediately after graduation, the future world famous driver was drafted into the army. While attending middle school, Shelby coached driving skills on his first Willys car. In the United States Army, Carroll got into aviation and even participated in World War II as a flight instructor and test pilot.
After the war ended, Shelby tried to do different business, not shying away from anything. I tried to breed chickens and sell oil. But still, his true passion was racing.
Racer profession
At first, Carroll played in tournaments as an amateur. The beginning of his career in time coincided with the emergence of racing championships in the United States. For the first time legally, he got behind the wheel of a car at a competition at the age of twenty-nine. And two years later he received the status of a professional Carroll Shelby. Racer’s career was easy for him to build, as this is exactly what he always wanted to do. In an interview, he said that it was just luck, he was lucky to be in the right place at the right time.
In the near future, teams such as Aston Martin and Maserati wanted Carroll Shelby to become their pilot. Photos of him were regularly published in magazines, and one of them gave him the title "Best Racer."
In America, championships were not paid because they were considered amateur. Therefore, Carroll began to participate in the European. Together with teammate Roy Saltvadori, he won first place in a twenty-four-hour race in an Aston Martin car in 1959. And from 1958 to 1959 he was a member of Formula 1.
During her life, Shelby set about sixteen American and international records. He also participated in eight world championships and several commercial ones.
In December 1960, Carroll Shelby held the final race of his career. To participate in it, his choice was limited to the brand of the Maserati car. In the race, he took fifth place. However, Carroll Shelby won the championship of the year and retired with a victory in his hands.
Designer profession
At the age of 37, Shelby's health deteriorated. Carroll could no longer afford to race. However, he could not abandon the main love of his life - cars.
Returning to America, he organized a school where he taught driving skills and the company Shelby-American company. After receiving permission, he began to transport racing English cars, manufactured by AC Motors. At his company, he changed the original engine to a Ford engine and presented to the public a new car for American car enthusiasts - Shelby (or Shelby Conra).
After a successful partnership, Ford entrusted Carroll Shelby with one of her models. "Mustang", which is beautiful in everything, did not have a sports image. It was precisely this task that Shelby was given, with which he successfully coped. In a specially constructed factory in a suburb of Los Angeles, about two hundred Shelby GT 350s were produced per month, subsequently successfully participating in competitions.
Upon completion of cooperation with Ford, Carroll Shelby took part in the development of other car brands, namely the Dodge, Chrysler and Oldsmobile. This period of time was the end of the era of muscle cars. Therefore, Shelby began working on a lightweight but powerful car. And the unsurpassed Dodge Viper appears. This car is still relevant and does not leave anyone indifferent.
In 2003, Carroll Shelby regains contact with the Ford. At the same time, he founded his company. For Ford, he gave technical advice on the Ford GT project.
