Triple Treat—Andial’s 1981 Hat Trick

As Rolf Stommelen climbed behind the wheel of the front-running Andial/Meister Porsche 935K3 after co-driver Derek Bell had pitted to refuel and take on four new tires, rising American star Bobby Rahal found himself leading Mid-Ohio’s $50,000-to-win “all-comers” Lumbermens 500 in the Group 6 Red Roof Inns Ralt RT-2 he was sharing with patron Jim Trueman. As Rahal closed on the rejoining Stommelen he seemed to be thinking about lapping the German before making his own second pit stop.

“I turned to (Andial crew chief) Alwin Springer,” remembered the late Drino Miller, the team’s technical consultantat the time, “and I said, ‘I hope Rahal is not so stupid that he’s going to try to pass Rolf.’ Alwin says, ‘Aww. You gotta be fair and you gotta look in the mirror and you gotta let him by,’ but I said, ‘I’ve been around a long time and I know how it works.’