Mike Kelley, Volunteer Coordinator at The Museum of Speed provided us with a "tour" of the museum at Lincoln South Rotary Club on February 28, 2020.
(Visit https://www.museumofamericanspeed.com/ for additional information and photos of some of the fabulous items on display.)
Mike started by giving us a bit of the history of Speedway Motors and The Museum of Speed.
Speedway Motors was founded in 1952 by "Speedy" Bill and Joyce Smith. Their four sons still run the family-owned business. Speedway Motors is America's Oldest Speed Shop and a trusted source for hot rod parts and racing parts.
The Museum of American Speed is a non-profit corporation founded in 1992 by Bill and Joyce. The museum was designed to present a chronology of automotive racing history displaying the Smiths’ passion for collecting as well as racing and hot rodding.
There are 44 volunteers, 18 of which conduct tours - 5000 hours of tours annually. Per TripAdvisor the #1 thing to do when visiting Lincoln is The Museum of Speed. He said that during our summer they get more visitors from Australia (their winter) than from Lincoln.
The displays change weekly. There are currently 12 galleries with a 13th scheduled to be open soon. The museum is set on 3 floors.
On any given day you can see 130 cars, 600 engines, 600 pedal cars, 54 stringed instruments (including signed guitars from BB King, Willie Nelson, Beach Boys and others), 179 monkey wrenches and 500 lunch boxes (they have 1100 but don't display them all).
More than just racing cars, some of the vehicles you will see on display (by type or display):
| Dragsters | Legends in Racing | Le Mans |
| NASCAR | Indy | Show Cars |
| Model A & B | Model T | Flathead Ford V-8 |
| Luxury Cars | Quarter Midgets | Midget Racers |
Some of the items that are memorable or Mike's favorites:
- 3 of the most significant sprint cars in racing history
- Bricks from the streets of Lincoln - near 17th and South
- Ricky Bobby's race suit (from theTalladega Nights movie)
- Cushman motor display
- Oldest pedal car from 1891
- A letter from Clyde Barrow (Bonnie & Clyde) fan letter to Ford Motor Company
- A race car that drove in the first (1923) La Mans 24 hour race in France
- Edsel Ford's personal hot rod