1950 – 1990
Competed in the Indianapolis 500 five straight years from 1985 - 1989
171 Career USAC wins, 95 Midget, 35 Sprint, and 4 Silver Crown wins including many regional events. Rich's 171st win was the night he died at Salem in a white flag lap crash.
Anyone familiar with racing knows the Rich Vogler legend. For his 31-year career, he dominated every type of open race driver before or after could match his prowess on the race track.
Tragically, Vogler was killed in a racing accident in the prime of his racing career. Richard’s wife Emily, mother Eleanor, and sister Dale Ann Vogler wanted to honor his memory in a special way.
Although he was a racing superstar, Rich always had problems with school. As a father, his sons’ education was of paramount importance. So, a scholarship fund seemed the idea he would have most appreciated.
The Rich Vogler Scholarship Fund was begun in 1990 with a generous $11,000 contribution from Valvoline, arranged by Jim Reynolds and USAC’s Bill Marvel. Since then we have been fortunate enough to give away over $400,000 in scholarships and we look forward to contributing even more!
The Foundation’s vision is to encourage members of the racing community to further their education. Scholarships of $2,000 each are awarded to several candidates each year based on applications received and can only be earned once per student. Funds may be used for any type of education from university to vocational training, or for special needs education.
Scholarships are awarded to individuals throughout the United States. The Foundation’s goal is to create a fund that is perpetual and self-supporting.
By John Sawyer
