Indy 500 Ashtray

When I had Mario Andretti on the podcast, I wanted to gift him something that had meaning & provenance. But what can I possibly buy for the guy who won every trophy and has been gifted every piece of ephemera? I stumbled upon this auction house in a small town in Indiana, about an hour directly south from the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. They were selling vintage Indy 500 ashtrays from the estate of the late Tony Hulman, who ran the Motor Speedway for many years, turning it into what we know it as today. Hulman kept these in a big box in his office and gave them out as gifts. Tony and Mario knew each other and I felt this would make for an amazing gift for him. After I bought one for him, I called the store back and bought the rest of the lot. I am pleased to offer them to you all, and let each of you own a piece of history with amazing provenance. Plus, don’t you want to own the same ashtray as racing legend Mario Andretti? While these are New Old Stock, they are vintage and are subject to patina. Please see photos for details. Please note photos are of one single ashtray from the lot and while they are generally the same, they are subject to slight differences.

7"