As a Funny Car pilot and match racer in the 1960s and ‘70s, “The Shoe” won the 1972 Coca-Cola Cavalcade of Stars, 1973 AHRA world championship, five NHRA national events, nine IHRA events and about 70% of his 560 match races. Records he set in his “Stardust” Barracuda Funny Car include a 6.18 sec at 241.95 MPH in 1974.
During his own racing career, he contributed cutting-edge safety innovations for the new Funny Car category including a roof-mounted escape hatch that allowed drivers to quickly exit when all-too-frequent fires occurred. He was also the first to mount the lever that activated a fire suppression system on his Funny Car’s brake handle so the driver could apply both while keeping one hand on the steering wheel.
If he could simply claim to be the only team owner to have wins from each of NHRA’s four professional categories, doubly so, but those marks barely scratch the surface. 367 team victories and 19 world championships are the true measured numbers here and they may never be touched again.
A fierce Funny Car match racer in the 1960s and ‘70s who fielded multiple entries with top-notch drivers to fulfill the demand for bookings of his Stardust Funny Cars, Schumacher took a departure from motorsports in the early 70’s to grow the family business, Schumacher Electric.
While operating Schumacher Electric, he grew the family business into a global corporation. Schumacher increased the company value more than ten-fold
As a team owner, he funded and spearheaded a project to develop a protective, enclosed canopy for Top Fuel dragsters, which has since been adopted by multiple NHRA teams.
Schumacher was also intent on utilizing his team’s fleet of race cars to raise money and awareness for various charities. Each year ahead of the U.S. Nationals, DSR hosts a pre-race event at its Brownsburg, Ind. headquarters to benefit Riley Hospital for Children, and for seven seasons, Schumacher, along with Terry and Doug Chandler, campaigned ‘giving cars.’ The program enabled non-profits, such as the Infinite Hero Foundation, Make-A-Wish Foundation, and MD Anderson Cancer Center to be recognized through a dedicated tribute livery at no cost to the organization.
Schumacher was also intent on utilizing his team’s fleet of race cars to raise money and awareness for various charities. Each year ahead of the U.S. Nationals, DSR hosts a pre-race event at its Brownsburg, Ind. headquarters to benefit Riley Hospital for Children, and for seven seasons, Schumacher, along with Terry and Doug Chandler, campaigned ‘giving cars.’ The program enabled non-profits, such as the Infinite Hero Foundation, Make-A-Wish Foundation, and MD Anderson Cancer Center to be recognized through a dedicated tribute livery at no cost to the organization.
He was invited into the International Drag Racing Hall of Fame in 2007.
in May 2013, he was enshrined into the International Motorsports Hall of Fame
In 2019, he was inducted into the Motorsports Hall of Fame of America and
In November 2022, Schumacher was presented with the NHRA’s Lifetime Achievement Award.
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