Moved to California at an early age and was based there for much of his life. Carried on racing until the war, then became a team owner until his son Bob was killed in a crash in 1947, after which he retired. A gardener before he became a racer, he also worked as a motorbike mechanic and a chaffeur before starting racing in 1919. A dirt track specialist, Fred made no secret that making a good wage out of racing was more important than the drive itself and missed the 1930 Indianapolis 500 as there was a better-paid drive elsewhere. However he made up for that when he won the 1932 event. In his latter racing years, he was a regular in sprint cars.

Biography last updated 7 Dec 2015