Joe Petrali

"Smokey'" Joe Petrali (February 22, 1904 – November 10, 1973) was an American motorcycle racer, active in the 1920s and 1930s. Petrali was a Class A racing champion who competed in board-track and dirt-track racing circuits, speed records, and hillclimbs. Petrali won a record 49 American Motorcyclist Association national championship races, with his last coming on August 29, 1937. The record stood for 55 years until broken by Scott Parker in 1992.

Biography

Early life Petrali was born in San Francisco, California, on February 22, 1904. Petrali's affection for motorcycles began growing up in California as a child, he would watch the Class A racers of the 1910s, such as Charles “Fearless" Balke, who wore leather pants and puttees while racing to keep his legs from burning and Don Johns. He later adopted the style and began to wear similar leather pants and puttees throughout his career.

Death Petrali died from a heart attack on November 10, 1973, in Casa Grande, Arizona, performing an economy run.

Awards

Petrali was inducted into the Motorsports Hall of Fame of America in 1992.

In 1998, Petrali was inducted into the AMA Motorcycle Hall of fame, and in 2006, he was inducted into the National Italian American Sports Hall of Fame.