Ron McQueeney is an American sports photographer. He served as Director of Photography at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway starting in 1977 until his retirement in 2011.

Early life and education

Ron McQueeney was born in

Denver, Colorado Denver () is a consolidated city and county, the capital, and most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Its population was 715,522 at the 2020 census, a 19.22% increase since 2010. It is the 19th-most populous city in the Unit ...

. He was raised in Plainfield, Indiana.

Career

McQueeney started working at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway (IMS) as a part-time photographer in 1972. He became Director of Photography at the IMS in 1977. Until his retirement, he annually photographed the

Indianapolis 500 The Indianapolis 500, formally known as the Indianapolis 500-Mile Race, and commonly called the Indy 500, is an annual automobile race held at Indianapolis Motor Speedway (IMS) in Speedway, Indiana, United States, an enclave suburb of Indi ...

Brickyard 400 The Brickyard 400 was an annual NASCAR Cup Series points race held at Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Speedway, Indiana. The inaugural race was held in 1994 and was the first race other than the Indianapolis 500 to be held at the Indianapolis Moto ...

, the

United States Grand Prix The United States Grand Prix is a motor racing event that has been held on and off since 1908, when it was known as the American Grand Prize. The Grand Prix later became part of the Formula One World Championship. , the Grand Prix has been held ...

(when it was in Indianapolis), and the MotoGP. He also managed

Indy Racing League The IndyCar Series, currently known as the NTT IndyCar Series under sponsorship, is the highest class of regional North American open-wheel single-seater formula racing cars in the United States, which has been conducted under the auspices o ...

's traveling photography staff starting in 1996 until his retirement. He also managed the photo

archive An archive is an accumulation of historical records or materials – in any medium – or the physical facility in which they are located. Archives contain primary source documents that have accumulated over the course of an individual or ...

at IMS which has over 4 million images in the collection. He is credited with moving the IMS into

digital photography Digital photography uses cameras containing arrays of electronic photodetectors interfaced to an analog-to-digital converter (ADC) to produce images focused by a lens, as opposed to an exposure on photographic film. The digitized image ...

. The first digital photography shot at the track was in 1998 with a

Canon Canon or Canons may refer to: Arts and entertainment * Canon (fiction), the conceptual material accepted as official in a fictional universe by its fan base * Literary canon, an accepted body of works considered as high culture ** Western ca ...

that cost $20,000. In 2003, the track stopped using film. He managed photography at other events, including all

Team Penske Team Penske (formerly Penske Racing) is an American professional auto racing organization, competing in the IndyCar Series, NTT IndyCar Series, NASCAR Cup Series, and the FIA World Endurance Championship. Debuting at the 1966 24 Hours of Daytona ...

owned race tracks and the

Detroit Grand Prix The title of Detroit Grand Prix was applied to the Formula One races held at the Detroit street circuit in Detroit, Michigan, United States of America from 1982 through 1988. History In 1982, the U.S. became the first country to host three W ...

and

Dallas Grand Prix The Dallas Grand Prix was a round of the Formula One World Championship in 1984. The race was cancelled in 1985 due to financial problems and safety concerns.David Hayhoe, Formula 1: The Knowledge – 2nd Edition, 2021, page 35. The Dallas Grand P ...

. McQueeney has spoken internationally about photo safety at racing events. McQueeney's work has been used in IndyCar video games. His work has been published in and/or used by ''National Speed Sports News'', ''

Indianapolis Monthly ''Indianapolis Monthly'' is a lifestyle magazine published in Indianapolis, Indiana, U.S. The magazine has some special publications and projects including Indiana Bride, Home, Shops, and Visit Indy's Visitor Guide. It is a member of the City an ...

'', ''

Motor Trend ''MotorTrend'' is an American automobile magazine. It first appeared in September 1949, and designated the first Car of the Year, also in 1949. Petersen Publishing Company in Los Angeles published ''MotorTrend'' until 1998, when it was sold to ...

'', ''

USA Today ''USA Today'' (stylized in all uppercase) is an American daily middle-market newspaper and news broadcasting company. Founded by Al Neuharth on September 15, 1982, the newspaper operates from Gannett's corporate headquarters in Tysons, Virgi ...

'', '' Street Tech'', ''

Today Today (archaically to-day) may refer to: * Day of the present, the time that is perceived directly, often called ''now'' * Current era, present * The current calendar date Arts, entertainment, and media Films * ''Today'' (1930 film), a 1930 ...

'', ''

The Birmingham News ''The Birmingham News'' is the principal newspaper for Birmingham, Alabama, United States. The paper is owned by Advance Publications and was a daily newspaper from its founding through September 30, 2012. After that day, the ''News'' and its tw ...

'' and other publications and books.

Notable works

McQueeney is responsible for staging many legendary photographs at the track. In the winter of 1983, he received permission from then IMS track superintendent Charlie Thompson to bring

Gordon Johncock Gordon Johncock (born August 5, 1936) is an American former racing driver. He won the Indianapolis 500 twice, and was the 1976 USAC Marlboro Championship Trail champion. Early career Johncock began racing at Berlin Raceway in Marne, Michigan. J ...

's winning car from the

1982 Indianapolis 500 The 66th Indianapolis 500 was held at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Speedway, Indiana on Sunday, May 30, 1982. Gordon Johncock, who had previously won the rain-shortened 1973 race, was the winner. Polesitter Rick Mears finished second by a m ...

to the track for a photo shoot at the track in snow. In 1989,

Emerson Fittipaldi Emerson Fittipaldi (; born 12 December 1946) is a Brazilian former automobile racing driver who won both the Formula One World Championship and the Indianapolis 500 twice each and the CART championship once. Moving up from Formula Two, Fittip ...

became the first

Indy 500 The Indianapolis 500, formally known as the Indianapolis 500-Mile Race, and commonly called the Indy 500, is an annual automobile race held at Indianapolis Motor Speedway (IMS) in Speedway, Indiana, United States, an enclave suburb of Indianap ...

winner to win more than $1 million. Two days after the race, McQueeney set up Fittipaldi's winning car on the track with the

Borg-Warner Trophy The Borg-Warner Trophy is the trophy presented to the winner of the Indianapolis 500. It is named for and was commissioned by automotive supplier BorgWarner. It is permanently housed at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Museum in Speedway, Indiana. ...

and had more than $1 million in cash piled upon the car to celebrate the win. The piece has been nicknamed "the money shot."

Awards and recognition

He collects Corvettes and in 2007, McQueeney was named an honorary member of the

Chevrolet Corvette The Chevrolet Corvette is a two-door, two-passenger luxury sports car manufactured and marketed by Chevrolet since 1953. With eight design generations, noted sequentially from C1 to C8, the Corvette is noted for its performance and distinctiv ...

Pace Car Registry.

Personal life

He lives in

Indianapolis, Indiana Indianapolis (), colloquially known as Indy, is the state capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Indiana and the seat of Marion County. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the consolidated population of Indianapolis and Mari ...

and is married.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:McQueeney, Ron Living people Artists from Indianapolis People from Indianapolis People from Plainfield, Indiana Artists from Denver Motorsport in Indianapolis Indianapolis 500 IndyCar Series people Year of birth missing (living people)