John Lingenfelter Inducted Into the Blair County Sports Hall of Fame

From his early days racing go-carts on dirt tracks in Blair County to his championship days at drag strips across the country, John Lingenfelter excelled in everything he did. If he won, he wanted to do better the next time. If he lost, which wasn’t very often, he wanted to know why.

Lingenfelter was posthumously inducted in the Blair County Sports Hall of Fame on April 9.

“My brother John was a very humble person, a man of few words,” Charles Lingenfelter, John’s younger brother, said.

“He would be overwhelmed by this honor,” Charles said of John’s induction. “It would be one of the highlights of his life to be recognized for his accomplishments in motorsports by those from an area where he learned and developed many of his skills and knowledge, an area he loved so dearly.” 

John was born in Altoona and grew up in East Freedom. He was a 1963 graduate of Central High School and Penn State Altoona in 1965.

After his early success, John began racing on a national level. His cars were among the fastest on the track. He set national records and won races and championships at every level  from his early Corvettes to his record-setting dragsters, from his Pro-stock trucks to sport compacts. When John showed up, everybody else was running for second place.

Charles said that not only was John a very accomplished racer, but he was also a very accomplished engine builder, designer and tuner. 

Charles added that John was recognized as one of the best engine builders for the Chevrolet small block engine that GM introduced in 1955. He was considered an expert on that engine. He even wrote a book on it. 

The book centered on how to improve the legendary Chevy small-block engine.

“John was also very instrumental in refining electronic fuel injection for automobiles,” Charles said.

This first showed up in the Chevrolet Corvette in 1984. It had limited performance success. John redid the design for a significant improvement in both performance and fuel mileage. 

“That was a key part of his career as an engine tuner,” Charles said.

As a driver, he set another record in 1988, but this time it wasn’t in drag racing. He went 254.9 MPH in a street legal production car. 

John’s success with Corvettes led to his induction into The Corvette Hall of Fame and the cars that he built at Lingenfelter Performance Engineering became some of the most iconic in the world, not to mention some of the fastest. He tackled any challenge with the spirit of any great athlete. He was in it to win it. 

John was also named to the Car Craft Magazine All-star Team three times. He set national records in multiple classes. He won races in three different decades. He won drag racing’s premiere event, The U.S. Nationals, held in Indianapolis, In., three times. 

He also built some of the most potent Chevrolet engines ever and set world records that still stand. 

“John had a burning passion to excel, to be the best at whatever he did,” said Charles. “Ultimately, he wanted to win, whether it be racing, arm wrestling or just playing Monopoly.”

John passed away in 2003 after being critically injured the year before.

This year’s Blair County Sports Hall of Fame inductees included John Hayes, Eric Malone, Eddie Miller and Tawney Nardozza Schmitt. Miller was inducted posthumously as well.

According to Charles, if John were alive to see himself inducted into the Blair County Sports Hall of Fame, he would not be focused on himself but instead on those who helped him succeed, including his father, a mechanic, for teaching him mechanical skills and a strong work ethic. 

He would thank his mother for teaching him to always do his best. He would want to thank his many friends and partners over the years who provided both financial and physical support for his racing. 

He would also want to thank the associates at Lingenfelter Performance Engineering for overseeing the business while he was on the road. They made John look good on and off the track. 

But most of all, he would want to thank his immediate family for all of their support, especially during his early years of racing.