February 26, 2007
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Profile America for the 26th day of Black History Month. William Theodore Ribbs Jr. far better known as Willie T. Ribbs began his love affair with cars and racing at age 4. When he graduated from high school, he went to Europe, where he won the Dunlop Championship his first year of driving in the Formula Ford series. Returning to the U.S., he successfully raced in Formula Atlantic events and the Trans-Am series, where he was honored as Rookie of the Year. Ribbs was the first African-American to race in NASCAR and in 1991 the first to qualify for the Indianapolis 500, where he ran twice. He also competed in the Indy Racing League and the Cart Series. Some 10 million people attend motor racing events in the U.S. each year. This special Profile America for Black History Month is a public service of the U.S. Census Bureau.