Carroll Shelby: racer, car builder, automotive legend, pilot, transplant recipient, entrepreneur, perhaps even rascal.

One thing is probably true, the plain-speaking Texan is a bit of all of these – and more. And despite a life-long series of illnesses, anyone of which would have crippled a weaker man, Carroll Hall Shelby, at 85, is still going strong. So it’s probably no surprise he’ll be receiving the latest in a long line of honors, today, as Automotive Executive of the Year.

The path from Leesburg, Texas hasn’t always been a straight line. Indeed, Shelby was born dirt poor, on January 11, 1923, with seemingly few opportunities. So it was probably no surprise to family and friends when he signed up for the then Army-Air Corps, during World War II, serving as flight instructor and test pilot. (Which kindled a lifelong love of flying, that continues today.)

Returning from the War, Shelby planned to settle down and do something that fit in, back in Leesburg. “I opened a chicken farm,” he recalls, with the Texas twang that’s never left him, “but my chickens all died.” Farming clearly wasn’t in his genes. But somehow, fast cars had gotten into his blood. And by the early 1950s, he was proving his mettle as a talented amateur. Turning pro, he landed “rides” with then-strong teams from Aston Martin, Maserati and Cad-Allard, unquestionably proving his skills with a 1959 win at Le Mans.

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