In the early 60s my uncle ran a bar and restaurant he rented a bunch of old Indy 500 movies ... Those guys were tough.
I heard one story:
In a two man car the rear tire started to come apart, sending a snake-like tread flailing around and hitting the driver in the bicep every time it rotated, causing him excruciating pain. Then the flailing stopped just before the driver couldn't take it any more. The riding mechanic had stuck his arm around the driver and put out his forearm to deflect the blows with his own arm.
My definition of "tough".
