He was one of Laguna Seca's heroes:
The following statement is attributable to Gill Campbell, CEO/General Manager of Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca:
“It is with a heavy heart to learn of Sunday evening’s passing of one of the Legends of Laguna Seca, Pete Lovely. He was a fixture at the race track from day one. It was on Nov. 10, 1957 that Pete overcame long odds to win the Pebble Beach Road Races at our then-named Laguna Seca Raceway, which was the very first race of the recently completed track. He was driving a 2-liter Ferrari Testa Rosa against more powerful cars driven by bigger-named racers like Carroll Shelby, Jim Hall and Richie Ginther. But Pete’s perseverance and keen race strategy earned him the historic win and permanent place in the record books. Pete will forever be remembered in the Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca family for his passion and kindness.”
If you should see a man walking down a crowded street talking aloud to himself, don't run in the opposite direction, but run towards him, because he's a poet. You have nothing to fear from the poet - but the truth.
(Ted Joans)