In early 1990 at a Corvette show, Zora Arkus-Duntov, the father of the Corvette Grand Sport, remembered Dave MacDonald to his widow Sherry as “the best Corvette driver.” In 1963, when it was time to take his new 1963 Corvette Sting Ray to the GM Proving Grounds, Duntov called on the man whose Corvette Special had had such an influence on his Grand Sport. MacDonald was one of two drivers Duntov selected. Dave jumped at the offer and skillfully piloted the Vette through its test drive, an event commemorated in the film “Biography of a Sports Car.”

Dave MacDonald was lucky enough to have found his automotive muse during the glory years of the 1960's, when racing was racing. He is fondly remembered by his friends and fellow drivers such as Bob Bondurant, Dick Guldstrand, Joe Frietas, Tony Settember, Doug Hooper, Andy Porterfield, Buford Lane, Paul Reinhart, Red Faris, Jim Hall, Richie Ginther, Bob Dickson, Skip Hudson and Bill Sherwood. Their kind comments and poignant memories are printed below, most of which were recorded in Michael Antonick's book California Screamin’, The Glory Days of Corvette Road Racing.

"Bondurant smoothly drives the corner while MacDonald power-slides through it. Smooth is usually faster, yet MacDonald was smooth in his own aggressive way, and these two extraordinary talented men ran virtually dead-even in one Corvette race after another."

- Michael Antonick

"He was maybe the best natural driver ever born. I was racing when he came into it and he came in with very good equipment. All of a sudden, he was a presence. The guy was incredibly fast. Contrasting his style to Bondurant's and mine, there wasn't much difference. Dave was younger than both of us and maybe it was his reaction time or maybe he had a little inborn something we didn't', but MacDonald was faster than either of us. Oh, we had some hellish races! I won some, Bob won some and Dave won some. But I have to take my hat off to him; I think Dave was the fastest and overall you'd have to give him the edge. Did he hang it out more? Maybe, but we all did. He was just faster when he did it."

- Andy Porterville

"Willow Springs in 1960 was the first time I ever raced against him. And I thought, where'd this guy come from? He was so quick". "Davey was good. He was a tremendous driver and a very nice guy. After I raced him the first time at Willow Springs, you just never knew. One race he'd win, the next race I'd win. He drove sideways. I drove a little smoother, but we were both just as quick. Why was he so good? I don't know. He just had that instinct. He was very aggressive and he had a lot of car control. He'd put that Corvette sideways and drive it all around the corner that way. You could do that with those cars. I drove sideways, but not as sideways. I got a little more adhesion, I guess. He was tough and he was always fun to race with wheel to wheel. I always loved racing with Davey."

– Bob Bondurant

"One of the most famous of the bunch, he was always ready, always clean and sharp with a good sponsor. Boy, he was a hard act to follow. Never out of shape, never upset or rowdy, just an absolute gentleman. That's why everybody took it so hard when he drove for Thompson at Indianapolis."

"In Corvettes he was the front runner when I started. I was having a fit even finding him. But he was always helpful. If I needed to know something about the 4-speed or the fuel in jection, Dave would always help. He was a great mechanic. Just before he got out of Corvettes, he built a really super, modified Corvette, a real lightweight, like 2,200 pounds, trick-looking 1962 'Vette. Geeze, did that thing go. He only drove it a year before Shelby hired him for the Cobras."

"Was MacDonald aggressive in the sense of pushing and pumping on the track? Only if he had to. He wouldn't' initiate it. He wouldn't muscle his way through. But if he had to lean on somebody to get to the front, he'd definitely do that. He wouldn't back off. Absolutely not. But he was a lot more gentlemanly than most. Most would just take your fender off and not think twice. I think I ran half my races in primer."

"What can I say? MacDonald was a class act. He always had a new car, always immaculate. Among other things, he was known for driving his victory laps flat out. Usually they'd put the trophy queen into the winning car, hand her the checkered flag, and give her a little victory lap around the track with the winner. With MacDonald, the flag would be bent clear back and the girl would be in stark terror. And there's Dave with that giant grin."

– Dick Guldstrand

"Dave MacDonald was the toughest driver to get by because he was always sideways. He was the king of the oversteering car. He set up his car to oversteer, and it seemed to be his style. I beat him a few times. He had a very good sponsorship from Don Steves Chevrolet and every year he'd get a new Corvette. He was a very hard man to pass because he was always on the edge. I've got a movie of him at Pomona where he did a 360, and at the end of it he had it pointed in the right direction and he just got on it and kept on going. He was probably the hardest Corvette driver to get by."

"We were close. We used to go back and forth in the motel rooms after practice or a race and shoot the breeze and drink a beer and rap. Dave was a very quiet person, almost at times introverted…until he got into the car. He told me one time that if it wasn't for the crowds, he wouldn't be in racing. He liked the people part of it. I never forgot that, because to know the guy you'd never think he'd say something like that. "

"But he was spectacular. He had his own style. In my way of thinking, I'm not sure it was the fastest way, but he made it work. He came up quick. When he started with Corvettes he started out right away with a good sponsor and with good equipment. He was just there one day. Then he got with Shelby and his career really took off."

- Doug Hooper

"Bondurant was probably smoother, but Dave could get it done. Dave could hang it out. He could drive it any way he wanted. Those were two of the greatest drivers I ever drove against. Dave liked to come up north and race because we had become good friends and he liked to visit. He usually had his wife and kids along. He was a family man. Could you go wheel to wheel with him and not worry? You bet. I did it many times. Down at Del Mar, we looked like twins. I loved to race with Dave MacDonald."

– Paul Reinhart

"Off the track, Dave was almost meek, he wouldn't say boo. But what a great guy. After Paul Reinhart and I got our Stingrays, Dave showed us how to set up the suspensions, after he was already driving Cobras for Shelby!"

- Bill Sherwood

"Dave was an incredible talent. He was one of those guys who was a real leader, the center of the action, a guy absolutely everyone admired and liked. His death devastated a lot of people."

– Joe Freitas

The LA Times interviewed Carroll Shelby following Dave's impressive victory in America's biggest road racing event, the 1963 LA Times Grand Prix - and Carroll had this to say about Dave, "This is the happiest day of my life, I'm glad I took a chance with the kid and gave him the ride. He's just the greatest, isn't he?"

"Dave MacDonald could have been another Mario Andretti had he lived. He had incredible natural talent and gave it his all when he stepped into one of our cars."

"We lost Dave at Indianapolis in one of the worst cars that was ever built. Mickey Thompson was a friend of mine, but I tried to get David to not drive that thing, because it was a death trap. What little Davie would have accomplished in life, who knows. It was cut short so early. I think he had more raw talent probably than any race driver I ever saw."

– Carroll Shelby

"Dave MacDonald was the only driver that could stay with, and beat, the Chaparral during the early part of the 1964 season. His death was a tragic loss to us all."

– Jim Hall

"Dave MacDonald was being tempted with an Indy 500 ride by Mickey Thompson. Dave was torn by his loyalty to his friends and the Shelby team-ride but eventually agreed to race for Mickey at the Speedway. Having seen the results of tests with Thompson’s radical rear-engined racer, Craig Lang, Wally Peat and Joe Freitas begged Dave not to go back to Indy, believing the car was dangerous. MacDonald was certain his cat-like reflexes could make the car successful and when he passed seven cars on the first lap it appeared he was on his way. Unfortunately it didn’t work out that way and he was killed in a fiery crash on the second lap. The Lang team was devastated, after a while, Craig decided that without Davey in the cockpit of his Lang Cooper it just wasn't fun anymore and sold the car."

– Pete Brock

 “Drivers and racing fans of the era, especially those in California, remember Dave MacDonald for much more. With a power-sliding style that delighted fans and intimidated foes, MacDonald and his Corvettes were dominating elements of the California racing scene. Called the "best natural driver ever" by veteran racer Andy Porterfield, MacDonald enjoyed the admiration and affection of all who knew him, in part because his Attila the Hun driving style was contrasted with a soft-spoken, gentlemanly off-track demeanor. With respect and admiration, California Screamin' is dedicated to Dave's memory.”

- Michael Antonick - California Screamin'

"Many of Dave's friends and family are convinced he was destined for greater things. He would have won the Indianapolis 500, gone into Formula One or competed on the Grand National circuit. When Shelby called me to see if he could hire Davey, I told him, 'That kid is going to be the world's greatest racing driver, and you can put that in granite.' "

- Jim Simpson

Let that be his epitaph.