The Gee Bee Racer was unstable and killed several pilots. There was one pilot it didn't kill, who went on to perform one of the greatest achievements of WWII, namely, General Jimmy Doolittle, who commanded the squadron of sixteen, unescorted, B25 bombers, taking off from the aircraft carrier USS Hornet to bomb Tokyo, only 4 months after the Pearl Harbor Attack. General Doolittle held many aviation records, but also earned the nation's first PhD in Aeronautical Engineering from M.I.T. He thought he would be Court-Martialed for losing his aircraft after conducting the Doolittle Raid, but was instead awarded our nation's highest military award, the Medal of Honor. He has been listed as one of the 10 greatest men in aviation.

By the way, that Italian Stipa-Caproni looks like a flying Leaf Blower.