Bathurst, Briefly

"Oh God, we've left the ground again!"

As we told you back on Friday, SPEEDtv decided to carry the Bathurst 1000 live and in its entirety, with an astonishing amount of NASCAR promotions and with their own commentary provided by two guys who had no clue at all what was going on Mike Joy and Darrell Waltrip. In a brief segment during a delay in that amazing race, they played footage from earlier in the weekend when Friend of Hooniverse Jason Bright took Waltrip for a full-speed lap of the mountain. Hit the jump to see how that played out.

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Morning Qualifying – End of the Session

A Ferrari 330 P4 rides off into the sunset during the 1967 24 Hours of Le Mans. Photo by Rainer Schlegelmilch/©Schlegelmilch

After more than 120 editions of Morning Qualifying, it’s time for a change.  Due to some positive changes in my personal life (I’ve gone back to school to finish my bachelor’s degree), I no longer find myself with the time necessary to research and write a high quality column on a daily basis.  While writing this column has been a lot of hard work, I am gratified by the response I’ve received from all of you.  Thank you.

Having said that, I’m in no way done contributing to Hooniverse.  There are many, many more tales of motor sport history that I’d like to share with you.  You can look forward to reading them under the “Hooniversity” category.  And, if you have any suggestions about something you’d like to read, please send your ideas to tips@hooniverse.com.

Jim Clark at the 1964 German Grand Prix. Photo by Bernard Cahier/©The Cahier Archive

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Morning Qualifying – Cold Medicine & Brefass Scotch edition

This is how the inside of my head feels.

I’m not feelin’ so good today.  I’ve got some kinda black plague-scurvy-head cold thing that’s impervious to over the counter cold medicine technology.  But, there’s a Morning Qualifying to be written, and I’m not one to shirk my duties.  So, in honor of my hallucinogenic state, we’re going back to the fall of 1967; Where our hippie forefathers dropped acid, watched The Doors play on the Sunset Strip, protested against Governor Reagan, then trucked on out to Riverside to catch the last race of the USAC season, the Rex Mays 300 (Hippies…..we’re not as slack as you think!™).  AJ Foyt, Mario Andretti and Gordon Johncock were all in contention for the USAC title going into this final race.  There to compete against them were Dan Gurney, Bobby and Al Unser, Lloyd Ruby, and, visiting from the continent, Formula 1 stars Jim Clark and John Surtees.  Let’s take a look back with ABC Wide World of Sports’ own Chris Economaki and Rodger Ward at the 1967 Rex Mays 300 for Riverside Raceway.

Mario Andretti leads A.J. Foyt and Jerry Grant during the 1967 Rex Mays 300.

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Morning Qualifying – Mmmmnn…….Wings edition

Not that kind of wings!!

Faced with ever increasing speeds and a desire to increase aerodynamic down force, race car constructors began to experiment with wings during the second half of the 1960′s.  In 1966, Jim Hall’s Chaparrals were the first to sprout airfoils, mounted on struts situated atop the rear suspension to improve grip.  Over the next couple of seasons, more constructors in Can-Am would adopt wings.  By 1969, race cars of every kind sprouted wings.  Then came that year’s Spanish Grand Prix at Montjuich Park; With a field full of be-winged competitors, the wings on Graham Hill and Jochen Rindt’s Lotuses collapsed.  This made their cars unstable, causing them to careen suddenly into the guard rail.  While Hill was uninjured and Rindt received minor injuries, their accidents were enough to convince the FIA to outlaw the high-mounted wing.  Let’s get some wings……….you’ll have to provide your own bleu cheese.

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Morning Qualifying – They Drive By Night edition

The night time is the right time to be with the one you love.

With the exception of the Monte Carlo Rally, set to return to the WRC calendar in 2012, modern rallying no longer features night stages.  While this makes things safer for drivers and spectators, darkness adds a certain something to the aesthetics of rallying.  So crank up those Carello, Cibie, Hella, Bosch and Lucus auxillary lights, Morning Qualifying is gonna go play in the dark.

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Morning Qualifying – The Game’s Afoot!

I'm sure the facts surrounding these photos will be elementary, my dear Watson.

The last time the Hooniverse Hive Mind was summoned into action, it distinguished itself by completely and correctly identifying 3 photos out of the 5 presented.  Well my fellow know most of it alls, I have reached into the vault of mystery for 5 photos.  I’m aware of some of their pertinent facts, but not all of them.  Your task, should you prove pedantic enough to accept it, is to provide the following information for each photo:

• Name the drivers?
• What are they driving (make, model or type)?
• At what circuit and/or race event is the action taking place?
• What year is the photo from?

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Morning Qualifying – A Dab of Oppo edition

Jochen Rindt knows a little dab will do ya.

As Mr. Queef might say, sometimes ’tis better to four wheel drift round a bend than to seek the ideal line. In rallying, particularly in the rear wheel drive era, the Scandanavians were forever flicking their tails to and fro to get a better time on the stages. However, in circuit racing, sashaying through the corners is generally frowned upon due to its adverse affect on one’s tires. Certain drivers in Formula One during the 1950′s and ’60′s eschewed this commonly held wisdom, as the situation warrented, to glide around corners like a four-wheeled Gene Kelly.  Let’s check out these proto-drifters after the jump. … Continue Reading

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Morning Qualifying – Rally Ferrari edition

Raffael Pinto's Ferrari 308 GTB-4 at the 1978 San Remo Rally

Some things make so little sense that they end up making perfect sense.  Such is the case when Ferraris are rallied.  The perception is that Ferraris are too precious to drive at the limit on gravel strewn mountain roads.  They’re better suited for a race circuit (as though that would make them safer!) or pampered in a garage (which is just wrong!).  Rallying might get a Ferrari dirty.

Frankly, getting a Ferrari dirty is for the best.  Real race cars have grime on ‘em!  So, enjoy these Prancing Horses being rode hard, and put away wet.  Just like Enzo would have wanted it!

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Morning Qualifying – Happy Birthday, Mr. McLaren

Bruce McLaren in his "office" at the 1966 Sebring 12 Hours. Photo by Dave Friedman

Today would have been Bruce Leslie McLaren’s 74^th birthday.  Many of you are already aware of his considerable motor sport accomplishments during his brief lifetime:

• Winner of the 1^st United States Grand Prix at Sebring in 1959 at the age of 22 years 104 days old, making him the youngest driver to win a Formula One race up to that time.
• Two-time Can-Am champion in 1967 and 1969.
• 1964 Tasman Gold Star Series champion
• Winner of the 1966 24 Hours of Le Mans with Chris Amon
• Winner of the 1967 Sebring 12 Hours with Mario Andretti

However, all you need to know about Bruce McLaren, the man, can be summed up by this story from his boyhood.  At age 9, after suffering a fall, Bruce was diagnosed with Legg-Perthes disease which caused his hip joints to be malformed.  The only available treatment at the time was continuous, in-patient, traction treatments at an orthopedic hospital, the Wilson Home in Takapuna.  Falling in with a like-minded group of kids, Bruce organized secret night time wheel chair races down the winding, smooth downhill paths on the hospital grounds.  The steering and handling of these chairs were less than ideal, and there were multiple shunts into the nearby flower beds.  Thanks to Bruce’s leadership and the efforts of his comrades, no one got hurt and everyone made it back to their respective beds without being discovered.

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Morning Qualifying – Sex & Drugs & Formula 1

Happy 64th Birthday, Mr. Hunt.

James Simon Wallis Hunt was an enigma.  On the track, Hunt was fiercely competitive to the point of combativeness.  His nerves were such that he frequently vomited before a race, though some of this could be attributed to his extracurricular activities, and on the grid Hunt would shake so violently that his car vibrated.  James was immediately fast, but only became a regular winner when he learned to control his explosive emotions; However, he remained prone to temper tantrums.  Hunt attacked a driver and a marshal with his fists and on more than one occasion stood in the middle of the track screaming profane abuse at bemused opponents. James joked that his reputation for road rage made rivals move out of his way: “because they thought I was barking mad!”

James Hunt at the 1976 Monaco Grand Prix; Hunt would beat Niki Lauda by a single point to win the 1976 F1 Drivers' Championship.

Off the track (sometimes just barely off the track), he spent his time sating his ferocious appetites.  James smoked two to three packs of cigarettes a day.  He frequently drank to excess, and thought nothing of smoking a little pot to calm himself down before a race (or any other time for that matter).  And then, there were the women……lots of women.  To put it succinctly, James Hunt had more tail than a lobster boat captain.  Not surprisingly, Hunt was given to bouts of depression.

Once James Hunt had done what he set out to do, win the Formula One championship, he seemed to lose interest in competing and his performance began to decline.  After his involvement in the accident which cost Ronnie Petersen his life, Hunt retired from competitive racing at just 31 years of age.  While he tried his hand at F1 color commentary for the BBC and raising budgies competitively, James Hunt never really found something to fill the void.  He died of a heart attack at age 45.  After the jump, check out the excellent documentary, “The Real James Hunt”.

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