I have a pic of it from that first Bay Park meet will scan and post.
I have a pic of it from that first Bay Park meet will scan and post.
Yes much better photo wise, the behaviour of the guy and kid is dumb, there is no bank just straight across grass to fence Steve.Originally Posted by Steve Holmes
Ask poor Jamie.
Time for some OSCA/Sports Sedan action. In the early 1980s, when Sports Sedan racing was just getting off the ground and getting some momentum going, North Island event organisers regularly had South Island OSCA teams up to run, to both help boost car numbers, and create a good healthy dose of North/South rivalry.
This shot shows what was really the fastest racing sedan in NZ throughout the first half of the 1980s, Trevor Crowe's first Olds V8 powered Starlet. It was impressive how quick this car was.
Here is a great shot showing just how hectic the action could get in Sports Sedan racing. Its important to remember that although there were cars built specifically for Sports Sedan racing, most Sports Sedan fields were made up of cars from other classes, such as ShellSport, production racing etc. This shot captures that really well. Coming up over the hill, Graeme Addis in his Charger Sports Sedan gobbles up several slower cars, including ShellSport and proddie cars. The yellow Escort looks to be left hand drive, so is possibly that of Mark Rutherford, this being the car Bob Homewood later rebuilt into his amazing Sports Sedan.
Here is one of the longest serving OSCA racers, Ian Munt in his fantastic looking V8 Capri, that was originally built and raced in Australia by Bruce Carey, before Munt bought it, while living in Sydney, and who then shipped it out to NZ when he returned home.
V8 powered Ford Capri's made for popular Sports Sedan/OSCA racers in the early 1980s. Here is the OSCA car of John Osborne leading Wayne Huxfords North Island Sports Sedan. The Osborne Capri is the same car built in the mid 1970s by Don and Rob Halliday, and originally fitted with a quad-cam Ford V6. It was later owned by Danie (sp?) Lupp, who fitted it with a Jaguar V12. Osborne ran it with a small block Chevy V8.
Yet another of the Chevy V8 powered Capri's, here is Inky Tulloch in his OSCA version. Tulloch won the OSCA championship with this car, which started life as a factory RS2600 race car, before being purchased by Paul Fahey in 1974. Fahey replaced the pushrod V6 with a later, more powerful quad-cam V6, and won the NZ Saloon Car Championship with it in 1975. It was then raced the next two seasons by Grant Walker before Tulloch bought it and repowered it. John Osborne later bought it when his own ex-Halliday Capri, pictured above, caught fire and burnt to the ground. Its now owned by Roger Townshend and is being restored to as Fahey raced it in the 1975 season.
These are really cool photos
This is from the 1976 season, and a quality field of big banger sedans are about to get the green. On the front row are the quad-cam Capri's of Grant Walker, and Don Halliday. Walker is in the ex-Paul Fahey car. Second row has Red Dawsons DeKon Monza on the inside, while next to him is Bruce Bellis in the V8 Cortina, this being the ex-Clyde Collins car.
Note how close the cars are on the grid, between the rows.
Fahey, Halliday, Dawson, Bellis and the guy with the blue hat and long blonde hair name is "Steve" thats all I rmember him by, at every meeting around the north island, and still goes. (with hair the same but little thinner on top) but same type of hat, he now lives way up Kerikeri way. One keen motorsport spectator.
Great shots of the cars, and especially the case study in Capri's. I have spoken with Grant Walker on the phone a few times recently here in Australia. He is now heavily involved with rallying Escort BDG's.
The story behind the two damaged Reidrubber Fiat 124s as reported in Motoraction.
The drama in this division came in the second heat. Michael Draper in one of the Reidrubber Fiat 124s was leading into Rothmans Chicane on the first lap, but spun in a cloud of tyre smoke on the exit. Most of the following cars missed him - but his team mate Bill Anderson in the other Reidrubber car didn't, hitting Draper's Fiat in the left-rear quarter panel. Draper tried to struggle on but pitted after a lap with a buckled wheel, while Anderson couldn't restart owing to geysers in the radiator. This left Ralph Emson to get through for his second win of the day, and as in the first heat Phil Henley was second.
That's Henley in car 34 on the outside of the front row in the grid shot.
Thanks Milan, that is great!
Steve that will be Grant in the ex Fahey car I think on pole. (not Fahey as I quoted)
Castrol GTX production racing. On pole is Jim Richards in the Team McMillen XA GT sedan. Whose is the Charger lined up next to him? The HQ Monaro on row two I believe would be that of Don Scott, before he bought the ex-Neville Crichton Monaro.
There were some really great muscle cars that ran in the Castrol GTX series throughout its lifetime. The Camaros that ran in the later years are all accounted for, as is the Rod Coppins L34 Torana, and the Falcon GT-HOs from the earlier years. What about some of the others? Anyone know?
The charger was driven by Robin Bennett (Robin's world of hair fashion). He was a hair dresser and was developing a chain of hairdressing salons in the Hibiscus Cost area (Manly, Orewa and Queens Arcade listed on the side of the car). He lived at Waitoki.
He was good value and I'm pretty sure the car was his daily driver as well.
Now thats what I call a car for NZ mens hairdressers- better that the stereotype MX5 and Capri Convertibles.
These photos show the complete field of race 1 at the April 7 1974 meeting at Pukekohe. That's right, just four cars.Castrol GTX production racing. On pole is Jim Richards in the Team McMillen XA GT sedan. Whose is the Charger lined up next to him? The HQ Monaro on row two I believe would be that of Don Scott, before he bought the ex-Neville Crichton Monaro.
There were some really great muscle cars that ran in the Castrol GTX series throughout its lifetime. The Camaros that ran in the later years are all accounted for, as is the Rod Coppins L34 Torana, and the Falcon GT-HOs from the earlier years. What about some of the others? Anyone know?
As well as the three drivers mentioned by Steve there was a late entry from Sue Adams in a 3-litre Capri.
In practice Richards did a 1.28.2, Bennett a 1.31.3, Scott a 1.32.7 and Adams a 1.36.2.
Because of the shortage of entries the organisers reduce the race distance from 10 laps to six. Bennett's Charger retired early in the race with no oil pressure. Richards made a race of it by staying just ahead of Scott, both of them "throwing their cars through the corners in fine style". Sue Adams stalled at the start but did finish and collected the third place prize money of $40.
The race report of the 124 coupes is interesting. That is not how I remember that race. The two Reidrubber cars coming together was a talking point for awhile. Unusual for two team cars to take each other out.
If I remember correctly these two cars were never competitive on the sponsors products. Those tyres at the time were pretty terrible things. They changed to something more suitable (another brand) and went a lot better. I believe the sponsors knew about it?? I have all the race reports from these times taped up in boxes. I do know however that I have noticed over the years that some of the race reports of races I was in tell different versions of what happened in reality. Things like who passed who at which corner and on which lap. That is completely understandable of course. A lot of detail to remember or write down while also trying to take some photos.
As I said earlier, this is not how I remember that race. I just checked with Dad, and he said the same. He said he doesn't ever remember those 2 team cars being in front of him. Almost certain the report has some facts mixed up. The two cars did however collide at the chicane.
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