Motor Racing pics - my early years, 1964-71 ; Pukekohe Racetrack ;by - Roger Dowdingl

[Roger Dowding]

" Motor Racing pics - my early years, 1964-71 ; Pukekohe - other Auckland events 1950's on.. "

The thread has changed it's purpose, now includes other peoples pics and news items ..
It real Title should be :
" The Pukekohe Story "
- 1963 to 2023.
. Other Auckland Events .. Ardmore, and Beach Racing at Muriwai.

With the imminent demise of Pukekohe as a car racing venue in April 2023 - it will join the category of lost tracks.
With that in mind will use the thread for events at other Auckland tracks.
" Have put a lot of other North Island Tracks, Levin, Matamata, Napier, Ohakea the Mount Maunganui Street Circuit that preceded Baypark, and Paritutu, New Plymouth on the " Dunedin 1984 " thread and will continue to do that.
-revised September 6th 2022.

The " Dunedin 1984 " Thread is already used for other South Island Events."

- Matamata, Mount Maunganui, Napier and Paritutu were all Street Circuits, from the 1960's.
- Levin and Baypark as we know were designated Racing Tracks.

The Title of the thread needs to be changed, but for the moment the Title of Post One is changed
" Motor Racing pics - my early years, 1964-71 ; Pukekohe and other Auckland events; "

As mentioned in the thread ;
I first saw racing at Pukekohe in 1964 - The Wills Six Hour Race - from outside the track.
The First meeting I actually attended as a Spectator [ paying ] with a Camera was the Wills Six Hour meeting on 9th October 1965

The Programme for that meeting posted by Ken H in Post #82

The pictures are my own taken with a basic Kodak Camera with no adjustments possible, just point and shoot;.

April 1966 meeting ; the Reverse Direction one ; never tried again as too dangerous and quite a few accidents including
Ron Browns Mini; as mentioned Ron was Assistant Clerk of the course that day ; he was the Team Mate of Allan Boyle who also ran a Cooper " S ".







Other photos which I tried to remove have stayed
Dennis Marwood Cooper
Ivan Segedin - Fleetwood Mustang
Sports car field from a 1966 meeting .

[Roger Dowding]

Ivy Stephensen's Lola-Climax

Morris Cooper - no details of driver

Feo Stanton - Honda S600

Probably the best looking of the " Breadvan Anglia " brigade, Paul Fahey - Lotus - Anglia. Did this car pass on to Rod Coppins and John Ward - I am unsure, without going through a few books.


Have a picture of Neil Doyle's Anglia - Corvette. will post here and on its own thread.

[Roger Dowding]

Probably the best looking of the " Breadvan Anglia " brigade, Paul Fahey - Lotus - Anglia. Did this car pass on to Rod Coppins and John Ward - I am unsure, without going through a few books.

Answered my own question,thanks Rod Grimwood - you have a newspaper cutting on the Rod Coppins thread, Coppins and Ward did run the ex-Fahey Lotus Anglia.
cheers
Roger

[Steve Holmes]

Wow, these are fantastic Roger! Thanks for sharing, I hope there are more?

[Roger Dowding]

Wow, these are fantastic Roger! Thanks for sharing, I hope there are more?

Steve, yes there are about 70 - 100 or so, some that I had found earlier, have been going through them as the print numbers on the back are helping me group them together.
There will be some duplication as have posted some before but this time trying to get them in a Timeline ;
from 1965 through the 70's.
the 1965 shots are colour from the Benson and Hedges, they need some work as have stuck together and need to be gently cleaned, so have started with the B & W's from April '66

[Kiwiboss]

WOW those are fantastic pictures Roger, the one of the Fleetwood Mustang would be quite rare as I've not seen many pics with the exhaust thu the bonnet, considering how new the car would have been back then!! Dale M

[hilstwist]

I took a photo the same day probably, also on the trailer.it's the main photo at the start of one of my collection which was posted on here a few years ago I wonder if it raced that day? SO long ago I can't remember!

[hilstwist]

The Fleetwood Mustang I mean

[Roger Dowding]

Mentioned that my collection was Black and White [ all 3 inch square photos ], on this occasion had the loan of a Leica and colour film, a few shots from the event and includes the " Fleetwood Mustang ", not good quality.
Look at the crowds and the car parking..
The Gold Leaf 3 Hour was for improved Cars or Cars other than Saloons ;

The Fleetwood Mustang



Honda S600. probably Feo Stanton as he raced one at the April 1966 meeting.


In the interval between the Gold Leaf 3 Hour and the Wills 6 Hour, there was entertainment on the front ' start ' straight, by way of a Minispinning demonstration .

[Roger Dowding]

Between races the Pits ..

Renault and Simca

Mini-Cooper and Honda s 600 from the Gold Leaf 3 hour.

Zephyr 6 and Alfa Romeo


Would have gone there with my Father, Mac Dowding, and we actually went into the track for this year, 1964, stood in the paddock beside the track so we didn't pay.
Was still at school, but had just got my licence in the August of 1965. Think I may have been allowed to drive there, but not back, in case I had learn't something about Speed..
The car we went in was a 1963 Ford Zephyr 6, like the last photo, had one diagonal seatbelt for the driver.
How things have changed, with the track and were you could go, and our cars.
Have just a few from the 1967, Races Gold Leaf 3 hour and Wills 6 Hour to follow, then back to the Black and Whites for Pukekohe in 1966-67..

[Roger Dowding]

Another set of colour prints and rectangular so must have borrowed a camera again, probably the Leica ;
Gold Leaf 3 Hour - the Fahey Mustang off the track, was the plain White one Frank Bryan.?
*** June 2025 - have come across more photos of what apppears to be the same Race - images by Terry Steelo Baker, as shared by John Larry Lawton - will make a new post

Mustangs and Minis;


Anglia's and Minis - Mustang still of to the side - No Safety Car or Race slowed to remove the vehicle;


Wills 6 Hour at the start Vauxhalls and Zephyrs - Straight Six versus Vee Six


At the Loop - that became the Club Circuit - Zephyr Austin 1800 and an unknown.


The loop and Dunlop bridge another Zephyr.


That is all - unless there are more Hidden Gems. back to the Black and Whites and 1966.

[Milan Fistonic]

The Mini number 111 was driven by R. H. Cullen in the 0-1000cc Allcomers class

[Kevin Hirst]

The Mini number 111 was driven by R. H. Cullen in the 0-1000cc Allcomers class

Has anybody got a shot of a black austin A90 westminster in the allcomers reverse direction races, would love to see the old girl again, with thank's in anticipation.

[Milan Fistonic]

Has anybody got a shot of a black austin A90 westminster in the allcomers reverse direction races, would love to see the old girl again, with thank's in anticipation.

No photo but here's the entry list for your race.

[khyndart in CA]

Geez Kevin, with some of that competition poor old # 107 must have felt like it was going in the reverse direction !
You have my admiration.


(Ken H )

[Kevin Hirst]

Geez Kevin, with some of that competition poor old # 107 must have felt like it was going in the reverse direction !
You have my admiration.


(Ken H )

Thank's for that Ken, the old girl had been developed a bit by then, trip, trip, triple carbs, a lot of head work bored out to 3 ltr's trusty M&S cam, decent exhaust, so didn't disgrace itself, Seabrook's where selling N,O,S heads & block's for ten pound's each at that stage so bought one of each to play around with in spare time' , these never cracked head's like most other flying A motors of the time

[Grant Sprague]

Thank's for that Ken, the old girl had been developed a bit by then, trip, trip, triple carbs, a lot of head work bored out to 3 ltr's trusty M&S cam, decent exhaust, so didn't disgrace itself, Seabrook's where selling N,O,S heads & block's for ten pound's each at that stage so bought one of each to play around with in spare time' , these never cracked head's like most other flying A motors of the time

Thank you for these , I have not seen many photos of the loop.... great photos , also the one Bob sent the other day , fantastic

[Roger Dowding]

No photo but here's the entry list for your race.

Milan, The 1st 2nd and 3rd - in that order through the Esses [ very poor shot ].
thanks for the programme page - I had notes on the back of photos and found that the Zephyr Corvette was K Bailey and the Humber Jaguar had no name.

[Roger Dowding]

The Allcomers field heading for the grid



Johnny Riley heading for the grid


Humber Jaguar T Boyle - ex Frank Radisich


Zephyr Corvette K [ Ken ] Bailey - ex Rod Coppins


The Morrari, - Garth Souness


on its trailer - almost wider than the trailer with those huge welded widened wheels.


Thanks to Milan for the race list from the programme - helped with some driver details.

[AMCO72]

The scrutineers would have apoplexy if this stuff turned up today!! That Humber Jag looks a mean bit of equipment.