Photos: The Bruce Wells Collection - Warwick Farm - Part 1

[Steve Holmes]

Thanks Ellis, yep thats right, and it was one of the very fastest touring cars in Australia at the time.

[Steve Holmes]

Here are the last three pics from this chapter. More from Warwick Farm to come in a new chapter.

[Dale Harvey]

I would guess that this last shot is George Garth in the FC Holden.
Bring on the next batch please.
Dale.

[Kevin Bartlett]

Steve, I think that pic of the TVR has Pedro aboard. The helmet type is my indication, as that was one favoured by PO. True we did share drives, I drove in the more major events for Pedro at Catalina Park and Warwick Farm. I think we ventured further afield on more than one occasion, but the memory dims.

[Greg Mackie]

That's Kevin Fisher in the Fiat 1500.

[John Uren]

Ron Thorp bought Tom Sulman's DB3S, Ron is better known for the Cobra that replaced it

[Greg Mackie]

Dr John Uren?, NSU Prinz?, Lotus Cortina ?

[Steve Holmes]

Steve, I think that pic of the TVR has Pedro aboard. The helmet type is my indication, as that was one favoured by PO. True we did share drives, I drove in the more major events for Pedro at Catalina Park and Warwick Farm. I think we ventured further afield on more than one occasion, but the memory dims.

Thanks KB. Did you ever race a Griffith?

[Steve Holmes]

Ron Thorp bought Tom Sulman's DB3S, Ron is better known for the Cobra that replaced it

Thanks for that John. Ron has good taste in cars!

[John Uren]

Hello Greg, sorry, this is ''young John'', used to be the kid who trailed around as 'pit crew' for the NSU and Lotus.
Dr John died last December, in Bowral, still talking cars

[Greg Mackie]

That is sad news.

I helped John with some suspension mods. on the NSU, in the early '60s. He was a pretty handy driver.

[John Uren]

Thanks Greg.

re: the Hunter, #41 on the previous page: perhaps this is one of the Hindmarsh cars? Husband and wife, one black and one silver.

[Ray Bell]

Yes, it is the Ian Hindmarsh Holden-powered Hunter...

48/215 No 40 is John Hall, 45 is Brian Donovan (not Bo Seton), 35 is Bruce Stewart, 37 is probably Graham Ryan.

I don't know who the light-coloured EH is, the Mk 3 Zephyr is Bruce Taylor.

Strangely, you don't seem to realise that the December pics of the front-line tourers depict the most exciting races ever run for the class. A fantastic pair of races that left spectators spellbound.

[Ray Bell]

Originally posted by Steve Holmes
First two shots show Bob Jane and Frank Matich again. Any thoughts on who the other drivers are in these photos?


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Paul Bolton in the Rennmax (21) with a Hillman engine, I'd forgotten all about that one...

Brabham No 9 is, I'm pretty sure, Geoff McClelland.

[Ray Bell]

Originally posted by Steve Holmes
Last group from this event.

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Doug Kelley in the old Cooper leads the top group... there's another pic of him too...

The Lotus 18s were Fairall and Price, I don't know which is which.

The TR is Bill Hucker, Max Brunninghausen in the SP250, Mike Champion in the blue Morgan, Doug Macarthur in the Spridget, I don't think this Turner is Donnelly.

[Ray Bell]

Originally posted by Steve Holmes
The following photos are all from a December 1964 national meeting. kicking off with the AM DB3, the only info I can find of this car is that it was raced by an A. Pucket.

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Alan Puckett was a well-known artist and did a lot of posters for motor racing. He had the 1935 Aston Martin LM20 which had done so well at Le Mans and ran it in the 'Vintage' race at the Farm in '62, later sold it to the US. A real Aston Martin fancier.

[Ray Bell]

Originally posted by Steve Holmes
Bit more touring car action, with the EH Holdens of Norm Beechey and Brian Muir, plus Bob Jane's Jag.

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The RCN report described this:

Jane had hit the front and led for the next lap but it was far from over. Muir wasn't giving up, and giving the red rocket everything "pushed" Jane at breakneck speed into the Causeway. The Jag nearly let go, Muir saw his chance, ducked underneath - and nearly hung himself on the fence. The Jag was clear again and this time the advantage was too great. Jane flew down Pit Straight 50 yards ahead of Muir, with Beechey, driving furiously and doing his very best but at a great disadvantage with different tyres, a long 200 yards away. Behind them, almost a minute away, came John Hall, followed by Graham Ryan and Bryan Donovan.

This race was just for the over 1600cc cars, it got much more interesting in the combined event!

[Ray Bell]

Originally posted by Steve Holmes
Bob Jane can't have done a lot of single seater racing, but this is him in the Elfin.

Following pics are (I think) Rocky Tresise in the Cooper, Bib Stillwell in the Brabham, and Matich again.

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Correct on all counts...

However, I think you underestimate Jane's open-wheeler experience. This Elfin served him well for a couple of seasons before being sold to David Collins, he contested many of the Lucas-Davison rounds at Calder and a lot of Gold Star races as well as support events for Tasman Cup races. Not only that, he jumped into his Brabham Repco at a later Calder meeting... the car had lived through an abysmal year, Harvey had ridden it into the fence when something broke at Bathurst, Ian Cook had been all at sea in it at Lakeside, Jim Palmer doddled around in it at the Farm IIRC and then Allan Moffat bundled it up at Sandown.

At Calder, however, Bob got into a dice with Frank Matich's SR3 and Leo Geoghegan's Lotus 39 and set fastest lap!

[GD66]

Alan Puckett was a well-known artist and did a lot of posters for motor racing. He had the 1935 Aston Martin LM20 which had done so well at Le Mans and ran it in the 'Vintage' race at the Farm in '62, later sold it to the US. A real Aston Martin fancier.

Alan Puckett's most famous artwork adorned the fairings of Aussie Vaughan Coburn's Yamahas. They were seen in NZ in the Marlboro Series days.

[Ray Bell]

Well...

I never knew he had such good models.