Sad news from England,
speed record holder and one of the early member of the 200 Club passed away.
Sir Stirling Moss was 90 years old
a real gentleman behind the wheel and one of the greatest formula 1 driver of all time
R.I.P.
May he rest in peace.
One of motor racing's greatest. That 1955 Mille Miglia drive should be made into a movie.
One of a few, truly great drivers . . . . .
In his era or any other. Regardless of the "measuring stick" used.
Godspeed, Sir, now and forever.
Speed on Sir Moss, speed on! :cheers:
His bio is a great read: "All But My Life", by K. W. Purdy.
One of my very first racing heroes! RIP Sir.
Pete
GodSpeed Sir... I remember you in many forms of racing
Tried to look up his 2 Club number and date to post but the members portion of the site was down.
Program: 1957 245.64
90 is a good number, he did well!
Sid.
God Speed Sir Moss
Looking up members of the Bonneville 200 MPH Club? Be sure to use the new address:
Bonneville200mphclub.com
Dan Warner
President
Bonneville 200 MPH Club
Thanks Dan... that one works like new....
Back to Sir Stirling...
It's good to be King. :cheers:
Wayno
Quote from: floydjer on April 12, 2020, 06:07:52 AM
One of motor racing's greatest. That 1955 Mille Miglia drive should be made into a movie.
The 1956 German Grand Prix should be memorialized as well. The race was held on the Nurburgring, a 14.7 mile track through the Eifel Mountains. Sterling Moss and Juan Manuel Fangio ran nose to tail, exchanging positions, lap after lap. It was the best race I ever saw. Here are a couple of photos that I took of that race. The great sounds and the smell of castor oil in the air!
Farewell, Stirling Moss- one of the greatest drivers of all time.
RIP Sir Stirling. For reasons illustrated in this thread when I hear or think the name "Moss" I immediately think the word "crumpet".
Manta22, those are amazing shots, thanks for sharing!
Tim
Posted by Bobby Green on Instagram:
https://www.instagram.com/p/B-5XQD7pw-H/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link (https://www.instagram.com/p/B-5XQD7pw-H/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link) :cheers:
Mike
manta22- Were you a US serviceman in Germany? I was USAF at SpangDahlem 1964-67, just a half hour from Nuerburgring. Shortly before leaving, I checked one item off my bucket list, by driving two laps of the 'ring on a non-race weekend! It was still the 27km course then, about 16 miles. Is your second photo a spot on the western side (looking east)?
Quote from: Jack Gifford on April 12, 2020, 09:31:26 PM
manta22- Were you a US serviceman in Germany? I was USAF at SpangDahlem 1964-67, just a half hour from Nuerburgring. Shortly before leaving, I checked one item off my bucket list, by driving two laps of the 'ring on a non-race weekend! It was still the 27km course then, about 16 miles. Is your second photo a spot on the western side (looking east)?
Well, Jack, I was in Germany when I was in the Army in '60 to '63 but I took those pictures when I was there in high school. I was an Army Brat so we lived in lots of places, Japan & Germany as well as all over the US. That second picture was taken just past the North Curve and before the Adenau Bridge.
While I was there stationed in Babenhausen with a Corporal missile unit I drove my '63 VW 1500 notchback around the 'Ring. I did 14:53 scaring myself sh!tless. When I was there in high school (Frankfurt HS) I went up to the 'Ring in a friends '48 Mercury and rode around one lap in it. That was a hoot. The course that you and I drove is not the same as today- shorter, re-paved, Armco barriers replacing trees, etc. I'll bet your experience was memorable, Jack!
That era of GP racing was exciting, the F1 of today just isn't as interesting to me.
Neil, nothing better than the smell of castor bean oil in the air except maybe, nitro. My introduction was a first visit to the the LA Times Gran Prix at the late Riverside International Raceway (inside turn six).
John
Quote from: ggl205 on April 13, 2020, 09:16:44 AM
Neil, nothing better than the smell of castor bean oil in the air except maybe, nitro. My first introduction was a first visit to the the LA Times Gran Prix at that the late Riverside Raceway track (inside turn six).
John
Yes, the smell of nitro is wonderful. In the '50s the GP cars did not have to run on strictly approved gasoline so I suspect there was some nitro in the tank. Castor oil and nitro- wow what a smell when mixed together.
Yes, I was fortunate to have the opportunity. But you got me- I didn't get under 16 minutes with my 4,200 pound '57 Chev station wagon (upgraded suspension and brakes, Pontiac Tri-Power engine). Actually, I was only capable of "pushing it" about 2/3 of the way around- besides being a nervous wreck, I was exhausted (manual steering but with the power steering ratio). I took the caps off the headers for the second lap- which did turn some heads as I power-slid around the dogleg leading to the paddock. If all the turns were that visible- instead of mountains blocking the view- it wouldn't be nearly as nerve-wracking.
I am sorry to report the loss of another icon of racing- John Horsman has died. He was at the pinnacle of sports car endurance racing during it's "Golden Age". John was an excellent engineer and a fine gentleman- and my good friend.
John started work for Aston- Martin after graduation from Cambridge University, working for John Weyer. When Weyer left to go to newly-formed Ford Advanced Vehicles (FAV), Horsman went with him. At FAV, they built and developed the Ford GT40. This led to John Weyer Automotive Engineering (JWAE) where they raced the GT40 and an advanced version, the Mirage. They were remarkably successful, winning Le Mans twice with the exact same car! Porsche approached JWAE to take over their racing program and it became legendary after John Horsman solved the high speed stability problems of the Porsche 917. John Horsman became chief engineer and eventually managing director when Weyer retired. Later John moved to Arizona and designed a series of sports racing cars. John and his wife lived in Tucson and he frequently was invited to various events where he delighted the audience with stories about his career in racing. His book "Racing In the Rain" is a classic and serves as a fitting memorial to a great man.
Sorry to hear that Neil! :-(
Sorry for your loss Neil.
Well, he'll have good company at the big Race Track . . .
:-(
He didnt believe in seat belts for race cars. He said he would rather be ejected then burn to death