54 replies to this topic

[Leigh Trevail]

I have now made contact with someone in Delaware who knew Dan Hastings when he returned home. He did continue competing there in his Morgan, but later worked for Ford's and moved from the area. Many thanks to Raceannouncer200 for pointing me in the right direction. Also thanks to h4887 for correcting my spelling over Doug Sampter's name, I will work on this one when time allows.

It was interesting to read the Autosport report on the U.S.A.F meeting and seeing the local names, especially when I realised that Ben Wyatt in the ex- Wharton Frazer Nash raced against Wharton in the B.R.M.

Someone mentioned the Jim Russell school, as this was classed as a college it was not unknown for wealthy American kids to use this to dodge the draft for the Vietnam war. Somehow I doubt if this went down to well with the servicemen stationed locally.

[wenoopy]

Wilder also raced a year-old F2 Lotus 12 in England in mid 1959, before shipping it home

At the same time his buddy Jim Haynes raced an F2 Cooper T43, though whether he was a military man I don't know

That brings to mind a story I read in a US motor sport magazine around 1960-ish about couple of US enthusiasts who organised themselves a European motor racing holiday. A couple of race meetings in England and a hillclimb on Jersey. They called themselves "Fifth Avenue Racing Team" because it had a nice ring to it when abbreviated.

The same two, perhaps? Lotus 12 and Cooper sounds familiar.

Stu

[bradbury west]

Wilder also raced a year-old F2 Lotus 12 in England in mid 1959, before shipping it home

At the same time his buddy Jim Haynes raced an F2 Cooper T43, though whether he was a military man I don't know

Perhaps TNFer Mike Bennett, 12 Registrar, can throw some light on him.
Roger Lund

[wenoopy]

Steven F Wilder was Technical Editor of Sports Car Illustrated/Car & Driver in the 1960's, amongst many other achievements.
If you Google his name and that of Karl Ludvigsen you will find a 2006 article?obituary from Hemmings magazine.

I guess the story I remembered would have been written by him in Sports Car Illustrated around 1960 when I was 17 or 18. Nowadays I can't remember what I did last week!

Stu

Edited by wenoopy, 16 August 2013 - 10:48.

[M bennett]

Stephen F Wilder bought Ivor Bueb's Lotus 12 chassis # 359 as noted in Sports Car and Lotus Owner in August 1959. Lotus delivered the car to Ivor on 3rd May 1958 so he used it for just one year. Stephen Wilder then wrote an in depth article about the European adventures in Sports Cars Illustrated December 1959. This was reproduced in The HLR magazine Spring 1998. The history of #359 is now well documented, its is now finally on its way back or actually may be back in the USA.
Mike Bennett HLR