Does anyone know how this relationship got started?
The previous summer I had seen Tim race a FJ at Upper Marlboro
and I was very impressed.
Next thing I knew he was off to do the Tasman with Bruce McLaren
and a plan to do your Europe in the spring.
Does anyone have a clearer picture?
Tim Mayer and Bruce McLaren
Started by
David M. Kane
, May 06 2001 12:15
31 replies to this topic
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#2
Vitesse2
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Posted 06 May 2001 - 14:33
Timmy Mayer was IMHO one of the great lost talents. He had driven in Coopers in FJ for Ken Tyrrell and was thus under consideration by Cooper as number 2 to Bruce for 1964.
Bruce had come up with the idea of building special cars for the 1964 Tasman Series: "John Cooper approved and Bruce took his first step into the area of design ... The project got under way and one car was actually being built when John Cooper's father, Charles, decided that unless the cars were really works entries (which they were not, for they were being built to Bruce's design) they could not be run as such. In view of this, Bruce and Timmy decided with Teddy Mayer (Timmy's brother and manager) and Bruce's secretary, Eoin Young, to establish a private team. As work on the Coopers progressed under Bruce's direction, it became obvious that the project involved more organization and responsibility than had been anticipated. Bruce decided it was time to put things on a company basis and Bruce McLaren Motor Racing Ltd came into being with Bruce, Patty McLaren and Eoin Young as directors.
When the Tasman season began in January 1964, Team McLaren was ready with two beautifully prepared cars and a compliment of four mechanics - Wally Willmott, Tyler Alexander (Timmy Mayer's American mechanic), Lenny Gilbert and Colin Beanland .... As they moved to Longford in Tasmania for the last race, Bruce had won the Championship on points; Timmy had secured third place, and the official presentation would be made after the race. as the team entered practise at Longford there was pride that Bruce had won the Championship, pride that the cars had performed so splendidly. But tragedy erased all elation. Timmy's Cooper became airborne in practise, smashed sideways into a tree and Timmy was killed instantly. In shock, in sadness, the team returned home ... and later in his book "From the Cockpit", Bruce wrote of his friend: "Who is to say that he had not seen more, done more and learned more in his twenty-six years than many people do in a lifetime? To do something well is so worthwhile that to die trying to do it better cannot be foolhardy. It would be a waste of life, for I feel that life is measured in achievement, not in years alone""
Quoted from "The Last Season: the life of Bruce McLaren" by Jeanne Beeching (Haessner 1972)
I read "From the Cockpit" many years ago, but don't possess a copy myself - I'm pretty sure there are more details in it. However, the foregoing shows how crucial Timmy Mayer was in the establishment of McLaren, since both Teddy Mayer and Tyler Alexander were lynchpins of the team's early years.
Incidentally, has anyone ever seen Charlie Cooper called Charles in print anywhere else - EVER??
Bruce had come up with the idea of building special cars for the 1964 Tasman Series: "John Cooper approved and Bruce took his first step into the area of design ... The project got under way and one car was actually being built when John Cooper's father, Charles, decided that unless the cars were really works entries (which they were not, for they were being built to Bruce's design) they could not be run as such. In view of this, Bruce and Timmy decided with Teddy Mayer (Timmy's brother and manager) and Bruce's secretary, Eoin Young, to establish a private team. As work on the Coopers progressed under Bruce's direction, it became obvious that the project involved more organization and responsibility than had been anticipated. Bruce decided it was time to put things on a company basis and Bruce McLaren Motor Racing Ltd came into being with Bruce, Patty McLaren and Eoin Young as directors.
When the Tasman season began in January 1964, Team McLaren was ready with two beautifully prepared cars and a compliment of four mechanics - Wally Willmott, Tyler Alexander (Timmy Mayer's American mechanic), Lenny Gilbert and Colin Beanland .... As they moved to Longford in Tasmania for the last race, Bruce had won the Championship on points; Timmy had secured third place, and the official presentation would be made after the race. as the team entered practise at Longford there was pride that Bruce had won the Championship, pride that the cars had performed so splendidly. But tragedy erased all elation. Timmy's Cooper became airborne in practise, smashed sideways into a tree and Timmy was killed instantly. In shock, in sadness, the team returned home ... and later in his book "From the Cockpit", Bruce wrote of his friend: "Who is to say that he had not seen more, done more and learned more in his twenty-six years than many people do in a lifetime? To do something well is so worthwhile that to die trying to do it better cannot be foolhardy. It would be a waste of life, for I feel that life is measured in achievement, not in years alone""
Quoted from "The Last Season: the life of Bruce McLaren" by Jeanne Beeching (Haessner 1972)
I read "From the Cockpit" many years ago, but don't possess a copy myself - I'm pretty sure there are more details in it. However, the foregoing shows how crucial Timmy Mayer was in the establishment of McLaren, since both Teddy Mayer and Tyler Alexander were lynchpins of the team's early years.
Incidentally, has anyone ever seen Charlie Cooper called Charles in print anywhere else - EVER??
#3
David McKinney
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Posted 06 May 2001 - 15:59
In answer to your last question, yes. Cooper Sr was always referred to as Charles at the time. It's only more recently - since Doug Nye's book? - that the more familiar term has been popularly used.
#4
Allen Brown
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Posted 06 May 2001 - 20:32
The connection may be via Roger Penske. Teddy Mayer did a deal with Penske in 1962 which resulted in Tim driving a libre Cooper and sports Cooper for/with/alongside Penske. Never been too sure how that deal worked but it was something like that. Most of the time, Mayer was dominating US FJ with a hot quasi-works T59.
McLaren and Penske did deals in 1963 - Penske was a Cooper customer and McLaren's first independent sports car project was the ex-Penske Zerex. I think it muts have been about this time that McLaren would have seen Mayer's potential and taken him on for the Tasman team.
McLaren may also have seen Mayer in the Junior. I believe McLaren set up the T59 during 1961/62 winter testing.
Allen
PS I have seen Charles many more times than Charlie. Eoin Young's book on McLaren only ever calls him Charles. At the time, I'm sure it was simply 'Mr'.
McLaren and Penske did deals in 1963 - Penske was a Cooper customer and McLaren's first independent sports car project was the ex-Penske Zerex. I think it muts have been about this time that McLaren would have seen Mayer's potential and taken him on for the Tasman team.
McLaren may also have seen Mayer in the Junior. I believe McLaren set up the T59 during 1961/62 winter testing.
Allen
PS I have seen Charles many more times than Charlie. Eoin Young's book on McLaren only ever calls him Charles. At the time, I'm sure it was simply 'Mr'.
#5
Vitesse2
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Posted 06 May 2001 - 20:47
I stand corrected!! Thank you gentlemen.
#6
karlcars
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Posted 06 May 2001 - 21:07
When I interviewed Robin Herd for my book on Bruce (out this autumn) he stressed how important Teddy Mayer was to the whole setup. Teddy showed his fortitude by the way he stayed with the effort after his brother's death.
He said Teddy even more than Bruce was key to his (Robin's) hiring as a designer by McLaren. Then it was through Robin that a friend of his, Max Mosley, got involved in motor-racing management at March. So Robin said that Teddy was to blame for getting Max involved in motor racing! I guess that blame goes back to Timmy in the first place...
He said Teddy even more than Bruce was key to his (Robin's) hiring as a designer by McLaren. Then it was through Robin that a friend of his, Max Mosley, got involved in motor-racing management at March. So Robin said that Teddy was to blame for getting Max involved in motor racing! I guess that blame goes back to Timmy in the first place...
#7
Bernd
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Posted 07 May 2001 - 02:54
Can someone give a more detailed account of Mayers last weekend at Longford? How he was going, the circumstances/cause of his shunt etc etc.
#8
Milan Fistonic
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Posted 08 May 2001 - 09:39
While it doesn't answer David's question this tribute to Tim Mayer, written by Donn Anderson and published in the April 1964 edition of Motorman, may be of interest.
Scholar Journalist and Sportsman . . . Tim Mayer
By The Editor
It is so very hard to write an appreciation of one who was more than just another racing driver to us. Tim Mayer was a newcomer to international racing and although we knew him for only five weeks in New Zealand, it was not difficult to make an accurate appraisal of the 26-year-old American.
His death during a practice session for the final round of the Tasman Championship at the Longford circuit in Tasmania on February 28 was a sudden shock to many. Twelve months ago he was practically unknown and even of late his appearance to some was much of a novelty.
Tim was not the “boy’s book” ideal of a racing driver. He looked more the university or law student figure and, indeed, he did have a very sound education. Tall and slender – 6 foot and 145 lbs – Timmy was married in 1961 to charming Garril.
He was born to a wealthy family in Pennsylvania, and it soon became obvious that he was talented in both studying and athletic fields. Some six years ago he went to his first motor race at Sebring with a cousin and was immediately taken in with the sport. He entered his first race in an Austin Healey in 1959. “It was wet and I was very much a newcomer to motor racing,” Tim told The Motorman recently. “I spun trying to change gears down a straight!” The young driver competed in 5 of 13 national races that initial year with the Healey and finished fourth in the national class standings.
Even then Timmy was backed and assisted by his brother, Teddy, who has accompanied him throughout his career with cars. Of his early racing he says it was mostly “crash, burn and try to learn.” For 1960 Tim had a new Lotus 18 junior and in eight races he was second five times. The car was wrecked when Timmy ran into a horse barn at Louisville, thus bringing the year’s racing to an end. At that meeting he met Dr Frank Falkner, Cooper’s agent in the U.S., who was to help the young American. By the age of 22 Tim had a degree in English literature from Yale University but it was time for the two-year army stint.
Of his first run in a single-seater Tim said: “I had overturned the Lotus 18 within 10 minutes of driving the thing and finished hanging upside down strapped in with my seat belt. Everyone uses belts, even for open cars, in the States, so when I went to Europe it took a while to become used to not being tied in.”
Tim was able to continue pursuing his desire to become a top-line driver in the army, however, as the officers appreciated the value of a quick corporal at motor race meetings. He used an FJ Cooper and while based in Puerto Rico was able to race almost every weekend in many parts of the country. The big break came in 1962 when he was acclaimed the most improved and outstanding driver of the year. With a brand new Cooper junior he won the United States S.C.C.A. Formula Junior Championship. These results landed him an entry in the U.S. Grand Prix with a third car owned by the Cooper works. He was the fastest of the privateers in practice but the gear lever came unstuck during the race.
Last year Tim was off to Europe to join the Ken Tyrrell racing team. Although the Cooper Juniors were down on power compared with the Lotus Fords, he was able to gain much experience all over England and Europe. “There is much more competition in Europe compared with the States. Formula Junior racing in Europe is like Russian roulette. The B.M.C. engines were outdated and if we finished fourth or fifth we were doing well. The Cooper had little power but fantastic cornering – superior to the Lotus.”
He crashed during the Tourist Trophy at Goodwood in 1963 after a brake calliper broke and suffered a badly twisted neck, and he also had a bad shunt at Silverstone. Driving his own 2.7-litre Cooper Monaco, Tim was third to Penske and Salvadori at the international Brands Hatch meeting last year. He also had a number of races with Cooper’s Minis. “I had a lot of fun with Sir John Whitmore – he must be the second best known driver in the U.S. next to Clark.”
At Riverside last year he led the 2-litre class with a new Lotus 23B until heat forced his retirement, but he won his class and finished 5th overall at Laguna Seca.
He was made two Christmas presents – a drive with one of the McLaren Coopers in the Australasian series, and number two man in the Cooper works formula one team.
When Tim first drove the 2.5 he found it a different kettle of fish to the juniors. “With the little cars you have no power to get out of trouble.” So Tim, Garril, Teddy and mechanic Tyler Alexander came south to New Zealand with the McLaren team – and they won many friends. He was second at Levin, took third place at Pukekohe, but had trouble at Wigram and couldn’t do any better than 8th position. At Invercargill he finished second to his team-mate and was fourth in the Australian G.P. after losing second position with fuel trouble. He was third at Warwick Farm.
Consistent placings resulted in the American driver finishing third on points in the New Zealand races for the Tasman Championship, behind McLaen and Hulme, with 16 points.
Timmy – the nephew of Governor Scranton of Pennsylvania – had a real American outlook to motor racing: he wanted to go to the top. He was perhaps fortunate in having financial means to purchase the best machinery during his early career, but he also developed the ability to handle same. Money cannot buy driving skill.
From his ‘varsity days when he worked as a disc jockey on radio stations he was a keen journalist and wrote for a number of publications.
Not only was Timmy a fine driver and scholar: he was also an enthusiastic athlete. Water skiing, squash and other activities were the order of the day in New Zealand when other business was cleared.
He was genuinely interested in motor racing, no matter where. He spoke to me at length on the unfortunate situation of import duty and restrictions in this country and said it must stifle the sport here. “An FJ Cooper can be imported into the States for less than 1200 pounds, whereas it costs more than twice that here.”
Wherever the Mayers went in this country they gained respect. Tim, with his broad accent, was a fine ambassador for his country and a true enthusiast. There was always time to talk to anyone – no matter how small they were on the circuit, or how insignificant their name might be.
Quiet, unassuming, and not likely to be noticed in a crowd of drivers, Timmy Mayer left his mark in this country. It would seem very cruel that we should lose a fine driver who had come so far in such a short time. We pay tribute to Tim Mayer and his kin, Garril and Teddy who helped him so much in the sport he loved.
Scholar Journalist and Sportsman . . . Tim Mayer
By The Editor
It is so very hard to write an appreciation of one who was more than just another racing driver to us. Tim Mayer was a newcomer to international racing and although we knew him for only five weeks in New Zealand, it was not difficult to make an accurate appraisal of the 26-year-old American.
His death during a practice session for the final round of the Tasman Championship at the Longford circuit in Tasmania on February 28 was a sudden shock to many. Twelve months ago he was practically unknown and even of late his appearance to some was much of a novelty.
Tim was not the “boy’s book” ideal of a racing driver. He looked more the university or law student figure and, indeed, he did have a very sound education. Tall and slender – 6 foot and 145 lbs – Timmy was married in 1961 to charming Garril.
He was born to a wealthy family in Pennsylvania, and it soon became obvious that he was talented in both studying and athletic fields. Some six years ago he went to his first motor race at Sebring with a cousin and was immediately taken in with the sport. He entered his first race in an Austin Healey in 1959. “It was wet and I was very much a newcomer to motor racing,” Tim told The Motorman recently. “I spun trying to change gears down a straight!” The young driver competed in 5 of 13 national races that initial year with the Healey and finished fourth in the national class standings.
Even then Timmy was backed and assisted by his brother, Teddy, who has accompanied him throughout his career with cars. Of his early racing he says it was mostly “crash, burn and try to learn.” For 1960 Tim had a new Lotus 18 junior and in eight races he was second five times. The car was wrecked when Timmy ran into a horse barn at Louisville, thus bringing the year’s racing to an end. At that meeting he met Dr Frank Falkner, Cooper’s agent in the U.S., who was to help the young American. By the age of 22 Tim had a degree in English literature from Yale University but it was time for the two-year army stint.
Of his first run in a single-seater Tim said: “I had overturned the Lotus 18 within 10 minutes of driving the thing and finished hanging upside down strapped in with my seat belt. Everyone uses belts, even for open cars, in the States, so when I went to Europe it took a while to become used to not being tied in.”
Tim was able to continue pursuing his desire to become a top-line driver in the army, however, as the officers appreciated the value of a quick corporal at motor race meetings. He used an FJ Cooper and while based in Puerto Rico was able to race almost every weekend in many parts of the country. The big break came in 1962 when he was acclaimed the most improved and outstanding driver of the year. With a brand new Cooper junior he won the United States S.C.C.A. Formula Junior Championship. These results landed him an entry in the U.S. Grand Prix with a third car owned by the Cooper works. He was the fastest of the privateers in practice but the gear lever came unstuck during the race.
Last year Tim was off to Europe to join the Ken Tyrrell racing team. Although the Cooper Juniors were down on power compared with the Lotus Fords, he was able to gain much experience all over England and Europe. “There is much more competition in Europe compared with the States. Formula Junior racing in Europe is like Russian roulette. The B.M.C. engines were outdated and if we finished fourth or fifth we were doing well. The Cooper had little power but fantastic cornering – superior to the Lotus.”
He crashed during the Tourist Trophy at Goodwood in 1963 after a brake calliper broke and suffered a badly twisted neck, and he also had a bad shunt at Silverstone. Driving his own 2.7-litre Cooper Monaco, Tim was third to Penske and Salvadori at the international Brands Hatch meeting last year. He also had a number of races with Cooper’s Minis. “I had a lot of fun with Sir John Whitmore – he must be the second best known driver in the U.S. next to Clark.”
At Riverside last year he led the 2-litre class with a new Lotus 23B until heat forced his retirement, but he won his class and finished 5th overall at Laguna Seca.
He was made two Christmas presents – a drive with one of the McLaren Coopers in the Australasian series, and number two man in the Cooper works formula one team.
When Tim first drove the 2.5 he found it a different kettle of fish to the juniors. “With the little cars you have no power to get out of trouble.” So Tim, Garril, Teddy and mechanic Tyler Alexander came south to New Zealand with the McLaren team – and they won many friends. He was second at Levin, took third place at Pukekohe, but had trouble at Wigram and couldn’t do any better than 8th position. At Invercargill he finished second to his team-mate and was fourth in the Australian G.P. after losing second position with fuel trouble. He was third at Warwick Farm.
Consistent placings resulted in the American driver finishing third on points in the New Zealand races for the Tasman Championship, behind McLaen and Hulme, with 16 points.
Timmy – the nephew of Governor Scranton of Pennsylvania – had a real American outlook to motor racing: he wanted to go to the top. He was perhaps fortunate in having financial means to purchase the best machinery during his early career, but he also developed the ability to handle same. Money cannot buy driving skill.
From his ‘varsity days when he worked as a disc jockey on radio stations he was a keen journalist and wrote for a number of publications.
Not only was Timmy a fine driver and scholar: he was also an enthusiastic athlete. Water skiing, squash and other activities were the order of the day in New Zealand when other business was cleared.
He was genuinely interested in motor racing, no matter where. He spoke to me at length on the unfortunate situation of import duty and restrictions in this country and said it must stifle the sport here. “An FJ Cooper can be imported into the States for less than 1200 pounds, whereas it costs more than twice that here.”
Wherever the Mayers went in this country they gained respect. Tim, with his broad accent, was a fine ambassador for his country and a true enthusiast. There was always time to talk to anyone – no matter how small they were on the circuit, or how insignificant their name might be.
Quiet, unassuming, and not likely to be noticed in a crowd of drivers, Timmy Mayer left his mark in this country. It would seem very cruel that we should lose a fine driver who had come so far in such a short time. We pay tribute to Tim Mayer and his kin, Garril and Teddy who helped him so much in the sport he loved.
#9
Vitesse2
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Posted 09 May 2001 - 12:52
Just rediscovered my copy of Eoin Young's book on McLaren: he says Teddy "rented" Penske's ex-Briggs Cunningham F1 Cooper for Timmy to drive. (This was the car rebuilt as an FL/Intercontinental special with a 2.7 litre Climax after Walt Hansgen crashed it at the 61 US GP. It was later rebuilt as a sports car and became the Zerex Special and then the first McLaren.)
Young also says that Ken Tyrrell spotted Timmy in the States, but gives no further details of exactly where or when - perhaps Uncle Ken's famous air logs might give a clue?
As regards Timmy's accident, he simply states that the car became airborne and hit a tree, with the driver being killed instantly.
Young also says that Ken Tyrrell spotted Timmy in the States, but gives no further details of exactly where or when - perhaps Uncle Ken's famous air logs might give a clue?
As regards Timmy's accident, he simply states that the car became airborne and hit a tree, with the driver being killed instantly.
#10
Ray Bell
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Posted 13 May 2001 - 14:38
McLaren would have been working with Tim Mayer when he had that prize drive at the 1962 US GP.
Twice above it's mentioned that the Zerex Special was purchased for Tim to drive, but it's also said that Tim had his own Cooper Monaco... what gives? Bruce drove it, nobody else, to my knowledge, and there's the photo I posted previously, didn't I, of the two of them on a Brands grid? Bruce in the Zerex and Tim in a Monaco... though I thought that was John Coombs' car...
So, in reality, this is the picture I see:
Bruce gets to know Tim at Watkins Glen, they are about the same age, get along well... Tyrell takes Tim in for FJr and that's a nursery as he awaits a Formula One seat at Cooper's alongside Bruce... This naturally puts him into the Tasman team, which becomes Bruce McLaren Motor Racing's effort...
As for his death, there was a lot of pressure for Tim in that Friday practice. There was champagne at stake, and he was definitely in the running for a good grid spot. The hump where he got airborne was very slight, but was just at the beginning of the braking area.
He landed wrong, got sideways, slid into a tree... There's more in another thread, IIRC.
A bit on the Amon thread:
http://www.atlasf1.c...=&postid=195250
And in the ultimate price thread:
http://www.atlasf1.c...=&postid=173458
I have more somewhere.
Twice above it's mentioned that the Zerex Special was purchased for Tim to drive, but it's also said that Tim had his own Cooper Monaco... what gives? Bruce drove it, nobody else, to my knowledge, and there's the photo I posted previously, didn't I, of the two of them on a Brands grid? Bruce in the Zerex and Tim in a Monaco... though I thought that was John Coombs' car...
So, in reality, this is the picture I see:
Bruce gets to know Tim at Watkins Glen, they are about the same age, get along well... Tyrell takes Tim in for FJr and that's a nursery as he awaits a Formula One seat at Cooper's alongside Bruce... This naturally puts him into the Tasman team, which becomes Bruce McLaren Motor Racing's effort...
As for his death, there was a lot of pressure for Tim in that Friday practice. There was champagne at stake, and he was definitely in the running for a good grid spot. The hump where he got airborne was very slight, but was just at the beginning of the braking area.
He landed wrong, got sideways, slid into a tree... There's more in another thread, IIRC.
A bit on the Amon thread:
http://www.atlasf1.c...=&postid=195250
And in the ultimate price thread:
http://www.atlasf1.c...=&postid=173458
I have more somewhere.
#11
Milan Fistonic
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Posted 13 May 2001 - 22:05
This is from the 1964 New Zealand Grand Prix programme
Timmy Mayer
“The most improved and outstanding young American driver” … that’s the description of 25-year-old Timmy Mayer by the Sports Car Club of America when presenting him with the Kimberly Cup at the end of a super-successful season with his Formula Junior Cooper in 1962.
Mayer, who has been racing in Europe through 1963, will join Bruce McLaren on the New Zealand and Australian circuit in a Cooper 2.5-litre car, an ultra-lightweight similar to that which McLaren will drive himself.
Originally from Dalton, Pennslvania, Mayer has been driving in races since he was a student at Yale at the age of 21 (there is a bar to racing below that in the States). Even a two-year stint in the U.S. Army did not interrupt his racing career, for he swept the board in 1962 while still in uniform, though driving on weekend leave.
Mayer’s first car was an Austin-Healey 3000S, and although he drove in only five of the national races in 1959 he still finished fourth in the national class ratings.
For 1960 he changed to a Lotus 18 Formula Junior car, but after placing second five times he demolished the car, and nearly himself too, against the wall of a barn in Louisville. Undaunted by the setback, he was back again in 1961 driving a Cooper FJ, and despite his conscription had three straight victories in a five-race series to win the North-Eastern States FJ championship.
As Corporal Mayer of the U.S. Army in Puerto Rico his motor racing activities were strictly limited in 1962, but he won no less than seven national races in a row with a new FJ Cooper, setting a fresh lap record on each track and waltzing off with the American FJ championship.
This earned him entry into the U.S. Grand Prix at Watkins Glen with an old four-cylinder Formula 1 Cooper, but gearbox troubles spoilt his run after qualifying fastest among the “privateers.”
Before leaving for Britain to take a place in the works-sponsored Cooper FJ team run by Ken Tyrrell, Mayer raced a Cooper Monaco 2.7 in sports car events and was leading the U.S. Road Racing championship.
With the Tyrrell team, 1963 was busy but not as successful as it might have been, the B.M.C. motors used being down on power compared with the all-conquering Fords used by Lotus, Brabham and Lola. It was a valuable season for Mayer in experience, however, and towards the end of the year he flew his Cooper Monaco over for a meeting at Brands Hatch, where he was placed third behind quick boys Roger Penske and Roy Salvadori in similar cars.
Bruce McLaren believes that Mayer is one of the most promising drivers to appear on the scene in the last two years, and lost no time in teaming up with him for the Tasman Championship circuit. Their cars are, of course, the phenomenally fast machines developed by McLaren himself specifically for the “circus” down here.
Timmy Mayer
“The most improved and outstanding young American driver” … that’s the description of 25-year-old Timmy Mayer by the Sports Car Club of America when presenting him with the Kimberly Cup at the end of a super-successful season with his Formula Junior Cooper in 1962.
Mayer, who has been racing in Europe through 1963, will join Bruce McLaren on the New Zealand and Australian circuit in a Cooper 2.5-litre car, an ultra-lightweight similar to that which McLaren will drive himself.
Originally from Dalton, Pennslvania, Mayer has been driving in races since he was a student at Yale at the age of 21 (there is a bar to racing below that in the States). Even a two-year stint in the U.S. Army did not interrupt his racing career, for he swept the board in 1962 while still in uniform, though driving on weekend leave.
Mayer’s first car was an Austin-Healey 3000S, and although he drove in only five of the national races in 1959 he still finished fourth in the national class ratings.
For 1960 he changed to a Lotus 18 Formula Junior car, but after placing second five times he demolished the car, and nearly himself too, against the wall of a barn in Louisville. Undaunted by the setback, he was back again in 1961 driving a Cooper FJ, and despite his conscription had three straight victories in a five-race series to win the North-Eastern States FJ championship.
As Corporal Mayer of the U.S. Army in Puerto Rico his motor racing activities were strictly limited in 1962, but he won no less than seven national races in a row with a new FJ Cooper, setting a fresh lap record on each track and waltzing off with the American FJ championship.
This earned him entry into the U.S. Grand Prix at Watkins Glen with an old four-cylinder Formula 1 Cooper, but gearbox troubles spoilt his run after qualifying fastest among the “privateers.”
Before leaving for Britain to take a place in the works-sponsored Cooper FJ team run by Ken Tyrrell, Mayer raced a Cooper Monaco 2.7 in sports car events and was leading the U.S. Road Racing championship.
With the Tyrrell team, 1963 was busy but not as successful as it might have been, the B.M.C. motors used being down on power compared with the all-conquering Fords used by Lotus, Brabham and Lola. It was a valuable season for Mayer in experience, however, and towards the end of the year he flew his Cooper Monaco over for a meeting at Brands Hatch, where he was placed third behind quick boys Roger Penske and Roy Salvadori in similar cars.
Bruce McLaren believes that Mayer is one of the most promising drivers to appear on the scene in the last two years, and lost no time in teaming up with him for the Tasman Championship circuit. Their cars are, of course, the phenomenally fast machines developed by McLaren himself specifically for the “circus” down here.
#13
SJ Lambert
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Posted 07 April 2018 - 01:14
A Getty image - Tim testing the new Cooper T70 at Goodwood
#14
SJ Lambert
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#15
cooper997
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Posted 18 April 2018 - 09:56
Somewhere on TNF this already existed until the postimage changeover broke the link.
So may as well pop it in here.
Stephen
#16
MarkBisset
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Posted 23 October 2020 - 00:22
Tim Mayer ready for the off, NZ GP Pukekohe 1964. Bruce McLaren Racing Cooper T70 Climax, the ‘first McLarens’.
Bruce won from Denny in a Brabham BT4 and Tim. Look at the size of those 58 DCO Webers (Terry Marshall)
#17
cooper997
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Posted 23 October 2020 - 03:20
Bruce McLaren Cooper T70 related image that is already on TNF somewhere and should be here also.
Stephen
edit - upon seeing this pop up again and reviewing it, this is Bruce's T70, not Tim's
Edited by cooper997, 14 February 2023 - 01:29.
#18
MarkBisset
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Posted 23 October 2020 - 04:54
Stephen,
It’s a couple of years since I’ve seen Adam’s (Berryman) T70, it is quite noticeable how different the car is to the earlier Coopers, you can see the influence of the ‘corner of the workshop’ factor. And Bruce and Wally Willmott built it as a bespoke 100 miler, rather than it be an adapted 200 mile F1 car. I’ve got some Phillip Island shots of it in the nuddy somewhere, which I will find
On the road in New Zealand, January 1964 , (Terry Marshall) and talkmotorsportnz.com
Edited by MarkBisset, 23 October 2020 - 04:58.
#19
cooper997
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Posted 23 October 2020 - 05:44
Mark, back at 2013 Sandown Historics Bob Holden told me that Bruce tried out his Lynx Peugeot at a Sandown International ( I was showing Bob a photo of his Lynx at the time). He wasn't specific on year, either 1962 or 63 obviously, but it made me wonder whether Bruce may have had that car in mind when it came to building the T70.
Stephen
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#20
Ray Bell
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Posted 23 October 2020 - 07:08
One area in which the 1964 Tasman Cooper was similar to the T66 F1 car of 1963 was in the use of welded-in steel sheet panels to aid chassis stiffness...
I think it's a long bow to draw to look at the Lynx - already a two, even three, year old design with little late technological input - for conclusions about McLaren's '64 Tasman cars. He was right on the spot right through the rapid-development years of 1962 and 1963 to think that.
One area in which these cars differed significantly from F1 cars was in the use of 15" wheels, though they had 13" wheels and tyres available when they wanted them iIRC.
#21
Doug Nye
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Posted 23 October 2020 - 12:30
One of the most distasteful sights I ever recall was one I found about 10-15 years ago as a 'showpiece' within a display cabinet in one corner of the Longford Country Club Hotel.
It was - as seen in the photos above - Teddy Mayer's crash helmet.
DCN
#22
Ray Bell
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Posted 23 October 2020 - 13:04
Timmy's? How could they?
Distasteful is a polite word in those circumstances...
#23
rl1856
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Posted 23 October 2020 - 13:48
McLaren would have been working with Tim Mayer when he had that prize drive at the 1962 US GP.
So, in reality, this is the picture I see:
Bruce gets to know Tim at Watkins Glen, they are about the same age, get along well... Tyrell takes Tim in for FJr and that's a nursery as he awaits a Formula One seat at Cooper's alongside Bruce... This naturally puts him into the Tasman team, which becomes Bruce McLaren Motor Racing's effort...
In this light it appears that driving for McLaren during the Tasman series may have been Cooper directed as a way to get Mayer more experience in top flyte single seaters. His unfortunate accident caused Cooper to find another #2 driver. As we later found out, there was some confusion regarding how the throttle cable was secured for the #2 Cooper that -may have- impacted the driver's performance. Would the same mechanic have been assigned to Mayer, and would the same mistake have been made ? More what ifs underneath the tragedy.
#24
Doug Nye
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Posted 24 October 2020 - 15:55
The simple answer to the question above is no, that particular mechanic was not assigned to the Mayer car. He was not part of the Bruce McLaren Motor Racing team.
DCN
#25
Macca
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Posted 24 October 2020 - 17:56
I thin kl1856 may have meant that if Timmy had been in the #2 F1 Cooper for the 1964 season, he could have fallen foul of the same mechanic who Phil Hill said was ‘hateful’ and who Salvadori sacked at Monaco in 1965 over the taped throttle cable.
Paul M
Paul M
#26
rl1856
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Posted 26 October 2020 - 13:46
I thin kl1856 may have meant that if Timmy had been in the #2 F1 Cooper for the 1964 season, he could have fallen foul of the same mechanic who Phil Hill said was ‘hateful’ and who Salvadori sacked at Monaco in 1965 over the taped throttle cable.
Paul M
Correct and I am sorry if my hypothetical question was not clear. I meant the mechanic, employed by Cooper, who was responsible for preparation of the #2 Cooper during the 1964 season.
#27
Doug Nye
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Posted 26 October 2020 - 15:17
Don't vilify the mechanic in question too strongly. He was quite well regarded in other areas but had just developed a bad habit. And that didn't hurt anyone, apart from possibly the Cooper team's earnings and Phil Hill's Formula 1 career. Bad enough, of course, but not something to be considered on anything like a level with mechanic's errors which have resulted in a driver's death or personal injury.
DCN
#28
MarkBisset
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Posted 13 February 2023 - 09:39
Bruce McLaren during the Australian GP at Sandown Park, February 1964 (Andrew Trainor)
Gold-dust colour shot of the Bruce McLaren Motor Racing Cooper T70 Climax, Shell corner (Turn1) Q2 DNF engine, Jack Brabham won in his BT7A Climax from pole. Tim Mayer fourth in his T70 - his last race - Longford the following weekend
And Bruce won the first Tasman Cup
Edited by MarkBisset, 13 February 2023 - 09:40.
#29
Ray Bell
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Posted 13 February 2023 - 10:12
Tim's last race, At Lakeside two weeks after Sandown, saw him leading the field...
He and Frank Matich were the pace-setters that weekend, but both suffered blown engines. All of which had to be repaired, of course, on the long drive from Brisbane to Melbourne to be on the Ferry no later than Wednesday evening.
#30
MarkBisset
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Posted 13 February 2023 - 11:39
Thanks Ray,
I’ve got the order of the batting wrong that year. Tim really is one of those you really wonder about ar GP level. A rising star for sure.
m
#31
Rupertlt1
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Posted 13 February 2023 - 13:16
Tim Mayer at Nassau, 6 December 1963, in the Lotus 23:
https://library.revs...ed-weeks/153193
https://library.revs...ed-weeks/166564
https://library.revs...eed-week/297042
According to Peter Windsor an ex-Normand car?
RGDS RLT
Edited by Rupertlt1, 13 February 2023 - 13:16.
#32
cooper997
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Posted 14 February 2023 - 01:13
Some backgound and plans for Tim in this short 2/64 R&T piece. Unfortunately 3 issues later they were publishing Bruce McLaren's tribute to him..
Stephen
