19 replies to this topic

[lyntonh]

In 1971, Dave McConnell from Canada ran several of the New Zealand Tasman races in

the Lotus 69B 1600 Ford.

 

At Warwick Farm he was a DNQ for the Tasman race.

 

Here he is in Friday private practice.

 

On the Saturday, Leo Geoghegan drove the car in practice, obviously to help with setup.

 

Same photo enlarged.

 

 

McConnell then practised the car, but couldn't make the lap time needed.

 

On race day, he ran in the Formula Libre race, by invitation.

Here he is behind Col Green, in the Brabham.

 

Other cars in the race were Bob Beasley in the Bowin P4A FF, and Owen Jones? in the Elfin Mono.

The cars between and behind are obscured, and the names elude me.

 

Here's the entry list, courtesy of someone generous on this forum, who posted it to help with one of my earlier queries.

Edited by lyntonh, 21 April 2019 - 07:56.

[MarkBisset]

Thanks Lindsay for posting, not a driver I know anything about. Warwick Farm a tricky, technical circuit not necessarily easy tol learn quickly ?
Quick Google, he won the Quebec Formula B Championship later in 1971, in a Lotus 69B Ford twin-cam, so the same chassis perhaps ?
https://www.oldracin...da/quebec/1971/
He did not contest the series in 1972, I wonder what else he raced?
Mark

[2Bob]

"Other cars in the race were Bob Beasley in the Bowin P4A FF, and Owen Jones? in the Elfin Mono.

The cars between and behind are obscured, and the names elude me."

 

My guess is the second car is Bob Minogue in his Elfin Mono.  The exhaust looks like it was when I bought the car.

[lyntonh]

Very observant, Bob. Mystery solved.

[Tim Murray]

He did not contest the series in 1972, I wonder what else he raced?
Mark

In 1972, as well as doing the Tasman series, he contested the SCCA Formula B series in a works-supported GRD. He took a couple of wins and finished fourth in the championship.

https://www.oldracingcars.com/fb/1972/

In 1973 he only seems to have done a couple of Tasman series races (NZ GP and Levin) in the Surtees TS15 which he then used in the early rounds of the European F2 series. He wasn’t competitive, although he picked up third place in the first round at Mallory Park in a race of attrition. After the first practice session for the fourth round at the Nürburgring he decided he’d had enough, so announced his retirement from racing, packed up and went home to Canada.

[ellrosso]

Shot of McConnell from Warwick Farm 1971 - bit soft but gives you the livery in colour at least.

Edited by ellrosso, 22 April 2019 - 05:31.

[raceannouncer2003]

After the first practice session for the fourth round at the Nürburgring he decided he’d had enough, so announced his retirement from racing, packed up and went home to Canada.

 

It looks like he was later involved with the Jim Russell school at Mont Tremblant and may still live in that area.

 

Vince H.

[Wirra]

In the paddock on the Friday.

 

 

Leaving Pit Lane. (Oops - 1972 in a GRD) Thanks Tim.

 

Edited by Wirra, 23 April 2019 - 22:47.

[Ray Bell]

I wonder where his front wings got to in that pic...

They're there in all the others.

[Tim Murray]

Different car, different year. Wirra’s second photo is of the GRD he used in the 1972 Tasman series. All the Lotus 69 photos are from 1971.

[opplock]

You have to question what he was hoping to achieve in 1971 with a twin cam. Information is sketchy but his practice time at Levin was stated to be 51.1s.  McRae's pole lap in the McLaren M10B was 44.1s. A competitive National Formula time two years earlier was in the 49s and McRae had lapped at 47.0 in Jan 69 in the NF McRae. The only other twin cam in the 1971 race was the Brabham BT21 of Cary Taylor. I haven't found a time but he was 4 places ahead of McConnell on the grid.

[Ray Bell]

Originally posted by Tim Murray
Different car, different year. Wirra’s second photo is of the GRD he used in the 1972 Tasman series. All the Lotus 69 photos are from 1971.

I was sure he did that, too...

But Mark had written that he didn't come here in '72 and I have no way of checking right now. So I let that slide.

But I was certain that he did drive a GRD here, and I think it had a BDA, didn't it?

[Tim Murray]

2-litre Hart BDA, according to ORC:

https://www.oldracin...php?RaceID=WF72

I think you misread Mark’s post, Ray. His point was that McConnell didn’t defend his Canadian FB title in 1972, not that he didn’t do the Tasman series.

[opplock]

I'm a bit puzzled by it being a 2 litre Hart BDA. No doubt described as such at the time (1996cc - Vercoe) but the F2 Hart BDAs used in 1972 were 1850cc. The alloy block wasn't homologated until 1st October 72 and Autocourse confirms my recollection that the only over 1900cc BDAs successfully used in European F2 that year were the Cosworth BDFs (all 4 of which were blown up). 

[Ray Bell]

Thanks, Tim. I see where I failed so miserably now...

opplock, they didn't have to be homologated for the Tasman races, but you raise a good point anyway.

[Tim Murray]

I think Ray has the answer. The 1972 Warwick Farm report in Autosport described McConnell’s engine as an ‘aluminium-blocked 2-litre Hart BDA’. John Hine was using a similar engine in a Chevron B19 at the time, but this engine wasn’t eligible for F2 until Ford had produced enough of the ally blocks to get it homologated.

[opplock]

Thanks for that information Tim. On paper it should have been a quick car but NZ results were DNF, DNF, DNS (after having 2 Hart FVCs (!) go in practice - Vercoe) and DNF. 

[Manfred Cubenoggin]

I'm about 99% certain that the GRD in question ended up at Ron Stott's Cherokee Industries shops in Toronto.  I kept my Crossle FF there for several years in the mid-70's and I distinctly recall the car being less engine and put up for sale.  No idea as to its fate.

[CooperT76F3]

I have McConnell’s GRD with chassis no 10 in my garage. The car was sent back to UK after the New Zealand trip and was converted to F3 spec by the factory. They then sponsored Mo Harness in the 72 season. He drove the car the full season with some good and some not so good results. The car was sold to Jan Ridell in Sweden late 72 and came to Sweden for the 73 season. He drove the car for 3 seasons and then it was sold to Norway. I bought the car some 20 years ago and restored it back to original 1600 spec. I have used it for around the last 7-8 years in Europe and Scandinavia together with my other GRD 372 #47. I also had no: #49 for some years.

[Ray Bell]

For the record...

 

McConnell's Lotus was described as a Lotus 59B/2 and used an 1850cc FVC engine. In the 10-lap opening race of the day and after a 1:32.0 on lap 2 he sat in low 33s for the next three laps and crashed while leading the race on lap 6.

 

His GRD, noted as having a 2-litre Ford engine, completed 43 laps of the 45-lap Tasman Cup race in 1972 with a best lap of 1:27.4. I don't have any other lap times on him. Later (which year?) I will be able to get practice results.