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F5000 pics, Frank Gardner, but where? Australia?


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#1 Gary C

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Posted 01 December 2019 - 19:42

I recently purchased these four 35mm negatives and have just now got round to scanning them. Obviously an F5000 round with Frank Gardner starring, but from when and where? It's looks Australia to me so I'm expecting Ray Bell et al to jump on these....

 

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#2 Ray Bell

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Posted 01 December 2019 - 20:08

It looks like Surfers Paradise to me...

It's hard to tell, though, because backgrounds are so skimpy.

#3 TerryS

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Posted 01 December 2019 - 20:12

I’d say Surfers based on the background in the fourth photo



#4 Gary C

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Posted 01 December 2019 - 20:38

Any idea on a date, lads?

#5 Andrew Fellowes

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Posted 01 December 2019 - 23:09

1972, Surfers Paradise, Lola T300

 

http://autopics.com....her-jeff-neild/



#6 cooper997

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Posted 02 December 2019 - 03:39

Race day being 6 February 1972 Round 5 of the Tasman, with the programme listing...

"1 Lola Cars Limited (Frank Gardner) Lola T300 5000 UK"

 

Stephen



#7 Ray Bell

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Posted 02 December 2019 - 04:46

The only thing concerning me about these pics is the 'Marshalls Motors, Parramatta' signage on the end plate...

The trouble is I can't find a picture of the car at Surfers with this showing anywhere.

#8 Lee Nicolle

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Posted 02 December 2019 - 23:20

The only thing concerning me about these pics is the 'Marshalls Motors, Parramatta' signage on the end plate...

The trouble is I can't find a picture of the car at Surfers with this showing anywhere.

Maybe a NSW event? Though again where? 



#9 MarkBisset

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Posted 03 December 2019 - 00:46

Ya got it in one first up Ray- I reckon, look at the hills over FG’s shoulder where he is standing up.
He’d sold the car after Sandown so didn’t race @ AIR- the only form up area which was sealed of Surfers, WF & Sandown is Surfers I think?
Who are the mechanics tho? Brits from Franks UK team?
Mark

#10 Glenn Moulds

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Posted 03 December 2019 - 01:59

I have just checked the Brier Thomas CD of Surfers Paradise photos - Gardner did carry the Marshalls Motors signage at the 1972 Tasman meeting. As Mark says those hills in the background of photo 4 are certainly the Gold Coast hinterland.



#11 TerryS

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Posted 03 December 2019 - 02:15

Ya got it in one first up Ray- I reckon, look at the hills over FG’s shoulder where he is standing up.

Mark


Mark I did say in post #3 that the best clue to location was the background in photo 4.

Did you miss that Mark?

#12 MarkBisset

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Posted 03 December 2019 - 03:53

Yes Terry,
It seems to me we are all in more or less furious agreement, happy days indeed.
M

#13 TerryS

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Posted 04 December 2019 - 02:53

Some quick points on the Lola T300 and Gardner
 
Lola used their T190 and T192 for the 1970 and 1971 years. However they were overweight and ungainly. They were bog ugly race cars.
They were squashed in the F5000 markets by cars fro McLaren, Surtees and Eagle.
 
Gardner as Lola's development driver wanted a much more agile, lighter and streamlined car.
So they took the front of their F2 T240 car and added the back of their F5000 machine,
This became the T300 and led to the T330 and T332 which were to dominate F5000.
 
The prototype T300 was raced four time by Gardner in the UK and then wrecked.
 
Lola prepared the first production model chassis HU1 for Gardner to use in the 1972 Tasman Series.
 
The 1972 Tasman Series was over 8 races, 4 in NZ and 4 in Oz.
Gardner started with a bang by winning the NZ Grand Prix at Pukekohe from Hailwood (Surtees TS8A) and Hobbs (McLaren M22)
 
Unfortunately in the next race at Levin the engine cut out and sent him off the track, crashing into the safety fence. The car was badly wrecked.
Gardner decided to skip the next two NZ rounds and ship the car to OZ where it could be prepared for the 4 rounds there.
 
Gardner gained three second places in the first three OZ races. Then after Sandown he sold the car to Gary Campbell.
Despite only finishing 4 of the eight races Gardner finished in third in the Series.
 
Gary Campbell owned Provincial Motors a Mercedes dealer at Liverpool (s/w Sydney). He had come up thru Formula Vee and an Elfin 600B T/C. He let Larry Perkins run the latter regularly and he sorted it into a winning car.
 
Campbell wanted to step up up to F5000 but he wanted a well sorted car So he made and offer to Gardner after Sandown. He accepted that and retired fro single seater racing.
Campbell competed in the final Tasman round at Adelaide, coming in sixth but 13 laps behind the winner Hobbs.
 
He raced HU1 in OZ through 1972 and the sold it to the US. It was raced by a few guys there but apparently has not been seen since 1974. 
 
Unfortunately Campbell died in 1989 from crashing his light plane on the NSW south coast.
 
For interest here are three T300's currently for sale:

https://racecarsdire...f5000-lola-t300

https://racecarsdire...0---hu7---f5000

https://racecarsdire...00-formula-5000


Edited by TerryS, 06 December 2019 - 01:15.


#14 Ray Bell

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Posted 04 December 2019 - 03:19

A few points to be raised...

Gardner did later race a T330, which helped him clinch a British title (Tarmac?) in conjunction with his Camaro.

He also sold the T300 to Alan Hamilton, but Gary Campbell took delivery of it and raced it. Lola later sorted things out with Hamilton but this sour deal kept him out of F5000 racing for some years.

By the end of the '72 season Gary found that there was a major tear in the floor of the chassis, probably a long-term result of that Levin crash.

His Provincial Motors business was also a VW dealership. It was all a very successful business at that time.

#15 TerryS

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Posted 05 December 2019 - 00:28

Wit h the greatest respect Ray I beg to differ with you on Gardner's single seater exploits.

 

He did NOT win a second European F5000 title. He only won the 1971 title in the T192 and T300.

 

He came out of single seater retirement to run the new and untried T330 in the 14th and final round of the 1972 European F5000 championship. This was basically a test but he came third behind Redman and McRae.

 

After that race the car was shipped to Australia for Max Stewart.



#16 Tim Murray

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Posted 05 December 2019 - 01:21

Ray is correct. The title Gardner won in 1972 was the Tarmac British Racing Championship, which was based on the results from all International status races, in all categories, run in the UK during 1972. Towards the end of the year it looked as if Frank’s lead in this championship might be under threat from F3 champion Roger Williamson, who had also started contesting F5000 events in the Kitchmac. After his return to F5000 debuting the Lola T330 at Brands on 21st October Gardner was confirmed as the 1972 Tarmac Champion, as he was now out of reach of Williamson. Thus he chose not to compete in the following day’s combined F1/F5000 Victory Race which gave the BRM P180 its sole F1 win in the hands of Jean-Pierre Beltoise.

#17 E1pix

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Posted 05 December 2019 - 03:59

For interest here are three T300's currently for sale:
https://racecarsdire...00-formula-5000

Sorry for a brief detail Terry, but a lifelong friend ran this car early in '73. Wish I'd seen this three days ago as we just spoke on Sunday.

It really caught my eye as I understood it was completely written off -- and replaced with a T330 as noted in the ad. But apparently it was salvaged...

Wow.

Edited by E1pix, 05 December 2019 - 04:06.


#18 MCS

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Posted 05 December 2019 - 20:19

...The prototype T300 was raced four time by Gardner in the UK and then wrecked.
 
Lola prepared the first production model chassis HU1 for Gardner to use in the 1972 Tasman Series...

I am sure you know this Terry, but HU1 replaced the wrecked Snetterton chassis and did the last three European rounds, winning its first two races at Hockenheim and Oulton Park before finishing second at the Brands season finale.  It was then shipped to New Zealand for the start of the Tasman series.

 

But where is it now?



#19 TerryS

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Posted 05 December 2019 - 21:15

Ray is correct. The title Gardner won in 1972 was the Tarmac British Racing Championship, which was based on the results from all International status races, in all categories, run in the UK during 1972. Towards the end of the year it looked as if Frank’s lead in this championship might be under threat from F3 champion Roger Williamson, who had also started contesting F5000 events in the Kitchmac. After his return to F5000 debuting the Lola T330 at Brands on 21st October Gardner was confirmed as the 1972 Tarmac Champion, as he was now out of reach of Williamson. Thus he chose not to compete in the following day’s combined F1/F5000 Victory Race which gave the BRM P180 its sole F1 win in the hands of Jean-Pierre Beltoise.

Apologies to Ray and Tim. I was completely unaware of this very obscure championship.

It is strange that it is not mentioned at all in any of the many listings of Frank’s accomplishment. Perhaps it was regarded as a bit of a Mickey Mouse contest?

By the way what happened to the biography of Frank?

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#20 Lee Nicolle

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Posted 05 December 2019 - 22:49

Some quick points on the Lola T300 and Gardner
 
Lola used their T190 and T192 for the 1970 and 1971 years. However they were overweight and ungainly. They were bog ugly race cars.
They were squashed in the F5000 markets by cars fro McLaren, Surtees and Eagle.
 
Gardner as Lola's development driver wanted a much more agile, lighter and streamlined car.
So they took the front of their F2 T240 car and added the back of their F5000 machine,
This became the T300 and led to the T330 and T330 which were to dominate F5000.
 
The prototype T300 was raced four time by Gardner in the UK and then wrecked.
 
Lola prepared the first production model chassis HU1 for Gardner to use in the 1972 Tasman Series.
 
The 1972 Tasman Series was over 8 races, 4 in NZ and 4 in Oz.
Gardner started with a bang by winning the NZ Grand Prix at Pukekohe from Hailwood (Surtees TS8A) and Hobbs (McLaren M22)
 
Unfortunately in the next race at Levin the engine cut out and sent him off the track, crashing into the safety fence. The car was badly wrecked.
Gardner decided to skip the next two NZ rounds and ship the car to OZ where it could be prepared for the 4 rounds there.
 
Gardner gained three second places in the first three OZ races. Then after Sandown he sold the car to Gary Campbell.
Despite only finishing 4 of the eight races Gardner finished in third in the Series.
 
Gary Campbell owned Provincial Motors a Mercedes dealer at Liverpool (s/w Sydney). He had come up thru Formula Vee and an Elfin 600B T/C. He let Larry Perkins run the latter regularly and he sorted it into a winning car.
 
Campbell wanted to step up up to F5000 but he wanted a well sorted car So he made and offer to Gardner after Sandown. He accepted that and retired fro single seater racing.
Campbell competed in the final Tasman round at Adelaide, coming in sixth but 13 laps behind the winner Hobbs.
 
He raced HU1 in OZ through 1972 and the sold it to the US. It was raced by a few guys there but apparently has not been seen since 1974. 
 
Unfortunately Campbell died in 1989 from crashing his light plane on the NSW south coast.
 
For interest here are three T300's currently for sale:

https://racecarsdire...f5000-lola-t300

https://racecarsdire...0---hu7---f5000

https://racecarsdire...00-formula-5000

I presume you meant T300-T330 then T332 which is still the most dominant car 40 years later.



#21 Tim Murray

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Posted 06 December 2019 - 03:44

Apologies to Ray and Tim. I was completely unaware of this very obscure championship.

It is strange that it is not mentioned at all in any of the many listings of Frank’s accomplishment. Perhaps it was regarded as a bit of a Mickey Mouse contest?

It quickly became ‘Mickey Mouse’ and vanished without trace after a few years. However, in 1972, its first year, it was announced with a grand fanfare and generated a lot of interest throughout the year. As the final big meeting at Brands Hatch in October drew near, Roger Williamson and his backer Tom Wheatcroft thought they had a chance of pipping Frank for the championship. Roger’s points so far had come from F3, but Tom organised a couple of F5000 races for him in the Kitchmac, and at Brands he was aiming to do four races - F3 in his championship-winning GRD, F5000 in the Kitchmac, F Atlantic in another GRD and Saloons in a Cologne Capri. Unfortunately for Roger the Capri drive fell through and he could only finish 6th in both the F5000 and Atlantic races and 2nd in F3. As Gardner took 3rd in F5000 and won the saloon race, in the end he was a comfortable winner of the first Tarmac Championship.

Frank won it again the following year and James Hunt won in 1976 and 1977, but it went downhill rapidly after that and is now not well remembered.

#22 Tim Murray

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Posted 06 December 2019 - 06:30

I am sure you know this Terry, but HU1 replaced the wrecked Snetterton chassis and did the last three European rounds, winning its first two races at Hockenheim and Oulton Park before finishing second at the Brands season finale. It was then shipped to New Zealand for the start of the Tasman series.

But where is it now?


ORC’s history of the car says that the last known owner was Mike Brockman of Orlando, Florida in 1974. Brockman sadly died recently:

https://www.legacy.c...tinel/194511664

so whether this means that the car might now re-emerge, or its history be completely lost, remains to be seen.