13 replies to this topic

[MartLgn]

Forgive me if ive missed it but searches gave no results... this is the 52nd Anniversary of the founder of McLarens passing?

 

[Doug Nye]

Indeed - June 2, 1970 - what a very, very sad day that was.

 

Today - happily - has been much, much better...

 

DCN

[D28]

I remember the day well, but forgot is was 52 years ago. Just about 2 weeks before the opening Can-Am at Mosport.

When Dan Gurney came around on his first lap in Bruce's car there was a huge lump in everyone's throat. Bruce was hugely popular locally, as he was wherever he traveled. 

Edited by D28, 02 June 2022 - 17:58.

[Bloggsworth]

I remember leaving the office via the back entrance in Maiden's Lane and walked down the allyway towards the Strand, opposite the exit of the cut-through I saw a poster on the evening newspaper stand "Bruce McLaren Dead." It hit me like a punch in the solar plexus, I didn't expect to see that on a weekday afternoon.

[Lee Nicolle]

I remember leaving the office via the back entrance in Maiden's Lane and walked down the allyway towards the Strand, opposite the exit of the cut-through I saw a poster on the evening newspaper stand "Bruce McLaren Dead." It hit me like a punch in the solar plexus, I didn't expect to see that on a weekday afternoon.

Yet really testing is often more dangerous than racing. Trying different things, untested parts breaking,

And ofcourse few if any safety crews at the track.

And this is just from things that have happened to me. And people I know.

 

With Bruce,, surprisingly for a bloke of his stature in the sport he has never had a thread on here'

Edited by Lee Nicolle, 03 June 2022 - 03:39.

[Tim Murray]

With Bruce,, surprisingly for a bloke of his stature in the sport he has never had a thread on here'

There are 26 TNF threads with ‘Bruce McLaren’ in their title. Several are tribute threads, others cover various specific aspects of his life and career. Here’s the longest-running tribute thread, started in 2004:

Bruce McLaren - 2nd June, 1970

[Ray Bell]

There is a thread in the archives titled 'Charmers'...

 

From memory, Bruce was the first person mentioned in that. You should read it.

[kayemod]

I remember leaving the office via the back entrance in Maiden's Lane and walked down the allyway towards the Strand, opposite the exit of the cut-through I saw a poster on the evening newspaper stand "Bruce McLaren Dead." It hit me like a punch in the solar plexus, I didn't expect to see that on a weekday afternoon.

My experience was exactly the same, and I had a similar reaction. I was on the top deck of a 73 bus travelling to Kings Cross when I saw an Evening Standard placard, I boarded my train in a daze. The only other motor racing related event that's had such an effect was Stirling's crash at Goodwood in 1962. That graphic photo on the front page of a newspaper showing him being extricated from his wrecked car shocked me to the core, so much that mum kept me off school for a few days, I think she even took me to see our Doctor. He wasn't very sympathetic, told Mum I'd be over the shock in a day or two, but that photo is still in my memory just as clearly today, the St John nurse holding poor Stirling's hand...

[kevins]

Re the Moss pic, this is covered in the excellent The Day I Died by Mark Kahn. It's over 20 years since I read it, so this may be wrong, but I recall that nurse was named and said she was just 19, that kinda stuck with me.

 

Back on topic, nice to see McLaren remembering.

 

https://www.mclaren....-cars-made-him/

[kayemod]

Re the Moss pic, this is covered in the excellent The Day I Died by Mark Kahn. It's over 20 years since I read it, so this may be wrong, but I recall that nurse was named and said she was just 19, that kinda stuck with me.

 

Young Annie Strudwick, she & Stirling stayed in regular touch until his death.

 

https://www.sussexex...-legend-2537281

Edited by kayemod, 03 June 2022 - 13:49.

[MartLgn]

Re the Moss pic, this is covered in the excellent The Day I Died by Mark Kahn. It's over 20 years since I read it, so this may be wrong, but I recall that nurse was named and said she was just 19, that kinda stuck with me.

 

Back on topic, nice to see McLaren remembering.

 

https://www.mclaren....-cars-made-him/

They do much to honour Bruce to be fair, the website has loads of historic content, there is a statue of him alongside his cars on the boulevard in the MTC and they have a 'minute of noise' when they fire up the M8C, the biggest tribute IMO and thanks to Zak for driving this is the return to Papaya, like Wiliams with the dark blue,  a Mclaren without a title sponsor has to be orange!

[malomay]

Yet really testing is often more dangerous than racing. Trying different things, untested parts breaking,
And ofcourse few if any safety crews at the track.
And this is just from things that have happened to me. And people I know.

I remember watching an interview with Jack Brabham later in his life (don't ask me which one I can't remember), but a couple of things really stood out to me from this.

Firstly he recalled a conversation he had with Bruce who mentioned that he was planning on giving up racing & would just do testing after this. Jack remembered telling Bruce "Don't think that testing is any safer than racing, because it's not"

And the other thing from that interview was Jacks very obvious sadness when recalling Bruce's death, He said something along the lines of - "Things were never the same after Bruce died, & that's a fact"

Jack seemingly was never noted for being a very emotive person & always played his cards pretty close to his chest, but I gathered from that statement & just the way that he said it, losing Bruce was something that hit him so much harder personally that just about any of his other racing driver friends who were lost in his era.

[Doug Nye]

That is spot on.  Jack had known Bruce since he was barely 17 and regarded him a) as a fine young man - b) as his protege - c) as a highly-rated, talented, reliable and loyal team-mate - c) as a developing very good, practical engineer - and d) as a worthy (and trusted) on-track rival. He also knew the family very well and felt a distinct degree of responsibility towards them in looking after their son and brother up here in the northern hemisphere.  That was an almost paternal sense he never lost, and in conversation he would say that was the hardest part of all to deal with upon Bruce's death. He recalled what he had told him about testing, and one could always see the pain in that memory.

 

But what great times these two great men had shared... 

 

DCN

[JacnGille]

For those who may not have seen this:

 

https://www.youtube....hakkinen can am