5 replies to this topic

[Allen Brown]

An Indy question for you oval fans.

On 30 March 1969, George Follmer won the Jimmy Bryan 150 at Phoenix by some 3 laps in a #62 Gilbert-Chev. It was unsponsored (highly unusual) but Follmer appears to have run it for much of the year with either Chevy or Ford power. I think it also ran in 1968 but I'm not sure. Phil Harms calls it a Cheetah - not sure why.

At the end of 1969, it is reported to have been sold to Bill Simpsom (who Harms also reports driving a Cheetah in 1969) and run in F5000 in 1970 and 1971.

The car is for sale at the moment so I thought it was time to add it to OldRacingCars.com but I'm struggling for background information. Can anyone help?

Thanks

Allen

[Rainer Nyberg]

According to the Indy 500 yearbook George Follmer drove the same car at the Indy 500 '69. He also tried to qualify the car for the '68 Indy 500. It is called variously a Gilbert/Ford and a Cheetah/Ford.

It sure makes it confusing.

The Indianapolis 500 Chronicle calls it a Gilbert/Ford.

The car was #62 at the '69 Indy and was bright yellow.

[fines]

The Cheetah was built by Howard Gilbert (alongside Quinn Epperly and George Salih responsible for the "laydown" roadster that won Indy in 1957/8) in 1968 for George Bryant's team, who'd run the old BRP chassis in 1966/7. Bryant died in June 1968, and the cars were sold to Bill Simpson and George Follmer. The latter had a stock-block Chevy (although Bob Schilling in the Wallen book says it's a Ford) fitted, and surprised everyone by winning the 1969 season opener as a driver/owner. He scored a third and four sixth places in the remainder of the season (all on road circuits), then called it quits. Simpson ran his machine, apparently also on Chevy power, into the '70 season where his best result was sixth in the "Tony Bettenhausen 200" at Milwaukee. The only other top placing of a Cheetah was Rick Muther in the original Ford-powered car at Castle Rock/Continental Divide in 1968, also sixth.

[Allen Brown]

Originally posted by fines
The Cheetah was built by Howard Gilbert (alongside Quinn Epperly and George Salih responsible for the "laydown" roadster that won Indy in 1957/8) in 1968 for George Bryant's team, who'd run the old BRP chassis in 1966/7. Bryant died in June 1968, and the cars were sold to Bill Simpson and George Follmer. The latter had a stock-block Chevy (although Bob Schilling in the Wallen book says it's a Ford) fitted, and surprised everyone by winning the 1969 season opener as a driver/owner. He scored a third and four sixth places in the remainder of the season (all on road circuits), then called it quits. Simpson ran his machine, apparently also on Chevy power, into the '70 season where his best result was sixth in the "Tony Bettenhausen 200" at Milwaukee. The only other top placing of a Cheetah was Rick Muther in the original Ford-powered car at Castle Rock/Continental Divide in 1968, also sixth.

Michael

Is there anything you don't know? I've been given Howard Gilvert's email address (by someone on TrackForum) and I'll get more details from him. But I do wonder if this ex-Simpson car being advertised now is really the ex-Follmer Phoenix winner. It sounds as if they were two different cars.

Allen

[Rainer Nyberg]

It seems that the American's never cared much for car designations and chassis #.

The 'bla bla Special' tag it seems was more important...

A Historian's nightmare?

[Allen Brown]

Originally posted by Rainer Nyberg
A Historian's nightmare?

Or a historian's challenge.

Allen