56 replies to this topic

[ludwig]

Hi, it´s me again!!!. I should like to ask
you about Le Manns too, but related to Peter Gregg and his participation in
this legendary race.
I really appreciate it.
Greetings!!!
LUDWIG

[ludwig]

some one know about he?

[Don Capps]

I apologize, ludwig, but here is a bit on Peter Gregg:

GREGG, Peter (Peter Holden)
USA

New York, New York (USA) 4 May 1940 – Jacksonville, Florida (USA) 15 December 1980

Active: 1965 – 1980 * Cars: Porsche * Titles: IMSA Champion – 1971, 1973 through 1975, 1978 and 1979; Trans-Am Champion – 1973 and 1974 * Main Victories: Daytona 24-Hours – 1973, 1975 and 1976, 1978; 1973 Sebring 12-Hours; 1978 Watkins Glen 6-hours

Peter Gregg won six IMSA championships and two Tran-Am championships during the 1970’s to become one of the top American drivers of this period. Usually driving in a Porsche entered by the Brumos team from Jacksonville, Florida, Gregg won 41 IMSA events during this period, including four victories in the Daytona 24-Hours. Gregg was a major force in establishing Porsche as the leading marque in American sports car racing. Gregg died in late-1980 from an apparent suicide.

This is just a bare bones bio, there was far more to Peter Gregg than just this...

[ludwig]

thank you Don
did he suffered a horrorific accident in Le mans 80s?

[JacnGille]

This is not LeMans related but a story I remember was from Peter's Porsche 935 years. Another 935 runner had cracked their windshield too badly to continue using it. Peter offered a spare of his. The team was unable to use the replacement from Gregg due to it being about two inches shorter than the one that had been cracked!

[tifoso]

ludwig,

Virginia International Raceway is one of my favorite road courses. You can find some information about Peter Gregg's career at VIR here.

Don probably has all this in much more detail, but here's the little I know. Peter Gregg's last appearance at Le Mans was in 1979. He was in an automobile accident with Frank Stella, a famous American artist, en route to Le Mans in 1980. Perhaps this is the accident you are thinking of?

Born: May 4, 1940, New York City, New York
Died: December 15, 1980 (committed suicide)

There is an article about him in Car and Driver by Ed Hinton entitled, "The Many Faces of Peter Gregg." I believe it was in the June, 1992, issue. Earl Fannin also wrote an article about Gregg's suicide in 1980 for the Florida Times-Union.

[ludwig]

thank you tifoso

[tifoso]

A bit more on the Frank Stella and Peter Gregg relationship...

Stella met Ronnie Peterson and Peter Gregg in 1977 while traveling in Europe. BMW commissioned Stella, among others, to create a series of "art" cars. In only one instance has one of the BMW art car artists produced another masterpiece for a private individual. American racer Peter Gregg had driven Frank Stella's BMW 3.0 CSL creation at LeMans and Dijon, France and in 1979 Stella designed a stunning BMW M1 art car for Gregg.

Pictures of the BMW art cars that raced at Le Mans can be found here.

This is a picture of the art car Stella created for Gregg:

[ludwig]

pETER gREGG SUFFERED SERIOUSLY HURTS AT MULSANNE .

[tifoso]

ludwig,

the year for Gregg's accident at Le Mans could be:

1979 -- JMS Racing Ferrari 512 driven by Michel Leclere, Claude Ballot, and Peter Gregg. It was out of the race due to "accident; collision" in the 19th hour. The Chevron B36 is also listed as retiring due to "accident; collision" in the 19th hour. I don't know who was driving at the time or if there were any injuries.

This was the only accident I could find which occurred during the race.

[Barry Lake]

In the early 1970s I used to regularly see a column by Peter Gregg in, I am fairly sure, Autoweek, the US newspaper-type publication. It was far and away the most interesting driver column ever have read and it didn't seem to be "ghosted".

The column ggave the distinct impression that Gregg lacked the ego problems of many top drivers. He came across as a real enthusiast. Because of this, I was stunned by the news of his taking his own life.

Now, I am wondering if that wasn't in some way related to this Le Mans crash - the two being separated by about 18 months. Is there something there that we haven't been told?

Does anyone have access to either of the two stories mentioned by tifoso? I would love to see them.

[tifoso]

Originally posted by Barry Lake
Now, I am wondering if that wasn't in some way related to this Le Mans crash - the two being separated by about 18 months. Is there something there that we haven't been told?

Or perhaps the road accident he had with Frank Stella on their way to the 1980 Le Mans?

Originally posted by Barry Lake
Does anyone have access to either of the two stories mentioned by tifoso? I would love to see them.

I've never been able to get my hands on those articles, just the bibliographic references. However, on a web site about suicide, there was a fleeting reference to Peter Gregg. I believe it said he suffered from "manic depression."

Added a few minutes later...

I found this biography of Peter Gregg, written by Bill Lovell, on the Motorsports Hall of Fame web site. It confirms Gregg suffered from manic depression. It also mentions a serious eye injury. Perhaps this is from the 1979 Le Mans race ludwig mentions?

[tifoso]

I found out a bit more about Peter Gregg. This from an article about "binocular vision" by Paul E. Romano, MD, MSO. Apparently, Gregg's eye injury resulted in diplopia, or double vision:

My second experience was even more tragic. While I was at the University of Florida, a most successful sports car racer from nearby Jacksonville, Peter Gregg, also known as "Peter Perfect" for his demanding technique in car preparation and in driving, sustained a similar type of injury. Although he never was anywhere near death, he was left with diplopia. I had raced on the same track with him, although not against him, in endurance races, such as the 24 hours of Daytona and the 12 hours of Sebring. I did not know him personally, However, at that time, I was the only strabismus "expert" near Jacksonville or in northern Florida. I fully expected to see him appear in my office for a consultation any day. Instead, to my dismay, I heard in the news, that, because of his diplopia, despairing that he would never successfully drive a race car again, he had gone down to the Atlantic Ocean beach beyond Jacksonville and put a gun to his head and killed himself. I never heard anything more about his case or its management but have always felt terrible that I did not try to contact him instead of waiting for him to contact me.

[ludwig]

Hello Tifoso

I found that Peter Gregg crashed clasifiying at Le Mans 1980( at Mulsanne). He drove Porsche 924.

[Barry Lake]

Amazing stuff! Thanks everyone for the information on Gregg. I never would have believed the manic depressive bit from the columns he used to write. I really enjoyed them.

It will be interesting to see more information come out about his Le Mans crash and the road crash. At least I hope someone on TNF will unearth it.

[tifoso]

ludwig, looking at the IMSA web site I find that Peter Gregg finished 10th in the IMSA GT Series in 1980. No results were posted for him after the 7th round in the series, which was the 250 mile race in Daytona. It was held July 4, 1980 (if I'm reading the results correctly, anyway). He makes his next appearance on the IMSA site for the 10th round -- the Molson Canadian 1000 GT Series -- but was only shown on the entry list and did not seem to have participated. This event was held on August 17, 1980. That is the last mention of him on the IMSA site. But the 1980 Le Mans race was held on June 14-15; so I don't know what to think about when he received his eye injury. Maybe the double vision manifested itself later. BTW, I've seen his injury compared to NASCAR's Ernie Irvan.

[Jim Thurman]

Originally posted by Barry Lake
In the early 1970s I used to regularly see a column by Peter Gregg in, I am fairly sure, Autoweek, the US newspaper-type publication. It was far and away the most interesting driver column ever have read and it didn't seem to be "ghosted".

The column ggave the distinct impression that Gregg lacked the ego problems of many top drivers. He came across as a real enthusiast. Because of this, I was stunned by the news of his taking his own life.

Barry, I agree that those were the most interesting driver columns I've ever written. But, I don't know about lack of ego. This is a guy who came up with one of my all-time favorite racing quotes (in victory lane following a return to IMSA competition after a short retirement) : "I don't really enjoy racing anymore, I just can't stand to see those other guys win."

Peter Gregg was very outspoken and quite blunt. I've always felt had he lived later into the 80's he would have been a natural for TV commentator on U.S. telecasts. I think his commentating probably would have been akin to James Hunt's on F1.

I knew he was depressed over health concerns that he felt meant an end to his driving career.

His former wife and his son have raced in the Trans-Am series.


Jim Thurman

[Barry Lake]

Jim

Interesting to hear that you were the man tapping the typewriter keys for Gregg.

What I meany about lack of ego was that the columns I remember were not of the boring driver column, "...then I did this, and then I did that, and I didn't win because..."

He gave some real insight into the tracks and the places he visited and the races he contested. Perhaps some of that came from your prompting. But I learned a lot from them - and what I learned wasn't all about how and why Gregg won, or didn't win.

[Jim Thurman]

Originally posted by Barry Lake
Jim

Interesting to hear that you were the man tapping the typewriter keys for Gregg.

What I meany about lack of ego was that the columns I remember were not of the boring driver column, "...then I did this, and then I did that, and I didn't win because..."

He gave some real insight into the tracks and the places he visited and the races he contested. Perhaps some of that came from your prompting. But I learned a lot from them - and what I learned wasn't all about how and why Gregg won, or didn't win.

Ummm...I meant to type "I've ever read" or "ever written"...not what came out on screen. Sorry about that

I was being seriously distracted at the time I typed that reply in. I should have waited, but if I waited for a time I wasn't, the number of posts I've made to TNF would be signifigantly less.

Also, if I had in fact written those columns for Gregg while I was still in High School...that would have been news to me as well.

Returning to the real subject at hand, his columns, yes...they were very untypical for a driver's column by covering areas that you mentioned. He showed a great sense of humor at times and a real focus on serious issues when needed.

An interesting fellow. Colorful and opinionated enough that, depending on his voice, I feel would have been perfect for race commentary. A shame he didn't make it to the era of increased U.S. telecasts of racing.


Jim Thurman

[tifoso]

I've always been under the impression the road accident Gregg was in on the way to Le Mans in 1980 must have been quite serious, but I admit only from this fleeting line in a timeline about Frank Stella's life and career on the Smithsonian's web site:

1980 Survives auto crash with Peter Gregg en route to Le Mans.

I also found this in a race report for the 1979 Le Mans race, which could back up ludwig's finding of a pre-race crash in 1980:

Le Mans '79 was the last for Porsche 935 stalwart and IMSA champion Peter Gregg. Like O’Rourke, he raced a 512 at Le Mans in the year the 935 scored its first win on the Sarthe. The Charles Pozzi-entered 512 BB he shared with old pal Claude Ballot-Lena lasted 219 laps. A year later Brumos Porsche’s Peter Gregg’s would return to Le Mans with disastrous consequences.

Edited later...

I also found this post by RJL in this thread:

Originally posted by RJL
IIRC Peter Gregg had suffered with a life long depression problem and this was compounded by head injuries he received in a road accident in France, which left him unable to drive racing cars. He left a note saying something along these lines.

[luisfelipetrigo]

What follows is purely from memory ... which means might be somewhat inacurate, but it is what my recollection tells me.
Also, it is not related to LeMans but is related to Peter Gregg.

In his early days he used to run a Porsche 914, already with Num 59 which he used all through his years with Brumos Porsche. His team mate for the long distance races was Hurley Haywood.
Around those days in the racing scene in Mexico there where some known names like Freddy Van Beuren and Guillerme Rojas (amongst others of course) and an up an comming rookie named Hector Alonso Rebaque.

Rebaque bought Gregg's 914 and raced it very succesfully in Mexico.
Later on Rebaque bought one of Brumos 911s which also reced succesfully.

I am not sure in if it was the 914 or the 911, but in the 1972 edition of the 24 hours of Daytona (shortened to 6 hours that year) Rebaque/Van Beuren/Rojas raced competitively in their category.
One or two years latter they took the 911 car (or maybe a newer one) to LeMans. I do not recall their results nor the year.

[tifoso]

Originally posted by luisfelipetrigo
His team mate for the long distance races was Hurley Haywood.

I have an interview of Hurley Haywood compiled by Cindy Hill commemorating his 30 years in racing. It was done in 1999. In it he had this to say about Peter Gregg:

I had a pretty fast Corvette, which I would take to autocrosses. I was pretty much unbeatable, and that's when Peter Gregg came along. Peter got me started in racing, and it was something that I was successful in doing. He encouraged me, and at that point I said, "OK, this is what I want to do."
(...)
Peter always liked to take the race cars out for an autocross event. Usually it would be the week before leaving for a pro race, to run the car, run the gear box in, and make sure the brakes were working. Give it a little test before we arrived at the race track. We did that in 1971 when we campaigned the 914/6. The local club got a pretty good preview of what Peter had up his sleeve. The technical advanced that Peter was so famous for would find themselves test for the first time on your autocross courses.

[Ralliart]

Gregg left this world in Ponte Vedra, Florida.

[Fiorentina 1]

On this date 25-years ago, Peter Gregg commited suicide. I know this is a touchy subject, but what happened and why?

I've heard and read a lot about Peter Gregg's career in Porsches in the 70's. There is no doubt that he was a great sportscar driver. But, I never heard anything about what happened to him in the end. I understand that he had a crash at Le Mans in 1980, was his suicide something to do with the injuries he sustained?

[JB Miltonian]

I just saw this in my stack the other day. From Autoweek, January 12, 1981: "Why Superstar Peter Gregg Took His Own Life". The magazine is too big to fit in my scanner in one pass, but if you will send me a message with your email address, I will run it through and send it to you. It might not have all the answers, but you may find it interesting.

The back cover page of Autoweek for 1/26/81 has a simple portrait of Peter, with the heading "Peter Gregg 1940-1980", from Porsche + Audi.

[Tim Murray]

You might find this earlier thread of interest:

http://forums.autosp...&threadid=48923

[Twin Window]

Thanks, Tim - the threads are now merged.

Unfortunately, I cannot find anything to substantiate this - and the only person I know who'd remember (Quentin Spurring) is in Australia - but I'm sure the word at the time was that Gregg had been having an affair with another driver, and the break-up tipped him over the edge...

[Fiorentina 1]

The crash on the way to Le Mans, the double vision thing is all new to me. The article from Autoweek in Jan 81 is pretty deep. Gregg wrote that, he didn't enjoy life anymore and that he acomplished everything.

Through out history, there were people who were absolutely brilliant at what they did (musicians, actors, painters, political leaders, etc) but suffered from mental instability. A lot of them ended up commiting suicide. It's a tragic deal, especially for their families and friends.

[jde]

FWIW, the Car & Driver article mentioned in the original thread is one of the selections in the new 50th Anniversary collection:

50 Years with Car & Driver

-jde

[Twin Window]

Originally posted by Twin Window

...but I'm sure the word at the time was that Gregg had been having an affair with another driver, and the break-up tipped him over the edge...

I've subsequently been contacted by another TNFer who not only remembers this as being the case, but who also named the same other [male] driver in the equation as I remembered.

[petefenelon]

Originally posted by Twin Window
I've subsequently been contacted by another TNFer who not only remembers this as being the case, but who also named the same other [male] driver in the equation as I remembered.

Looking back at Peter's history there is one very obvious name for this who's still racing today and is to the best of my knowledge 'out'. Draw your own conclusions?

[Keir]

I've never heard that one before !! Peter was a true egomaniac, but gay ???

[Gokart Mozart]

Dear Twinny,

I have heard the same thing as well...about being caught with another driver...

Respectfully,

Jacques N. Dresang
Eagle #7225

[Fiorentina 1]

If Peter Gregg was a baseball player, you know they'd be a movie based on him 10-15 years ago already. What a story! With great writing, expert directing, good editing and world-class acting this would make one heck of a movie....Oh and don't forget an F1 budget, including funds for a junk-yard dog lawyer.

[stevewf1]

Here's a link that may provide a little more info.

Peter Gregg

I'm going from memory here (not always a good thing), but I remember reading that because he always wanted to be so "perfect" and because of his injury and because he had recently turned 40...

I'm drawing my own conclusions...

(I hope this link works)

[CJE]

http://cgi.ebay.com/...1QQcmdZViewItem

[JW"Jack"Atkinson]

I have just read through the remarks and comment about Peter Gregg and would add my own: I went to work for Peter right after the 1969 Daytona 24 hours and was involved with all of his racing from then until his death in 1980. I had been an employee of Brumos Porsche Car Corporation from 1959 till 1964 and was always involved in their racing. From 1965 till 1969 I did race prep for various drivers including Charlie Kolb. Charlie's passing last week got me to thinking about Peter and I decided to check out the bulletin board. I can answer most any question about Peter and his racing because I was there. There are many postings which are not really right, at least as I remember them. I know it is hard to write history 40 years after the fact but I still have good memories of that period. If anyone still is interested in what went on, I would try to reply as best as I can remember to any questions. Jack Atkinson

[Graham Gauld]

Reference Peter Gregg sorry I had not noticed this post before.
Many years ago I started out on a history of Chevron cars but as my marriage was breaking up at the time I had to set it aside - I later give David Gordon some help with his book. However when I visited Daytona to get more information on the Chevron Can-Am car I met up with one of Briggs Cunningham's gentleman drivers, John Gordon Bennett and what emerged from this was that Peter Gregg was seriously interested in buying the remains of the Chevron company from Derek Bennett's sisters. He asked John Gordon Bennett to go over the Chevron figures he had been sent and offer his opinion. John told me that it did not look like a good buy and Gregg did not take the matter any further. However Gordon Bennett told me that Greggs plan was to build a Chevron Indy Car and not necessarily continue Chevron in the sports car and formula field. He also remarked that Gregg had difficulty coping with the fact that his injury had reduced his ability to race at the level he had been accustomed to.

[Jack-the-Lad]

I have just read through the remarks and comment about Peter Gregg and would add my own: I went to work for Peter right after the 1969 Daytona 24 hours and was involved with all of his racing from then until his death in 1980. I had been an employee of Brumos Porsche Car Corporation from 1959 till 1964 and was always involved in their racing. From 1965 till 1969 I did race prep for various drivers including Charlie Kolb. Charlie's passing last week got me to thinking about Peter and I decided to check out the bulletin board. I can answer most any question about Peter and his racing because I was there. There are many postings which are not really right, at least as I remember them. I know it is hard to write history 40 years after the fact but I still have good memories of that period. If anyone still is interested in what went on, I would try to reply as best as I can remember to any questions. Jack Atkinson

Welcome to the forum, Jack. I well remember seeing you in the pits all those years at Sebring and Daytona. Please feel free to share anything you like with us. That's what the forum is all about.

I seem to recall you looked particularly knackered at the end of the Sebring 12 Hours the year you had the BMW CSL there (1977? Not sure). Is there a story behind that?

Personally, I'd like to know a little more about Hans Mandt, who worked on your team and who used to service my 2.7RS here in Fort Lauderdale. He had his own interesting stories about Peter Gregg (and Michael Keyser). Just thought I'd ask about Hans since no one else is likely to!

Jack

Edited by Jack-the-Lad, 24 June 2009 - 03:38.

[Vasek]

Unfortunately, I cannot find anything to substantiate this - and the only person I know who'd remember (Quentin Spurring) is in Australia - but I'm sure the word at the time was that Gregg had been having an affair with another driver, and the break-up tipped him over the edge...

Well then, why post unsubstantiated rubbish to linger on the internet for posterity, as well as implications involving another obvious driver? More than a bit unseemly, given the man has been dead for almost 29 years and is not here to confirm or deny.

If anyone, anywhere, has anything of remote substance to affirm these rumors I'd love to see it. But I suspect I'll be waiting for quite some time. As Gregg was a notorious womanizer during his marriage to Jennifer, I'm not buying it.




V.

[Buford]

Well then, why post unsubstantiated rubbish to linger on the internet for posterity, as well as implications involving another obvious driver? More than a bit unseemly, given the man has been dead for almost 29 years and is not here to confirm or deny.

If anyone, anywhere, has anything of remote substance to affirm these rumors I'd love to see it. But I suspect I'll be waiting for quite some time. As Gregg was a notorious womanizer during his marriage to Jennifer, I'm not buying it.

V.

Well it was the widespread belief in the racing world at the time I can confirm that. But none of us saw bedroom photos so sure it was unsubstantiated and could have been untrue. I don't know if it was true or not but the rumor was well spread at the time and is not a new internet creation. The story was he tried to get married and lead the straight "respectable" life but shortly after his marriage he realized what a mistake it was to try to force a lifestyle on himself he really didn't feel was him. And the other driver - well it is pretty easy to guess. The one you would suspect it would be, that's the one (in the stories circulating at the time).

Edited by Buford, 24 June 2009 - 05:24.

[Vasek]

Rumors fueled in no small part by the frustration of IMSA and SCCA competitors being regularly trounced by the Brumos Porsches, I would suspect.





V.

[Keir]

Let's see, Peter had two wives. That doesn't make you a hetrosexual, just the possible victim of two divorce lawyers. Deborah, wife number two, only became an ex due to Peter's untimely passing. Peter helped to conceive two sons from marriage number one. Now that doesn't make one a hetrosexual either but it proves that the equipment worked at least twice. And again, those "well known facts" !!!!

Here's a fact - Peter Gregg was one of the best drivers of his era. He's gone, let his memory rest. All else is bullshit!

Edited by Keir, 24 June 2009 - 14:42.

[URY914]

Jack,

Great to have you on board! Here is a pic of you at Sebring during a drivers change. I attended Univ. Of N. Florida and used to hang out at the old race shop. Unforgettably this was 1983-4 after Peter and were gone. Only two employees were left to mind the shop, a young guy named Travis Taylor and Ted Riddle. Very nice guys that would allow me to hang out anytime. I also remember you having a 356 vintage race car.

I remember Travis told me that Peter had the reputation as "Perfect" but it was you that saw to it in the end.

One question: There seems to be several former Brumos 935s running these days. How many were there exactly? I know the last one was sold to Bruce Leven and has now been restored.

Did the #99 935 that won Daytona in 1978 and painted in Brumos colors a new car that stayed with the team?

Also have a look at the link at the bottom of my post to see my IMSA photos.

Edited by URY914, 25 June 2009 - 02:16.

[Bob Riebe]

I talked to Ludwig Heimrath after he had beaten Gregg at Road America and he said the trick to beating Peter Gregg was to, if your car was fast enough, hound and push him.
He said Pete when unchallenged was smooth but he did not like it when someone was hounding him, he would get ragged, so rather than simply pass him and hope you could stay ahead of him Ludwig said the trick was to hound Peter and let him get ragged and screw-up.

That was one drivers opinion.

Edited by Bob Riebe, 25 June 2009 - 03:30.

[Direct Drive]

Here's a fact - Peter Gregg was one of the best drivers of his era. He's gone, let his memory rest. All else is bullshit!

Hear hear! He was a hell of a driver and had a long and substantiated history of success racing very powerful and competitive cars.
What else is floating around was his and his partner's business only.
Racing is what counts.

[JW"Jack"Atkinson]

Welcome to the forum, Jack. I well remember seeing you in the pits all those years at Sebring and Daytona. Please feel free to share anything you like with us. That's what the forum is all about.

I seem to recall you looked particularly knackered at the end of the Sebring 12 Hours the year you had the BMW CSL there (1977? Not sure). Is there a story behind that?

Personally, I'd like to know a little more about Hans Mandt, who worked on your team and who used to service my 2.7RS here in Fort Lauderdale. He had his own interesting stories about Peter Gregg (and Michael Keyser). Just thought I'd ask about Hans since no one else is likely to!

Jack

Hans and I took Turns going to the '69 trans am races as mechanic. I went to six races and Hans did six. It happened that Peter won the 2 liter class in all six races that I attended. The Germans around Brumos were not too happy. They did not think a lowly ex aircraft/volkswagen mechanic could look after a Porsche race car never mind that I had been working on Porsches since 1956 and doing race prep since 1960. Hans continued to work at Peter's race shop until hired away by Mike Keyser. I know Hans passed away some years ago but do not know any details. I first knew Hans when he work for the M-B dealer in Jax. I can not recall the manager name, but know that Hans maintained race car for him with DKW engines. I remember being impressed by Han's ability to pick up those 3 cyl. engines without any hoist. He was a very strong man with big hands, but a gentle sort and a good friend to me.

[JW"Jack"Atkinson]

Jack,

Great to have you on board! Here is a pic of you at Sebring during a drivers change. I attended Univ. Of N. Florida and used to hang out at the old race shop. Unforgettably this was 1983-4 after Peter and were gone. Only two employees were left to mind the shop, a young guy named Travis Taylor and Ted Riddle. Very nice guys that would allow me to hang out anytime. I also remember you having a 356 vintage race car.

I remember Travis told me that Peter had the reputation as "Perfect" but it was you that saw to it in the end.

One question: There seems to be several former Brumos 935s running these days. How many were there exactly? I know the last one was sold to Bruce Leven and has now been restored.

Did the #99 935 that won Daytona in 1978 and painted in Brumos colors a new car that stayed with the team?

Also have a look at the link at the bottom of my post to see my IMSA photos.

934 1/2 '77 trans-am car, 77 935 ser #009, 78 935 ser #018, 1979 935 ser #030 and 1980 tube frame front from white whale factory car, rear jost body work. All are still around

[URY914]

Jack,

Thanks for the reply.

Where did the '73 Daytona Winning 911 end up? I believe it was on loan from the factory as was the Penske car, correct?
I heard it went back to Germany and was "lost".

[Jack-the-Lad]

Hans and I took Turns going to the '69 trans am races as mechanic. I went to six races and Hans did six. It happened that Peter won the 2 liter class in all six races that I attended. The Germans around Brumos were not too happy. They did not think a lowly ex aircraft/volkswagen mechanic could look after a Porsche race car never mind that I had been working on Porsches since 1956 and doing race prep since 1960. Hans continued to work at Peter's race shop until hired away by Mike Keyser. I know Hans passed away some years ago but do not know any details. I first knew Hans when he work for the M-B dealer in Jax. I can not recall the manager name, but know that Hans maintained race car for him with DKW engines. I remember being impressed by Han's ability to pick up those 3 cyl. engines without any hoist. He was a very strong man with big hands, but a gentle sort and a good friend to me.

I'm sorry to hear that Hans has passed on. He was a gentle guy. When he had his shop outside of Ft Lauderdale his wife was the gate keeper. If she had allowed it to happen, people would have been there all day talking to Hans about cars and racing and he never would have gotten any work done. He was always fair with me...did excellent work at a reasonable price and nothing ever had to go back to be re-done.

Sorry to have hijacked the Peter Gregg thread but, hey, that happens around here all the time!

Jack.