9 replies to this topic

[Allen Brown]

Hi folks

Anyone remember this? Anyone want to have another try?

We last discussed this particular race here but I'm unable to add to that thread so I've started afresh.

My main reason for reopening the subject is that I have MOTORACING now and race a bit more detail on the race from p6 of the Mar 30-Apr 6 edition. The results start with "Qualifying":

1. Dan Gurney, 1:39.27, Arciero Lotus Climax, Montebello, Calif.
2. Loyd Ruby, 1:39.91, Frank Harrison Climax, Wichita Falls, Tex.
3. Roger Penske, 1:39.97, Telar Special, Gladwyne, Pa.
4. Alan Connell, 1:44.60, Lotus Climax, Fort Worth, Tex.
5. Chuck Cassell, 1:48.83, Porsche RSK, Fort Lauderdale, Fla.
6. Bob Schoeder, 1:48.90, Alfa Lotus, Dallas, Tex.
7. Bob Hurt, 1:49.53, Ferrari Testa Rosa, Washington, D. C.
8. Bob Donner, 1:50.34, Porsche RS-61, Colorado Springs, Colo.
9. Charles Barnes, 1:51.12, Cooper Intercontinental Formula, Dallas, Tex.
10. Harry Washburn, 1:51.35, Porsche RSK, Shreveport, La.
11. Jack Ryan, 1:53.10, Porsche, Meridian, Miss.
12. Howard Cole, 1:55.09, Lotus Intercontinental, Houston, Tex.
13. Russ Simon, 1:59.65, Bristol, Houston, Tex.
14. Ed Lamb, 1:59.91, Ferrari, Houston, Tex.
15. Bob Hall, 2:05.20, Ferrari, Jacksonville, Fla.
16. Louis Husson, 2:05.20, Lotus, Dallas, Tex.

It stops after 16; no clue whether that's just the first 16 or whether that's the full set.

FIRST HEAT: 1. Gurney; 2. Penske; 3. Schoeder; 4. Donner; 5. Cassell; 6. Washburn; 7. Jack Ryan; 8. Hurt; 9. Barnes; 10. Cole; 11. Lou Husson; 12. Bob Hall; 13. Ed Lamb; 14. Alan Connell; 15. Russ Simon; 16. Loyd Ruby; 17 Jim Hall. Time 1 hour, 25 minutes, 41.07. Average speed: 70.011 miles per hour.

Note that Jim Hall is the only name in the results that doesn't appear in qualifying. Retirements mentioned in the report include Jim Hall of Midland (gear trouble, first lap), Connell (oil leakage, 31 laps) and Russ Simon (steering trouble, “later”).

SECOND HEAT: 1. Gurney; 2. Donner; 3. Penske; 4. Barnes; 5. Cole; 6. Cassell; 7. Bob Hall; 8. Ed Lamb; 9 Husson; 10. Hurt; 11. Washburn; 12. Schroeder; 13. Ruby; 14. Jack Ryan. Time: 1 hour 29 minutes, 25.83 seconds.

Retirements mentioned include Ruby (mechanical trouble, 18 laps) and Schroeder (“threw a rod”, 20 laps). Hurt was in second after 30 laps so presumably retired, implying Washburn was also a retirement.

A picture identifies Gurney’s #96 car as single-seater and shows Hurt as #36 and Donner as #45.

Everything above (except the italics) is transcribed as precisely as I can, even leaving Ruby’s name misspelled. Only a Parsche was changed to a Porsche.

Overall results are only given down to third: Gurney – Penske – Donner.

Martin’s results give 4 Barnes, 5 Cassell.

Can anyone add anything from Competition Press (it’s the 14 April 1962 edition)?

And what can we say about the cars – and with what certainty? In the USAC Sport Car results thread, we had:

Gurney: Lotus 18 - 2.5-litre Climax
Ruby: Lotus 18 - 2.5-litre Climax
Penske: Cooper ICF - 2.5-litre Climax
Connell, Cooper ICF - 2.5-litre Climax
Schroeder: de Tomaso - 1.3-litre Alfa Romeo
Barnes: Cooper ICF
Cole: Lotus ICF - Climax
Hall: Lotus 18 - 2.5-litre Climax

Can anyone add anything?

Allen

[Don Capps]

Remember, the "overall results" were bogus since there were two separate points-paying races and not two heats for an overall result.

Hall did not set a qualifying time after problems in practice with the transmission, hence he seems to be omitted from the quailfying times. He did one lap in the race.

The SCG, Comp Press, and MotoRacing stories on the race all pretty much read the same and lack any real detail of the sort we would like.

I haven't done much with this year since I have been working at the other end of the championship, but is what little I have -- nothing really updated in ages....

Bossier City

Pipeline 200
Race / Heat 1
Hilltop Raceway
Bossier City, Louisiana
1 April 1962

Distance: 50 laps of 2.0-mile road circuit for 100.0 miles

Race announced as a “Formula Libre” event, but also stated that those cars participating has to conform to either the current Formula 1 (1,500 cc), the Intercontinental Formula (5,000 cc), or the USAC sports car regulations (up to 8,000 cc).


Qualifying
1st 1 min 39.27 sec Dan Gurney, No 96 Lotus 18 Coventry Climax FPF
72.504 mph
2nd 1 min 41.01 sec Lloyd Ruby, Lotus 18 Coventry Climax FPF
3rd 1min 42.23 sec Roger Penske, Cooper Coventry Climax FPF
4th 1 min 44.60 sec Alan Connell, Cooper Coventry Climax FPF
5th 1 min 48.84 sec Chuck Cassell, Porsche RSK
6th 1 min 49.11 sec Bob Schroeder, No. 77 de Tomaso Alfa Romeo
7th 1 min 49.53 sec Bob Hurt, No. 36 Ferrari Testa Rosa
8th 1 min 50.34 sec Bob Donner, No. 45 Porsche RS61
9th 1 min 51.12 sec Charles Barnes, Cooper Coventry Climax FPF
10th 1 min 51.35 sec Harry Washburn, Porsche RS
11th 1 min 53.10 sec Jack Ryan, Porsche
12th 1 min 55.09 sec Howard Cole, Lotus ICF Coventry Climax
13th 1 min 59.65 sec Russ Simmons, Bristol
14th 1 min 59.91 sec Ed Lamb, Ferrari
15th 2 min 05.20 sec Bob Hall, Ferrari
16th 2 min 05.20 sec Louis Husson, Lotus
17th No Time Jim Hall, Lotus 18 Coventry Climax FPF

Results
1st Dan Gurney
No. 96, Frank Arciero, Lotus 18 Coventry Climax FPF
50 laps, 1 hr 25 min 41.07 sec, 70.011 mph 200 points
2nd Roger Penske
No. 6 Updraught Enterprises, Dupont Telar Cooper ICF Coventry Climax FPF
160 points
3rd Bob Schroeder
No. 77, de Tomaso Alfa Romeo
140 points
4th Bob Donner
No. 55, Porsche RS61
5th Chuck Cassell
Porsche RSK
6th Harry Washburn
Porsche RSK
7th Jack Ryan
Porsche
8th Bob Hurt
No. 36, Ferrari Testa Rosa TR59 ‘0766’
9th Chuck Barnes
Cooper ICF Coventry Climax FPF
10th Howard Cole
Lotus ICF Coventry Climax FPF
11th Lou Husson
Lotus
12th Bob Hall
Ferrari
13th Ed Lamb
Ferrari
14th Alan Connell
Cooper ICF Coventry Climax FPF
15th Russ Simmons
Bristol
16th Lloyd Ruby
No. 26 J. Frank Harrison Lotus 18 Coventry Climax FPF
17th Jim Hall
Lotus 18 Coventry Climax FPF





Bossier City

Pipeline 200
Race / Heat 2
Hilltop Raceway
Bossier City, Louisiana
1 April 1962

Distance: 50 laps of 2.0-mile road circuit for 100.0 miles

Results
1st Dan Gurney
No. 96, Frank Arciero, Lotus 18 Coventry Climax FPF
50 laps, 1 hr 29 min 25.83 sec, 66.968 mph, 200 points
2nd Bob Donner
Porsche RS61
3rd Roger Penske
No. 6, Updraught Enterprises, Dupont Telar Cooper T53P Coventry Climax FPF
140 points
4th Charles Barnes
Cooper ICF Coventry Climax FPF
5th Howard Cole
Lotus ICF Coventry Climax FPF
6th Chuck Cassell
Porsche RSK
7th Bob Hall
Ferrari
8th Ed Lamb
Ferrari
9th Lou Husson
Lotus
10th Bob Hurt
No. 36, Bob Hurt, Ferrari Testa Rosa TR59 ‘0766’
11th Harry Washburn
Porsche RSK
12th Bob Schroeder
No. 77, de Tomaso Alfa Romeo
10 points
13th Lloyd Ruby
No. 26, J. Frank Harrison, Lotus 18 Coventry Climax FPF
14th Jack Ryan
Porsche



“Overall” Results
1st Dan Gurney
Lotus 18 – Climax FPF
$2,900
2nd Roger Penske
Telar Cooper ICF – Climax FPF
$900
3rd Bob Donner
Porsche RS61
$585
4th Charles Barnes
Cooper ICF – Climax FPF
5th Chuck Cassel
Porsche RSK
6th Howard Cole
Lotus ICF – Climax
7th Bob Hurt
Ferrari Testa Rosa
8th Bob Hall
Lotus
9th Louis Husson
Alfa Romeo
10th Ed Lamb
Lotus

[KarlOakie Research]

Although Sports Car Graphic, MotoRacing, and Competition Press gave some coverage to this event, both apparently continued to miss the important point that USAC awarded points based upon the results of each individual race or heat and not on the overall results. Confusion often reigns when you have different winners for each "heat" and one is referred to the "winner" of the race, when in reality each "heat" was a separate race and each awarding points. The sports car crowd -- press and spectators -- who wandered over for the USAC events often ignored this way of doing business and looked at it through their own lens.

I have not seen the report which appeared in National Speed Sport News for decades, but I don't recall it being all that detailed either, just a brief account of the event and some sort of a results table. USAC road racing coverage by NSSN was generally uneven as I recall, fairly decent at times and next to nonexistent at others -- rather typical of the times.

In the USAC "Record Book" Gurney earned two wins at Hilltop -- one for each heat/race, not one for the overall result.

At any rate, by early 2005 there will be something available on this interesting series, although there will continue to be big gaps at various points in the record -- such as the 1959 Meadowdale version of the Bermuda Triangle -- until any existing contemporary USAC records surface.

[Frank S]

Sports Car Graphic article at:
http://www.fototime....2A6CE3BBF5F7FD9

As part of a thread:
"USAC Sports Car Results"

--
Frank S

[WINO]

I agree that in the USAC Road Racing Championship those events featuring two or more heats were essentially offering two or more stand-alone races from a point-scoring perspective. However, the overall score was most definitely important for the participating drivers, as that is what determined how the purse was divided, not the individual heat results. A driver with one first and one third place could make more money than a competitor with one first and one second place, as long as his combined overall time was better. The Championship in itself did not generate any money, so the focus was on the overall result of each race.

WINO

[KarlOakie Research]

WINO, another of the many issues that plagues this series is exactly this point of how the purses were divvied up. While it is apparent that some promoters did indeed manage to add some calculated confusion to the mix by having what were individual points-paying events in the eyes of USAC folded in with purses awarded on the "overall" results in some cases, I would have to look at the individual events before saying much more. Off the top of my head, I do recall that in some cases the purse was awarded for the results in each individual race plus what were essentially bonuses for placing in the unofficial combined results. Naturally, this was not done with any consideration for historians who might later look into these events....

[WINO]

It is hard to say how general this rule was between the various USAC race promotors, but the June 1961 Hoosier GP at IRP is a good example. Ruby won heat 1 with Pabst coming in 3rd. Heat 2 was won by Pabst with Ruby finishing 2nd. The combined results showed that Pabst beat Ruby's times by seven seconds. Pabst got paid $2,250, Ruby 1,250.

Fred Gamble, Ruby's team manager at the time, made no bones about the fact that he misinterpreted the rule book, thinking that a first and second heat result would give Ruby overall victory and the largest slice of the purse. As a result, he did not signal Ruby to speed up in heat 2.


WINO

[KarlOakie Research]

I am quite certain that other such examples exist -- if not abound, especially for some (most? many?) of the 1959 events and especially the two-parters in 1961 and 1962.

That the series itself was never much of a money-maker is scarcely a shock when it is considered how casually it all seemed to handled, even by the standards of the day. That the RRC survived the 1959 season is little short of a miracle and testimony to the willingness of the RR Division to move on and learn from at least some of its errors.

By the way, you could still see the circuit in satellite photgraphs taken as recently as a decade ago, as well as it showing up in the topo maps of the area.

[teegeefla]

I have been trying to determine if the Arciero Lotus 18 was using an additional left-side pod fuel tank in this race (or any of its other races), but the Sports Car Graphic article on the Bossier City race does not show that side of the car. Does anyone have a photo, magazine article or recollection to clarify this? Thanks.

[RA Historian]

Sorry I cannot help you with a photo, Teegeefla, but my memory of that car is that it was purchased by Arciero from Louise Bryden-Brown, who ran it in Europe earlier. I seem to recall that Gurney drove it at least once for her. But this is a hazy memory, and I cannot put my finger on anything in print.....
Tom