South Africa Historic races at Killarney summary

International Historic Races Killarney South Africa

Killarney, South Africa - 8 February 2004 -- Glorious Cape summer conditions welcomed the 191 strong entry for the annual International Historic meeting at the 3.267km Killarney race track near Cape Town, South Africa. With Saturday as practice teams spend quite a bit of time getting their steeds set up for coastal conditions. Compared to a national race meeting the atmosphere was very relaxed and the individual drivers willing to share their experiences with the enthusiastic crowd. Just the fact that one could identify each individual car by its own distinctive sound made spectating an absolute pleasure.

Saturday Practice:

Former Wesbank V8 exponent, Derek van Blerk, found the going very tough and managed to knock the nose of the ex-Koos Swanepoel 1966 Prolong Oils Ford Mustang against the pit wall (rather solidly) whilst reversing into his garage. Needless to say rather embarrassing, and time consuming to repair.

Anthony Taylor found himself present with a fully prepared 1965 McLaren M1B V8 racer, minus driver. Raymond Boissoneau had to return to the USA on urgent business and though Anthony practiced the car did not race on Sunday. The neat 1968 Chevrolet Corvette Stingray entered for Michael Knight and PF Rousselot succumbed to differential problems whilst Zwartkops star performer, Francois Pretorius, turned his neat 1967 Porsche 911 2.8 into a hatchback against the retaining wall between Engen and Shell corners. Though Peter du Toit (owner of the Zwartkops Racetrack in Gauteng) was present, the Camaro was not and neither was Mark du Toit in his Chevron B8.

The Chris Wilson/ Richard Pilkington 1968 Ferrari 308 did not sound clean all day whilst the Alex Hammond / John Young 1967 Chevrolet Camaro never turned a wheel in anger. Having sold both his exquisite Jaguar XJ13 and D Type to Spain, Darryl Simpson was looking forward to his first outing in his new replica Ford GT40. Sadly a gear linkage came adrift and simply proved too complex to repair in time.

No less than three Tiga Rotary engined sportscars were present but only one would make it to the Sunday event. The Destiny Seating Tiga of Rudi Patoir was not entered whilst the Gulf liveried version of Fanie Brandt was only pushed out of its garage. A new engine saw Alan Dike make it through Saturday in his neat red version. The immaculately built Chevron B8 replica of Derek Hulse unfortunately spent the weekend on display in front of the clubhouse as it has been put up for sale.

Always present in large numbers the Lotus 7 replicas also suffered this time with Norman Witt retiring his Bandag Truck Service entry after a wheel banging session did irreparable damage to the steering rack. Colin Slyper never made it to Cape Town and Sean Hurley found himself in a car with shot rings. The Ford BDG 2.0 Cosworth engine in the Gary van Jaarsveld entry cried enough, possibly because of all the dirt it swallowed every time he went off in Conti corner ? The always impressive Sebring MGB GT V8 of Nick Parrott never got going either as the green machine destroyed its clutch.

Having spent the week preparing other drivers racing cars left Dave Köpke high and dry when his own Power Conversions Mazda R100 developed engine problems on Saturday and no time to swop plants. The very rapid Zakspeed Ford Escort 1600 of Louis Powell devoured another engine during Saturday practice and there was no sign of Dennis McBeath in the normally quite impressive red Renault R10 The neat 1962 Mini 1300 of Brian Hastie practiced but failed to start a race.

Sunday

Another beautiful summer day set the scene and present after quite a long absence was well known SA motorsport photographer, Louis Gouws. Guy Hodgson (Navigator) and Enzo Kuun (Rally Driver) "represented" VW as the only other VW product present was the 2.7 VW Beetle of John Smith. Could not help but notice the absence of VW and Toyota products in the classic scene ?

Standing Start Handicap Historic Single Seaters 2x8 laps

Topping the scoresheet after warm-up practice was Bloubergstrand based Italian, Marco Antonucci, in the 1963 Louis Douglas Serrurier (LDS - Alfa) Formula 1 car. Quite a story as Marco bought this car from Serrurier in Italy and to see it return to home soil was fantastic. Looking very uncomfortable in the seat of his Brabham BT14 did not slow Roger Newman much in second spot.

Only ten cars started heat one and it was the Durban built 1958 Wishart F3 of Mark Palmer that opened proceedings. Setting a best time of 2min06.886 was impressive and it was even more encouraging to see it complete the full eight laps of the race. Just staying in the driver seat is a supreme challenge in this little beast. Richard Daggitt thoroughly enjoyed himself in the green 1952 Cooper Bristol T20 and posted a respectable 1min40.725 enroute to the chequered flag with Roger Newman taking second spot in the well prepared Brabham BT14. Rallyist, Ben van der Westhuizen, stuck to the black stuff and placed third in the 1962 Louis Douglas Serrurier (LDS Ford) setting the quickest time of the race at 1min30.141. Dave Alexander fourth overall in the 1961 Cooper Junior T56 and Marco Antonucci fifth in the 1963 Louis Douglas Serrurier (LDS Alfa).

Derek Hulse upset the Cape weather by not only making it through practice, but actually finishing a competitive sixth overall in the "never before seen racing at Killarney" all aluminium bodied Elva MkII 1100 of Richard Daggitt. Rod Green bringing the 1957 Cooper T43 1500 home seventh with Neil Hadfield eighth in the pristine 1953 Jaguar C Type. A tired Mark Palmer taking ninth spot. Lew Baker the only retirement after three laps when the 1962 Alfa Special Formula 1 cried enough in Engen corner.

Richard Daggitt looked set to repeat his first heat victory when the Cooper suddenly slowed with what looked like gear selection problems. Roger Newman said thank you and placed the BT14 Brabham first with the ever consistent Ben van der Westhuizen second in the 1962 LDS Ford. Somewhat to his own surprise the immaculate 1953 Jaguar C Type of Neil Hadfield took third with Dave Alexander fourth in the 1961 Cooper Junior T56. Rod Green fifth in the 1957 Cooper T43 1500 and Mark Palmer sixth in the 1958 Wishart F3. Richard Daggitt had to settle for seventh in the 1952 Cooper Bristol T20 whilst Derek Hulse and the Elva MkII 1100 retired after only one lap. Marco Antonucci failing to start in the 1963 LDS Alfa.

Overall Roger Newman took first place in the Brabham BT14 with Ben van der Westhuizen second (1962 LDS Ford), Richard Daggitt third and Dave Alexander fourth.

Marque Cars 2x6 laps

As expected it was John Atkins who led from the start in the 1965 AC Cobra 289 with Dominik Buss chasing hard in his 1996 LDS AC Cobra 5.0. Running to an impressive third place was Pete Sherman in his very well prepared 1973 Ford Granada Perana V8 with the white 1974 Porsche 911 2.7 of Clive Spolander netting fourth ahead of the silver 1981 Porsche 911 SC Targa of Johann van Aswegen. Coenrad Spamer found himself behind the wheel of a silver 1981 Mazda RX7 in sixth spot with the very sideways 1983 Nissan Skyline GTX 2.8 of Mynhardt de Jongh a very entertaining seventh. Thirty cars started heat one with Mike Napoli and the 1965 Triumph Macau Spitfire the only retirement.

The very varied field of cars included the immaculate 1961 MGA MkII of Derek Hulse on the one end and the 1985 NAD BMW 535i of Francois van Rooyen on the other. The 1964 Sunbeam Tiger 4.2 of Roger Wood and the rare 1964 Ford Consul 1500 of Guy Ritchie just two that caught the eye during the race itself.

Heat two had 31 starters and once again it was John Atkins that led from flag to flag with Dominik Buss even closer this time and Pete Sherman another competent third in the big Granada. Johann van Aswegen placing his silver Porsche fourth in the absence of Clive Spolander and Coenrad Spamer fifth in the silent Mazda RX7. Jamie Burns taking sixth spot in his 1974 Alfa GTV and Raymond Cooper seventh in the thundering 1976 Shamrock Cobra V8. Unfortunately Mynhardt de Jongh got it all wrong exiting Conti and deposited the Skyline GTX in the kitty litter after only three laps. He still got loud applause for his efforts returning to the pits after the race.

Garrin Tuck caught the eye in his neatly prepared 1985 Alfasud Sprint 105 as did Arnold Lambert in the sole 1966 Ford Anglia 1600. Based on Index of Performance overall victory went to the very experienced Coenrad Spamer in the 1981 Mazda RX7 with John Atkins having to settle for second place this year in the neat 1965 AC Cobra 289. Dominik Buss taking third spot in his monster 1996 LDS Cobra 5.0 and Pete Sherman fourth in the very consistent 1973 Ford Granada Perana V8. Roger Wood placing his immaculate 1964 Sunbeam Tiger 4.2 fifth with Denis van Blerk sixth overall in his yellow 1981 Alfa Romeo Alfetta GT. Derek Hulse placed his superb 1961 MGA MkII seventh with

Knysna based, Johann van Aswegen, eighth in his silver 1981 Porsche 911 SC Targa. Robin Forbes taking ninth spot in his more sedate red 1971 BMW 2002. The top ten completed by Graham Fox in his 1976 Alfa Romeo GTV 2.0.

Historic Motorcycles 2x6 Laps

Eighteen much sought after machines lined up for heat one with the outright favourite the screaming 1977 Honda CBX 1000 of Danie "van Killarney" Maritz. Aged a spritely 40 Danie races in the leathers worn by his brother Frans during the era, when he was a works Castrol Honda racer. Frans retired at age 26 but fortunately Danie has become part of the Killarney inventory spanning 25 years. His sixpack sports 39mm forks, better front brakes and special front tyres as its serious modifications with a very fit rider on its back.

Main opposition for the day was David Bolding on board "Big Bertha", the immaculately prepared 1982 Superbike Solutions Suzuki Katana 1100. The Honda suffered from a slipping clutch and the Katana needed an oil seal change after practice. Traditionally a slow starter at 260kg the Honda struggled even more with the slipping clutch but Danie soon had the big machine slithering into the lead with the Katana snapping at his heels. Lapping at a shade under 1min 30 both riders were giving their best in front of an appreciative crowd .

First time out on the ex - Rob Cathro 1981 Agip Oils Ducati TT2 600 saw Tony Sandell net third place with Derek Chester-Browne fourth aboard his 1983 Laverda RGS. Stretch Henrick taking fifth on his 1982 Ducati Pantah 500 with eccentric "Fast" Fred Lewis sixth on his somewhat modified 1983 Yamaha RD350. Though persistently trying this bike refuses to grow when Fred plants it around the track, this time it was Engen during Saturday practice.

Sadly John Rutherford had to throw in the towel with the recently restored 1952 Tribsa Triumph 498cc. This machine last raced at Snetterton in 1968 before moving to SA (1973) where it has been in storage until now. A 1952 Triumph 498cc engine developing 42bhp fitted to a 1959 BSA frame weighing in at just 156kg became known as a Tribsa. Unique is the fact that these engines were also fitted with the Delta 1957 cylinder heads (only 47 ever built) which were the forerunners of the Bonnevale.

Adding to the nostalgic value for the motorcyclists was the presence of legendary six time world champion, Jim Redman, now aged 73. Four laps aboard the ex-Rob Cathro Ducati TT2 600 proved that he had not lost any of his skills. He even had the energy to tackle the sixpack of Danie Maritz.

Heat two saw Danie and David disappear into the distance with the Honda less than a second ahead of the Suzuki after six laps. Tony Sandell and Derek Chester-Browne next with Fred Lewis fifth (without any new signs of new damage) and Marco Sanders sixth on his 1974 Ducati 750 GT.

John Surnam to my mind is the best representative of the spirit of classic bike racing with his flowing grey beard serving as chin guard aboard the 1969 Triumph Special. Stretch Henrick retired from heat two with a heavily smoking Ducati . Overall the order was Maritz, Bolding, Sandell, Chester- Browne, Lewis and Sanders.

Amo Deus Panel & Spray Classic Cars Classes C D & E 2x8 laps

31 cars lined up for the start of heat one with the very impressive Forcecourt Express 1970 Alfa Romeo GT Junior 2.0 of John Simpson leading from flag to flag. Consistently pressurizing the blue Alfa were Wayne Rosser (red VW Scirocco) and Chris Carolin (yellow "I suffer from premature acceleration" 1974 Brat Racing Ford Escort 1640). Paul Ammann bringing his silver VW Scirocco home in fourth spot with Martin Richards fifth in the 1973 "Chicken Plucker" Nissan 1600 SSS. Greg Sinden taking sixth spot in his red Brat Racing 1969 Ford Capri 3000. Seventh place filled by the 2.7 engined VW Beetle of John Smith.

Suffering from an incorrect diff ratio saw Derek Truscott down in eighth spot with his 1971 Alfa GT Junior and he was followed home by the class D Supa Quick 1972 Alfa Romeo Berlina of Jim Cousins and the GTA lookalike Alfa Romeo GT Junior of Meinrenken Timm. German Touring Meisterschaft driver, Richard Schimmel, normally races an ultra rare Alfa Romeo Zagato but since having taken up residence in Kleinmond has settled for a Power Conversions prepared BDA 1600 Ford Escort MkI.

After having made his local debut driving a BMW Z3 Coupe on the Gydo King of the Mountain race

Charles Arton settled for a Power Conversions prepared BMW 530.

Wayne Rosser showed no signs of the rookie status displayed with a red X on the rear window when he pipped John Simpson to he line by 0.19 seconds in heat two. The red Scirocco and the blue Alfa running side by side most of the time with the Carolin Escort ready to pounce should they slip. Ammann making it home in fourth with Sinden and Nick Parrott sixth in the more standard black MGB GT V8. Coenrad Spamer delayed the start of this race when his 1967 NSU TTS 1140 caught fire exiting Engen corner whilst Peter van der Poel had his ex-Brian Maunder Renault R12 1600 expire in a cloud of expensive oil smoke entering Conti on lap three.

Overall the order in class C was John Simpson from Wayne Rosser, Chris Carolin, Paul Ammann, Greg Sinden and Martin Richards. In class D Jim Cousins won from Robbie Jeptha (Ford Escort MkI), Meinrenken Timm ( Alfa Romeo GTA), Peter Symons (1974 Datsun GX 1600), Keith Hosking (Alfa Romeo GT Junior) and Nick van Rensburg (1974 Fiat 124 Sport 2.0). The baby class (E) had Zoe Smith winning in a 1972 Datsun GX 1450 from Johan Rheeder in his Leyland Mini, Guy Ritchie in the rare 1964 Ford Consul 1500, Keith Andrews in his neat Mazda 616 Coupe and Johnny Mansour in his 1974 Alfa Romeo GT Junior 2.0. The latter could have done better had it not been for a spin in Conti corner.

Pre 1968 Historic Supersport Prototypes Grand Touring Cars and Replicas 2x10 laps

Glen Price virtually had his name engraved on the trophy after qualifying as the 1965 McLaren M1C V8 set the standards on its SA debut. Unfortunately the rules stipulate that you need to pass the chequered flag in first place as well and a time consuming spin in Conti whilst leading left Glen with a virtually impossible task to recover.

Geoff Kimber-Smith made no such error and the Vin Malkie prepared white 1969 Chevron B16 took a well deserved victory with Chris Chiles second in the 1966 Ford GT40. The Chevron running on proper slick racing tyres compared to the grooved road tyres of the GT40. Glen Price recovered to third in the thundering McLaren M1C and Graham Bryant placed the ex-Roy Salvadori 1965 AC Cobra Ford fourth after another impressive outing. Martin Brewer was next in the big Festival Cruises 1960 Aston Martin DB5. Runing on massive 18" Hoosier slicks gave this car a really mean look on the track yet it proved very nimble for its size.

Sadly the normally reliable Lamborghini powered 1966 P4 Ferrari of Max Wakefield suffered a serious setback at Zwartkops when it caught alight and very little time could be spent on set up. Despite having the car prepared by F1 engineers it proved four seconds off the pace on Saturday and the team really dug deep. Pace returned but the extreme heat saw the car retire after six laps with overheating. No oil pressure also saw the 1966 330P Ferrari of David Piper stand idle in the pits.

Heat two saw Glen Price in determined frame of mind and the McLaren lived up to expectations. Geoff Kimber-Smith stuck to the big car like a proverbial leech and crossed the line less than a second adrift in the rapid Chevron B16. Graham Bryant placed his legendary 1965 AC Cobra Ford third with Paul Ingram fourth in the 1966 Ford GT40. Alan Minshaw placed the Demon Tweaks 1966 Ford Mustang V8 fifth and the top six completed by Mike Chitty in his Lotus 7 Ford 1600. The Wakefield Ferrari overheating again.

Overall class A saw Price ahead of the Chiles/Ingram GT40 and the Wakefield Ferrari P4. Geoff Kimber-Smith won class B from Graham Bryant, Gavin McLellan (Westfield 7 Ford 1600), Nick Faure (1967 Porsche 911 R), Chris O'Neill (1964 AC Cobra Ford) and the Wilson/Pilkington Ferrari 308. Class C easily won by the Wolfgang Schuessler 1966 Porsche 906.

Pre 1978 Historic Supersport Sports Prototype Grand Touring Cars & Replicas 2x10 laps

Purchased from American Bobby Rahal (reputedly for the princely sum of 1 million pounds !) barely two weeks before the Killarney meeting had Danish ace, Juan Baratzi working hard behind the wheel of his 1971 air cooled flat 12 Porsche 917. Killarney gave the Porsche some room to stretch its 600 horses and he won heat one comfortably.

Frank Sytner taking second in the yellow Lola T70 with Nationwide Airlines bossman, Vernon Bricknell, proving that he can fly Porsche as well with a fine third place in his very powerful 1974 Porsche 911 RSR 3.8. The Chris O'Neill/Nigel Hulme Lola T70 slotting into fourth with O'Neill at the wheel. Without a doubt the most stunning car on the circuit was the 480bhp 1969 Ford F3L of David Piper and for good reason this car was driven with kids gloves to fifth overall. David Yates showed little respect in the white 1969 Chevron B16 by challenging the red Ford at every opportunity but eventually settled for sixth spot.

Sadly the initial threat from the 1971 Chevron B19 of Jan Brunstedt disappeared with one of its valves after just three laps. The race was also stopped briefly when a Lotus seven blocked the racing line into Conti after spinning. Juan Baratzi impressed with another clean drive in heat two but it was Nigel Hulme that set the fastest lap in the Lola T70 (1min13.521) before dropping back after a slight spin . Frank Sytner taking third in the yellow Lola T70 with the very rapid FVH 7 Rotary of Peter Little fourth. David Piper placed the F3L fifth with Vernon Bricknell sixth in the Nationwide 1974 Porsche 911 RSR 3.8.

Juan Baratzi the deserved class A winner in the magnificent Porsche 917 with Frank Sytner second in the yellow Lola T70 and the Hulme/O'Neill Lola T70 third. David Piper taking fourth in the gloriously sounding F3L with David Yates fifth in the Chevron B16 and Alan Dike sixth in the 1978 Tiga Rotary.

Class B was easily won by the powerful 1974 Porsche 911 RSR 3.8 of Vernon Bricknell with Peter Little second, Mike Coram (Caterham SV400 Toyota 1800) third, Louis de Jager (It's a right hand drive by 40mm) 1968 Lola T212 Alfa fourth, Jimmy Dunn (Birkin 7 Rotary) fifth and Keith Rose sixth in his 1974 Porsche 911 RS 3.2. Arno Church won class C in his well prepared FVH 7 Ford with James Forbes second in his The Caledon Casino Caterham SV 400 16v, Johann Walters third in his GSM Dart Opel 2.0 and Rob Guinness fourth in the overheating Wakefield Ferrari P4. Rudi Patoir taking a lacklustre fifth in his Destiny Seating 1974 Porsche 911 Carrera 3.2. The yellow Porsche burst a right rear wheel in practice and then flat spotted all four in heat two.

Amo Deus Panel & Spray Classic Cars A&B 2x8 laps

Going into the final stages of the first heat Deon Joubert looked as though he could actually catch and pass the very rapid 1974 Nationwide Porsche 911 RSR 3.8 of Vernon Bricknell. Having shadowed him from the start the Peter Gough owned 1973 Cars Unlimited Porsche RS 3.2 suddenly dropped back when the crankshaft pulley detached itself, cooking the oil in the engine. Third going to the 1965 AC Cobra Ford of Graham Bryant with Alan Minshaw fourth in his 460bhp Demon Tweaks 1966 Ford Mustang V8. Derek van Blerk fifth in the 510bhp ex-Koos Swanepoel 1966 Ford Mustang V8 and Martin Brewer sixth in the impressive 1960 Aston Martin DB5.

Much was expected from Cindy Evans and her giant killing Renault R8 Gordini but Ashley Ellis proved equal to the task in his similar car and Cindy eventually had to withdraw due to overheating. The Robin Forbes 1973 Chevrolet Corvette Stingray 5.7 lasted seven laps but the Graeme Rooke owned Basil Green Ford Capri Perana V8 driven by Rick Davis proved somewhat disappointing.

Class B was quite impressive with Keith Rose leading the pack in his 1974 Porsche 911 RS 3.2 and Trevor Momberg hanging on to second spot with the 1971 Ford Capri 3000 Interceptor. The indecently quick Mini of Steve Miller fending off Peter Gough's Alfa Romeo GT Junior for third spot and Nick Faure slotting into fifth spot with his 1967 Porsche 911 RS

Heat two sadly saw no Deon Joubert and this allowed Vernon Bricknell to win as he pleased with Graham Bryant second in the 1965 AC Cobra Ford. The Mustang tussle for third was resolved in favour of the Alan Minshaw / Demon Tweaks version when Derek van Blerk lost the plot in Conti corner. Alan Minshaw and Derek van Blerk did however prove that they were trying hard. Martin Brewer once again close behind in fifth spot with class B winner, Keith Rose, sixth. Robin Forbes recovered to take seventh in his Corvette with Miller and Gough ahead of Momberg this time around.

Brian Smith and Ashley Ellis once again had a very entertaining dice going in their respective 1973 Alfa Berlina 2.0 and 1970 Renault R8 Gordini 1.6 whilst Anton Rollino finally found the limits in the 1973 Chev Can Am 5.0 when he ploughed into the kitty litter at Conti with no brakes. A broken front rim a lucky escape.

Overall the class A results read, Bricknell from Bryant, Minshaw, van Blerk, Brewer and Forbes and in class B the order was Rose, Miller, Momberg, Gough, Faure and Johan van der Merwe (VW Scirocco).

Summary

Great to finally see and hear the F3L Ford in action at Killarney and the magnificent Porsche 917 will always be a winner. Sound is one of the most important factors at meetings of a vintage nature as the distinctive sound of each entry is as important as its visual impact on the track and something like the screaming Matra Simca would certainly a bonus when the David Piper Roadshow return in 2005.

The brutal McLaren Chevrolet V8 M1C was new to these parts and variety is healthy in any form of motorsport. An increase in numbers and better support from the Zwartkops based teams would be great as the little contact between the rest of SA and Killarney certainly starve local supporters.

The car parades during lunch attracted a number of Harleys and an impressive field of road going Ferrari products. One young wannabe Schumacher providing a heart stopping moment when he buried his (or Dads ?) Ferrari in the Conti scenery. Fortunately only that frail male ego received some dings which he will obviously live with for a while.

-Patrick Vermaak