The Roaring Season

Australian tourist Frank Matich relaxes at the mount.

Matich Gave the New Zealanders some idea of the potential of the 2.5litre Tasman Formula Repco-Brabham-Climax with a slashing 1 min 10.4 sec lap record.


Despite tough Australian opposition, Palmer again took the flag at Mount Maunganui. Here he shows the way to Frank Matich and Tony Shelly on the bend leading to the main straight.

Andrew Buchanan scored his first single-seater victory with the 1.6 Brabham-Ford in the race for Formula Junior type cars.


Tyres smoke as lotus driver Shelly brakes behind John Youl's Cooper.

Heavy rain made things damp and difficult for contestants at Waimate...

Where Andrew Buchanan glued his Brabham-Ford to the tail of Rex Flowers Lotus-Ford and then took a last lap lead to win the race.

Motor racing may be a summer sport but conditions could hardly have been nuch wetter for this year's Waimate 50. Bill thomasen (2.5 Cooper-Climax) and Ken Sager (1.5 Lotus-Ford) press on regardless through the rain and flying spray.

After a somewhat indifferent season, Ken Sager finally came right and drove the Lotus-Ford into a weel earned 3rd place.

With 2.5 litres of Coventy-Climax engine behind him, Shelly waits for the action.


Waimates weather failed to dampen the spirits of race winner Andy Buchanan and place getters Sager and Shelly.

Kerry Grant chase's Ray Archibald.

Up front; National champion Kerry Grant with the Willment-engined Lotus Cortina in characteristic pose at Wigram.

Up back; an eager Austin cocks a rear wheel at Pukekohe. ( I am wondering John Windleburn, any ideas. also note the sports t-shirt)

Two formidable saloon car hands, Jaguar man Ray Archibald and Zephyr exponent Ernie Sprague, mixed it in style at Wigram.

Ivan Segedin drove his spirited Ford Anglia with everything wide open at Levin, even a door.

Lotus-Cortinas dominated saloon car racing later in the season. Paul Fahey, the eventual winner at Waimate, leads Kerry Grant, who took the national title.

Sprague has the hot Zephyr away out on the levin cucuit, with two keen young Lotus-Cortinas breathing heavily down his neck.

Ian Dow showed up as a much improved driver of his 3.8 Jaguar during the season, despite this indiscretion at Teretonga Park.

Julie Smith found her VW had a tendancy to over-steer at Levin and later rolled it.

Some hurried panel beating enabled Sprague to contest the Wigram final after an earlier mishap.

Grant's forceful driving style often brought spectators to their toes. Here he slides the tail of the Willment-modified Lotus Cortina in the 'rough"

Ernie Sprague tried really hard with the big Zephyr at Levin but found the curcuit too tight for this car and had to give best to the nimble Grant

The Waimate prang, at the turn out of the main straight, in the preliminary heat, ended Spragues chance of winning the saloon car championship.

Fahey and Grant made contact in the Loop at Wigram, calling for quick repairs between races.

Mini-Cooper driver Jim Mullins went through the straw bales on the tight Renwick curcuit after brake failure.

Vauxhall Victor driver Frank Hamlin was chagrined to lose his way at Pukekohe

Barry Porters Waimate mistake enabled Lola sports car driver Johnny Riley to wind up the N.Z.r.d.c. series as joint champion.

Stock models, such as this Austin-Healey and mG-A at Levin, are now no match for the few sports-racers in the country.

Maurice Stanton in the revamped Stanton-Corvette had a good Renwick win and looked a hard man to catch until his pre-race mount Maunganui crash.

Joint champion Barry Porter did very well through-out the season with the elderly but fast moving 2 litre Lotus Climax.

The Stanton-Corvette is Ignominiously removed, months of hard work mangled in a split second.

Sydney-sider Matich and the swift 2.7 litre Lotus-Climax gobbled up the opposition at Mount Maunganui and Pukekohe.
( he was not eligable for points)

Results

That was 1964.

Thank heavens someone had the foresight to save all of these cuttings. What a magic collections of photos and info being posted here. Thanks Rod - keep up the great work.

That must be a sizeable heap of scrapbooks - your Mum must be pleased to have all that space available again LOL

Barrie McBride kindly sent me the 64 and 72 books and the rest i have had delivered by a smiling mum.
Bit of scanning but well worth it hopefully.

I would guarantee that those two editions would be VERY well thumbed Rod.

Rod Grimwood wrote:Joint champion Barry Porter did very well through-out the season with the elderly but fast moving 2 litre Lotus Climax.

The Stanton-Corvette is Ignominiously removed, months of hard work mangled in a split second. Sydney-sider Matich and the swift 2.7 litre Lotus-Climax gobbled up the opposition at Mount Maunganui and Pukekohe.
( he was not eligable for points)

Thats amazing.
You must have been standing next to me. I also have a similar photo. I can clearly remember seeing the underside of the Stanton as it seemed to ride over the rear of the Cooper f3 of David Young. It could have been a major incident had the car crashed down the side where the crowd was standing rather then down the other side of the road. Very sobering and from then on the marshal had no problem keeping us behind the ropes. Matich stopped beside us as he must have seen it all happen in his mirrors.

John H. I was not there, these are copies from the Shell Year books photographed by Euan Sarginson, showing for those who never saw/kept their records from past. And a big bit of NZ Motorsport.

Rod Grimwood wrote:John H. I was not there, these are copies from the Shell Year books photographed by Euan Sarginson, showing for those who never saw/kept their records from past. And a big bit of NZ Motorsport.

Hey Grim, thanks for the huge effort you have gone to - this is a motor racing treasure. For those of us who are a few years too young to have seen the transition into the era of customer single-seaters playing out alongside Kiwi specials it's a real eye opener, not to mention some of the great candid pictorials of the stars of GP racing in the 60s and my first to the end hero Jim Clark. The championship results sheets are also great reference. Again, thanks for this invaluable resource.

Murray Maunder wrote:Hey Grim, thanks for the huge effort you have gone to - this is a motor racing treasure. For those of us who are a few years too young to have seen the transition into the era of customer single-seaters playing out alongside Kiwi specials it's a real eye opener, not to mention some of the great candid pictorials of the stars of GP racing in the 60s and my first to the end hero Jim Clark. The championship results sheets are also great reference. Again, thanks for this invaluable resource.

Yes I agree. I would be so interested to know if anyone else watched that accident with the Stanton flying through the air. It could have been a tragedy along the lines of the 1955 LeMans one. Been thinking about it today. I was also close by when Hulme hit Brownlee in the 1960's at Puke, but the Stanton one was the one that could have gone so wrong. I guess it is only 50 years ago.

last night I finished scanning and then resizing the photos from the books. Will post when I get back from Christchurch in just over a week. Of to Ruapuna for Lady Wigram this weekend and then staying on for a bit of work. I hope to catch up with both Mrs Min Sarginson and daughter while down there.

Ok let us resume. 1968

"Sadly this issue records the last Tasman chapter in the brilliant career of Jim Clark - and fittingly it is a record of his championship win. Like all New Zealanders interested in motor sport, Euan Sarginson and I will long remember Jim, not just because he was the greatest racing driver of our era but because we looked upon him as a real friend."
PETER GRENSLADE

I was one of those New Zealanders that was also affected by the death of Jim Clark. As a teenager I wanted to be Jim Clark or Bruce McLaren.
Rod Grimwood