Photos: The Bruce Wells Collection - Warwick Farm - Part 5

[Steve Holmes]

Stephen, you beauty! That is great info! Matich must have really been gunning it to come right through for 2nd.

[Cooper997]

Steve, I've just looked at the Mar 67 RCN and Frank started in last place (20 cars started), having not practiced the Cooper S. So he was indeed gunning it.

Stephen

[Steve Holmes]

Yikes! Yeah that is impressive Stephen!

[Steve Holmes]

Now, this is from the Sports Car race. Again, any help with ID's are always appreciated.

Look at the punters hanging out of the trees to get a better vantage point!

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[Cooper997]

This should be Event 1 Marque Sports Car Race 5 laps.
#61 K Webb (Dvr: Ross Bond) Austin Healey 3000 2912 blue/white
#63 Meyer's Car Maintenance (Dvr: Paul Meyer) Lotus Élan Ford 1558 Red
(And likely) #64 Harry C Cape Lotus Élan Ford 1558 green/black

Stephen

[Steve Holmes]

Great stuff Stephen, thanks heaps for this. Do you know who won the race?

[Cooper997]

The RCN report mentions the finishing order as shown in the photo. Bond by 0.9 to Meyer, followed by Cape a further 0.5 behind. So a close dice really.

For the record here's the list of events held during this February 19, 1967 Tasman / Australian GP meeting.
Event 1 Marque Sports Car Race - 5 laps.
Event 2 Touring Car Race for "HMV" Trophy (Series Production) - 5 laps
Event 3 Racing Car Race (Formula Vee) - 10 laps
Event 4 32nd Australian GP - 45 laps
Event 5 Touring Car Race (Improved Production & Sports-Closed) - 10 laps
Event 6 Sports Car Race - Division 1 - 10 laps
Event 7 Racing Car Race - under 1500cc - 10 laps
Event 8 Sports Car Race - Division 2 - 5 laps

Stephen

[Terry S]

More touring car action. Hopefully someone here can ID these drivers?

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The most interesting car in this photo is #49 the Cooper S of Frank Matich ..... yes the great Frank Matich
The race was for Series Production cars,which was basically unmodified readily available saloons.

Matich had used this Cooper S a few months before in the 1966 Bathurst 500. He had set the fastest lap of that race, but DNF when his codriver Frank Demuth hit a tree. He only raced this car 4 times pending completion of his SR3 sports car.

Matich debutted his Matich SR3 Olds at this meeting, but it was just finished in time and completely unsorted. So he did not practice the Cooper, devoting the time to the SR3. He therefore started this race from the back of the grid behind a pack of about 20 cars.
As the race was only of 5 laps, or 18 kms, he didn't have much time to get to the front.

The cars in this photo are in order:
48 Don Holland Cooper S
50 John Leffler Cooper S
61 Don Selby Cooper S (only 1098cc)
57 John Kinsey Cortina GT
45 Malcolm Bailey Prince Skyline GT
54 Joe Kennedy Cooper S
49 Frank Matich Cooper S

I believe there are some cars out to the right, so this photo does not depict the actual race order.
Don Holland won by 10 seconds from Matich and Leffler (who had been dicing together and slowed themselves)
Holland and Selby set new class lap records.

As a sign of the times Holland won $65 but more "importantly" a HMV Push-Button radio.

[Steve Holmes]

Really great info you guys! Many thanks. I wonder if I should bring some of our older Bruce Wells threads back to the top to see if we can get some more ID's? Lots of interesting unidentified images in those.

[Steve Holmes]

OK, gearing up now for the main race. Jack Brabham was obviously the local favourite.

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[Steve Holmes]

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[Steve Holmes]

Denny Hulme, in his Brabham. This would be a good year for the bear.

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[Steve Holmes]

Graham Hill, prior to race start.

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[Greg Mackie]

With Geoff Sykes......'Mr. Warwick Farm'.

[Steve Holmes]

Thanks Greg! Great info.

[Steve Holmes]

Leo Geoghegan readies himself for the start.

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[Steve Holmes]

Jack Brabham has his race face on, prior to the start.

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[Steve Holmes]

How superb is this photo! Bruce has captured the moment just as the flag has dropped and the drivers drop the clutches. From pole, Jackie Stewart has the rear bags already lit, while alongside are Jim Clark and Graham Hill. Row two are Jack Brabham and Leo Geoghegan, while Denny Hulme sits in behind Brabham. Stewart was also the first to reach the chequered flag.

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[Michael Clark]

Is this the first time the Cosworth FVA was ever raced?

[Terry S]

SPECTATING AT WARWICK FARM

As this thread has WF in title I'd like to put in a few thoughts on this, particularly ease of getting to.
WF was a wonderful circuit because you could see so much from so many places.
In its later years the best viewing was from the esses after you had gone across the two bridges over the track.

The great advantage of WF in our pre driving days was that you could get a train right into the circuit. There was a full station right behind the grandstands. We caught the train from Cronulla into Central and then out to WF. It took a long time but it was worth it.

The other Sydney circuit you could get to by train was Catalina Park. Catch the train to Katoomba then walk down the hill.

The magical thing about this, and reason I'm mentioning, was it wetted our appetite for racing which we still have all these years later. Even before we could drive. My first WF meeting was in December 1962 seeing Bob Jane's Jag winning.

Oran Park was in the country and Amaroo did not really start before we were driving.
These days it is not as easy for young people to get to circuits. In Sydney there is only Eastern Creek which I believe you can possibly get a long bus ride sometimes from Blacktown railway station. Wakefield Park is really in the country, far beyond public transport.
So Sydney young people basically miss out on getting "hooked" as we have.

I recall being at a Calder meeting in Melbourne where the train line ran along the back straight. Sometimes for bigger meetings they would run a train out, BUT there was no station, you had to jump out of the train when it stopped. Not a pretty sight.

I don't know about NZ, whether this a problem there for young people?