| Motor Racing - Continued |
| Formula Vee: 1969 - 1976 |
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| After I sold the Gazelle I looked at a number of Formula Vees after test driving the Aust Auto Racing Clubs Vee at Warwick Farm. As I was 5'11" tall & weighed about 10.5 stone I needed a car which I felt comfortable in. I found a Tee Vee for sale that had been built using a Nota Chassis lenghtened by 6" by an engineer from Channel 9 T.V. station (hence the name!) & found it ideal! This pic is me leading a group at Bathurst in the corner leading onto the main straight in 1969. |
| Here is some typical F Vee action! 1st lap of a race at Warwick Farm long Circuit. The Vee at far right is the actual leader. Thats me in No.36 at far left avoiding the melee. I was in 3rd position on the last lap when Steve Weissner in the Vee No.2 caught up to us & on the 2nd last corner outbraked himself & pushed me off the track. I eventually finished 7th. We had a small co-operative Racing Team called Scuderia Avanti with Chris Edwards as Pit Manager, a Nota Clubman raced by Kel Merz, a Triumph Spitfire raced by Bob Woods & another Vee raced by Damon Beck. |
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| The Nota Avanti Vee in 1974 at Bathurst.The car was rebuilt by John Grant who designed the Standfast Vees after I had a practice accident at Amaroo after getting Pole position. On one of the final practice laps a Vee spun in Brabham Loop & obviously did not see me coming & rolled slowly back accross the track leaving me no chance to avoid him as I was almost flat out in 4th gear. I hit his back wheel & was launched through the saplings at the top of the cutting damaging the front RHS of the chassis. |
| My Vee leading a race at Amaroo Park in 1974 or 5 on the first lap. I was second on the grid & eventually finished 2nd to Ralph Schofield in No 21. Ralph won the Vee Championship that year. My Vee was consistently in the top 10 mostly finishing in the top 7 with a number of 2nd & 3rd places. |
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| The Vee in colour at Amaroo 1974. Thats Pete Williamson who I shared the driving with in the mid 70s.. The Mini in the background was raced by Carolyn O'Shannessy a good friend of Pete, myself & Ron Harris who was a mate from the Riley Car Club days. |