Letters from Readers, August 2001

Author

admin

Browse pages
Current page

1

Current page

2

Current page

3

Current page

4

Current page

5

Current page

6

Current page

7

Current page

8

Current page

9

Current page

10

Current page

11

Current page

12

Current page

13

Current page

14

Current page

15

Current page

16

Current page

17

Current page

18

Current page

19

Current page

20

Current page

21

Current page

22

Current page

23

Current page

24

Current page

25

Current page

26

Current page

27

Current page

28

Current page

29

Current page

30

Current page

31

Current page

32

Current page

33

Current page

34

Current page

35

Current page

36

Current page

37

Current page

38

Current page

39

Current page

40

Current page

41

Current page

42

Current page

43

Current page

44

Current page

45

Current page

46

Current page

47

Current page

48

Current page

49

Current page

50

Current page

51

Current page

52

Current page

53

Current page

54

Current page

55

Current page

56

Current page

57

Current page

58

Current page

59

Current page

60

Current page

61

Current page

62

Current page

63

Current page

64

Current page

65

Current page

66

Current page

67

Current page

68

Current page

69

Current page

70

Current page

71

Current page

72

Current page

73

Current page

74

Current page

75

Current page

76

Current page

77

Current page

78

Current page

79

Current page

80

Current page

81

Current page

82

Current page

83

Current page

84

Current page

85

Current page

86

Current page

87

Current page

88

Current page

89

Current page

90

Current page

91

Current page

92

Current page

93

Current page

94

Current page

95

Current page

96

Current page

97

Current page

98

Current page

99

Current page

100

Current page

101

Current page

102

Current page

103

Current page

104

Current page

105

Current page

106

Current page

107

Current page

108

Current page

109

Current page

110

Current page

111

Current page

112

Current page

113

Current page

114

Current page

115

Current page

116

Current page

117

Current page

118

Current page

119

Current page

120

Current page

121

Current page

122

Current page

123

Current page

124

Current page

125

Current page

126

Current page

127

Current page

128

Current page

129

Current page

130

Current page

131

Current page

132

Current page

133

Current page

134

Current page

135

Current page

136

Current page

137

Current page

138

Current page

139

Current page

140

Current page

141

Current page

142

Current page

143

Current page

144

Current page

145

Current page

146

Current page

147

Current page

148

Current page

149

Current page

150

Current page

151

Current page

152

Current page

153

Current page

154

Current page

155

Current page

156

Look Mazda, no hands

Sir,

It was excellent to see your article about Mazda’s 1991 Le Mans win. It brought a number of memories back for me, primarily because it was the first time I had marshalled at the event.

I was there with a group of British marshals manning Post 35bis, which is situated just south of the Hunaudieres Restaurant on the outside of the circuit. This must have been one of the fastest points on the track, as it was here that the Mercedes team set up their speed trap. Unfortunately, we couldn’t find out what speeds the cars were coming through at, as the technicians in charge wouldn’t let us look at the readouts.

People talk about the 1991 Belgian GP being the race that brought Michael Schumacher to prominence, but for those of us who were at Le Mans that year, it was his performance in the Mercedes that first truly showed the world his potential. He was awesome, completely outpacing the rest of the field for the first 22 hours.

The final abiding memory of the race is the Mazda on its final lap as it came past our post. Knowing that Johnny Herbert was still at the wheel, we produced a number of Union flags to wave at him as he came past.

I was on the final point of our post, which is just about on the braking point for the first Mulsanne chicane. As Johnny approached us, we waved our flag. At this point he appeared to take his hands from the wheel and give a ‘clenched fist’ salute. He then appeared to realise he was on the braking/turn-in point and just took hold of the steering wheel in time to negotiate the corner.

So, the first triumph by a Japanese car in the ‘great race’ was almost lost on the final lap.

Lord knows, we try

Sir,

As one who has not missed a Motor Sport since the war, I was delighted that Bill Boddy recalled our interview of June 1980. I still have my 3/41/2 Bentley, fly aero planes and did an enjoyable seven years as the president of the Auto Cycle Union which gave me the opportunity of lapping the Isle of Man both on a Honda bike and in the Course Car. Along with Lord Montague, we try and keep the motorsport flag flying in the Hous of Lords. The problems change little over the years, but somehow the solutions become more difficult!

Good luck to you in the future.

Why Kremer 917 was creamed

Sir,

With reference to the excellent article concerning the return of the Porsche 917, I might be able to shed some light on the car’s retirement at Brands Hatch.

I was marshalling at a post on the outside of Dingle Dell. As Gary Watkins relates, the car had just taken the lead and it looked and sounded fabulous; then, as Wollek turned into the corner, the car veered sharply to the left and gave the barrier a glancing blow. I ran the few yards to the car, the driver hopped out and, after a quick look at the front of the car, strode off.

At the end of the race I waited with the car until the tow truck arrived. When it was pulled onto the Tarmac, the left-hand front wheel was at right angles to the car. The Kremer mechanics turned up and could move the wheel by hand. I think it’s fair to say that Bob Wollek could not be blamed for that one!

Mauri Rose school of motoring

Sir,

While I was growing up in England, your magazine was a constant source of interest and information. After moving to California, I became a lapsed reader for a while and then decided that it was about time I took out a subscription, and I am so glad that I did. Your articles continue to amaze and delight me, more so now because of your feature on Mauri Rose.

You see, he taught my wife to drive.

My wife’s family owned a tool and die business in South Bend, Indiana, and had contracts with Bendix, Studebaker and numerous other companies. It was through their dealings with these firms that my wife met Mauri. When I compared what she had learnt with what I had learnt through the Institute of Advanced Motorists, I realised there many similarities. In 1984, while driving over to South Bend, we stopped at the Bridcyard and visited the museum. I, perhaps rather naïvely, asked one of the senior ushers whether Mauri was still alive. Sadly, I got a blank response, and we left disappointed.

It therefore came as some surprise to read that he had only died three years earlier, yet so soon forgotten!

Passing and bucking the trend

Sir,

I very much enjoyed your ‘Shock Winners’ article, particularly the inclusion of Olivier Panis’s victory at Monaco. That was because, while all his colleagues persistently moaned of Monaco (you can’t overtake here), Olivier overtook four drivers on the way to his win — and at least three of those manoeuvres were at different corners.

I spoke to him recently, and he confirmed that he overtook Martin Brundle for llth place on the exit of Rascasse. “It was damp and he was getting sideways, so I came up the inside of him.” He overtook Mika Hakkinen for ninth at Mirabeau. He couldn’t remember where he got by Johnny Herbert, but his pass of Eddie Irvine at Loews had stuck in his mind: “I crash im!” Said without the slightest tinge of regret.

Olivier is still one of the sport’s overtakers, to the extent that, in my capacity as on-circuit grand prix commentator, I frequently suggest he’s on a different fuel strategy, and therefore lighter, than the rest. On occasions, I’m “very much mistaken.”

Watch him.

Outback goes walkabout

Sir,

G’day cobber. I have to take you to task when you allege that Larry Perkins is from the Outback, as was claimed in the BRM P207 feature. Now, nobody is really sure where the Outback begins and ends, but a town somewhere between Adelaide and Melbourne is hardly it. For heaven’s sake, Cowangie even has its own postcode! I think you’d need to go several hundred kilometres north-west to find the Outback. I wish Europeans would stop describing every bit of Australia untouched by the Olympics as Outback. While the Outback is very big, it is equally sparsely populated, so the chances of anyone coming from there are pretty remote.

As an aside, I thoroughly enjoyed the magazine.