OldRacingCars.com

SCCA National (New England Region)

Bryar Motorsport Park, 30 May 1976

ResultsLapsTime/Speed
1 Ken Duclos (F/Atl) 1.6-litre Chevron B34 [34-76-01] - Ford BDA
#34 Trojan Tools Dee Automotive
(see note 1)
1st in FB
2 Eric Kerman (F/Atl) 1.6-litre March 75B [73B-7] - Ford BDA
#81 EDK Racing Enterprises (see note 2)
2nd in FB
3 Rick Bell (F/Atl) 1.6-litre Chevron B34 [34-76-18] - Ford BDA Hart
#78 Bell Racing (see note 3)
3rd in FB
4 Paul Corazzo (F/Atl) 1.6-litre Chevron B27 - Ford BDA
#22 Sherri-Cup Inc. (see note 4)
4th in FB
5 Mike Rand (FC) 1.1-litre Brabham BT40 [13] - Cosworth BDJ
#37 Cheese Shop (see note 5)
1st in FC
6 Carl Whitney (FC) 1.1-litre Brabham BT29 [46] - Ford BDA Whitney
#33 Carl Whitney (see note 6)
2nd in FC
7 Dirk Wrightson (FC) 1.1-litre Brabham BT29 - Ford BDA Swindon
#21 Dirk Wrightson (see note 7)
3rd in FC
8 Ed Givler (FSV) 1.6-litre Edge VW
#74 Ed Givler
1st in FSV
9 Tom Thompson (FSV) 1.6-litre Lola T324 VW
#19 Tom Thompson
2nd in FSV
10 Don Maguire (FSV) 1.6-litre Maguire VW
#59 Maguire Racing
3rd in FSV
11 Joe Sposato (F/Atl) 1.6-litre Chevron B29 [29-75-20] - Ford BDA
#28 Sposato Motorracing Co. (see note 8)
5th in FB
R Ron Ignatowski (FC) 1-litre Rondel M1 [201] - BRM P80
#9 Telker Construction (see note 9)
FC
R John Mortensen (F/Atl) 1.6-litre March 76B [7] - Ford BDA
#89 Karaba Racing (see note 10)
FB
R Robert J. Nelkin (F/Atl) 1.6-litre Chevron B29 - Ford BDA
#77 (see note 11)
FB
UNKP Gerald Lieberg (F/Atl) 1.6-litre March 722 [20] - Ford BDA Swindon
#4 (see note 12)
Unknown (practiced)

All cars are 1.6-litre FB unless noted.

Qualifying
Qualifying information not available

Notes on the cars:

  1. Chevron B34 [34-76-01] (Ken Duclos): New to Ken Duclos (Boxboro, MA) and used in Northeast Division Formula B, entered by Kay-Dee Automotive and sponsored by Trojan Tools. He won the NEDiv Formula B title with a maximum possible score of 54 points and qualified for the Runoffs, where he qualified second and finished third. Sold to Bill Marlowe (Martinsville, VA) for SCCA Regionals in 1977. Marlow retained the Chevron for 1978, tying for second place in Southeast Division behind Bill Anspach with 31 points and qualifying for the SCCA Runoffs. He had already arranged to buy Anspach's March 77B and recalls that he sold the Chevron as a rolling chassis at the Runoffs. Subsequent history unknown.
  2. March 75B [73B-7] (Eric Kerman): New to Ron Cohn (Modena, NY), and run as a two-car team with Bruce MacInnes in 1973, entered by DRC Formula Racing Inc in Players Canadian and SCCA Formula B races, running as #56. Retained for 1974, running in the Players Canadian Formula Atlantic series and in the US GP support race at Watkins Glen in October. To Eric Kerman (Hempstead, NY/Glen Cove, NY) for 1975 and updated with new orange bodywork, entered as #81 or #87, and running as a 75B. Raced by Kerman in SCCA Nationals from 1975 to 1979. Later to Oran Bushey (Huntingdon, NY) and raced until 1982. Subsequent history unknown, but this is a leading candidate for the car used by Cory Mayo with a Chevrolet V6 engine in the RCCA series in the 1980s. .
  3. Chevron B34 [34-76-18] (Rick Bell): To Rick Bell (Lakeville, CT) and used in Northeast Division Formula B, entered by Bell Racing. Also raced in two Pro races in Canada in July and August. Retained for 1977 again for NEDiv FB, but also taking in two Pro races at Trois-Rivières and Québec City. Subsequent history unknown.
  4. Chevron B27 (Paul Corazzo): Paul Corazzo (Wethersfield, CT) raced a Chevron B27 in Formula B in 1976, dominating the New England Region NERRC championship. The car was blue and yellow in 1976, and typically entered by Sherry Cup, Inc. New England Region records show that it was registered to Corazzo with a NER number in May 1976, indicating that it had not raced with the SCCA before that time. Corazzo won the New England Region FB title in 1976 with five wins and maximum points. He retained the car for 1977 and 1978, by which time it was red and yellow, with International Automobile Enterprises Inc signwriting. It was bought from Corazzo by James Deady, who remembers changing the red and yellow livery to "black and white with a red slash". Deady ws originally planning to share the car with Peter Portante of ERA Cars, but Portante crashed at Bridgehampton and after than just ran the car for Deady. Raced by Deady until he upgraded to a newer B29. He recalls that the B27 "went to guy in Penn who painted it brown and tried driving it at Pocono without the rear wing - it did not go well!". Subsequent history unknown.
  5. Brabham BT40 [13] (Mike Rand): New for Brian Robertson (Brockville, Ontario) and raced by him in the Malaysian Grand Prix at Batu Tiga in April 1973, but wrecked the following weekend during practice at the Singapore Grand Prix. The car was rebuilt and raced a few times in Canada as part of Fred Opert's team, including by David Fram at Halifax in October 1974, and by Bob Beyea at Trois-Rivières two weeks later. Then sold to Mike Rand (Greenwich, CT) in time for the 1974 SCCA Runoffs, replacing a crashed Rondel M1, after which Rand raced the BT40 in Northeast Division SCCA Formula B in 1975. For 1976, Rand converted the car to Formula C. He bought a Modus for 1977, and the Brabham was sold to Larry Snover (Langsdale, PA) who raced it in FC and then in FB again. He sold it after the 1979 season to someone who planned to add sportscar bodywork for Can-Am. However, this never happened, and the car was offered for sale by Rick Parent (Asheville, NC) in June 2018, still in Snover's livery, noting that "the car has been sitting since 1980".
  6. Brabham BT29 [46] (Carl Whitney): Allan Lader had raced as part of the Fred Opert team during the latter half of 1970 but in 1971 he returned to running his own car with Pacifico Inc backing. He again raced a Brabham BT29, his third, and continued his run of excellent results by winning the opening two rounds of the Pro series from pole. At the third round, at Mexico City, he crashed heavily and the BT29 was wrecked. Lader quickly bought a new Brabham BT35 and the wrecked BT29 frame went via Opert to Carl Whitney and some components from it were salvaged to be used on the Formula C BT29 that he built up for the 1972 season. The remains of the wreck were sold (with another wreck) to Ken Duclos to help keep his FB BT29 running. Marty Handshy (Ridgefield, CT) then bought both sets of remains from Duclos. It is unclear how this car was identified as BT29-46 but a reproduction plate was created at the time of the restoration when the frame was reconstructed by Lime Rock Motors in 1999. He retained the car until some time between 2004 and 2007 when it was sold to Shelby Mershon (Springfield OH).
  7. Brabham BT29 (Dirk Wrightson): Dirk Wrightson (Foxboro, Mass) raced a Brabham BT29 in Formula C from 1974 to 1976, fitted with a 1.1-litre Swindon BDA engine. Nothing more known.
  8. Chevron B29 [29-75-20] (Joe Sposato): New to Joe Sposato (Ridgefield, CT) and used in SCCA Northeast Division Formula B in 1975, entered by Spoasto Motoracing (Waccabuc, NY). Also used in one Players Canadian Formula Atlantic race at Mosport. Retained for 1976, again in NEDiv SCCA Nationals and for two IMSA Formula Atlantic Championship races. To John Higgins (Elizabeth, NJ) for 1977, and raced in NEDiv SCCA events. Presumably the Chevron he raced in 1978. Chris Townsend advises that the car then went to Mike Cronin, and was retained by him until it was sold to Mike Malley (Greenville, NC) in April 2001. Malley crashed the car at Summit Point in 2003, breaking his back, and the car was then rebuilt using "a new tub by Chevron" and sold to Dick Ward (Australia) in 2007 or 2008. Ward raced it in events at Waneroo Park from 2009 to 2014, before selling it to Gwyn Pollard in the UK in 2015. Pollard had the car extensively rebuilt by Vin Malkie, then fitted a Gathercole BDG and raced the car in HSCC racing from 2016 to 2019, prepared by Gerry Wainwright Motorsport.
  9. Rondel M1 [201] (Ron Ignatowski): The prototype Rondel was used for testing in late 1972, before the first production cars were built. It was taken to Hockenheim 8 April 1973 as team spare, and to Pau as a spare for Tim Schenken, but not raced. Its history is then unknown until 1974, and it appears it has been acquired by Fred Opert to use as a set of spares. After Mike Rand crashed his car, wrecking the monocoque, 201 was supplied to Ron Ignatowski (Milford, CT), who rebuilt Rand's car on 201's tub with a BRM 1-litre engine and used it in SCCA Formula C. In 1980 it was sold to Randy Zimmer (Buffalo, NY) as the basis for his Can-Am car. He raced it with a Volkswagen engine in 1982 and then with a Mazda rotary engine from 1983 to 1986. Zimmer then entered it for Jim Del Russo in the 1987 CAT championship, and raced it a few more times himself in 1989, 1990 and 1994. Then retained for many years until Zimmer sold it to Seann Burgess (Markdale, Ontario) in 2019.
  10. March 76B [7] (John Mortensen): John Mortensen (New York, NY/Weston, CT) raced a March 76B in SCCA events in 1976, entered by Karaba Racing Ent. The livery of his car, Midnight blue with red stripe on each side, exactly matches the description given in March records for 76B-7. Raced by Mortensen in Northeast Division SCCA Nationals in 1976, winning at Lime Rock in late July and at Summit Point on 22 August. He qualified for the Runoffs, where he finished fourth. Mortensen was on the entry list for the Pocono SCCA National in May 1977 and he scored two points in Northeast Division somewhere that season, but no results have been found for him. Mortensen progressed to a March 78B for 1978, but the subsequent history of his 76B is unknown.
  11. Chevron B29 (Robert J. Nelkin): James Crawley (Phoenix, AZ/Frenchtown, NJ) raced a Chevron B29 in the British Formula Atlantic series, starting at Mallory Park in June, where he crashed during practice and did not start. At the British GP meeting, his car was described by Autosport as "built on one of the original prototype tubs, suggesting its monocoque was B29-75-01 or B29-75-02, quite possibly whichever of those had been used in Jim Crawford's early-season car. Crawley then took the B29 back to the US, where he had been driving a B27 in SCCA Regionals or Nationals earlier in the season. He crashed the B29 in practice at Bridgehampton in September, the last SCCA National of the season, so raced the B27. His win gave him nine points which pushed him into second place in the poorly-supported Southeast Division, so he qualified for the SCCA Runoffs. He was very impressive at Road Atlanta, taking pole and finishing second. The car was advertised by Crawley and sponsor George Walsh in January 1976 and sold to RJ Nelkin (Roslyn, NY/Woodbury, NY) who used it in Northeast Division SCCA Nationals in early 1976. In June, Nelkin upgraded to a brand new B34, and the B29 was sold to Rick Wellner (New York, NY), who ran it in SCCA Nationals at Summit Point in late June, where he failed to start, and Lime Rock in early July, where he failed to finish. Nelkin's recollection is that Wellner crashed the car heavily at Lime Rock. Subsequent history unknown.
  12. March 722 [20] (Gerald Lieberg): Paul Keeler (Greenwich, CT) raced a #38 white-and-green March 722 in NEDiv SCCA Nationals and some Pro FB races in 1972. He was sponsored by Analube, and entered by Gracie Racing Enterprise Ltd of Greenwich, CT. Retained for 1973, when Keeler drove the Analube March at Lime Rock in July. In 1974 it was raced by Gerald Lieberg (Milford, CT) at a few SCCA races, and at the Watkins Glen Pro race. He continued to race the car in New England in 1975, 1976 and 1977. For 1978, it was bought from Lieberg by Jimmy Santos (Sunnyvale, CA), and rebuilt by Newman-Dreager to 76B specification. He raced it until 1982, and then sold it in April 1983 to Richard Lempe (aka Rick Sutherland). Lempe sold it in December 1984 to John Hafkenschiel (Palo Alto, CA), who kept it until January 1996 when it was sold to Keith Lively. Sold to a further owner in June 2001.

Sources

Note that the identification of individual cars in these results is based on the material presented elsewhere in this site and may in some cases contradict the organisers' published results.

All comments, clarifications, corrections and additions are most welcome. Please email Allen (allen@oldracingcars.com) if you can help in any way with our research.

Individual sources for this event

SCCA Sanction 76-N-26S. Results from Pit Talk. Entry List kindly provided by Gordon Medenica. Official results not held in the SCCA Archive at the IMRRC.