OldRacingCars.com

SCCA Continental Championship for Formula B/C Race

Thompson Speedway, 21 Sep 1969

ResultsLapsTime/Speed
1 Skip Barber Tecno 69/FB - Ford twin cam HRE
#54 RPM Racing Promotions, Inc., Phila, Pa.
50 53m 52.5s
90.21 mph
2 WP Fred Stevenson Lotus 59 [59-FB-12] - Ford twin cam
#93 Lotus/East Inc., Salisbury, Conn.
(see note 1)
50 54m 05.2s
3 Jacques Couture Lotus 59 [59-FB-13?] - Ford twin cam
#18 Jacques Couture Racing Team, LaVal, Quebec, Canada
(see note 2)
50
4 Earl Jones Titan Mk3 - Ford twin cam
#75 Earl Jones Racing, Perkin, Ill
(see note 3)
48
5 Steve Brownstein Chevron B15b [FB-69-6?] - Ford twin cam
#22 S. Brownstein, Hewlett, L.I., N.Y.
(see note 4)
48
6 Ken Duclos Brabham BT21A [4] - Ford twin cam
#34 Kay-Dee Automotive Engineering, Boston, Mass,
(see note 5)
48
7 Jim Grob Chevron B15b [FB-69-4?] - Ford twin cam
#77 Jim Grob, Pompano Beach, Fla
(see note 6)
48
8 Malcolm Starr Lotus 59 [59-FB-9] - Ford twin cam
#6 Starr Racing, Clifton, NJ (see note 7)
48
9 Gene Mason Tecno 69/FB - Ford twin cam Hart
#28 RPM Racing Promotions, Inc, Phila., Pa.
48
10 Steven Woods Lotus 41C [41C-FL-44] - Ford twin cam BRM
#3 Race & Rallee Eng., Farmington, Conn.
45
11 Dick Smothers Chevron B14 [FB-68-14?] - Ford twin cam
#29 Hogan Motor Leasing Inc (see note 8)
42
12 Michael Brodie Brabham BT21 - Ford twin cam
"Mike Blotting" (see note 9)
38
13 John F. Sirmons Lotus 41C - Ford twin cam BRM
#38 John Sirmons, Weston, Conn.
34
14 Dave Rines Brabham BT18 - Ford twin cam Vegantune
#2 Rines Racing, St Louis, MO (see note 10)
18 engine failure
15 Bill Gubelmann Brabham BT29 - Ford twin cam
#17 Southerly Motors Racing Corp., Oyster Bay, NY
(see note 11)
16 accident
16 John Schwengerer Brabham BT21A - Ford twin cam
#46 John Schwengerer, Westport, Conn.
(see note 12)
9 oil pump failure
17 Phil Cole Lotus 41 - Ford twin cam
5 broken suspension
18 Fred Opert Brabham BT29 - Ford twin cam Vegantune
#73 Fred Opert Racing, Paramus, NJ
(see note 13)
3 overheating
19 Fred Ashplant Tecno 69/FB - Ford twin cam
#57 RPM Racing Promotions, Inc., Phila, Pa.
2 engine failure
DNA Robs Lamplough Lotus 41C - Ford twin cam
#47 Southerly Motors Racing Corp., Oyster Bay, NY
Did not arrive
  Mike Hayman Brabham BT21C - Ford twin cam
#11 ("Brabham") Mike Haymen, Union City, N.J.
(see note 14)
On entry list
  Roger Barr Crosslé 12F [C12F/67/32] - Ford twin cam
#61 Roger E. Barr, Glastonbury, Conn.
On entry list
  Joe Grimaldi Chevron B15b [FB-68-13?] - Ford twin cam
#72 Joe Grimaldi, Glenrock, NJ (see note 15)
On entry list
  Mal Donaldson Crosslé 14F [C14F/68/38] - Ford twin cam Vegantune
#83 Malcolm Donaldson
On entry list
  Bob Griffith Brabham BT23 - Ford twin cam
#92 Lee Midgley, Riverside, Calif.
(see note 16)
On entry list
  John Inglehart Crosslé - Ford twin cam
#95 John Inglehart, Greenwich, Conn.
On entry list
  Bruce Cargill (FF) 1.6-litre Lotus 61 - Ford
#98 Radio Station WTRY, Troy, N.Y.
On entry list

All cars are 1.6-litre FB unless noted.

Qualifying
Qualifying information not available

Notes on the cars:

  1. Lotus 59 [59-FB-12] (WP Fred Stevenson): Bought by Pete and Bill Pulver's Dutchess Auto in 1969 for Fred Stevenson (Salisbury, CT) to race in US Formula B and entered by Stevenson's Lotus/East Inc racing operation. The car was sold at the end of the main season to customer Bob Hebert (Monterey, MA) and driven by him at Sebring at the end of 1969 (according to Stevenson's recollection but not in reports) and then through the 1970 season. Hebert and Stevenson had new 69s for 1971 and the 59B may have returned to Stevenson and even been raced by him in some SCCA Nationals in 1971. To Ralph Manaker (Syracuse, NY) for 1972, and raced in NEDiv Regional Formula B that year, entered by BME Racing. By this time it was wearing Lotus 69 bodywork, with the original bodywork remaining with Manaker until the 1990s. The Lotus then went to Leland Gerey, who put it on pole position for a race at Pocono as late as 1980. Then to Kurt Hoffman, and sold for him by Jerry Bensinger via Frans Van den Heuvel (Holland) to Paul Schouwenburg (Belgium). Then back from Schouwenburg to Bensinger in 1989, and offered by sale in 1990. By 1992/93, the car had been sold to a Japanese dealer but when a planned auction in Japan was cancelled, the car remained in a warehouse in California for some time. In 1995, it was sold by Mark Leonard to Tim Gaffney, and he restored the car to Fred Stevenson's #93 livery, but on its newer Lotus 69 bodywork. The car was then sold by Gaffney to Japan.
  2. Lotus 59 [59-FB-13?] (Jacques Couture): Jacques Couture (Laval, Montréal, Quebec, Canada) raced a Lotus 59 in Formula B in 1969, appearing in the Quebec Region's Molson Championship events in Canada, and in two SCCA Pro events at Lime Rock. He won four Molson Championship races, finishing second in the championship. In 1970, Couture raced one of the pair of new Lotuses entered by the new Jim Russell Racing Driver School which had just opened at Mont Tremblant, but may have used his 1969 car in one or two races at the start of the year. Subsequent history unknown.
  3. Titan Mk3 (Earl Jones): Earl Jones (Perkin, IL or Hermosa Beach, CA) raced a yellow-and-blue Titan in Formula B through 1969. He raced as #81 at Seattle and Road America in July, which had been Ed Leslie's number in the first four races, suggesting Jones took over Leslie's car when the series moved away from the west coast. The results for the opening round are ambiguous. It is possible that Jones took over Leslie's car for the race, and that Leslie's retirement after zero laps actually undicates that he was a non-starter. Jones then raced as #75 for the six remaining races of the season. In SCCA Nationals, Jones raced a Formula Ford Titan. Nothing more known.
  4. Chevron B15b [FB-69-6?] (Steve Brownstein): Steven Brownstein (Hewlett, NY) had a blue Chevron B15B for Formula B in 1969. He raced in the Pro series but also took 25 pts in Northeast Division FB racing. Brownstein retained the car for 1970, but blew his engine at Brainerd in August and was not seen again. Steve Brownstein cannot remember who he sold his Chevron to, but doubts that it went back to Opert. Subsequent history unknown.
  5. Brabham BT21A [4] (Ken Duclos): Sold new to Lou Sell (Fullerton, CA) and first seen in the Pro Formula B race at War Bonnet in late June where Sell qualified on pole and finished second. Then raced in SCCA Regionals and occasional Nationals in California, and in the pro races at Mont-Tremblant and Lake Tahoe at the end of the season. Sold to Sell's backer Dick Smothers (Woodland Hills, CA) for 1968, although Sell also raced it in one SoPac National early that year. To Fred Opert late 1968 in part-exchange for a new Chevron and from him on to Ken Duclos (Boxboro, MA) for 1969. Duclos believes he returned it to Opert at the end of 1969 when he acquired his new BT29 and it next turns up in 1971 with John Sorbello (Lafayette, MA) who widened the cockpit section into a two-seater and added a Chevron B16 body. However, it is possible that the dates of this are wrong and that Bob Isnor (Newton, MA) raced it as a FB before it went to Sorbello. Later to John Kauffman who thought he had bought a Chevron and then to Joe Maria (White Plains, NY) in the early 1990s. It was restored by David Irwin to BT21A spec and was still with Maria in 2007. To Bob Lima (Meadowbrook, PA) by October 2009 and later repainted in Sell's colours.
  6. Chevron B15b [FB-69-4?] (Jim Grob): Jim Grob (Ft Lauderdale, FL but later Pompano Beach, CA) raced a Chevron B15b in Pro racing in 1969 and also scored 24 points in Northeast Division FB, representing Northern New Jersey Region. He retained the car for 1970 and again for 1971, then mainly focusing his efforts on SCCA Divisional racing in Southeast Division. He finished second to Hugh Kleinpeter's sister car in 1970 but then won the Division in 1971. He changed to a new Chevron B20 for 1972.
  7. Lotus 59 [59-FB-9] (Malcolm Starr): Malcolm Starr (Union City, NJ) bought a new F2-spec Lotus 59 from Lotus East (Millerton, NY) for 1969 and raced it in Pro Formula B events that season. Malcolm recalls selling to to "a fellow named Woodbury from Virginia" which would be the William J. Woodbury Jr (Springfield, Virginia) who raced a Lotus "69" at Mid-Ohio in September 1970, and at least one SCCA National in early 1971. Woodbury retained the car when he stopped racing, and still had it when he died in early 2022. The car was offered for sale in August 2022 on behalf of his widow.
  8. Chevron B14 [FB-68-14?] (Dick Smothers): Bought late in 1968 by Dick Smothers of Smothers Bros Racing (Fullerton, CA) and first raced in the Donnybrooke Grand Prix at Brainerd 22 September 1968 . Chevron records appear to identify this car as chassis FB-68-14. Smothers had a blue #29 Chevron FB for 1969 and this is very probably the same car, even though it was sometimes referred to as a B15B. Loaned to Joe Alves (Sherman Oaks, CA) for 1970 but not raced after blowing the engine in practice at Sears Point in June 1970. Alves eventually sold the car some time between 1975 and 1978 but it is then unknown until owned by a D Hullinger around 1992 who started a restoration. It passed to Gabe Lakatosh (Los Angeles, CA) in 1998 who completed the restoration and raced it infrequently. Then sold to Jeff Giannini (Puyallup, WA) in 2003 who has raced it continuously since then. It had a full restoration in 2008 and is maintained by J&L Fabrication (also in Puyallup, WA).
  9. Brabham BT21 (Michael Brodie): Mike Brodie (Mill Valley, CA) ran a red Brabham BT21 in a handful of 'Pro' FB races in 1969. He had acquired the car directly from Brabham, and recalls that it was a BT21, not a BT21A or BT21C. It replaced a Lotus 35 that he had raced in 1968. Later that season, he took the car to the east coast, where it was raced by Jon Woodner at Road America and Lime Rock. Mike cannot recall who he sold it to. Subsequent history unknown.
  10. Brabham BT18 (Dave Rines): R. David Rines (St Louis, MO) raced a "F2 Brabham" in Formula B in 1969. Rines raced this car consistently in the 1969 Pro series until engine failure at Thompson in September, after which he entered his Brabham-Climax at Sebring. Rines' advert for the car in October 1969 described it as a BT18 with Vegantune engine. Rines had previously driven a Brabham BT7-Climax in Formula A and we're very keen to locate him to ask about this car.
  11. Brabham BT29 (Bill Gubelmann): Bill Gubelmann (Oyster Bay, NY) bought one of the first Brabham BT29s to arrive in the US and debuted it in the Pro race at Lime Rock 1 Sep 1969, winning comfortably. He raced it three more times that season but then decided to join Gene Mason's works-assisted Tecno FB team for 1970. The BT29 was advertised and, based on the identical, orange, yellow and white livery, was sold to John G. Girdler (Southampton, NY) who raced it in a handful of Pro events and probably also in SCCA events during 1970. Girdler upgraded to a new March for 1971 so the Brabham may have been traded to Joe Grimaldi. Subsequent history unknown.
  12. Brabham BT21A (John Schwengerer): John Schwengerer (Westport, CT) raced a #76 Brabham BT21A in at least one SCCA National in 1968, when he was entered by Robert W. Hansen, and in Pro Formula B events in 1969 when he raced as #46. He did not score points in SCCA Nationals in either season. Schwengerer had previously driven a LeGrant-Alfa in a FB race in 1967, and prior to that he had driven an H Production Sprite. In 1971 a Joe Schwengerer (S. Norwalk, CT, just a few miles from Westport) drove a #46 Formula B Brabham in a National at Bryar, which is presumably the same car. Nothing more known.
  13. Brabham BT29 (Fred Opert): Fred Opert (Paramus, NJ) raced his own yellow/orange/blue #73 Brabham BT29 as soon as one was available, debuting at Brainerd in August 1969. He presumably drove the same car for the rest of that season, and for the opening race of the 1970 season. Opert then moved to a Chevron B17b, and the subsequent history of the BT29 is unknown. One possibility is it was one of the cars made available as a hire car by Fred Opert Racing in 1970, but there are no obviously candidates, so it is more likely that the car was sold.
  14. Brabham BT21C (Mike Hayman): Mike Hayman (Washington, DC) raced a Brabham BT21C occasionally in Formula B in 1968 and 1969. He scored just nine points in NEDiv in 1968, and four in 1969, and none of his Pro race entries in the orange-and-blue Brabham resulted in starts. He advertised the car as a BT21C with Vegantune engine in CP&A 30 August 1969. Subsequent history unknown.
  15. Chevron B15b [FB-68-13?] (Joe Grimaldi): Joe Grimaldi acquired one of four late 1968 Chevrons to arrive in the US. At least three of these were described by Chevron as B14s, including Grimaldi's. He debuted the car at Mosport Park in Aug 1968 and raced it twice more in Pro events. Grimaldi reappeared in August 1969 with what was reported to be a Chevron B15B which he raced three more times. Larry Wright then acquired a Chevron from Grimaldi for the 1970 season which was described to him as a B15 but when Wright advertised the car in 1971, he called it a "late-1968 Chevron FB" which identifies it as a B14. Wright traded the Chevron to Charlie Hayes in May 1971 for a new Brabham BT29.
  16. Brabham BT23 (Bob Griffith): Lee Midgley and Bob Griffith owned an Alfa Romeo dealership in Riverside, CA and are best remembered for their exploits racing production-based Alfas in SCCA racing. In 1969, they ventured into Formula B with a Brabham BT23 of some type. It was described as a BT23B when it appeared at Sears Point in June 1969 but as this is a 2.5-litre Climax specification, that seems unlikely. In the entry list for the Sep 1969 Thompson race, it was just described as a BT23. As no ex-F2 BT23s are likely to have reached the US by June 1969, It is more likely to have been a BT23G.

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.

1970 US FB results were compiled from Autoweek reports by Jim Thurman; 1971 results were transcribed from Autoweek by Allen Brown and 1972 results were compiled by Chris Townsend from an SCCA results publication.

The US Formula B series did not continue in 1973 but a race was organised in Caracas in March 1973 that fits here probably better than anywhere else, as do the occasional SCCA F/Atlantic and FB races in 1974 and 1975.

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

Mike Brodie was given as Mike Blotting in the results but Brodie advises that he raced his normal Brabham BT21.