Cumberland National Races (Steel Cities Region SCCA National)

Nelson Ledges, 20 May 1972

All cars are 1.6-litre FB unless noted.

Notes on the cars:

1. Lola T242 [HU17] (Jim Harrell): New to Jim Harrell (Tecumseh, Michigan), replacing the ex-Sarich T240 he raced in the Bogotá races. Used in CenDiv Formula B in 1972 and qualified for the Runoffs in November, where he retired. Sold to J. Lewis Cooper (Detroit, Michigan). History then unknown until it was advertised by Tom Young (Columbus, OH) in January 1982. Sold by Young to Charles Warner (Memphis, TN) who sent it to Mike Gue's Essex Racing in Atlanta, GA for restoration but this did not go ahead. Later sold it about 1988 to someone in North Carolina who wanted the suspension and bits for an autocross car. Subsequent history unknown.
2. Brabham BT21B (Russell Freed): Russell Freed (McKees Rock, PA) raced a Brabham in SCCA Formula C from 1970 to 1975. In 1972, he had moved to Coraopolis, PA and was entered by Bonnie Freed. He qualified for the Runoffs in 1970, where his car was identified on the entry list as a Brabham BT21B.
3. Lola T240 (Chris Gleason): Chris Gleason (Johnstown, PA) raced a #5 black/red Lola T240, backed by Keystone Auto Products briefly at the start of the 1972 NEDiv season. He scored six points in the opening race at Nelson Ledges on 20 May and was on the entry list for the third race, at New Thompson Speedways in June, but was not mentioned in the results. Subsequent history unknown, but this could be the car Joe Shepherd raced later in 1972.
4. Lola T140 [SL140/8] (Wayne "Bing" Sherer): New to Jerry Hansen for the 1968 US series, then to John Mahler (Bettendorf, IA) for the 1969 series. Subsequent history unknown but believed to be the car acquired by Wayne "Bing" Sherer (Buffalo, NY) in 1972 and raced in SCCA Nationals. To Phil "Butch" Hollenbeck for 1973, then to Art Cross (Auburn, NY) who ran it in to Florida for several years. Via Owen Starr, Lou Pavesi and Rick McLean to Mark Rincon (Redding, CA) and Hal Williams by 1994, for historic racing. Later sold to Richard Cross, then via Rincon to John Bryant (Adelaide, Australia) at the Monterey Historics in August 2007 and imported into Australia. Crashed at Philip Island March 2008, but rebuilt and raced in the 2011/12 Tasman Revival series. More information about Lola T140 SL140/8
5. March 722 [31] (Ted Thomas): New to Ted Thomas (Bethel Park, PA) and raced from 1972 to 1974, mainly in little-reported SCCA Steel Cities Region (SCR) events at Nelson Ledges and in red, white and blue livery. Dr Thomas had previously raced a Brabham BT21C with the region, and had been regional Formula B champion in 1971. He was also entered by Tebar Racing in the March at Watkins Glen and at Road America in August 1972, but does not appear to have arrived for either event. He was a regular runner in SCR's SCCA Regionals at Nelson Ledges in 1972 and 1973 and was entered for the Columbo Yogurt Formula B Challenge Cup at Watkins Glen Pro FB races in October 1973 but did not arrive. He was again seen in SCR Regionals in 1974, and again entered the Watkins Glen Pro race but did not appear. Thomas then retained the car until it was sold in July 1987 to Michael Rand (Canaan, CT), who raced it at the Lime Rock Historic in September 1987. Sold to David Beckstead (Westlake Village, CA) in April 1988, then to Jack Breskovich (Prescott, AZ) in July 1988. Bought from Breskovich by Kurt Sager (Napa, CA) in March 2023.
6. March 71BM (Geoffrey Freeman): Geoff Freeman (Yellow Springs, OH) raced a March 71BM in the latter part of the 1971 SCCA season, first appearing in a National at Blackhawk Farms in August, and later winning a couple of Regionals. He also raced at Blackhawk Farms and Nelson Ledges in July 1972. It was sold by Freeman to brothers Tom and Ted Sokoly updated with Falconer bodywork, and was raced by Tom Sokoly (Racine, WI) in various incarnations from 1973 to 1976. Sokoly advertised it at the end of 1975 as a Falconer March 712/732 with Traylor BDD, and replaced it for 1976 with a 75B. Sold to Harry E. Greenwood (Fanwood, NJ, later Warren, NJ), who raced it in SCCA Formula B from 1976 to 1978. He entered it at Lime Rock in July 1976 as a March "732", advertised it as a "73B" in October 1976, and as a "1973 chassis with 1974 coachwork" in September 1978. A photograph of the car in July 1978 shows it still wearing 1973 Falconer bodywork, and with the Sokoly's very distinctive rollhoop. Subsequent history unknown.
7. LeGrand (Ed Lowther): Ed Lowther (McMurray, PA) won two SCCA Regionals at Nelson Ledges in September 1972, won an SCCA National at Summit Point 23 Sep 1973 and later finished sixth at the Road Race of Champions Road Atlanta 3 Nov 1973. He advertised his LeGrand ("1973 region and NorthEast Division champion … Chev … LG500 … won 11 or 13 starts") on 29 Dec 1973. Nothing more known.
8. March 722 (Wayne Ricciardi): Wayne Ricciardi (N. Haldon, NJ) raced a #24 March 722 in Pro Formula B in 1972, entered by The Race Shop, the US March importer in which Ricciardi and Joe Grimaldi were partners. Ricciardi retained the car for Pro events in 1973, competing in most Canadian events plus the US GP support race at Watkins Glen. Subsequent history unknown.
9. March 722 (Chuck Sarich): Chuck Sarich (McLean, VA) raced a midnight blue/white #57 March 722 in SCCA Nationals and Pro Formula B in 1972, entered by Quicksilver Racing Enterprises, Inc of Rockville, Maryland. Chuck finished second in the Southeast Division FB championship and qualified for the Runoffs, which he won. Sarich and his team moved into Formula 5000 for 1973, and his March 722 was evidently sold to Steve Jizmagian (San Francisco, CA), who raced a March 722 in west coast SCCA Nationals and Regionals in 1973. He retained the car for 1974, using it mainly in SCCA Nationals and qualifying for the Runoffs. He retained the 722 for a third season in 1975, still with its Ford twin cam engine despite the formula's move to BDA engines, and again qualified for the Runoffs. The 722 was entered throughout these three seasons by Jizmagian as #4. Its colour was variously reported as blue and as black in 1973, then as red in 1974 and 1975. He advertised the car in August 1976 as "March 72B, Quicksilver, three times ARRC", indicating it was Chuck Sarich's car in 1972, as Jizmagian had only qualified for the Runoffs in 1974 and 1975, and Chuck was the only one of the Sarich brothers to qualify in 1972. Jim Sarich's car had gone to Ted Roman. Subsequent history unknown.
10. March 722 (Jim Sarich): Jim Sarich (McLean, VA) raced a midnight blue/white #67 or #56 March 722 in SCCA Nationals and Pro Formula B in 1972, entered by Quicksilver Racing Enterprises, Inc of Rockville, Maryland. Jim finished eighth in the Southeast Division FB championship. Sarich and his team moved into Formula 5000 for 1973, and in the summer of 1973 it was sold to an owner in Atlanta, GA. He had also bought a FSV Zeitler from Ted Roman (Pleasantville, NY), and for 1973 they ran as a team in SCCA Nationals, with Roman driving the March 722 and the car owner driving the Zeitler. The 722 was entered as #63, and Roman, who had moved to Atlanta, scored 12 points in SEDiv as a member of Atlanta Region. Don Becker recalls that the car was traded at the end of that season to Lola agent Carl Haas (Highland Park, IL) against two Lola T340s. The March was evidently then sold to Cliff L. Phillips (Palos Park, IL), who entered a blue March 722 in Central Division SCCA Nationals in 1974 but rarely appeared. He entered two races at Road America in 1974, apparantly without appearing at either, and was then a non-starter at Mid-Ohio on 1 September. He was entered again at Road America in June 1975. In January 1976, Phillips advertised his car, saying that it was metallic blue, had a new "banana" wing and 1975 nose, and was a "former Quicksilver championship car". As Steve Jizmagian's red 722 that was described more clearly as the Chuck Sarich car, it fits that Philips' car would have been the Jim Sarich car. Phillips raced a Lola T242 in 1973 so would already have been a customer of Haas. The history of the March after January 1976 is unknown.

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

The Steel Cities Drift June 1972 (Vol 18 No 6) pp26-30. Some details from a points table in Glen Nationals 11-13 Aug 1972 race program, and from a points table in Competition Press & Autoweek 10 Jun 1972 p12. [WG2022]