Undoubtedly the most nostalgic of all Springbok Races

The Springbok Series Part 2 - Click here for Part 1

The Kyalami 9 Hours (round #1)

May 1, 2007 - Shortly after the 1967 Le Mans 24 hours, the French nobles, do-minating the CSI (Commission Sportive Internationale) decided to ban up from next year all prototypes with an engine capacity of more than 3-litres and all sports-cars with an engine capacity of more than 5 litres. Never in the long his-tory of autosport the mandarins of the FIA made such a stupid decision - a decision which conflicted completely with the own stand rules. More... Indeed, 1966 and 1967 were undoubtedly the most thrilling years in the history of endurance racing. After three years of failures the giant of Dearborn, Ford, succeeded at least to beat the unbeatable Ferraris at Le Mans in 1966. To achieve their goal the Fords MKIIB were equipped with 7-litre motors (against 4-litre for the Ferraris 330 P3). Never before (and never later) there were so many spectators at the Monza 1000-kms, the Daytona 24 hours, the Sebring 12 hours, the Targa Florio, the Nürburgring 1000-kms and the Le Mans 24 hours. Of those tracks Le Mans was a real shame: instead of investing in the security of their track, ACO painted publicity on the trees bordering the circuit. Le Mans was the most killing circuit and Ford officials (having lost Walt Hansgen and Robby Weber on tests at La Sarthe) let hear that they'll not return to Le Mans if ACO doesn't improve the security of the circuit. Earlier, in 1963 Brazil's Bino Heinz was killed on the track at the wheel of his Alpine. In 1964 three young people were killed when an AC Cobra went off. In 1966 Ford's Walt Hansgen has a deadly accident at Le Mans, in 1967 followed by that of Robby Weber. 
Instead of doing somewhat on the situation the ACO officials contact prince Metternich-Winnenburg. conditions on improvement of the circuit's safety. So they ask the prince to do something that can convince Ford to stay, without all to high financial efforts of the ACO. Why not restrict the engine capacity of the Group 6 prototypes to 3-litres? Ford has excellent 3-litre motors in F1. By restricting engine capacity of Group 4 (the class of the GT40) to 5 litres one offers Ford an excellent reason to stay: Porsche and Ferrari have not enough financial means to make 50 copies of a 5-litre prototype, being at once a Group 4 car. Why not convincing the others to accept the plan and saving Le Mans without high costs? The CSI mandarins listen and ...they follow the ACO officials, changing the rules, without the smallest contact with the manufactu-rers. With one pen stroke the Ford MkIV, Mirage M1, Ferrari 330 P4, Lola T70 Mk3 and Chaparral 2F are banned for ever from the circuits, and that despite the fact that they offered the public a thrilling spectacle never seen before.

When the FIA announced the rule change, everybody was madly furious, but nobody could believe that the dictatorship of the FIA went that far. So 1968 was the most boring season ever in endurance racing. The public was no longer interested in a fight of 3-litre Porsches against 5-litre Fords now that the famous Ford-Ferrari battle was definitively over. In Africa, however, organisers of the traditional Springbok Series refused to respect the scandalous change in the CSI rules. Without the smallest respect for the corrupt FIA mandarins they announced that Ford's 5.7 Mirage M1 and the former Ferraris P3 and P4 were welcome in South-Africa.

THE ENTRY
Autosport enthusiasts are strongly interested in this year's Kyalami 9 hours, especially when they are informed by the British Autosport Magazine that there will be at least two 4-litre Ferraris and one 5.7-litre Ford at the start. The  last one is a John Wyer Automotive entry of the Mirage M1 having won already last year the 9 hours. Drivers are Jackie Ickx and David Hobbs. After the race the car will be sold to Malcolm Guthrie who'll do the rest of the Springbok Series with the JWA Mirage. At Kyalami he can use Ed Nelson's Ford GT40, the ex-Sutcliffe car. Of the two Ferraris one is the 0858 having been sold to the new Gunston Team of Australia's Paul Hawkins (last year still the most reliable endurance racer). The car, having been transformed in a G7 spyder at the 1967 CANAM, comes in the same confi-guration (but in the new colours). The other is David Piper's Ferrari 330 P3 having been transformed in a P4. A third Ferrari is Tony Dean's Dino 206S, an ex-work's car. Other hairy monsters at the start are the .Lolas T70 Mk3 GT of Mike Grace de Udy and Jackie Epstein, both equipped with a 5-litre Chevrolet engine. The third Lola is a 1965 spyder, raced since last year in the ice cream colours. Motor is a 4.7 Ford. Drivers are Doug Serrurier and Jack Pretorius.
In the two-litre class we find four Porsches: the 910 of Charles Lucas, the 907 of Hans-Dieter Dechent, a 906 of Peter Gethin and a similar machinery of Clive von Bueren/Bruce van der Merwe (ZA). The AG Dino is their most direct opponent together with two new Chevrons B8, showing for the first time on South-African soil. Add to this John Rowe's fast Lotus Elan R26, and we have eight serious candidates to win the two-litre class. There are even ten if one counts the two Alfa Romeos 33/2, but we know how unreliable they are at long races. The rest of the field is made by two tiny Elfins, two Gordinis R8, a couple of Mini-Coopers, two old Volvos 122S, a Lotus 47 and some local machinery, good for 33 starters in total.

QUALIFICATIONS
Fastest man on the track is Australia's Hawkeye in the 350 P4 ex-Canam Ferrari with a best time of 1'26"30. Piper's green closed one completes the first row with 1'27"20. Second row is for the JWA Mirage-Ford of Jacky Ickx (1'28"00) and Frank Gardner (1'29"10) in de Udy's Lola T70 Mk3 GT. Normally the two remaining big bangers of Doug Serrurier (Lola T70 Spyder) and of Jackie Epstein (Lola T70 Mk3 GT) were expected to form the third row, but Peter Gethin caused a stir by realising the fifth time with his small 2-litre Porsche 906 in 1'30"00, what is faster than the Ice Cream Lola Spyder (1'30"50). Epstein's Lola T70 Coupe seems not recovered from its crash on July 28. It has been rebuilt at Slough, is now in dark purple colour, but is misfiring continuously. It will realise only the 14th time. Of all other 2-litre cars, else than Gethin's, not the semi-works Alfas 33/2 and not the other Porsches, but Tony Dean's Ferrari Dino is fastest with 1'31"50, good for rank 7 on the grid. Then follows the Porsche 907 with 1'31"8, the Ed Nelson Ford GT40 with the same time and the Cosworth-powered Chevron B8 of Brian Redman. The Alfas 33/2 disappoint once more this season with such poor times as 1'33"9 (13th time) and 1'34"8 (16th time). The tiny #17 Elfin T-300 disappoints too with 1'34"4.

THE RACE
Viewed their excellent times at the qualifications, everybody expects that the two 4-litre Ferraris will dominate the race. It's the first time since the CSI bomb that they are seen back in a long distance race. But shortly after the flag Jacky Ickx succeeds to take the lead, setting the pace during the first hour. The Mirage and the two Ferraris P4 are together pulling away from the rest of the field.  

Then follow the Lolas T70 of de Udy and Serrurier together with the Ford GT40. It's obvious that they cannot follow the pace. The GT40 is the first to retire after an accident. Earlier we lost already Von Bueren's Porsche 906 with a broken valve and the Lotus 47 of Peter Clarke with a broken oil pipe. In front the Guston Ferrari 350 Canam P4 looses more than 20 minutes in the pits with clutch bothers (?), so that the John Wyer Mirage and the Piper/Attwood green Ferrari 330 P3/P4 Berlinetta are fighting for overall victory. Among their purchasers the Ice Cream Lola Spider is struggling with an overheating engine, and drops in the standings. Of the two litre cars we lost the speedy Gethin Porsche 906 having realised the class's fastest qualification time. Meanwhile two 2-litre cars - the Dino and the Cosworth powered Chevron of Redman and Schenken - can join de Udy's dark blue Lola T70 Mk3 GT, and even pass it during a prolonged pit stop. They follow now in fourth and fifth position, nose to tail. In front it becomes obvious that Piper will fail to win once more the Kyalami 9 Hours. Indeed, a collision with the Alfa Romeo 33/2 of Teddy Pilette and Rob Slotemaker (being already 40 laps behind!), will take the brave Piper out of the race after 255 laps. A new prolonged pit stop of the Team Guston Ferrari 350 P4 Canam brings the Dino and the Cosworth-powered Chevron B8 in second and third position, however already ten laps behind the leading JWA Mirage M1. The pace is much slower than last year, but Ickx and Hobbs win the race with 314 laps (against 342 laps last year in the same car). Towards the end Hawkeye can pass only one of the two 2-litre cars to take the third place on the podium. The little Dino however can resist the come back of the Gunston Team Ferrari P4, to finish second, twelve laps behind the winners. Redman/Schenken are fourth in the Chevron-Cosworth B8, ahead of the big Lola T70 Mk3 GT of de Udy/Gardner and the German Porsche 907. The 1.3-litre Gordinis of the Procters finish both in the top-10: a great performance!  

JACKIE EPSTEIN'S LOLA IN PURPLE - After the serious crash on July 27, 1968, Jackie Epstein's 5.0 Lola-Chevrolet T70 Mk3 GT with chassis SL73/121 went back to the factory in Slough, where it was rebuilt and painted in deep purple. The car in front is probably the SL73/133 which Robs Lamplough sold to Jean-Michel Giorgi (F).

MODEL CAR VERSION AT 2008 RSA WORLDS?
Since years I have plans to go with the IMCA Worlds to South-Africa. I am negotiating with some Belgian sponsors doing serious business in the RSA (diamonds). If those negotiations can be materialised it's possible to go with the 20th IMCA Worlds to South-Africa. But one cannot go to South-Africa without organising a real model car version (at scale 1/24th) of the Kyalami 9 Hours. And of all Kyalami 9 Hours the 1968 version is undoubtedly the most thrilling. I always admired the courage of the Africans to neglect the FIA and CSI Mandarins. Thanks to them the Ferrari 350 P4 Canam could still win three more races at the end of its career (3 rounds of the 1968 Springbok Series). Revolt against the mandarins was a splendid thing we should commemorate one day.
Below one find colour pics of the most important cars seen at the 1968 Kyalami 9 hours. Except for the R8 Gordinis (existing in a Heller plastic kit) and the Team Gunston Ferrari 350P Canam, all cars seen below exist in a 1/24th scale resin version. I'll ask wizard Pit Schwaar to make us the Team Gunston Ferrari. The 16 cars below include the 10 first in the final standings and the 10 first on the grid. It has always been my philosophy that true model car racing is only attractive if (1) one races model cars seen together in the same 1/1 race, and (2) if one can at least reconstruct the start grid with no less than 10 cars. Now the biggest problem will be to find in South-Africa a wooden 8-laner, because under the new IMCA Rule Book the IMCA Worlds can no longer be organised on 6-laners or plastic tracks. We keep you informed. [JPVR]

will be continued ...