Autoweek Magazine

[Historybuff]

Looking back, I regret Miles' wasn't given the chance to do a "triple crown" by winning LeMans. But after reading lots of books and talking to some team members, I realized that, if you look at an endurance race from a sponsor's viewpoint, the sponsor being Ford, the last thing you want is your own team members racing against each other, and breaking their cars in the process when, if they would have just cruised along, they could have won your brand the race. Miles was well known for wanting to race even other Shelby team members (back when he was racing Cobras) and more than once Shelby had to stand on a pit wall waving a hammer to get him to slow down and to quit inciting other S-A drivers to go faster than they needed to in order to sew up the race. Up in the Ford hospitality suite, in June, 66, the brass wanted a Ford GT to finish first and not see them break right and left because one team member or another was willing to break team discipline in order to be first in the winner's circle. So, in sum, the sponsor is the one whio writes the checks, and governs the strategy and thus calls the shots.If a racer doesn't want to work under team rules, he could always start his own team....

It is a little like combat--you haul in only so much ammo, and unless you can have fire discipline in the ranks, you are going to be in a heap of trouble if your boys expended their ammo early and it's too late to be resupplied.

[What'saCobra?]

Well and true, Buff.

Then again, looking at it from Miles' point of view, perhaps he well knew Henry Duce didn't want a Brit up front winning leMans, perhaps even foolishly more important than winning the race. i don't think that attitude would set well with Miles at all. Remember he built most of his own specials with which he had been so successful before meeting Shelby. He could build, drive and fix.

HII was definitely an odd duck, particularly when he (they) already owned FORD GB, a rather nice outfit at that. Yet, many of the books mention his strong wish to have a Yankee up front. Must be something strange in the water at Gross Point.

Funny thing, that Yankee stuff. Darn few of the FORD team were real Yankees in 1965!

1965 line-up:
AC Cars Jack Sears (GB) & Dr.Dick Thompson (DC) 4.7L Daytona 8th
SAI Jerry Grant (CA) & Dan Gurney (CA) 4.7L Daytona DNF
SAI Bob Johnson (CA) & Tom Payne (MI) 4.7L Daytona DNF
Filipinetti (SW) Peter Harper(GB) & Peter Stucliff (GB) 4.7L Daytona DNF
FORD (FR) Jo Schlesser (FR) & Allen Grant (CA) 4.7L Daytona DNF
SAI Phil Hill (CA) & Chris Amon (NZ) 7.0L GT40 MKII DNF
FAV (Mann) John Whitmore (GB) & Innes Ireland (GB) 4.7L GT40 MKI DNF
Filip/SAI Herbert Muller (SW) & Ronnie Bucknum (CA) 5.3L GT40 MKI DNF
Walker/SAI Bob Bondurant (CA) & Umberto Maglioli (IT) 4.7L GT40 MKI DNF

i can't seem to remember exactly if Bob Johnson was from CA or PA. But, on that list for sure the only almost Yank was Dr. Dick, just about the best Corvette pilot i ever watched. He was a dentist and a fine driver. No early sixties Ferrari SWB driver was safe if Dr. Dick was driving his 327 Corvette. As soon as the Cobras appeared successful, he switched drives, but he always loved his 327. 'Guess Thompson was Yankee, sort of.

Apropos, i would note that ONLY the AC car finished the race for FORD. Mann et al made the chicken farmer look pretty sad. Just look at that talent driving for FORD. It would be fair to say they were the best of the best.

Dr. Dick and Gentleman Jack were tres cool, you can be sure. Neither were known for breaking bits, which was necessary for LM.

AC brought home chicken for the 1965 LM pot.

NOT Shelby. You can imagine the heat on the Master's buttinski.

[REAL 1]

Funny, some history books document that Mann (a Brit) didn't want the American drivers sent by SAI to europe winning or finishing ahead of the Englishmen in Europe during 1965 when Mann helped out in europe.

Looks like Henry II's partiality to wanting lhis own countrymen to finish ahead of others wasn't confined to Henry II. Hmmmm.

In the end, while there were some less then stellar finishes for the Shelby American drivers in 1965 fact is in the end, overall they won the World Manufacturer's Title and fact is Shelby and SAI correctly and rightfully get the headline billing at the end of the Cobra story as the legend in the "Cobra" saga. Brits get second billing with AC ending up a footnote in automotive history.

Oops. What now.

Warning! This factual history subject to being changed here by CC anti Shelby revisionist history activists.

[RodKnock]

Originally Posted by REAL 1

Warning! This factual history subject to being changed here by CC anti Shelby revisionist history activists.

No one is citing any posts in this forum in order to change the history books. None will be changed. Maybe if someone like Holman writes a book, but history won't change in my opinion.

I also think you overestimate or overplay the "Shelby hatred" angle.

[REAL 1]

Sorry Rodknock: You've only been here for 879 posts.

Come back and talk to me after you've been around here as long as I've been and seen what I seen over the years.

Ron: Fair enough, posting from the office couldn't remember off top of my head. No Shelby books here. No problem. Will get you the references tonight when home.

[xlr8or]

Sorry Rodney but apparently some people equate post count with knowledge.

By that standard Ernie should be doing quantum physics and string theory in his head.