Perth International Historic Challenge by
Shane Cassidy
On
the weekend of 10-11Th November the WA Sporting Car Club hosted
the Perth International Historic Challenge to celebrate the 50th
Anniversary of the 1962 Australian Grand Prix which was held at
the Caversham Raceway in Perths Swan Valley.
The 1962 Australian International Grand Prix was run on the "D"
circuit at Caversham,Which was the old Perth Air Force Base and
Air Field.The 62 Grand Prix was held on Sunday 18th November and
was won by New Zealand's Bruce Mclaren in a Cooper Climax.
Above:
New Zealander John Holmes Lotus 18 Formula Junior
The original 1962 event at Caversham saw the WA Sporting Car Club
secure double world Champion Jack Brabham,who had left the Cooper
Works Team to set up and show case to the world his own car design
the Repco Brabham BT4 Grand Prix Racer.The Cooper works team sent
its number one driver Kiwi Bruce Mclaren.Australias top drivers
of the time also competed including John Youl,Bib Stilwell,Arnold
Glass and Lex Davison,Grandfather of V8 Super Car Driver Will Davison.
Western Australia was well represented in the 1962 Grand Prix with
Bill Downey in his 1940's Ferrari,WA Sporting Car Club State Champion
Syd Negus in his Cooper Repco Holden and Jeff Dunkerton in a Lotus.
The WA Sporting Car Club lost a fortune on running the 1962 event,dispite
the big crowed.The club managed to repay every cent over the next
three years,in time for the move to Wanneroo at the end of 1968.
Results of event 7,the Australian International Grand Prix 60 lap
race were Bruce Mclaren Winner,1 hour 21 minutes and 58.4 seconds.Fastest
lap went to Jack Brabham.1st Place Australian was Tasmainia Driver
John Youl while 1st place West Australian was Syd Negus.
This years Anniversary Cellibration event saw ne hundred and ninty
competitors from England,New Zealand,Neatherlands and Australia
compete in Formula Vee,Formula Junior,Historic Touring Cars,Tasman
Cars,Historic Sports and Racing Cars,Super Historics and Regularity.The
regularity class has a massive field of fifty eight entrants including
Australian Ute Racing Champion Grant Johnson who competed in a 1972
Titan Valour.
Above:
WA Driver Greg Barr Torana Historic Touring Car
The Formula Junior class was the show class for the event.This calss
was originally introduced in 1958 as an entry level open wheeler
catagory using 100 or 1100cc production based motors.Formula Junior
cars mimicked the last of the front engined Formula One cars.As
Formula One was rapidly changing to the mid engine layout so to
did the Formula Junior class and they became the domain of Brabham,Lotus
and here in Australia by Elfin.Formula One Drivers who came through
the ranks of open wheelers racing Formula Junior were Jim Clark
and John Surtees.
All racers were eight laps while the regularity events were given
five timed laps.The special event of the two day National race meet
was the 1962 Australian Grand Prix Race Re Enactiment which was
held prior to Sundayd lunch break.
The WA Sporting Car Club organizing Committee said this years event
was a sucsess and with a little more work and a few more major sponsors
the event would have the making of a major National Historic Race
meeting and they hope the Perth International Historic Challenge
would become a regular annual event.
Above: Neatherlands Driver Jan Biekens
Stangvellini Formula Junior
Above:
Will Colton Falcon XYGT Historic Touring Car
Historic
Racing Australia