Hmmm... I wonder who Yenko was gunning for in the 1961 Sebring race
when he leaned on the side of the Proctor/Harper Alpine with his
Corvette? Surely, he was aiming at someone else closer in class and
not the Alpine :)
None the less, Yenko was a "made man" in the Corvette world!
Steve
On Jan 30, 2005, at 5:24 PM, Steve Laifman wrote:
> Steve,
>
> I am astonished that you are not aware of the Corvette Mafia
> Brotherhood (or CAB drivers). They draw straws to see which one must
> take out the most formidable competitor during the race (or the night
> before). It is NOT true that they all drive PastaMobiles. Most have
> Corvettes. After they have done this, they are "made men", and the
> next one goes to the novice.
>
> Porsche driver (Johnny von Neumann - he added the "von" himself) was a
> big importer/racer of Porsche's. His sister, Josie, was a better
> driver. They had ladies races, back then, but she could hold her own
> in any event.
>
> You might envision some brown-shirted uniformed henchmen destroying
> competition the night before, but this would not be correct. He
> simply withdrew from the race if the competition appeared too good,
> and issued the statement that "this course was not designed for
> Porsches".. Can you believe that? And it is true.
>
> Steve Laifman
>
> Steven Silverstein wrote:
>
>> - - Circumstances can come up that eliminate you from contention
>> through
>> little fault of your own, regardless of how well you've prepared or
>> how
>> superior your equipment is. Jim Adams got speared by a backmarker
>> Corvette
>> in the ARRC, if I recall correctly.
>>
>>
>> Yes, Jim's car was taken out by another competitor in 1965. So was
>> Don Sesslar. I believe another Corvette hit Don in the first turn.
>> Believe it or not, Carmichael was taken out, too, while driving the
>> Alpine. 1965 wasn't a good year.
>>
>> The prevous year, 1964, wasn't any better for Dan Carmichael. He
>> was hit in the rear by a TR-3 and forced off. In the process
>> over-reved the engine breaking a rocker.
>> I have that rocker...
>>
>> According to H.J. Meyer, Dan ran the Tiger that I think people refer
>> to as the "Mystery 50", and did fairly well. Particularly, if you
>> know the rest of the story. Dan told H.J. Meyer that the car didn't
>> have any top end. When Dan confronted the supporting mechanic he
>> stated that he was instructed to take out the race cam and install a
>> stock cam. It was too late to do anything before the race. Can
>> anyone guess who instructed the mechanic to do this???
>>
>> Steve
>
>
> --
> -----
>
> Steve Laifman
> Editor
> http://www.TigersUnited.com
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