Wednesday

JOHN FITCH........1917 - 2012

JOHN FITCH AND STERLING MOSS

We lost more than just one of our own early Wednesday. We lost a national treasure. At age 95, American John Cooper Fitch--the first Sports Car Club of America national champion and a star in European sports-car racing in the 1950s and '60s--died at 1:20 a.m. from Merkel carcinoma, a rare skin cancer, at his home surrounded by family in Lime Rock, Conn.


Fitch, who went on to become a pioneer in racing safety, was born in Indianapolis on Aug. 4, 1917. After his parents divorced, his mother married an executive at the Stutz company who introduced his young stepson to racing at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. But the boy wasn't impressed by what he saw.

His first passion was airplanes, not cars, so it is not surprising that when World War II broke out, he volunteered to become a pilot. He was in England at the time (1939) on an extended trip to “see the world” and tried to join the RAF, since the United States hadn't yet joined the war. When this proved impossible, he returned to the U.S. and, in 1941, volunteered for the Army Air Corps. Fitch took easily to flying, and attained the rank of captain quickly, serving in northern Africa before entering the battle in Europe.

Based in London, Fitch flew many successful bomber escort missions. On one, he achieved elite status by shooting down a Messerschmidt ME 262 jet fighter.

But shortly before the end of the war, it was Fitch who became the target. After three attempts to strafe a Nazi supply train--“When we scored a direct hit, the boiler sent up a magnificent plume of steam!”--his P-51 Mustang was hit by enemy fire. He survived the crash but was captured quickly. A mere seven years later, he became the first--and to this day the only--American to race for the Mercedes-Benz factory team. People asked Fitch often if that transition period seemed short to him, but it didn't.

When Fitch returned to the U.S., he was among the many young pilots who'd developed the need for speed during the war. He had also developed an awareness of road racing, having witnessed an event at Brooklands in the U.K. while on his grand tour. Unlike Indy's “roundy round,” this form of motorsport appealed to Fitch, so road racing became his logical outlet.

Like many of his contemporaries, he started out campaigning an MG-TC, primarily at nearby Bridgehampton, N.Y. But unlike many of his contemporaries, Fitch was good. So good, in fact, that he caught the eye of Briggs Cunningham, the wealthy racing enthusiast who encouraged Fitch to enter the 1951 Grand Prix of Argentina. Fitch couldn't afford a competitive car of his own, but he was able to borrow an Allard that had been wrecked in a previous race. This is a story Fitch loved to tell.

“The frame was bent, so I secured it to an oak tree with a chain and kept backing up till it was reasonably straight. Well, I won the race and was awarded a trophy by Eva Peron, who gave me a kiss . . . and died shortly thereafter!” With that victory, Fitch clinched the first SCCA National Championship.

He also clinched the support of Cunningham, whose financial clout allowed Fitch to race cars that complemented his considerable skills. Notably, Fitch scored a number of impressive victories in the early '50s in Cunninghams at then-fledgling road courses like Elkhart Lake and Watkins Glen. But Cunningham had bigger plans: He had his sights set on Le Mans. His goal was to win the world's most demanding endurance race with an American car and driver, and Fitch was to play a leading role in that quest.

In 1952, Fitch came close to making Cunningham's dream come true. After setting fastest lap in his C-4R roadster, he was forced to retire late in the race because of bad fuel provided by the sanctioning body. Although others have questioned this “coincidence,” Fitch always accepted it at face value.

Ironically, the Cunningham's failure gave him the opportunity to take his career to the next level. During the race, Fitch was impressed by the new Mercedes-Benz 300 SLs. Similarly, Mercedes team chief engineer Rudi Uhlenhaut was impressed with Fitch's performance in the Cunningham. So when the American approached the German to compliment him on the new car, Uhlenhaut reciprocated by offering the opportunity to take a few laps in the innovative roadster after the upcoming Nürburgring race. Fitch knew that while Cunningham would probably wind down his eponymous Le Mans efforts in the near term, Mercedes-Benz would likely do the opposite. So he capitalized on the invitation to develop a relationship with the man in charge. The Nürburgring courtesy laps would be his audition to join the vaunted German race team.

Team manager Alfred Neubauer exhorted Fitch to take it easy, but the determined American's agenda was more aggressive: He drove his two allotted laps with the knowledge that his career depended on it. Neubauer's response? Do one more to prove they weren't flukes. Fitch complied by shaving a few seconds off his previous lap and the session ended with the proverbial, “We'll be in touch if something comes up.”

However, patience never was Fitch's strong suit; he decided to create his own “something” and doggedly pursued a reluctant Neubauer to enter a team of 300 SLs in the upcoming Carrera Panamericana, a race that wasn't even on Neubauer's radar. Fitch's persistence won out, and on Oct. 26, 1952, he was invited to Mexico City to pilot one of team's roadsters. He didn't win the race, but he did win Neubauer's respect, and that set the stage for his eventual invitation to join the likes of Juan Manuel Fangio, Stirling Moss and Karl Kling to race for Mercedes-Benz in 1955, the greatest season in the company's competition history.

Two of the most significant events in Fitch's racing career happened that year. The first was his astonishing best-in-class, 5th overall finish in the Mille Miglia at the wheel of a stone-stock production 300 SL coupe, whose suspension was so bad, “we had to stop and tie down the axle with our belts.” Yet Fitch screamed into Brescia just one hour and 22 minutes behind overall winner Moss, who was piloting a full racing version of the 300 SLR. The only cars between them were Fangio's 300 SLR, a Ferrari and a Maserati--all dedicated race cars. Moss's navigator was journalist Denis Jenkinson, who will always be remembered for the famous “scrolling map in a box” he used to guide Moss through the treacherous course. But in fact it was Fitch who conceived and built the device, and he always treasured the note of gratitude that “Jenks” sent him for providing it.

The second landmark event, of course, was Le Mans. Fitch was waiting in the Mercedes-Benz team trailer, just behind the pit wall, having a last-minute cup of coffee before taking over from teammate Pierre Levegh. But he never got that chance. A crash involving Levegh's 300 SLR, Mike Hawthorn's D Jaguar and Lance Maklin's Austin Healey resulted in what has remained the worst disaster in the history of automobile racing. The crash killed more than 80 people, and changed Fitch's life forever. It was then that he realized something had to be done to improve racing and highway safety, a challenge that became an overriding pursuit for the rest of his life, leading to, among other innovations, the development of the ubiquitous yellow, sand-filled Fitch Inertia Crash Barriers--the yellow crash barrels seen on racetracks and highways--that have saved thousands of lives around the world.

But Fitch's racing career didn't end with Le Mans. At the end of 1955, Chevrolet's Chief Engineer, Ed Cole suggested that he help develop the Corvette into a world-class race car. The two hit it off, and in early 1956, Cole asked Fitch to develop and manage a team of Corvettes he planned to enter at Sebring, just six weeks hence. Corvette father Zora Arkus Duntov had already turned down Cole's request, claiming that it would be impossible to make the slow, overweight production two-seaters competitive in such a short amount of time, but in typical Fitch fashion, Fitch rose to the occasion.

Four cars were entered, but different engines put them in two different classes: B and C Production. Against overwhelming odds, the team won both classes, giving them the team prize as well. Years later, Corvette Racing's present-day manager Doug Fehan led his drivers in a standing ovation for Fitch, remarking that he had almost single-handedly achieved in six weeks what today would take an entire dedicated organization years to accomplish.

In 2010, Fehan again led his drivers in a salute to Fitch, this time at LeMans, where, at age 93, Fitch reunited with the 1960 Corvette that he and Bob Grossman co-drove to give Corvette its first significant international victory 50 years earlier.

Fitch's motorsports achievements have been immortalized by numerous awards, including his induction into the Corvette, SCCA (inaugural class), Sebring, New England Racer, and Motorsports of America Halls of Fame. In June of 2012, he was inducted into the Bloomington Gold Great Hall.

Although Fitch and his self-designed Phoenix sports car remained a common sight in the Lime Rock paddock until shortly before his death, the Le Mans reunion marked his last major public appearance. Close friends noticed a marked decline in Fitch's vitality after his wife, Elizabeth, died in 2009. But he was insistent upon remaining in their 1700s “homestead” in Lime Rock, which they purchased in 1956, when Fitch was named the track's first general manager. Despite his on-going soil contamination issues with the state of Connecticut, he did his best to go it alone at home, even at the expense of his declining health. To no-one's surprise, Fitch remained fiercely stubborn and independent to the end.   
photo credit: 2012 sportscarmarket.com
text credit: 2012 Don Klein via 2012 autoweek.com

KANSAS ON THE 4TH

DON DOUGAN ESTATE
by D. L. Webb
108 Delaware
Stilwell, Kansas


1-913-681-8600

ENGLAND ON THE 4TH

CLASSIC CAR SALE
by Charterhouse
The Long Street Salerooms
Sherborne, Dorset
United Kingdom


+44 (0) 1935 812 277

ENGLAND ON THE 3RD

1935 MORRIS OXFORD

CLASSIC CAR AUCTION
by ACA
The Cattlemarket
Beveridge Way
King's Lynn, Norfolk
United Kingdom


+44 (0) 1553 771 881

photo credit: 2012 Anglia Car Auctions

IOWA ON THE 3RD

1937 JOHN DEERE

GONE FARMIN'
by Mecum
Mississippi Valley Fairgrounds
Davanport, Iowa


1-262-275-5050

photo credit: 2012 Mecum

ENGLAND ON THE 2ND

1904 WILSON PITCHER

VETERAN MOTOR CAR SALE
by Bonhams
101 New Bond Street
London
United Kingdom


+44 (0) 20 7447 7447

photo credit: 2012 Bonhams 1793

NORTH CAROLINA ON THE 2ND OF NOVEMBER

1964 CADILLAC

CLASSIC CARS AT THE PALACE
by GAA
The Palace
301 Norwalk Street
Greensboro, North Carolina


1-855-862-2257

photo credit: 2012 GAA Classic Cars

Monday

ENGLAND ON THE 31ST



LONDON
by RM
Battersea Evolution
Chelsea Bridge Entrance, Battersea Park
London
United Kingdom


1-519-352-4575
+44 (0) 2078 51 70 70

photo credit: 2012 RM Auctions

ENGLAND ON THE 31ST

1973 TRIUMPH

THE PAVILION GARDENS
by H & H
The Octagon Theatre
The Pavilion Gardens
Buxton, Derbyshire
United Kingdom


+44 (0) 8454 33 44 55

photo credit: 2012 H & H

Sunday

ENGLAND ON THE 29TH


1962 MERCEDES 190 SL

CLASSIC AND HISTORIC MOTORCARS
by Barons
Sandown Park
Esher, Surrey
United Kingdom


+44 (0) 8454 30 60 60

photo credit: 2012 Barons Auctioneers

FORMULA ONE IN INDIA

ALONSO - 2ND, VETTEL - 1ST, WEBBER - 3RD

These new Formula One tracks are awful. The only thing good is the once in blue moon drag race down the straight. This race was such a snoozer that the person who went with me slept all the way through it. Alonso and Vettel are still in contention for the championship. A screw-up by either driver or car will knock them out. Since Vettel led from start to finish again and he did have one highlight. He broke the 50 year old record of Jim Clark for leading the most laps in a row and the Ayrton Senna 1989 record for leading every lap for three races in a row. Another highlight should have been the 82nd birthday of Bernie Ecclestone. He looks great and there is no holding him down.

BERNIE ECCLESTONE

photo credit: 2012 Sutton via 2012 gpupdate.net


Thursday

AUSTRAILA ON THE 28TH

1967 MERCEDES

MOTORCLASSICA
by Manheim
Lane 99
Melborne, Victoria
Austraila


+61 (0) 409 327 220

photo credit: Manheim

MARYLAND ON THE 27TH

BALTIMORE-WASHINGTON COLLECTOR CAR AUCTION
by Express Auctions
Howard Cty. Fairgrounds
Route 144
West Friendship, Maryland


1-410- 243-9999

GEORGIA ON THE 27TH

CLASSIC CARS
by Ronnie Bartlett
Peach Auction Sales
100 Peavy Road
Byron, Georgia


1-478-956-0910

ENGLAND ON THE 27TH

1979 LAND ROVER

D T MATHEWSON
by Mathewson
Roxby Garage
Thornton-le-Dale, North Yorkshire
United Kingdom


+44 (0) 1751 474455

photo credit: D. T. Mathewson

SCOTLAND ON THE 27TH

STRATHMORE VINTAGE SALE
by SVVC
Bridge View House
Glamis, Forfar
Scotland


+44 (0) 1307 840311


ENGLAND ON THE 27TH

1939 HUMBER

OCTOBER SALE
by Richard Edmonds
Castle Combe Race Circuit
Wiltshire and Toddington Railway Station, Gloucestershire
United Kingdom


+44 (0) 1249 444544

photo credit: Richard Edmonds Auctions

NEBRASKA ON THE 27TH

MECURYLAND
by van der Brink
1104 T Road
Archer, Nebraska


1-605-201-7005

Tuesday

CANADA ON THE 26TH

1973 NORTON

TORONTO FALL CLASSIC
by Collector Car Productions
International Centre
6900 Airport Road
Mississauga, Ontario
Canada


1-416-923-7500

photo credit: 2012 collector car productions

ILLINOIS ON THE 25TH

1954 CORVETTE

FALL PREMIER
by Mecum
Pheasant Run Resort
St. Charles, Illinois


1-262-275-5050

photo credit: 2012 mecum

Saturday

ENGLAND ON THE 23RD

IMPERIAL WAR MUSEUM SALE
by H & H
Imperial War Museum
Duxford
United Kingdom


+44 (0) 8458 33 44 55

AUSTRALIA ON THE 22ND


1960 CHEVY

SYDNEY SPRING CLASSIC AUCTION
by Shannons
65 Reserve Road
St. Leonards, Sydney
Australia


+61 (0) 2 8019 4116

photo credit: 2012 shannons

ENGLAND ON THE 21ST

1955 AJS

THE AUTUMN STAFFORD SALE
by Bonhams
Staffordshire County Showground
Weston Road
Stafford
United Kingdom


+44 (0) 207 447 7447

photo credit: 2012 bonhams 1793

Tuesday

ENGLAND ON THE 20TH

CAMBRIDGE VINTAGE SALE
by Cheffins
The Machinery Sale Ground
Elean Business Park
Sutton, near Ely, Cambs,
United Kingdom


+44 (0) 1223 213777

TEXAS ON THE 20TH

THE CHARLIE THOMAS COLLECTION
by RM
Gaylord Texan on Lake Grapevine
Longhorn Hall
1501 Gaylord Trail
Grapevine, Texas


1-519-352-4575

TENNESSEE ON THE 20TH

CORVETTE EXPO
by Cooper Events
Wilderness Smokies Waterpark Resprt
Sevierville, Tennessee


1-865-687-3976

KANSAS ON THE 20TH

THE ART WILKENS COLLECTION
by van der Brink
1480 Hwy 183
Stockton, Kansas


1-605-201-7005

FLORIDA ON THE 20TH

LAKE MIRROR CLASSIC
by Higgenbotham
Downtown Main Street
Lake Mirror, Florida


1-863-644-6681

THE NETHERLANDS ON THE 19TH

ONLINE
by BVA
Hoevelaken
The Netherlands


+31 (0)33 254 29 60

Sunday

FORMULA ONE IN KOREA

1ST PLACE

Sebastian Vettel takes first place from beginning to end. Sebastian Vettel now leads the championship points by six. Sebastian Vettel is half of the first team 1 - 2 finish this season. Sebastian Vettel is a happy man. Teammate Mark Webber came in second, also from beginning to end. Fernando Alanso came in third, but lost his championship lead.

These new tracks lend themselves to leaving the cars too spread out. I think that when the yellow flag comes out they should bring out the safety car to bunch up the field. It would keep the fans, who in some cases stayed up until the middle of the night or gotten up earlly in the morning, from falling asleep.

Filipi Massa came in fourth and if he had not been Alanso's teammate I think he would have come in third. Not good being the teammate of a man in the championship points. Ferrari is the worst for keeping the second seat teammates in their place. On to India.

photo credit: 2012 gpupdate.net

Saturday

SOMEONE TO FOLLOW

It is no secret that I like open-wheeled racing. It is difficult for me to keep track of it all except for a quick glance here and there. You have carting, of course, for everyone that aspires to be a racing driver these days. In the States you have the USF 2000, Stat Mazda, IndyLights, etc. to help carry you forward. In Europe you have Formula Two and Formula Three to do the same. There is a 20 year old from my former State, Michigan, that racing in unique situation....he is paralyzed in both legs. Injured in a motorcycle accident when he was 12. He is racing in the USF 2000 series. Take a look at his website:




video credit: 2012 youtube.com

Thursday

ENGLAND ON THE 13TH

COLLECTIVE VINTAGE AUCTION
by Kivells
Dingles Fairground Heritage Centre
Lifton, Devon
United Kingdom


+44 (0) 1840 261261

Wednesday

NEW YORK ON THE 13TH

1950 FORD

LARRY BAKER COLLECTION
by Bid N' Buy
5852 Gibsonville Road
Leicester, New York


1-585-786-8380

photo credit: bidnbuyny.com

ENGLAND ON THE 13TH

1937 RILEY

THE SPIRIT OF MOTORING
by COYS
Ascot Racecourse
United Kingdom


+44 (0) 208 614 7888

photo credit: 2012 COYS

MISSISSIPPI ON THE 12TH

1961 CHEVY

CRUSIN' THE COAST
by Vacari
Mississippi Coast Colseum
2350 Beach Boulevard
Biloxi, Mississippi


1-504-875-3563

photo credit: 2012 Vacari Auction

MISSOURI ON THE 12TH

THE BRANSON AUCTION
by Branson
The Branson Convention Center
Branson, Missouri


1-800-335-3063

PENNSYLVANIA ON THE 11TH

HERSHEY
by RM
Hershey Lodge
West Chocolate Avenue & University Drive
Hershey, Pennsylvania


1-519-352-4575

Sunday

FRANCE ON THE 8TH

SIMCA DEHO

AUTOMOBILES DE COLLECTION
by PBA Auctions
Cercle de Lorraine 6 Place Poelaert
Bruxelles, France


+33 (0) 1 49 49 90 90

photo credit: 2012 PBA Auctions

PENNSYLVANIA ON THE 8TH

1931 ROLLS-ROYCE

SIMEONE AUTOMOTIVE MUSEUM AUCTION
by Bonhams
Simeone Automotive Museum
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania


1-212-461-6514

photo credit: 2012 bonham 1793

PENNSYLVANIA ON THE 8TH

EASTERN MUSEUM OF MOTOR RACING AUCTION
by Mount Royal Auction
100 Baltimore Road
York Springs, Pennsylvania


NO PHONE LISTED

PENNSYLVANIA ON THE 8TH


CLASSIC TRUCK COLLECTION
by Probst Family Auctions
418 Drytown Road
Holdwold, Pennsylvania


1-717-464-3700

photo cardit: 2012 Probst Family Auctions

MICHIGAN ON THE 8TH

CLASSIC CAR AUCTION
by Repo Max
24100 Groesbeck Highway
Warren, Michigan


1-586-725-7999

PENNSYLVANIA ON THE 8TH

1940 DODGE

DONALD WANAMAKER COLLECTION
by Richard Murry
2855 SR 72
Jonestown, Pennsylvania


1-717-790-2240

photo credit: Richard Murry Auctioneers

FORMULA ONE IN JAPAN

MASSA, 2ND - VETTEL, 1ST - KOBAYASHI. 3RD

The winning driver was Sebastian Vettel. The surprise driver, or should I say drivers, were Felipe Massa and Kamui Kobayashi. I was very happy to see both of them on the podium. Hero driver for the day was Kobayashi as the race was held in his home country. The normally laid back Japanese were in a frenzy. Both Massa and Kobayashi needed this because their driving seats may come up for grabs at the end of the season.

With Alanso knocked out in the first turn and Vettel's win the two are only 4 points apart for the championship.With only 125 points left it is anybodys guess what will happen. The one I am most impressed with is Kimi Raikkonen who is third in the championship standings and has not won a single race this year. Back from his two year retirement without missing a beat. Amazing! His teammate, Grosjean, on the other hand is going to be faced with some problems. He has been involved with accidents in 7 of his 14 starts this year.

photo credit: 2012 gpupdate.net

Friday

NEW JERSEY ON THE 6TH

FARMALL McCORMICK

GROSSMAN ESTATE
by Dennis Auction Service
1133 State Route 12
Frenchtown, New Jersey


1-908-859-3424

photo credit: 2012 auctionzip.com

Thursday

MICHIGAN ON THE 6TH

LIVING ESTATE AUCTION
by Braun and Helmer
9181 Cedar Lake Road
Pickney, Michigan


1-734-368-1733

MONTANA ON THE 6TH

GRANT VIERTEL ESTATE VINTAGE AUTO AUCTION
by United Country
Fairgrounds
Lewistown, Montana


1-406-538-5125
1-406-366-0472


ARIZONA ON THE 6TH

QUARTZSITE COLLECTION
by Silver
Quartzsite, Arizona


1-800-255-4485


COLORADO ON THE 6TH

1939 CHEVY

THE RANCH AUCTION
by Specialty Autos
Larimer County Fairgrounds
Loveland, Colorado


1-800-901-0022

photo credit: SAAAS Inc.


TENNESSEE ON THE 6TH

MID-SOUTH CLASSIC COLLECTOR CAR AUCTION
by Lonnie Cobb
50 Fiberglass Road
Jackson, Tennessee


1-731-423-5551

Wednesday

MINNESOTA ON THE 6TH



WIDMER COLLECTION
by van der Brink
12250 122nd Street
Cologne, Minnesota


1-605-201-7005

video credit: 2012 van der Brink Auctions via 2012 youtube.com

PENNSYLVANIA ON THE 4TH OF OCTOBER

1951 NASH

FALL CARLISLE
by Auctions America
The Carlisle Expo Center
K Street
Carlisle, Pennsylvanis


1-260-927-9797

photo credit: Auctions America

Monday

TUNNEL OF LOVE








video credit: 2012 youtube.com