| Carrera Panamericana |
Article Index for Carrera |
Website Links For Carrera |
Information AboutCarrera Panamericana |
| CATEGORIES ABOUT CARRERA PANAMERICANA | |
| auto races | |
| auto racing competitions in mexico | |
|
The Carrera Panamericana was a Sports Car Racing event on open roads in Mexico , similar to the Mille Miglia and Targa Florio in Italy . It ran from a southern Mexican west-coast city towards Texas, and counted towards the World Sportscar Championship s. Running from 1950 to 1955, it was widely held by contemporaries to be the most dangerous race of any type in the world {Link without Title} . It has since been resurrected as classic road rally. 1950 After the Mexican section of the Panamerican Highway was completed in 1950, a nine-stage, five-day race across the country was organized by the Mexican government to advertise this feat and to attract business into their country. The race ran almost entirely along the new highway, which crossed the country from north to south for a total distance of over 3,300 kilometers (2176 miles). Antonio Cornejo, a Pontiac dealer in Mexico City, was the hard-working and effective general manager of the event. The first of five annual races began in May, 1950 and was entered by racers from all over the world, representing virtually every motor sport; Formula One, sports cars, rallying, stock cars, endurance racing, hill climb, and drag racing. Because it started at the border with Texas, it was especially attractive to all types of U.S. race drivers--from Indy cars to NASCAR. Bill France, the founder of NASCAR, was there for the first race (and would return). The Mexican government's representatives worked closely with the American Automobile Association and other auto sports groups in the U.S. to organize and promote the event, which was limited to stock sedans with five seats. Piero Taruffi and Felice Bonetto, Italian F1 drivers, entered a pair of Alfa Romero coupes specially made for the event. However, many of the 132 "competitors" were ordinary citizens from the U.S., Mexico, and other countries, including a few Mexican taxi drivers, who out for adventure. The first race ran from north to south, beginning in Ciudad Juarez, Chihuahua, across the international border from El Paso , Texas, and finishing in El Ocotal, Chiapas, (now known as Cd. Cuauhtemoc) on the Guatemala-Mexico border opposite from La Mesilla, Guatemala. At least one stage was run each day for five consecutive days. The elevation changes were signficant: from 328 feet to 10,482 feet. Most the race was run between 5000 and 8000 feet. The first four places were won by American cars and American drivers. The winner, Hershel McGriff, drove an Oldsmobile 88 at an average speed of 142 km/h. The car was substantially lighter than its big Lincoln and Cadillac competitors, meaning that it would eventually pull away from them on the steep, winding course. The car (which had cost McGriff only $1,900, when the winner's purse was $17,000 had another advantage in its weight - it was much easier to stop, meaning that McGriff finished the race on his original brake shoes when the big cars were re-shoeing every night. The reason that this was so important was that neither McGriff nor his co-driver were capable of even the most basic maintenance to the car[http://blogs.motortrend.com/6204458/editorial/the-legends-of-the-great-road-races-seminar/index.html . McGriff noted that his manual gearbox gave im a big advantage the last day on the gravel roads in Chiapas, when he finally surpassed the Cadillac leading the race. The best placed European car was an Alfa Romeo sedan driven by world-famous Italian driver, Felice Bonetto. 1951 The following year, the race was run from south to north, starting in Tuxtla Gutierrez , Chiapas, and finishing in Ciudad Juarez , because of the lack of accommodation available for race officials, drivers, crews and press in El Ocotal and the jungle. This northly direction also allowed the U.S. drivers to finish at their border. For the first time, a European manufacturer entered a 'factory' team, Ferrari entering several cars including a 212 Export LWB Vignale {Link without Title} , and although these did not technically satisfy the requirements of the touring car category, the Italians were permitted to compete anyway. Although the first two places were predictably won by the works Ferraris (driven by Piero Taruffi and Alberto Ascari respectively), third and fourth places were won by ordinary American cars. Bill Stirling, a salesman from El Paso , Texas won third place in a Chrysler Saratoga and well-known race car driver Troy Ruttman won fourth in a flat-head Mercury which he reportedly had bought for $1,000 in a used car lot in El Monte , California. In spite of this he was able to defeat several of the factory Lancias and Ferraris. 1952 In 1952 the Carrera Panamericana saw the introduction of two categories - Sports Cars and Stock Cars, dividing what had previously been a single class, so American heavy saloons did not have to compete directly with the nimble European sports cars. The major automobile manufacturers had taken notice of the race and Mercedes-Benz sent a highly organized group of people and cars to the race. First and second places were won by Karl Kling and Herman Lang, driving the now legendary 300SL. This group may well have achieved a 1-2-3 finish had American John Fitch not been disqualified for permitting a mechanic to touch his 300SL on the penultimate day. American Chuck Stevenson won the touring car class in a Lincoln Capri. Famously, the victory of the Mercedes-Benz 300SL of Kling and Hans Klenk came despite the car being hit by a Vulture in the windscreen. During a long right-hand bend in the opening stage, taken at almost 200km/h, Kling failed to spot vultures sitting by the side of the road. As the birds scattered at the sound of the virtually unsilenced 300SL, one impacted through the windscreen on the passenger side, briefly knocking co-driver and navigator Klenk unconscious. Despite bleeding badly from facial injuries from the shattered windscreen, Klenk ordered Kling to maintain speed, and held on until a tyre change almost 70km later to wash himself and the car of blood, bird and glass. For extra protection, eight vertical steel bars were bolted over the new windscreen. Kling and Klenk also discussed the species and size of the dead bird, agreeing that it was a bird with a minimum 115-centimetre wingspan and weighing as much as five fattened geese {Link without Title} . Less famously, but with far greater implications, was the innovative use of pre-prepared 'pace-notes' which allowed Klenk to ascertain and communicate upcoming road bends in rapid shorthand to Kling {Link without Title} . This system proved so effective that it is used in all motorsports involving a navigator today (such as rallying). 1953 In 1953 the Sports and Stock classes were both subdivided into Large and Small groups, giving four categories in which to compete. These were split by engine cubic capacity; sports cars under and over 1600cc were Small and Large respectively, and stocks cars under and over 3500cc likewise. This was to accommodate the huge number of participants and the diverse breeds of cars within the race {Link without Title} . Both Lincoln and Lancia came to the race highly organized and both factories swept 1-2-3 finishes in their respective categories. The Europeans dominated the sports categories, and the Americans the stock. Large Sports Cars was won by Juan Manuel Fangio of Argentina in a Lancia, Small Sports Cars by Jose Herrarte from Guatemala in a Porsche. Large Stock Cars was won by Chuck Stevenson of the United States in a Lincoln and Small Stock Cars by C.D. Evans (again of the U.S.) in an ordinary six cylinder Chevrolet. Stevenson has the distinction of being the only person to ever win twice in the original race. 1954 By 1954 the race had shifted from a largely amateurish basis to become a highly technical exercise. This is reflected by the winning of the final stage by eventual race winner Italian Umberto Maglioli, in a Ferrari at an amazing average speed of 222 kilometers per hour over the 365 kilometer stage. To put this into context, McGriff had won the 1950 race with a combined time over 27 hours - eight hours longer than even Kling and Klenk would take just two years later in their 300SL {Link without Title} . Phil Hill won second place in another Ferrari with Ray Crawford winning the stock car class in a Lincoln. Two new classes were in effect in 1954; the European stock car class was won by Sanesi, of Italy, in an Alfa Romeo and the small U.S. stock car class was won by Tommy Drisdale in a Dodge. Californian hot rodder Ak Miller became famous by winning fifth place in his Oldsmobile powered 1927 Ford. CANCELLATION Due to safety concerns, the high speed race was cancelled after the 1955 Le Mans Disaster . This was unavoidable given that cars of the period were of a high-speed, low-safety design, and drivers of a win-at-all-costs mentality. Only a third of entrants typically finished the race, and unlike more compact circuits, the long course was impossible to secure entirely, making it possible for crashes to linger for several hours before being noticed. 27 people had died during the five years of the Panamericana, giving it one of the highest mortality rates per race in the history of motorsport, primarily because during the years the race was held, automobile racing had undergone an amazing technical transformation to emerge as an advanced science. The speeds had almost doubled as a result but safety controls remained static and competitors, spectators and safety control personnel alike became casualties. LEGACY Despite being abandoned, the race would not be immediately forgotten. Despite their models being small and often quite underpowered (especially with regard to American and other German opponents) , after this race (in the same theme as the Targa , after the Targa Florio). Also, the race saw famous people from different forms of auto racing converge in one event, making for an interesting mix of competitors. A few of the famous names involved in the race were:
These were the best in the world at that time and even fifty-some years later it is acknowledged that these are key people in the formation of modern motor racing. 1988 ONWARDS The race was resurrected in 1988 by Eduardo León (2007 is the 20th retrospective year), and runs a 7-day, 2,000 mile route aping some of the original course. It is run, unusually, with official backing on special closed stages of the public road network and fast transit sections through central Mexico at speeds approaching 160mph. 80 cars compete in 10 classes, sorted regarding age and authenticity; virtually any car with a classic bodyshell is eligible. The bulk of entries are provided by 1950s and '60s American stock cars; the most popular shape is the 1953 Studebaker Champion Regal Starliner, designed by Raymond Loewy, because of its exceptional aerodynamics (this is best proven by the fact that as of 2006, of 19 post-1988 races, 12 have been won by Studebakers). Other common European entries include Alfa Romeo Giulietta s, Jaguar E-type s, Porsche 356 s & 911 s. Rarer cars included Saab 96 s, Volvo PV544 s, and Jaguar MkII saloons. However, despite the generally aged appearance of the cars, often they conceal underpinnings more closely related to modern NASCAR entries. Tuned V8 engines of more than 500PS are common, especially in the American cars, and the cars are often created especially for the race and ineligible anywhere else. Even less modified cars often have nonstandard brake and coolant upgrades to help them survive the punishing course. Roll Cage s are standard fit. The above is a clue as to what separates the Panamericana from other modern road races; it remains extremely dangerous. Mechanical attrition for the more classic cars often leads to burst brake lines and overheated engines, but crashes are also common on the winding roads. In 2006, a 19-year-old co-driver was left in a coma after his Jaguar E-Type Roadster crashed more than 100ft into a pine forest; Rusty Ward, another competitor, rolled a Studebaker from a bridge into a river, having finished the event in a similar fashion the previous year. It is obvious, therefore, that the race should not be classed with road-rallies in the style of the recreated Mille Miglia; the race is competitive with no speed restrictions on the closed-road sections. 2006 The 2006 event started in Veracruz on the Gulf of Mexico coast, pulling in at Mexico City's CP circuit as a curtain raiser for the Champ Car race, and stayed nights at the old colonial cities Puebla, Queretaro, Morelia, Aguascalientes and Zacatecas, with the finish at modern Monterrey. It was won by Gabriel Perez and Angelica Fuentes in a yellow 1959 Ford Coupe, the first win for a woman and a first for the 'Turismo Production' class. Though competed mostly by amateurs, Jo Ramirez of the McLaren F1 team competed a Volvo P1800 amongst other star drivers. In a retro step, ) at the starting line. Among the nine other entries in the "Original Pan-Am" class were four Lincolns, including a 1949 model that contested the original Pan-Am. Also importantly, 2006 saw the debut of a 'modern' category, with the sole entry of a . WINNERS EXTERNAL LINKS
|
|
|