BARCBOYS at work. Here Decker speeds past the pits in the Jake’s Stable Aston Martin DB4-GT
The Aston DB4 GT team car driven by Bob Grossman and Duncan Black suffered the same fate as #8. The Borrani wire wheels which were fitted to take bigger tires were too tight, got super hot and the spindles broke.
The Hats of Sebring. Sherm Decker (L) and Bob Bucher. Both barcboy mentors. Decker and Bucher won many races from SCCA to CanAm.
The morning of the race, March 25, 1961 and the cars are on the grid. Aston Martin #7 and #8
The 3.7 liter, twin plug per cylinder, triple Weber Aston Martin GT motor. The engine was strong and reliable.
Look carefully. The LF wheel of the Aston Martin is leaning over badly. The hub has failed and this is the last lap for the big Aston. Sherm Decker was at the wheel.
Heavy body damage to the Serenissima Berlinetta. Decker was charging hard and went into the famous Sebring hairpin and found his brakes were so cold the car wouldn’t stop. He used the Ferrari as his brakes.
An ironic photo as both Bob Bucher and Sherm Decker were superb, winning MG drivers, but this race they were driving an Aston Martin. Here their car flashes beneath the MG bridge.
The indomitable Spankey Smith, pit manager and sticker guru, fastens the Jake’s Stable sticker to the Aston.
Bob Poupard (dark glasses) Spankey (scratching ear) ad Dave Zych (white jacket) confer with a few of the #7 Aston Martin crew.
Denise McCluggage’s daily driver, bought from Luigi Chinetti and driven to Sebring from NYC to 10th overall and first in GT.
The Ferrari is jacked up while having new tires mounted on its wire wheels. Who needs jack stands?
Charley Kurtz exits the BARC Lola. Kurtz co-drove with Rip Ripley a good friend and VW dealer from Ithaca. They would win the under 1.1 liter category.
Charley owned the Lola Mk 1 and went on to win the 1961 SCCA G Modified championship in this car.
Charley Kurtz aboard the Lola, the Jake’s Stable sticker easily recognized.
Rip Ripley, Lola Mk 1, chases Pedro Rodriguez in his Ferrari Testa Rosa. The Rodriguez brothers would lead the race but fall back to 3rd when they had to stop to fix the generator. Their lights did not work.
Practice and a lovely shot of a couple 59/60 Ferrari Testa Rosa’s and a formula junior. #10 is the Hap Sharp/Ronnie Hissom car.
The winning Ferrari of Phil Hill and Olivier Gendebien. This was the start of the shark nosed body style in sports cars and F1.
Phil Hill streaks past the pits. The Ferrari accelerating hard with its typical squat.
The unlikely duo or Jim Hall and George Constantine drove this one off 2.5 liter Ferrari Dino to first in 2.5 liter and 6th overall. Back in the day the race cars were driven to and from the track. Here Jim Hall arrives at the airport.
Second place Ferrari #15 shared by Giancarlo Baghetti, Willy Mairesse and later taken over by Ritchie Ginther and Wolf vonTrips. It is the same car as #14 but with last years open grille.
Von Trips in the rear engined Ferrari. The car was quite fast with only a 2.5 liter V6. von Trips was sadly killed at Monza later this year. The car was a dnf at Sebring.
Richie Ginther in the Ferrari 246SP. Ginther was not just fast but the best test driver and engineer Ferrari had. He developed this car and it was the prototype for all the rear engined cars to follow.
George Reed and Bill Sturgis drove their Ferrari 59/60 to a very nice 8th overall. They were entered by McCook Window Company. Was that Reed or Sturgis?
Ronnie Hissom and Hap Sharp drove this Ferrari Testa Rosa to 4th overall beating all the Porsches.
Walt Hansgen leans on his Tipo 63 rear engined Maserati birdcage wearing its Cunningham white with blue stripe livery. Walt co drove with Bruce McLaren but the car failed early on.
John Fitch in one of Cunningham’s front engine Birdcage Maserati’s. He shared the ride with Dick Thompson.
The legend Stirling Moss in the Camoradi Maserati. Moss co drove with Graham Hill and although Moss started dead last due a dead battery he fought his way to the lead but the car failed. Not an unusual result.
Masten Gregory, the Kansas Flash steers the Camoradi rear engined Maserati birdcage to its grid position. The car raced fairly long into the race but as was typical of the fragile birdcages, it was a DNF.
American sportsman Briggs Cunningham shared this Tipo 60 two liter Maserati with Bill Kimberly and later Hansgen joined them. They finished 19th and 2d in the two liter class.
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