In discussing Grand Prix Legends with my brother a few days ago, he
goodnaturedly pointed out that I'm probably one of the few sim racers
who actually attended a Grand Prix race in 1967. I was thinking of
this last week as I drove to Toronto and, on a whim, turned north at
Bowmanville and headed towards the track. I hadn't visited Mosport
since the last Canadian GP to be held there (1977), but between 1967
and 1977 I had attended every Grand Prix and Can-Am race to be held at
the circuit along with numerous other events, both as a spectator and
as a marshall.
Upon reaching the track, I was amazed at just how little it had
changed in the 20 years since I had last been there (although I could
have sworn there used to be a grandstand across from the pits!). As
someone who is not a particular fan of most of the present day GP
circuits with their innumerable chicanes and second gear corners, I
could only shake my head in amazement at the memory of GP and Can-Am
cars actually racing at Mosport; armco everywhere, very few run-off
areas, and some extremely challenging and treacherous turns.
The place was deserted on this particular day, so I set off to do a
lap of the circuit on foot. And the memories came flooding back.
Turn One, and there's Stewart and Peterson battling for the lead in
the 1971 GP in the fog and pouring rain, both of them absolutely on
the limit in deplorable conditions. Turn Two, and Cevert and
Scheckter get all tangled up and go spinning off at the bottom of the
hill in 1973. As one of the first marshalls to arrive at the scene, I
recall having to restrain Francois as he was absolutely livid at
Jody's actions and wanted to kill him. Unfortunately, he had a badly
twisted ankle so he couldn't walk very well or he may well have done
so. (Ironically, Cevert was killed in the next race at the Glen, and
Jody was the first driver to stop at the scene...). Uphill towards
Turn Three, and a young Formula Atlantic driver by the name of Gilles
Villeneuve smacked the armco and broke his leg in the summer of 73.
Oh, and on top of the Turn 3 hill, the tent in which I lost my
***ity the night before the 1972 Grand Prix (Jackie Stewart wasn't
the only one who scored maximum points that weekend!).
Under the bridge and through Turn Four and the incredible sight of a
young, relatively unknown Jody Scheckter in the 1000 hp Porsche 917
hurtling this beast sideways through the corner lap after lap. Around
Turn Five and up the hill, a pretty substantial climb when you're
walking! The flat out right-hander at the top of the hill, and I
remember feeling extremely vulnerable while marshalling on the inside
of the track during practice for the 1972 GP. Lap after lap, Ronnie
Peterson in the JPS would come through the turn in a perfect four
wheel drift, and I swear he was aiming for me as a reference point to
get through the turn!
I returned to the pits, and sat there and drank a couple of beers and
remembered working as a pit marshall, sitting on the same pitwall
chatting with Nora Tyrrell and Helen Stewart, and Helen introducing me
to her husband. And I remember getting my knuckles rapped for
suggesting to Colin Chapman that he tell his ***y driver (Emerson
Fittipaldi) to slow down when entering the pits after he almost bowled
over a group of marshalls and mechanics. The pitroad at Mosport is
extremely narrow, and in those days there were no speed limits.
It was a simpler, more innocent, era, without the overwhelming
security present at modern day Grands Prix, and looking out at the
grid I recall jumping the fence at Turn One and walking back up the
hill towards the start/finish line just before the start of the 1969
GP. Managed to hang about on the grid until just before the start of
the race and get autographs from Graham Hill, Bruce McLaren, Denny
Hulme, and Jacky Ickx.
I've been around the track in various vehicles both as a driver and a
passenger, but perhaps the most memorable was in my 1967 Cougar with
Niki Lauda in the passenger seat during a private Firestone/BRM tire
test session in the summer of 1973. Niki wanted to see where the
track had been resurfaced, and I was only too happy to oblige. I
wasn't going to let him drive my car though!
To be honest, I don't recall a whole lot about the 1967 Grand Prix,
except that it rained, and my hero Jimmy Clark didn't win. My main
memory of this event took place a few days before the race when Jimmy
showed up for an autograph session at the Yorkdale shopping centre. I
was absolutely in awe at meeting the Great Man, and the only thing I
could think of to say to him was that I was born in Scotland too.
There were only a few dozen fans present that day, and I can only
wonder how many would show up in 1998 for Schumacher or Villeneuve!
As you can imagine, as soon as GPL is released, the first track I'll
visit will be Mosport. I look forward to seeing how well Papyrus have
recreated the circuit, and I'll probably drive a couple of slow laps
just to look around (and to try and pick out a certain campsite at the
top of Turn Three).
Just had to share this,
Ian McIlroy
Proud Member of the Hawaii Ace League
Thomas Enterprises Racing Series
on Nascar Racing Online