Wanted: 1985 Wellington Street Race Photos

[Steve Holmes]

I've just started work on an article about the 1985 Wellington Street Race for an Aussie magazine. Am looking for photos from this event to go with the article. Can anyone help? Either racing or pit shots are greatly accepted. And the magazines are always keen on free-bees!

Anyway, flick me an email if you can help: enquiries@monsterracewear.co.nz

[PhotoSmith]

Hi Steve,

I've been meaning to find, sort & scan my photos from this event for awhile.
whats your time frame?

here's one, maybe taken on practice day.

[Steve Holmes]

Martin, thats great! Love the photo. Deadline is end of December. I need to have the pics to the editor by January 9.

[seaqnmac27]

Now someone will have to either validate or refute this. John Morton and Frank Sytner finished second. In the car in post 2, Now my memory is that for quite some while they believed they had won the race on the basis that due to the number of times Francevic and Delcourt had to stop to have the bonnet refastened, they believed the last time the Volvo passed them it was simply to unlap themselves rather than for position.

[Rod Grimwood]

That debate still goes on.

[seaqnmac27]

Ah, I thought it probably would. Its one of those odd things, with all the fuss made over the Volvo its one of those things that kinda got whispered about at the end of the race, almost as though people wanted Francevic to win.

[faminz]

what about the video? I have it all on DVD.

[Steve Holmes]

Thanks Brett, I have a good review of the race to work from. I haven't seen footage from this race since it was on tv in 1985!

[Les Laidlaw]

I was bolting parts onto the Volvo in the Bristol Freighter with Randell Edgell flying down from Auckland to Wellington. I might put a bit together for Yards & Yarns as there were quite a few happenings over the couple of weeks I worked on it.

[Steve Holmes]

Les, that would be bloody fantastic!

[PhotoSmith]

Programme cover & Group A entry List.

[PhotoSmith]

Frank Sytner / John Morton - 635csi

[PhotoSmith]

Peter Brock / Larry Perkins

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[PhotoSmith]

Tom Walkinshaw / Ron Dickson - Rover

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[PhotoSmith]

Francevic / Delcourt - Volvo

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[PhotoSmith]

Wayne Wilkinson / Neville Crichton - 635csi

[PhotoSmith]

Dick Johnson / Bruce Anderson - Falcon

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[PhotoSmith]

Bill McFarlane / Wayne Murdoch - Capri (SWB version)

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[PhotoSmith]

Kent Baigent / Neil Lowe - 635csi

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[PhotoSmith]

Smaller cars:

MacDonalds - Mirage Turbo
McGregors - Golf GTi
Heyer - Audi 80
Adams / Woolf - Corolla & McMillan / Pederson Fiat 130TC etc
Mcgregors - Golf GTi


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[PhotoSmith]

Support Classes:

Minis - Brian Audas + Bruce Melville etc

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Classic Cars -

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F/Pacifics - Dave McMillan RT4

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Bluebird Celebrity Race

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[TonyG]

Awesome photos. Can't believe how laid back with track safety we were back then. I keep looking at the crowd with nothing to really stop a car saying hello big time lol.

[Oldfart]

Awesome photos. Can't believe how laid back with track safety we were back then. I keep looking at the crowd with nothing to really stop a car saying hello big time lol.

Or should that be "realistic with track safety"? Perhaps it's just a bit Over the top now?
After all how often did the (perceived) problems actually happen?

[TonyG]

Too true !

[Steve Holmes]

Wow, Martin, these are fantastic! Is there any chance I could get larger copies for the article?

[PhotoSmith]

Sure, Let me know which ones, some have been scanned from negs, some from prints - quality varies slightly.
what resolution/pixel level do you require?

[Steve Holmes]

Thanks Martin, I will send you a pm.

[Lee Tracey]

Steve,

Sorry I am VERY late to this party as have been away for too long.
Here are my photos from that first race

http://s18.photobucket.com/albums/b123/leetra/Wellington%201/#!cpZZ1QQtppZZ24

If you find any you can still use still LMK and I can email you the original scans.

Cheers
Lee

[Steve Holmes]

Hey thanks heaps Lee, I'll go through those and pick some out.

[Steve Holmes]

Martin, did you get the email I sent you?

[Grant Ellwood]

I ran over two guys after I jumped the banking at Bay Park early 70s. A kid who was sitting on the back of a spectator car got clipped and ended up on top of my car, think he was burned by the exhaust manifold of my Begg. The guys were very close to being decapitated and John Hatton just reminded me that I was wrapped up in the 5 wire fence and almost strangled so I'm all for updating safety standards.....
Grant Ellwood

Or should that be "realistic with track safety"? Perhaps it's just a bit Over the top now?
After all how often did the (perceived) problems actually happen?

[Mike Price]

Does anyone know if the Belbin Brothers VH SS started, and if so what colour was it???

[PhotoSmith]

6104

The Belbins Commodore in pitlane on practice day, after coming together with Walkinshaw Rover - see photo above
of bent door - i think from memory they started from the back of the grid or maybe pitlane.

[crunch]

Hey Martin, cool photos.
Look closely at the fourth one down, at the hairpin and the flag Marshall in shorts standing on the block wall.....that's me!!

I remember those first few events very well, great times

[Mike Price]

Thanks Martin. It would appear it isn't my car, as mine was the yellow/white one they had.


6104

The Belbins Commodore in pitlane on practice day, after coming together with Walkinshaw Rover - see photo above
of bent door - i think from memory they started from the back of the grid or maybe pitlane.

[rogered]

I have this recollection of seeing the yellow car in the parked in the pits (by this stage as a "road car") whilst the black one was being raced. Id have to think about the year as i was only a kid then.
The reason it sticks in my mind is that, i recall them trading at at premium at this point possibly as high as $40,000.00.
and bearing that in mind, your car was parked up their, having been roughly rubbed down all over with wet and dry sand paper. and looked a disgrace.
Cant have been more than a couple of years old at this stage
Seem to recall they went to the Big House not long afterward.

[rogered]

Oh and i mean parked at Puke not wellington

[Mike Price]

That would explain why Robert was so cagey about it when I rang him a few years back. It went into a finance company ownership after them, with a plate change and sold on. I think they had two loans against it, but thats a rumour

[PhotoSmith]

Hey Martin, cool photos.
Look closely at the fourth one down, at the hairpin and the flag Marshall in shorts standing on the block wall.....that's me!!

I remember those first few events very well, great times

Hi Crunch,

well spotted, here's another that a bit easier - 10 years later - towards the end of Whanga coast Stage.

[Rod Grimwood]

The shorts are colour coded with the Falken colours, looking into the future ah Crunch (hope were not still wearing them)

[frd1]

I've just started work on an article about the 1985 Wellington Street Race for an Aussie magazine. Am looking for photos from this event to go with the article. Can anyone help? Either racing or pit shots are greatly accepted. And the magazines are always keen on free-bees!

Anyway, flick me an email if you can help: enquiries@monsterracewear.co.nz

Steve, obviously way too late but I could give you a photo of a rare thing, I've got a Nissan Cue 500 chilly bag that houses my old photo albums. I worked for Nissan in those days and my job at the race was to organise the stalls selling clothing etc. We got all the Nissan Cue merchandising gear before Cue pulled out! From memory we had Sytner's and Crichton's BMWs in our workshop in Kent Terrace. Great days.

[Steve Holmes]

Wow, thats got to be rare! I think the magazine went bust months before the race even took place?

Re your old photo albums, are they old racing photos?

[frd1]

The albums have the odd racing photo but not that old, more 80's and 90's when I was more involved. Got some of the 1983 Ardmore reunion at Pukekohe if they are of any interest.

[Steve Holmes]

1980s pics, definitely! Especially if you have Formula Atlantic, Group A, ShellSport, Sports Sedans etc? Its all greatly appreciated.

[GeebeeNZ]

The albums have the odd racing photo but not that old, more 80's and 90's when I was more involved. Got some of the 1983 Ardmore reunion at Pukekohe if they are of any interest.

I remember that meeting well. Would love to see some photos as I dont seem to have any

[Rod Grimwood]

GeeBee NZ, is that the meeting were the Lotus 7 or Fraser did the high jump over the truck tyres, great approach, turn, in the air and twist but lost points because of not a good landing. May have a video of that meeting and and that.