The cover of the September 1960 Midland race program. Although Hap Sharp owned a 1959/60 Ferrari 250TR at one point, it never saw action at Midland Airpark.
Story by Willem Oosthoek, photos by Bob Jackson
The 3rd Annual Midland Sports Car Races took place on September 17-18, 1960, again at Airpark. Based on published spectator numbers – 4,000 on Saturday, 6,000 on Sunday – the event was a commercial success, but based on the number of entries, not so much.
Hampered by SCCA events on real road courses at Castle Rock in Colorado two weeks, and Hill Top in Louisiana one week earlier, it was financially and logistically difficult for most amateur race drivers to attend all of three them. In addition, the West Texas Region decided to shorten the Airpark track even more, to only six turns over 2 miles. Good for the medium size entries but not helping any of the big modifieds to show off their top speed.
Four races were on schedule on Saturday, four on Sunday, and this time the sponsor was no longer the Junior Chamber of Commerce, but the West Texas Sports Car Club.
Having sold both his Maseratis, the 200SI to Ernie Grimm, and the 250S/Monza to Tracy Bird, Hap Sharp continued racing a Maserati-engined Cooper Monaco T49 [chassis CM/7/59] in DM class. In 1960 Sharp used to run it with various engine sizes, but at Midland the Monaco used a 4-cylinder, 2.7-liter Maserati unit.
It would have been slim pickings if it had not been for a big bore entry from the Midwest: Harry Heuer and his 5.7-liter Meister Brauser Scarab/Chevy. The Scarabs of Heuer and Augie Pabst had dominated at Castle Rock two weeks earlier, but on the return trip to Chicago one of their mechanics, Gene Geisler, a young Texan, lost his life in a car accident. The West Texas Region donated a trophy in his name and Heuer decided to make the long trip to Midland and run for it.
Harry Heuer’s Scarab/Chevy battling Ronnie Hissom’s Lister/Chevy, which featured a different paint job by now.
Due to the lack of big bore entries, some races scheduled for the modifieds had to be combined with the larger production cars, such as Corvettes and AC Bristols, as well as Formula Juniors in the Feature, to make up the fields. The action started on Saturday, with a five-lap warm-up for modifieds only. Heuer, Hall and Sharp ran in a close contest, with the Scarab leading the first three laps and the Birdcage the second half of lap 4. Then Heuer recaptured the lead. At the finish their times were close: Heuer [6’50”], Hall [6’51”] and Sharp [6’53”]. Hissom and Budurin followed.
Sunday’s Race 5 promised more action, ten laps for GM and Over, plus DP and Over. Heuer led from the start, and a frustrated Hall dropped out after only one lap due to contaminated fuel. Hissom ran 2nd overall for three laps, but his Lister/Chevy proved a handful on the shortened circuit, and he was soon passed by Sharp as well as Budurin. At the finish it was Heuer, Sharp, Budurin and Hissom.
Frantic work had already started on Hall’s Birdcage. Mechanic Frank Lance drained its entire fuel system: tank, carburetors, pumps and lines. Rumors went around that the Scarab crew might have sabotaged the Maserati during the cocktail party in Sharp’s Airpark hangar on Saturday night, but it was never proven.
Fortunately for the crowd, the Birdcage was ready for the start of the final race of the day, the Feature for the 25-lap Gene Geisler Trophy. Hall took the lead on the opening lap, steadily breaking the lap record. On lap 7 he was forced to take the escape road while avoiding a spinning AC Bristol. Now back in 3rd spot behind Heuer and Sharp, it took Hall just two laps to regain the lead, which he held until the finish. Heuer followed, almost half a lap behind. Both Budurin and Sharp retired, the latter with ignition problems two laps from the finish.
Midland Feature results.
1. Jim Hall [Maserati Tipo 61], DM1, 25 laps
2. Harry Heuer [M.B. Scarab/Chevy], BM1, 25 laps
3. Ronnie Hissom [Lister/Chevy s/c], CM1, 25 laps
4. Don Ives [Porsche RSK], FM1, 24 laps
5. Chuck Hall [Elva FJ/DKW], FJ1, 24 laps
6. Dave Morgan [Corvette], BP1, 24 laps
When chassis 2463 was running properly, none of the competitors could match the speed of Jim Hall’s Tipo 61.
Perhaps it was because of the meager entry list of 1960, but no race events took place at Midland Airpark during 1961 and 1962. Also, the focus of the top echelon of sports car racing had moved to professionalism, such as the new USRRC series in 1962. There was little appetite for top contenders at a regional level anymore.
But in 1961 Sharp, still an executive at the West Texas Region of the SCCA, put a syndicate of friends together to build a proper permanent road course south of Midland. The original syndicate members were Sharp, Hissom, Dave Morgan and Dave Fawcett. After Jim Hall moved from Dallas to Midland in May 1961, he joined the syndicate. Sharp and Hall provided most of the funding, while Hissom, Morgan and Fawcett were silent partners to reap certain tax benefits.
Clem Barnes was the actual builder of the track, which was located six miles south of Midland. Construction began in December 1961, but it took almost a year before the 2-mile, 7-turn road course was ready for use. It was called Rattlesnake Raceway. On the weekend of November 17-18, 1962, an SCCA Regional was hosted by the West Texas Region, with sponsorship by the South Plains Sports Car Clubs.
The weekend was cold, and it was clear much additional improvements were needed, since there were hardly any creature comforts. The asphalt track was narrow, located on a sandy piece of land. Sharp acted as Chief Starter, Hall as Chief Steward. Two races were scheduled for Saturday, six for Sunday, but the turnout of only 53 cars was disappointing.
Race 3, ten laps for modifieds, was won by Gary Wilson in his 1958 vintage Ferrari 250TR, over girl driver Edna Sherman [Lotus 23/Ford] and Don Smith [Lotus 11/Climax]. In the Feature, the 25-lap Race 6, in which the class winners of other races were allowed in to establish a credible field, Dave Morgan cleaned house with his Lotus 22/Ford Formula Junior, ahead of Wilson, Sherman and Smith again.
Dave Morgan came from Oklahoma to win the first race at Rattlesnake Raceway. His car, a Formula Junior Lotus 22/Ford, was nicknamed ‘The Pencil’ by the competition.
In spite of the disappointing inaugural Rattlesnake event, a second edition was tried in May 11-12, 1963.
In one of the Prelims for smaller cars, syndicate member Dave Fawcett raced a HM class Bandini. The car lost a wheel and got sideways, blocking the track. The Bandini was then t-boned by Don Carter in a Fiat-Abarth. Fawcett suffered severe head injuries, from which he died later on.
A number of races followed that day, with Sharp winning the feature in his 2.7-liter Climax-engined Cooper Monaco T57 [chassis CM/1/61]. Obviously, the weekend was a downer and because of liability concerns, no races were ever held there again. The general consensus was that Rattlesnake Raceway was just too narrow for competition purposes. Sharp and Hall bought out the remaining syndicate members and turned Rattlesnake into their private Chaparral testing ground.
With Rattlesnake no longer available for competition, the West Texas Region tried one more time and it held a Regional at Airpark the weekend of September 21-22, 1963. The Feature was won by Bob Markley in an FM class Lotus 23B/Ford. Markley was the adopted son of a wealthy Oklahoma oil man, who must have had connections with Hap Sharp, also an oilman originally from Oklahoma. Markley had his Lotus maintained at Sharp’s shop in Midland, but he soon abandoned his race career for one as a pop singer and songwriter in Southern California.
And so, the curtains finally dropped on sports car racing in Midland, Texas. With hindsight, the 1959 edition has been remembered the best one.
Thank you, Willem, for another excellent article documenting the story of sports car racing bit by bit. And the photos of Bob Jackson? Fantastic!
Thank you, Mr. Jackson, for sharing such a stunning collection of Sports Car Photography. And, all in Beautiful Black & White. I’m sorry to say I have never seen your work before. This has been a wonderful experience for me. Did you ever venture to Southern California for any of our races?
As always, another great narrative from you, Mr. Oosthoek.
long ago i read that the fatality was caused by a porsche speedster going off and flipping when the wheels caught the sand. isn’t history interesting!
dick irish once told me that ronnie hissom–i think–flunked tech at elkhart lake because his custom drivers suit was so form-fitting the officials said he couldn’t be grabbed by it to be removed from a wreck! i think at some texas race a dq for him was considered because with a roots blower on top of the engine in his knobbly lister-chev he had no forward visibility from about 10:30 to 11:30.
With all that experience and oil funds how did the track get built to narrow ?
Toly, I never heard that Speedster version before, but here is what A. Hardcastle, a good friend of Hap Sharp in those days, emailed me:
” I was flagging at the corner Dave Fawcett was hit. Dave was a close friend. Bought my Sprite from him. Dave was also a good friend of Clem Barnes, who I think provided the money for Dave in the Rattlesnake venture. “