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Jean Behra

Jim Sitz: Faces ’57

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Behold the art of Jim Sitz, an 18-year-old Californian who was already steeped in racing knowledge and an expert photographer when arrived in Europe in the summer of that magical, epochal, dangerous year of 1957. Sitz was not wealthy, but worked and saved for two years in order to afford the trip that would change his life forever. And after 67 years his photographs and memories are still enriching our lives.

We have assembled a portrait gallery of fourteen of the greatest race drivers of the era, adding Jim’s personal recollections including his first-hand report of Fangio’s German Grand Prix. Also herein are Jean Behra, Mike Hawthorn, Luigi Musso, Stirling Moss, Peter Collins, Oliver Gendebien, Ron Flockhart, Archie Scott Brown, Masten Gregory, Wolfgang von Trips, Phil Hill, Harry Schell and Ken Miles.

Story and photos by Jim Sitz

Lead Photo: Masten Gregory (29 February 1932 – 8 November 1985) sitting in the Testa Rossa prototype before the 1957 Swedish 6 Hour on August 11 where the car was retired with gearbox failure. A week earlier at the Nurburgring I joked with him, saying he’d should be very careful and that I’d seen him spin his C type Jag at March Field in 1953. “Oh God, you mean you were there?” he replied. [Read more…] about Jim Sitz: Faces ’57

Who was D.M. Bartley Part 2

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Bartley talks with Pat O’Connor at Trenton, N.J. She was reportedly the first woman journalist to obtain a media pass at Indy. Photographer unknown.

This week we learn about D.M. Bartley from Denise McCluggage, Karl Ludvigsen, and the Editor.

Read Part 1

Denise McCluggage:

Diana Bartley wanted to be accepted for what she was, a hard-working, professional journalist when there simply few women doing that. People today cannot believe how rare women were even on large newspapers. Women might do interviews involving food or fashion or kittens-up-a-tree rescue stories but never hard news. [Read more…] about Who was D.M. Bartley Part 2

Who was D.M. Bartley?

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D.M. Bartley with Jean Behra, probably in 1959 at Sebring. We think 1959 as he is wearing a Ferrari lapel pin and placed second at the Sebring 12 hours driving a Ferrari 250 TR 59 with Cliff Allison. Others think that it might be 1957, the year Behra won with Fangio in a Maserati. But wearing a Ferrari lapel pin? Photo possibly by Charles. A. Lyble Jr.

Like many of our readers, I often read articles by a ‘D.M. Bartley’ in a variety of automobile magazines in the 1950s and 1960s. And then, as now, I was fascinated by automotive journalists, be they Ken Purdy or Henry Manney, but there was scant information about Bartley, who remained a mystery for a number of years. Years ago, I decided to ask a few writers to tell us what they knew about D.M. Bartley. Jim Sitz, Karl Ludvigsen, and the late Denise McCluggage all pitched in with their impressions. Doing more research, through Clark University, we found Abigail Kimball, Bartley’s friend and neighbor, who was glad to provide even more information about Diana Bartley as well as a few photos from the Bartley collection. We begin with Abigail’s story.

Abigail Kimball:

Diana Bartley was born on June 18, 1926 in Toledo, Ohio. She died on July 31, 2011 at age 85 in New York City. [Read more…] about Who was D.M. Bartley?

Juan Fangio and Suixtil

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At Modena in 1957, Juan Manuel Fangio, shows Maserati chief engineer Giulio Alfieri, in jacket shirt and tie, and Swiss journalist Hans Tanner, back to camera, his bandaged wrist. Fangio would bring attention to a line of racing suits from an Argentinean-based company named Suixtil.

Story and photos by Graham Gauld unless otherwise noted

From the VeloceToday Archives May 2017

European motor racing in the years immediately following World War II tended to be a strictly European affair; that is until the arrival of the great Juan Manuel Fangio in 1948. Unlike Europe, where there was a war to contend with, young Fangio learned his motor racing craft in the wild and dangerous racing in Argentina in the 1930s and 1940s.

He proved to be not only a tough competitor but also a winner. Who better to be an ambassador for the Salomon Rudman’s Argentinean-based Suixtil company’s entry into the area of motor racing? Rudman’s enthusiasm for motor racing saw him produce clothing, which would not only be stylish but also comfortable. He took advice from his motor racing friends like Fangio as to design and functionality.

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Seven Glorious Gordinis

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By Pete Vack
Photos by Hugues Vanhoolandt

From the VeloceToday Archives, April 18, 2013

Thanks to our man Hugues Vanhoolandt, we are able to present these Gordini photos, listed by chassis number, for this article. They were taken at a variety of events from 2008 to 2013. And, thanks to VeloceToday contributor and author Roy Smith for his book Amédée Gordini, a True Racing Legend.

Before VeloceToday contributor Roy Smith wrote his comprehensive book on Gordini, the only source of in-depth information about the cars was Christian Huet’s amazing book, on the subject. Published in 1984 in French, Huet traced the history of Gordini, plus all known cars.

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Fangio, Suixtil and Modena, 1957

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At Modena in 1957, Juan Manuel Fangio, shows Maserati chief engineer Giulio Alfieri, in jacket shirt and tie, and Swiss journalist Hans Tanner, back to camera, his bandaged wrist. Fangio would bring attention to a line of racing suits from an Argentinean-based company named Suixtil.

Story and photos by Graham Gauld unless otherwise noted

European motor racing in the years immediately following World War II tended to be a strictly European affair; that is until the arrival of the great Juan Manuel Fangio in 1948. Unlike Europe, where there was a war to contend with, young Fangio learned his motor racing craft in the wild and dangerous racing in Argentina in the 1930s and 1940s.

He proved to be not only a tough competitor but also a winner. Who better to be an ambassador for the Salomon Rudman’s Argentinean-based Suixtil company’s entry into the area of motor racing? Rudman’s enthusiasm for motor racing saw him produce clothing, which would not only be stylish but also comfortable. He took advice from his motor racing friends like Fangio as to design and functionality. [Read more…] about Fangio, Suixtil and Modena, 1957

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