‘Hippy’ driver faultless

Press, Volume CXV, Issue 34037, 29 December 1975, Page 17

‘Hippy’ driver faultless

Leading Christchurch ’ drivers were forced to | accept unaccustomed J supporting roles as the < two talented American ! visitors, Gary Paterson 1 and Larry Rice, swept all i before them in the inter- ■ national midget car t events at the Templeton . Pall .Mall Speedway on! 1 Saturday night. j ( Known as the hippy of 1 the motor-racing world, Paterson was quite outstanding i in the Sesco racer he 1 brought to New Zealand with him. ' He won an incident- 1 packed Go Cola Inter-nation 1 Cup contest with a faultless ■ display and also finished at 1 the head of the fields in two i lesser events. 1 The only race he failed to ] win was the final eight-lap ] Firestone $lOOO feature. In 1 this, he found himself in a 1 little unexpected trouble on ! the Prison Bend while holding third place on the third p lap. He collided with a rival 1 and stalled. Rice, the 1973 American cham- i pion, went on to win from Tony Derosa (Australia). Both were driving the remarkable Volks-wagen-powered racers which have been making such an impression at top international levels in the last two years. Afterwards Paterson, who hast a reputation for deliberately’ antagonising spectators, claimed over the public address system that he should have won all four races and promised that next Saturday, when he would make his final appearance at Templeton. nobody would see which way he went. fie predicted that he and Rice) would completely dominate the racing, suggesting in forthright: language that there was not a i driver in New Zealand capable: of matching either of them. “I can see no way that we are! going to get beat,” he said. The crowd of some 7000 spectators reac ted with boos and jeers. But if Paterson lived up to his Image as the man “everybodv loves to hate.” few could have failed to be deeply impressed by his driving. He took over the lead from Rice on the sixth lap of the 15-lap Go Cola Inter-nation I < up race and held it to the finish.! Rice was never more than a few! feet behind, but there was never, 1 any doubt that he was going to finish second. ROXBURGH SHINES The real interest in the race i was the battle for third. After•’ohn McKitterick had spun off on i the seventh lap. Gordon Rox-)

burgh found himself in third place and with one of the finest! performances of his long careerhe clung to this until the last corner of the last lap. Then he drifted a few feet out from the! pole line and in a flash Derosa j was through to snatch third place. Roxburgh finished fourth,] inches behind, and well ahead oi I Allan Palmer, who appeared to■ be having some difficulty with] the track surface. Palmer, the driver expected to provide the strongest challenge Tor the visitors, did not have a particularly happy night. In the Pall Mall feature race, he spun off on the sixth lap while holding third place to Paterson and Rice. Jack Bryan emerged from a somewhat spirited confrontation with Derosa and Edwin Murray to claim the third position. Earlier, the first attempt to run this event had ended in a spectacular pile-up involving the ears of five drivers — Paterson, Derosa, Bryan. McKitterick, and Murray. A complete re-run was ordered. Palmer showed improved form in the final race, the Firestone $lOOO scratch, leading for nearly! three laps before giving way to’ Rice. He held second place until' three laps from the end when] he drifted wide and let Derosa: through but there was nothing to oe dissatisfied with in his third! placing. Mark Williams, who has the I fastest track times to his credit! this season, looked competitive until he was eliminated with motor trouble after four laps of i the Pall Mall feature. He was fourth at the time. The New Zealand test, rider.] Graeme Stapleton. was back to! his best form in the motor-cycle? events, winning his qualifying" race and the two main feature scratch races as well. His fastest, of <. 784 sec was only two-, fifths of a second outside the 1 best recorded this season. But it was not a night Stapleon s chief rivals will remember with a great deal of pleasure —! I? r i? 10re an one reason. lan • Hindle, the young Englishman.. ''h° had won the Canterbury 1 title only seven days previously,’ surprisinglv failed to qualify for) ' the two feature races. SERIOUS SMASH Lu Ho^ e Y er ’ he was able to join • the field for the super six when ! Graeme Stewart could not get ! his bike ready in time. The scene j seemed set for a great battle. but on the opening lap the race came to an abrupt halt with one of the worst accidents in A grade competition for some years. Larry Ross was leading the field through the Prison Bend when liis back wheel swung out. • Hindle hit him a glancing blow and both went flying. Another i Englishman. Keith Anderson, crashed into the pair of them. , Ross and Hindle were quickly on : their feet but Anderson w as left lying on the track. He was treated and taken from the track • in the ambulance and although he recovered well in the pits, ne later went to hospital to have j his back examined. I Graham Pullan and Dave Moly-

neux were in fine form in the sidecar events, winning the opening scratch race and preventing the national champions. Les : Dwight jun. and Steve Unwin,! from making a clean sweep. In. the remaining two races. Pullan l and Molyneux finished runners-1 up both times. Results were.— MOTOR-CYCLES Novice solo events <4 laps!.— First qualifying race: P. Paulson 1. A. Sintes 2. Time, 90.2. Second qualifying race: P. Harrington 1. D. Maxwell 2. P. Lyndsey 3. Time, 92.3. Final: Paulson 1, Sintes 2. Maxwell 3. Time, 87,0. Second division solo events (4 laps).—First qualifying race: J. Hanning 1, F. Forscutt 2, W. Skilling 3. Time, 86.2. Second qualifying race: B. Mitchell 1, B. Read 2, G. Taylor 3. Time, 84.5. Consolation race: P. Salt 1, C. Blackett 2. S. Duff 3. Time, 82.2. Final: Mitchell 1, Hanning 2, Read 3. Time. 81.8. First division solo events (four laps).—Opening handicap: I. Hindle (50yd) 1, G. Stapleton (40yd) 2. B. Read (10yd) 3. Time, 82.5. Second handicap: L. Ross (50yd) 1. K. Anderson (50yd) 2, T. Black (30yd) 3. Time, 83.0. First qualifying race: Stapleton 1. Ross 2. P. Fewing 3. Time. 79.6. Second qualifying race:

■ Anderson 1, G. Stewart 2. T. ■ Black 3. Time 81.9. Pall Mall ; scratch: Hindle I. B. Mitchell 2. ) B. McMillan 3. Time, 79.3 ..Tommy's Suzuki Centre Super 11 Six: Stapleton 1, Black 2. Few- ) > Ings 3. Time, 78.9. Go Cola fly- , ing four: Stapleton 1, Ross 2. Black 3. Time. 78.4. Sidecars (four laps).—Qualifying race: I. Begbie and A. Henry i . I, G. Pullan and D. Molyneux 2. i W. Benson • and W. Turner 3. i I Time. 89.0. Opening scratch:' . Pullan and Molyneux I. L. i , Dwight jun. and S. Unwin 2, B. . Beadle and A. Boyle 3. Time. 88.1. Rex Russell scratch: Dwight I jun. and Unwin 1, Pullan and . Molyneux 2, Benson and Turner . 3. Time. 85.0. Edox handicap: I Dwight jun. and Unwin 1, Pul- . lan and Molyneux 2, Beadle and . Boyle 3. Time, 89.1. CARS , Midget racing car events.— Opening handicap (six laps): G. ■ Paterson {U.S.A.) 1, J. Bryan 2, . M. Williams 3. Go Cola Interi nation Cup (15 laps): Paterson 1, , L. Rice (U.S.A.) 2, A. Derosa I (Aust.) 3, G. Roxburgh 4, A. , Palmer 5. Pall Mall feature (eight . laps): Paterson I. Rice 2. Bryan i 3. Firestone $lOOO scratch (eight . laps): Rice 1. Derosa 2, Palmer : 3.