This Month in Cobra History - December
December always was a fun month in Cobra history... the annual Nassau Speed week was held in the Bahamas. In the early Sixties, the two big races, The Tourist Trophy and the Mayor's Trophy, were the events that let the "big dogs" quietly test their new developments for the coming year's race season... and also let the competition see what they were developing.
The races were surrounded with a week of warm weather fun, allowing the teams to relax after a long prior year's season.
If ever there was a place where motor racing should have become established it was the Caribbean, where the image of glamour is part of the attraction for the thousands of tourists who flock to the islands every year. Several of the islands recognized the potential, none more so than the Bahamas which began hosting a Speed Week in 1954. This was the brainchild of Captain Sherman F 'Red' Crise, who saw the idea as a means of bringing tourists to the islands. Every year the cars were transported from the United States in an ancient landing craft and there were two big events at Windsor Field, a 3.5-mile track which was laid out on the airfield on New Providence Island: The Governor's Trophy and the Nassau Trophy. The rest of the week was spent with cocktail parties and sunshine. In 1957 the events were transferred to another circuit at Oakes Field, closer to Nassau itself. The new circuits was a mile longer than the Windsor Field venue. The Nassau Speed Week was very popular with both American and European racers and the list of winners was varied and included Alfonso de Portago, AJ Foyt, Stirling Moss, Roger Penske, Masten Gregory, Carroll Shelby, Phil Hill, Dan Gurney, the Rodriguez brothers, Pedro and Ricardo, and Innes Ireland. In the early 1960s Formula Junior was added to the racing.
In 1963, the Shelby Team (l-r, Peyton Cramer, Cecil Bowman, Dave and Sherry MacDonald, Craig Lang and Red Pierce) took in some of the local parties...
That year, Ken Miles piloted an early 289, and DNF'd in the Trophy race...
Nassau was the big spot that pitted the Corvette Grand Sports against the Cobra. The Grand Sports had a dominating record during those years.
December 6 1963
At the International Bahamas Speed Week races in Nassau, the 112 mile Governor's Trophy race is held. The Corvette Grand Sport driven by Richard Thompson blows its engine, ending its participation. Grand Sport No. 003, driven by Roger Penske, takes first in prototype class and third overall. Grand Sports No. 004 and 005 take second and third in class, and fourth and sixth overall.
December 8 1963
At the International Bahamas Speed Week races in Nassau, the 252-mile Nassau Trophy race is held. Two Corvette Grand Sport cars are entered, No. 004 and No. 003. No. 004 takes first in prototype class and fourth overall. No. 003 takes third in class and eighth overall.
The start of the 1963 race.... (unfortunately all the Cobras DNF'd)
December 1964
Roger Penske races Jim Hall's Grand Sport Corvette #005 at Nassau against vast and powerful Cobra opposition, winning the race.
His win establishes the last General Motors victory over the Ford-powered Cobras for years to come.
Dan Gerber banged it up a bit in 1964...
The start of the 1965 race....
In the 1964 Nassau trophy race, Ken Miles unveiled the Big Block (390) Flip-Top, CSX2196...it's first and only competition. After several mechanical issues, it finally blew the engine.
The Nassau Speedweek event was ended in 1966. Interesting, that the reason was... a big landing craft was used to bring the cars over from the States, keeping the cost of attending down for the participants. In 1966 the Speedweek had to be closed when the United States Customs impounded the landing craft used to deliver the cars to the islands.