Lake Garnett - July 1963
There have been several threads over the year that have mentioned the Cobras at Lake Garnett in 1963.
...in fact, Chuck Brandt has done a neat job of documenting the long-gone track in Kansas, both in the 60's and as it is today.
http://www.chuckbrandt.com/lakegarnett.htm
But, to me, it is such a neat moment in Shelby racing history that it is worth an article to tell the story.
You can really get a sense of what the Shelby team must have been feeling that year, as they piled up one victory after another in SCCA competition. Prior to that time, the brunt of SCCA competition was independent owners on a regional level.
The SCCA established a National Championship, the U.S. Road Racing Championship (USRRC), with cups for Manufacturers and Drivers....so the contributions of the factory team would be combined with the independents to garner total points for the brand.
Simply stated, the race at Lake Garnett was a dramatic showdown between the Cobras and the Corvettes.
To really have an appreciation of the event, we have to look at a timeline in this early Shelby year to understand what they actually accomplished there.
Recall that the first Cobra made it's public debut at the NY Auto Show in April, 1962. In order to qualify for any sanctioned racing, they had to produce that magic number of 100 cars.
By the end of 1962, AC had built about 60 cars and they were on a run rate to make the 100 number before the 1963 racing season began.
They had track-tested the Cobra at Riverside and sent Billy Krause out for the first competitive appearance of the Cobra in October 1962, where it promptly broke.
They fielded 4 cars at the for-fun event at Nassau Speedweek in December 1962, where all four either broke or ran out of gas.
So-so results at Daytona and Sebring in early 1963 didn't fare well for success on the International level in this first year of racing...
...even with the full-court press at Sebring: 6 cars with 3 going down, and the remaining 3 finishing 6th, 13th and 14th.
With European support, 2 Cobras even ran LeMans in 1963...they made a respectable debut, but could not compete well, nor go the full distance.
By the end of the summer of 1963, the design of the Coupe was underway, to give them a slippery car for the 1964 International season, one that could compete on the long tracks of Europe.
But SCCA competition in 1963 looked far more promising. After finding and fixing the mechanical weaknesses in an amazingly short time, just look at what was unfolding on the national level:
(Dave MacDonald, Ken Miles and Bob Holbert drove all over the country for the Shelby American team, and independents Johnson and Hayes competed at the regional level)
Riverside - Jan. 1963 - finished number 1 and number 2 overall
Dodger Stadium - Mar. 1963 - finished number 1 and number 2 overall
Pensacola - May 1963 - 1st and 5th place GT
Mosport - June 1963 - 1st and 2nd place GT
Laguna Seca - June 1963 - 1st, 2nd and 4th GT
Watkins Glen - June 1963 - 1st overall, 1st and 3rd GT
They were kicking butt wherever they showed up.
(...continued)