How Niki Lauda started his career in a Mini Cooper S
Posted: Fri Apr 02, 2021 11:27 am
A long but interesting read about "our" Niki:
from 2/2018 AUSTRO CLASSIC / author Christian Sandler
>>The Laudas The Laudas were big names in the upscale business world of the 20th century. Grandpa and father of Andreas Nikolaus Lauda were always present in the business papers as chairmen of supervisory boards and presidents of various banks and industrial companies. Their properties included a villa in Pötzleinsdorf, a house on the Schubertring, estates in Reichenau an der Rax and a domicile in St. Moritz. The best prerequisites, then, for little Niki, the well-bred boy who was given the best manners for his life's journey.
Life in the financial world was pre-programmed for him, but the youngster only had cars on his mind. And so, much to the chagrin of his family, he first began an apprenticeship as a mechanic. "A Lauda gets his fingers dirty ...", the patriarch Dr. Hans von Lauda is said to have remarked mockingly.
Then Niki took the intellectual route after all and took his Matura in evening classes. Allegedly he "fiddled" a bit with the certificate, but a 15,000 Austrian Schilling Matura premium was a great thing. That money was just enough to to buy a second-hand, somewhat lame, VW Beetle.
Peter Draxler, a school friend of Niki, showed him his father's new Cooper S one day and Niki immediately went into raptures. Draxler didn't have a "licence" yet and so Lauda was chosen as the driver for various jaunts. Up and down the mountain road, but at some point around 4 a.m. the amateur racing driver ran out of road. The Mini was pretty battered and Niki had to buy the scrap from the Draxler family; the 38,000 Austrian Schilling came from grandma. Now there was a tired Beetle and a battered Mini in the garage of his parents' villa.
The Beetle was sold, the proceeds went into spare parts for the Mini. The mechanic's apprenticeship he had begun came in handy. At that time, there was Fritz Baumgartner in Austria, a big name in touring car racing. He advertised his dark blue racing Mini without an engine in the Autorevue. So down to Baden. The deal looked something like this: Racing Mini for repaired street Mini plus 20,000 Schilling cash, which the budding racing driver did not have, however. Niki's father paid off the debt at some point under pressure from Baumgartner. The purchase price also included some test laps in Kottingbrunn. At home in Pötzleinsdorfer Strasse, a racing engine was installed with Baumgartner's help. The Laudas were "not amused"; the boy wouldn't aspire to a career as a racing driver, now that he had his A-levels, would he?
In the spring of 1968, the Mini was finished and lonely in the villa garage, without a towing vehicle, without a trailer and without cash. The Mini was mainly suitable for hill climbs - a very suitable discipline to prepare for bigger things. Niki borrowed a BMW V8 and trailer from an uncle and took it on April 15, 1968 to travel to his first car race in Bad Mühllacken, in Upper Austria's Mühlviertel. Fritz Baumgartner was of course in tow to give good advice. It is not known whether girlfriend Ursula Pischinger was also there.
15,000 fans made the pilgrimage to the route on Easter Sunday in glorious weather - with 12,000 admissions, however, the organizer ran out of tickets. Lauda competed in the touring car class up to 1,300 cc and in the first run followed a recommendation from Baumgartner not to go over 8,000rpm and came third. In run 2 he dismissed the recommendation, revved the Mini to 8,500 and thus won this run. He was already extraordinarily disciplined back then. Adding both races together, he finished second behind Herbert Grünsteidl, also on Cooper. In the official racing program, he was listed under A. N. Lauder.
The next performance, two weeks later, was on Dobratsch. On the morning of April 28, 9,000 fans flocked to Villacher Alpenstrasse. The sensation on this driver-friendly track was perfect and Lauda won his first race. In this hotly contested class, where anyone can beat anyone, he won by a narrow margin over Lambert (Lammy) Hofer. Incidentally, the overall winner was Rudi Lins in a Porsche 906. Niki only drove home on the Monday after the race, where his father received him with the open sports section of the “Presse” and prodded the boy properly.
Now it happened in quick succession, on May 5th the Alpl Bergrennen in Peter Rosegger's Waldheimat was on the calendar. Niki Lauda took a full 11 seconds off the runner-up in the 1,300 class, Hans Himmetsberger, on the 6.5 km route. The day's winner was again a Porsche 906, this time driven by Richard Gerin. On May 26th, Lauda returned to Upper Austria as a racing driver. The next summit storm is announced in Engelhartszell. Heavy rain dominated the race Sunday, also a new situation for Niki. Under such conditions, the wheat is usually separated from the chaff. The newcomer struck again and won both races confidently ahead of Lambert Hofer.
Axel Höfer wrote in the Autorevue: "Nicki Lauda turned out to be a great rain driver and achieved another class win." expected, on a car that was tailor-made for Fritz, Nicki is the personified sensation ”. Note: At the beginning of his career in the contemporary print media, "Nicki" was always used instead of "Niki".
Now he felt mature enough to climb a sporty rung higher. In the middle of the season the Mini was sold to Helmut Koinigg, for which he got the Porsche 911 from Peter Peter. This deal, like the previous ones, was of course again a financial hunt. But Lauda believed in Lauda. Gerhard Mitter's 911 series was equipped with a few additional horsepower, and payment came later. Lambert Hofer, also a member of the Wiener Jeunesse dorée, was extremely enthusiastic about Lauda's maturity, driving skills and discipline.
Inspired by this new device, he two weeks later travelled to Engelhartszell in the Danube Valley, the next ascent took place in Kasten-Viechtenstein. Another rain fight is looming, but he was second fastest in the first run. In the second run he wanted to know exactly, slipped off the track and damaged the fuel tank in the process. Impossible to continue, it was the first small damper in his young career. Next appearance on June 23 at the Koralpe mountain race in Carinthia. The winner of the day was Richard Gerin in a Porsche 906. Niki was once again unbending as the best touring car driver, finished fifth overall with a fabulous time and collected important points for the national championship.
The race on August 4th from Bad Mitterndorf to the Tauplitz was the next mountain run against the clock. While the training took place under bad weather conditions, the weather god was gracious for the day of the race and there was excellent mountain weather. This initially great atmosphere was clouded by the death of Kary Seitz. Seitz got off the track with his Porsche RSK and was thrown out of the car. The injuries were so severe that he lost his last fight in the hospital the following night. Lauda drove the 9.8 km long toll road with a time of 5: 59.6 minutes, winning his class and finishing seventh overall.
Niki drove his first race on a closed racetrack between Koralpe and Tauplitz - he retired with engine failure in Langenlebarn.
On August 11th, the summiteers travelled to the Schilcherland in Stainz. All against Jochen Rindt, was the friendly motto. It was Lauda's only duel against Rindt on the racetrack (see Austro Classic 1/2017). The race was won by our national hero at the time with the distinctive and unforgettable facial features in a Brabham Formula 2. Lauda skilfully drifted the 911 through the vineyards and once again won his class. He finished ninth overall and placed between Franz Albert's Ford GT 40 and Dr. Helmut Marko’s Kaimann Mk III.
Because it was always so beautiful in Upper Austria, on August 15th Niki drove for the fourth time to a hill climb in the region above the Enns: “Walding - Gramastetten” was the watchword. The entire domestic elite had started again: Franz Albert, Gerhard Krammer, Sepp Manhalter, Peter Peter, Richard Moser, Klaus Sterzinger; so pure excitement. This race, organized by MSC Rottenegg, was not part of the championship, but rather part of the OSK's “Golden Ribbon”. Peter Peter dominated the mountain not only in training, but also in the race. Best time, both in the first (dry) and in the second (rainy) run. Lauda once again took class victory and achieved sixth place overall with his Porsche, sponsored by “Bali Kaffee”.
Slowly but surely his fan base grew and the red Porsche with the official number plate W 2.879 crept inexorably into the memory. From Niki Lauda's point of view, autumn 1968 belonged to the airfield courses: Zeltweg, Aspern and Innsbruck were the venues. Mostly in the well-known 911, but his debut in Kurt Bergmann's Kaimann also fell in this period.
Niki Lauda's entry to the top of the 1968 season ended with the mountain prize on October 27 from Königstetten to the Dopplerhütte, conducted as the Kary Seitz memorial race. In fine late autumn weather, a considerable crowd watched the last mountain classification of the year. All the big names in domestic motorsport were represented again. Place 1 and 2 went to the "plastic bombers" from Zuffenhausen, Rudi Lins won on 910 ahead of Peter Peter on 906. Lauda practiced as a double starter for the first time. He reached eighth place with the Porsche 911 and ninth place, three tenths slower, with the Kaimann Mk III from the racing car manufacturer of "Masta" Kurt Bergmann. Immediately ahead of Niki was Stefan Sklenar with the interesting Ferrari 250 LM, with this type of vehicle Rindt won the exciting Le Mans 24 Hours in 1965.
Niki Lauda's premier season brought a total of eight class wins and a second place in ten hill climbs, on one he was eliminated by accident . In 1969 Niki only drove one hill climb for Team Kaimann am Rossfeld, then the mountain race experience was over for him.
These successes laid the foundation for his unstoppable ascent from class to class, up to his three Formula 1 world championships. Lauda, a name that is mentioned in the same breath around the world as Mozart, Klammer and Schwarzenegger. And it all began 50 years ago, on April 15, 1968, in Bad Mühllacken with the hill climb.
Note from the author of these lines: If anyone knows about the whereabouts of the racing mini, please report it. <<
The Mini as it looked in 1967, then still in possesion of F. Baumgartner:
from 2/2018 AUSTRO CLASSIC / author Christian Sandler
>>The Laudas The Laudas were big names in the upscale business world of the 20th century. Grandpa and father of Andreas Nikolaus Lauda were always present in the business papers as chairmen of supervisory boards and presidents of various banks and industrial companies. Their properties included a villa in Pötzleinsdorf, a house on the Schubertring, estates in Reichenau an der Rax and a domicile in St. Moritz. The best prerequisites, then, for little Niki, the well-bred boy who was given the best manners for his life's journey.
Life in the financial world was pre-programmed for him, but the youngster only had cars on his mind. And so, much to the chagrin of his family, he first began an apprenticeship as a mechanic. "A Lauda gets his fingers dirty ...", the patriarch Dr. Hans von Lauda is said to have remarked mockingly.
Then Niki took the intellectual route after all and took his Matura in evening classes. Allegedly he "fiddled" a bit with the certificate, but a 15,000 Austrian Schilling Matura premium was a great thing. That money was just enough to to buy a second-hand, somewhat lame, VW Beetle.
Peter Draxler, a school friend of Niki, showed him his father's new Cooper S one day and Niki immediately went into raptures. Draxler didn't have a "licence" yet and so Lauda was chosen as the driver for various jaunts. Up and down the mountain road, but at some point around 4 a.m. the amateur racing driver ran out of road. The Mini was pretty battered and Niki had to buy the scrap from the Draxler family; the 38,000 Austrian Schilling came from grandma. Now there was a tired Beetle and a battered Mini in the garage of his parents' villa.
The Beetle was sold, the proceeds went into spare parts for the Mini. The mechanic's apprenticeship he had begun came in handy. At that time, there was Fritz Baumgartner in Austria, a big name in touring car racing. He advertised his dark blue racing Mini without an engine in the Autorevue. So down to Baden. The deal looked something like this: Racing Mini for repaired street Mini plus 20,000 Schilling cash, which the budding racing driver did not have, however. Niki's father paid off the debt at some point under pressure from Baumgartner. The purchase price also included some test laps in Kottingbrunn. At home in Pötzleinsdorfer Strasse, a racing engine was installed with Baumgartner's help. The Laudas were "not amused"; the boy wouldn't aspire to a career as a racing driver, now that he had his A-levels, would he?
In the spring of 1968, the Mini was finished and lonely in the villa garage, without a towing vehicle, without a trailer and without cash. The Mini was mainly suitable for hill climbs - a very suitable discipline to prepare for bigger things. Niki borrowed a BMW V8 and trailer from an uncle and took it on April 15, 1968 to travel to his first car race in Bad Mühllacken, in Upper Austria's Mühlviertel. Fritz Baumgartner was of course in tow to give good advice. It is not known whether girlfriend Ursula Pischinger was also there.
15,000 fans made the pilgrimage to the route on Easter Sunday in glorious weather - with 12,000 admissions, however, the organizer ran out of tickets. Lauda competed in the touring car class up to 1,300 cc and in the first run followed a recommendation from Baumgartner not to go over 8,000rpm and came third. In run 2 he dismissed the recommendation, revved the Mini to 8,500 and thus won this run. He was already extraordinarily disciplined back then. Adding both races together, he finished second behind Herbert Grünsteidl, also on Cooper. In the official racing program, he was listed under A. N. Lauder.
The next performance, two weeks later, was on Dobratsch. On the morning of April 28, 9,000 fans flocked to Villacher Alpenstrasse. The sensation on this driver-friendly track was perfect and Lauda won his first race. In this hotly contested class, where anyone can beat anyone, he won by a narrow margin over Lambert (Lammy) Hofer. Incidentally, the overall winner was Rudi Lins in a Porsche 906. Niki only drove home on the Monday after the race, where his father received him with the open sports section of the “Presse” and prodded the boy properly.
Now it happened in quick succession, on May 5th the Alpl Bergrennen in Peter Rosegger's Waldheimat was on the calendar. Niki Lauda took a full 11 seconds off the runner-up in the 1,300 class, Hans Himmetsberger, on the 6.5 km route. The day's winner was again a Porsche 906, this time driven by Richard Gerin. On May 26th, Lauda returned to Upper Austria as a racing driver. The next summit storm is announced in Engelhartszell. Heavy rain dominated the race Sunday, also a new situation for Niki. Under such conditions, the wheat is usually separated from the chaff. The newcomer struck again and won both races confidently ahead of Lambert Hofer.
Axel Höfer wrote in the Autorevue: "Nicki Lauda turned out to be a great rain driver and achieved another class win." expected, on a car that was tailor-made for Fritz, Nicki is the personified sensation ”. Note: At the beginning of his career in the contemporary print media, "Nicki" was always used instead of "Niki".
Now he felt mature enough to climb a sporty rung higher. In the middle of the season the Mini was sold to Helmut Koinigg, for which he got the Porsche 911 from Peter Peter. This deal, like the previous ones, was of course again a financial hunt. But Lauda believed in Lauda. Gerhard Mitter's 911 series was equipped with a few additional horsepower, and payment came later. Lambert Hofer, also a member of the Wiener Jeunesse dorée, was extremely enthusiastic about Lauda's maturity, driving skills and discipline.
Inspired by this new device, he two weeks later travelled to Engelhartszell in the Danube Valley, the next ascent took place in Kasten-Viechtenstein. Another rain fight is looming, but he was second fastest in the first run. In the second run he wanted to know exactly, slipped off the track and damaged the fuel tank in the process. Impossible to continue, it was the first small damper in his young career. Next appearance on June 23 at the Koralpe mountain race in Carinthia. The winner of the day was Richard Gerin in a Porsche 906. Niki was once again unbending as the best touring car driver, finished fifth overall with a fabulous time and collected important points for the national championship.
The race on August 4th from Bad Mitterndorf to the Tauplitz was the next mountain run against the clock. While the training took place under bad weather conditions, the weather god was gracious for the day of the race and there was excellent mountain weather. This initially great atmosphere was clouded by the death of Kary Seitz. Seitz got off the track with his Porsche RSK and was thrown out of the car. The injuries were so severe that he lost his last fight in the hospital the following night. Lauda drove the 9.8 km long toll road with a time of 5: 59.6 minutes, winning his class and finishing seventh overall.
Niki drove his first race on a closed racetrack between Koralpe and Tauplitz - he retired with engine failure in Langenlebarn.
On August 11th, the summiteers travelled to the Schilcherland in Stainz. All against Jochen Rindt, was the friendly motto. It was Lauda's only duel against Rindt on the racetrack (see Austro Classic 1/2017). The race was won by our national hero at the time with the distinctive and unforgettable facial features in a Brabham Formula 2. Lauda skilfully drifted the 911 through the vineyards and once again won his class. He finished ninth overall and placed between Franz Albert's Ford GT 40 and Dr. Helmut Marko’s Kaimann Mk III.
Because it was always so beautiful in Upper Austria, on August 15th Niki drove for the fourth time to a hill climb in the region above the Enns: “Walding - Gramastetten” was the watchword. The entire domestic elite had started again: Franz Albert, Gerhard Krammer, Sepp Manhalter, Peter Peter, Richard Moser, Klaus Sterzinger; so pure excitement. This race, organized by MSC Rottenegg, was not part of the championship, but rather part of the OSK's “Golden Ribbon”. Peter Peter dominated the mountain not only in training, but also in the race. Best time, both in the first (dry) and in the second (rainy) run. Lauda once again took class victory and achieved sixth place overall with his Porsche, sponsored by “Bali Kaffee”.
Slowly but surely his fan base grew and the red Porsche with the official number plate W 2.879 crept inexorably into the memory. From Niki Lauda's point of view, autumn 1968 belonged to the airfield courses: Zeltweg, Aspern and Innsbruck were the venues. Mostly in the well-known 911, but his debut in Kurt Bergmann's Kaimann also fell in this period.
Niki Lauda's entry to the top of the 1968 season ended with the mountain prize on October 27 from Königstetten to the Dopplerhütte, conducted as the Kary Seitz memorial race. In fine late autumn weather, a considerable crowd watched the last mountain classification of the year. All the big names in domestic motorsport were represented again. Place 1 and 2 went to the "plastic bombers" from Zuffenhausen, Rudi Lins won on 910 ahead of Peter Peter on 906. Lauda practiced as a double starter for the first time. He reached eighth place with the Porsche 911 and ninth place, three tenths slower, with the Kaimann Mk III from the racing car manufacturer of "Masta" Kurt Bergmann. Immediately ahead of Niki was Stefan Sklenar with the interesting Ferrari 250 LM, with this type of vehicle Rindt won the exciting Le Mans 24 Hours in 1965.
Niki Lauda's premier season brought a total of eight class wins and a second place in ten hill climbs, on one he was eliminated by accident . In 1969 Niki only drove one hill climb for Team Kaimann am Rossfeld, then the mountain race experience was over for him.
These successes laid the foundation for his unstoppable ascent from class to class, up to his three Formula 1 world championships. Lauda, a name that is mentioned in the same breath around the world as Mozart, Klammer and Schwarzenegger. And it all began 50 years ago, on April 15, 1968, in Bad Mühllacken with the hill climb.
Note from the author of these lines: If anyone knows about the whereabouts of the racing mini, please report it. <<
The Mini as it looked in 1967, then still in possesion of F. Baumgartner:
) 
End of the story so far. 
yes, the one where Niki Lauda's career started in 1968). 