Video clip of a Mini at the Nuerburgring 1964

[MiNiKiN]

haha, look what this likkle power shrimp does to the big lads

https://youtube.com/clip/Ugkxj0b3Gn7BVv ... zkMmnQ3DHJ

[mk1]

What a cracking start!

There is a slim possibility that the car is "Sophie" The Downton 1275 S. I am just trying to find some more info.

[MiNiKiN]

I am too searching for starter lists for that particular weekend (1-3. August 1964)

[surfblue63]

There is a programme for sale on ebay

https://www.ebay.com/itm/163637413737?h ... Swe~lcqUE8

Unfortunately it only shows the first page of entries for the Touring Car race






Good post by the way.


.

[mk1]

BUGGER!

I was all set to buy that until I saw the price

[Pete]

Results

[Pete]

Actually, that’s not the same race. It’ll be on Frank de Jong’s site.

[r.tec]

I scanned the relevant pages as I have the complete race programme:

1964 GP_D (1).png

1964 GP_D (2).png

1964 GP_D (3).png

1964 GP_D (4).png

The driver of the no 86 Mini was Ulrich Therstappen. I must admit that I never heard of him. I could write a few words to some of the drivers in the list but I reckon it would be too boring for most of the forum members.

[surfblue63]

Excellent post, thanks r.tec

[MiNiKiN]

That the advantage if you can successfully search your book shelf rather than Google.
Thanks r.tec.

I am always iinteressted in racer and racing stories - so don't be shy

Christian Schmarje: interesting and semi-successful german racer

[r.tec]

...could tell a short history concerning Christian Schmarje <-> Wucherpfennig/Wooding

Donald Wooding was Sales Manager with the Hamburg Morris-Dealer Wucherpfennig/J.A. Woodhouse, Cologne.

Then he bought out Wucherpfenning and set up the BMC-Tuning-firm Wooding & Co preparing the famous Group 2 Morris Cooper S with Christian Schmarje as the driver, sometimes beating even the BMC-Works-Minis when they turned up in Europe.

In 1968 Schmarje was German Vice Champion behind a certain Herbert Schulze (Alfa Romeo) who had an Alfa Romeo and BMC/Leyland dealership in Berlin but was killed at the ETCC 6h Nürburgring in the last lap in 1970.

In 1971 Wooding and Schmarje switched over to Ford for the Escort BDA, as the Minis were not competitive in Group 2 any more. The first BDA was built in England by Broadspeed. John Fitzpatrick wrote me that he knew Christian Schmarje quite well as they both spend several weeks in Silverstone together testing the BDA that was to become the first Wooding-Escort. Christin Schmarje won many races in the 2-litre-class, but finally Zakspeed got the advantage by Ford. The first oil-crisis in 73/74 brought an end to Wooding.

Schmarje retired in 1972 and lived on the isle of Sylt running a bar until he died only a few years ago. https://trauer.shz.de/traueranzeige/chr ... e/44927889

Don Wooding died much earlier. He had a son, Mark Wooding, who lived and worked in Switzerland.

End of 1969 Richard Newton of Newton Commercial fame came to Hamburg as the race manager of Wooding. Later he worked for the receiver of what was left over of the Wooding Engineering and Wooding Competition firms and then returned to England finally setting up Newton Commercial.

Every now and then I am in mail-contact with Richard who send me a lot of information of the time he was with Wooding.

[MiNiKiN]

Top story, thanks
Although the video is about Therstappen, I may add this interview with Christian Schmarje from 2002:

schmarje_christian_tcm430-32151(1).pdf

Thew Mini-Man
Christian Schmarje has no good memories of that September Sunday in 1968 when the German circuit championship title was decided at Hockenheim. With his Mini Cooper S, the Hamburg driver had by then won the 1.3-litre class, which was otherwise dominated by the Alfa GTA Junior and NSU TT. One level higher, in the 1600 cc class, Herbert Schultze from Berlin was also unbeaten in his Alfa GTA. Before the final, both were tied at the top of the standings, and there were no other contenders for the title.
The fact that the Mini man's championship party was spoiled was due to the appearance of a whole armada of Alfa works cars. The miraculous multiplication had been arranged by the then Alfa Germany boss de Bona.
The aim of the operation: Schmarje was to be beaten by an Alfa in the 1300s so that Schultze could win the 1600 title for the third time in a row.
The impeccable sportsman from Berlin, who had a fatal accident in 1971, was rather embarrassed by the scenario at the time.
The Motodrom resembled a witch's cauldron as the Mini was brutally buffeted and two Alfa's crashed, tumbling onto the roof. Nevertheless, Schmarje lost both, the final race and the title to the Alfa competition. «That was about the most depressing thing I've experienced in ten years of racing.» Later, Schmarje was still seen clinching with Stuck, Mass, Ertl & Co. in a 2-litre Escort BDA before he quit in 1972. «My sister had died in a traffic accident» reasons the quiet North German. «I took that as a hint from fate and drew a radical line in the sand.» He moved to the island of Sylt, built a cottage in Morsum, a village with 1200 inhabitants, and plans to spend the rest of his life here. Daughter Clarissa (27) reminds the now 62-year-old of a brief marital episode that he quickly ended «because I felt constricted». Until 1990, Schmarje was co-owner of the trendy bar "Pony" in Kampen. There he took care of the commercial matters, but regularly disappeared when the first guests arrived in the evening, «because I didn't like the celebrity hype». Instead, he spent his time with his hobbies golf (handicap 11), aquarelle painting and his old Jaguar MK 2. «I'm doing great, I'm in great health and feel incredibly good as a single pensioner.»

Permanent winner: Schmarje 1968
Retired single: Schmarje today
Small car, big victories: Schmarje in the almost unbeatable Mini Cooper S

Translated with www.DeepL.com/Translator (free version)

[r.tec]

The report about Schmarje and other drivers of that era was by journalist Rainer Braun (Auto-Zeitung etc.) is on a hidden site of Dunlop Motorsport Germany. But it contains one mistake: Herbert Schulze had his fatal accident in July 1970 driving a works GTAm 2 litre. I know because I was at this race and probably took the last photo of him alive (it is the last photo on the film strip and therefore must be taken quite late in the race).

011_Kopie.jpg

But enough of off-topic: at the same race, the 6h 1970, one single Mini Cooper 1000 took part. The results can be seen on Frank de Jong's ETCC-site

012_Kopie.jpg

If someone is interested what I used as a 13-year old:
Camera: Agfa Isolette 6x6 (out of the 50s, a present of my uncle with a dozen films)
Film: Gevaert 100 ASA

I misjudged the distance, otherwise the photos would have been a bit sharper.

[MiNiKiN]

.....: at the same race, the 6h 1970, one single Mini Cooper 1000 took part. The results can be seen on Frank de Jong's ETCC-site

The Ziegler brothers

Clipboard01.jpg

[r.tec]

I found the results of the 64 GP touring car race:

http://pro-steilstrecke.de/gpdeutschlan ... bnisse.pdf