Sir Stirling Moss
In 1963 Shelby Sebring Cobra CSX 2153.
Finished 16th overall .
Carroll Shelby
Bert “Bob” Bondurant
He won the GT class at Le Mans 1964 with CO-driver Dan Gurney
Here I am as his guest at his race school in Arizona , on my honeymoon.
Allen Grant
A man with a racing career intrinsically linked to the Cobra, Allen Grantwas part of the fabled Shelby American driver line-up during the 1965 championship victory that wrote Carroll Shelby and his ‘hot rods’ into the history books.
The character John Milner from George Lucas’ classic film American Graffiti was based on the real-life Allen Grant Or that the film itself was inspired by Grant’s street racing and drive-in days as a teenager in Modesto, California.
Jonathan Palmer
Eddie Cheever
Emanuele Pirro
Stefan Johansson
Tony Jardine
Richard Attwood
Seen here in Sebring Cobra CSX2153 at Spa.
Lord March
Offered his support to me, when raising money for Henry Hope Frost.
Gerry Marshall
I shared many great memories and races with Gerry.
We came second overall at the inaugural Cloth Cap races at Donington, behind the famous EType CUT7.
Digby Martland
He was a familiar face at UK racetracks but also competed at Daytona, the Nürburgring, Le Mans, Monza, Montlhéry, Clermont-Ferrand and AVUS, as well as on bumpy old Austrian airfields. At Le Mans in 1970 he shared a works Chevron B16 with Clive Baker: they retired with a broken valve spring and that was that.
Prince Michael of Kent
Peter Brock
One of his early jobs at Shelby was to demonstrate the new Cobra to potential buyers.
He used CSX2360 round the streets of LA as the car to tempt the customers to reach for their cheque books.
Barrie ‘Whizzo’ Williams
Here he gives driving instructions at Silverstone “remember my dear, racing a car is like sex, slow in fast out”.
Murray Walker
Jack Sears
Sears was popularly known as “Gentleman Jack”. His son David is also involved in motorsport. He won the inaugural British Saloon Car Championship in 1958, driving an Austin Westminster. After finishing on joint maximum points with Tommy Sopwith, it was initially suggested the champion would be decided by the toss of a coin. The idea was very unpopular with both drivers and at the final meeting at Brands Hatch, with a draw being a likely possibility, two identical looking Marcus Chambers-owned Riley One-Point-Five works rally cars were brought along for a five lap shoot-out. To make the race fair, they raced five laps, switched cars, then raced five laps again with the driver who had the quickest combined time being crowned champion. In pouring rain, Sears became the first ever champion by 1.6 seconds.
Oulton ParkOne of the first race meetings at Croft was the Daily Mirror Trophy. Celebrity driver Jacks Sears was entered, driving his usual Willment Team Cobra, but when the car was started, it was found to have a broken rocker and damaged pushrod. However, Jack’s mechanic, Mike Brown, cannibalised the required parts from the Mustang of BRSCC secretary Nick Syrett. The work meant that Sears could not take part in practice so Ropner offered his Cobra to allow Sears to qualify, despite such a move contravening the rules. The stewards could not be deceived since the cars were a different colour, as the Clerk of the Course confirmed, but when subjected to Ropner’s persuasive techniques, he decided he ‘was colour blind’. Sears practiced in 6008, and went on to win the race in his Willment Cobra.
Dan Gurney
Jackie Oliver
Sir John Whitmore
Marc Surer
