Dan Gurney R.I.P

[wilcom]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dan_Gurney

I used to watch Dan at the Riverside Raceway in California USA. His signature fluid driving style was evident. Setting in the car at speed , he looked as if he was out for a Sunday drive while his opponents were at a destruction derby.

Rest in Peace Dan, you put on a good show for us for many years. He was 86 and living locally here in California

[Tony Smith]

Until I read the Wikipedia entry I had no idea of the length and breadth of his accomplishments, or the number of firsts to his name.

[wilcom]

When he drove it was like poetry and everyone else was tagging a fence with spray paint. He would sweep thru a corner with a light touch on the wheel while others were fighting it, sawing the wheel back and forth, not Dan,  he would pick a perfect line and drive thru it....... If it could happen, to see him drive should be on all "bucket lists"

[Tony Smith]

We have a now retired Canadian import over here by the name of Allan Moffat who was like that - in his day blindingly quick, but smooth and easy on the machinery.
 
In the early 70s the local Ford manufacturer set out on a blitzkrieg campaign to win the Bathurst touring car race (Australian equivalent to Indy - but better) and engaged Carol Shelby to engineer the 6 cars built for the race.

Shelby decided to use a new and somewhat experimental radial tyre for the race which proved to be not such a brilliant idea on what was a very heavy and very powerful car (for a brief period of time the Falcon GTHO could legitimately claim to be the fastest production 4 door saloon on the planet - good for 140mph in road trim and up to 160mph in race fettle.

Anyway, the factory fords all started failing with blown tyres - except for Moffat. he got calle din to the pits to change tyres (and lost the race as a result) but to Shelby's amazement unlike the other team cars Moffat's tyres were OK - a tribute to how smooth he really was.