One for the Petrolheads

A Formula One Grand Prix in Pinetown, with some of the greatest drivers of all time lining up for the start on a brand- new track built specially for the event.  Motor sport enthusiasts in our province would be ecstatic if this was on the cards, but it's not - it already happened, nearly half a century ago. 

GAVIN FOSTER looks at the Westmead circuit.

Charlie Young, a great South African motorcycle racer and the first importer of Yamaha motorcycles into South Africa, was deeply involved in the building of the circuit, so it was fitting that he should drop the flag for Natal's first international Grand Prix on December 17, 1961.  The race was the second leg of the new Springbok Series that pitted the cream of South Africa's Formula One drivers against some of the best the world had to offer, and an estimated 67 000 spectators lined the roadside that Sunday.  Overseas competitors included Jim Clark and Trevor Taylor in works Lotus-Climaxes, Stirling Moss in another, and American Masten Gregory in an older Lotus.  Jo Bonnier, the Porsche works driver, was there in one of the German cars.  Local favourites included Bruce Johnstone and Tony Maggs in yet another two Lotuses, with Syd van der Vyfer in a Lotus-Alfa, Doug Serrurier in a Cooper-Maserati, and Tony Maggs in a Cooper-Climax all considered candidates for good placings.

The motorcycle race that preceded the Grand Prix was also a star-studded affair, with Phil Read, Jim Redman, Gary Hocking, Stan Setaro, Paddy Driver, Ophie Howard, and the Marriner brothers, Tiny and Bernie, all mounted on Nortons.  Hocking, the reigning SA 500 champion, was destined to win the world 350 and 500cc world championships that year.

The Circuit

The Westmead circuit was brand new, having been built specially for the event, but it came with a problem that led to its demise just two short years later.  The 3,5 km long track was built in a rush for the Springbok series, and wet weather during the construction period meant that the tarmac was laid on a mud foundation.  The base remained spongy, and the tarmac started breaking up during practice.  This was partly remedied by cementing the problem areas, but the quick fix was not expected to last for the duration of the 89 lap GP.

The 1961 Race

In those days motor racing was a very different sport to the highly professional business it is today.  Jim Clark's Lotus and that of his team-mate were prepared at Grosvenor Motors in Pinetown and towed to the track by a piece of rope attached to their roll-bars.  There were no fancy pantechnicons to be seen -the towing vehicles were Ford Zephyrs. 

Jim Clark grabbed pole position for the race and went on to win it ahead of Stirling Moss, with Jo Bonnier in third place.  Bruce Johnstone led the South African contingent in fourth place but dropped out when he hit the bank at Devil's Leap.  Syd van der Vyfer finished the race as top local racer, with fifth place.

Tragedy on the Track

The 1962 race on 22 December saw new world champion Jim Clark, Trevor Taylor, Richie Ginther, and Graham Hill line up alongside the South African and Rhodesian contingent.  Also in the field was reigning 350cc and 500cc motorcycle world champion Gary Hocking, driving a Lotus.  This provided the setting for a tragedy that reverberated around the motor racing world.  Hocking, a Rhodesian, had started his campaign to retain his motorcycle world championships at the opening GP of the season, the Isle of Man TT.  He won the 500cc race on his works MV Agusta, but was immensely disturbed by the death of his close friend, Tom Phyllis, in the 350cc race.  Hocking, just 25 years old, retired from motorcycle racing after the TT, while leading the championship, saying the sport was too dangerous, and set off to pursue a new career racing cars.  Six months later he died at Westmead during the final practice for the '62 Natal Grand Prix, when his Lotus-Climax left the road and somersaulted into a ditch at the same Devil's Leap that had ended Johnstone's race the year before. 

There's no doubt that Hocking would have been a top F1 performer - two months previously he'd broken Jim Clark's lap record at Kyalami, and won his first two races in South Africa.  The section of track where he died still exists as a public road, and is now named Hocking Place in his honour.

Still, the show had to go on, and the Natal Grand Prix that year was won by Trevor Taylor, with Jim Clark finishing second and local driver Neville Lederle taking third.  The track lasted another year or so, and then closed because the cost of repairing the crumbling tarmac would have been too high.  

A Proud History, A Bright Future

Over half a century later, many of the roads in Westmead actually follow the original layout of the track and have names which are a continuing legacy of the area's exciting past - Monza, Daytona, Goodwood, Hillclimb and Hesketh, among others.

Although proud of its fascinating history, the Westmead Industrial Area is today an inviting proposition for very different reasons. It is home to a wide variety of large and small factories and warehouses, ranging in size from 800m² to 30 000m², and offers a host of attractive investment opportunities.