Bob McLean (24 September 1933, in Australia - March 26, 1966) was a successful Canadian racer. McLean's driving career peaked in 1965 with the title of Canada's Driving Championship. McLean died in 1966 at Sebring International Raceway during the endurance race while driving a Ford GT40.
Video Bob McLean (racing driver)
Initial years
Bob McLean started his driving career in 1957 with the MGA, often racing on his home track, the new Westwood Racing Circuit in Coquitlam, located close to his hometown of Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. With all the steps, McLean is well liked and respected on street racing circuits. Bob first met Stirling Moss at Sebring in 1959 when Jack Brabham won the world championship.
In March 1961, McLean attended Rob Racing Motor Stables at the Finmere Aerodrome circuit in England. He made the first three stages on his first trip and made a second trip to England where he completed the last three stages. At the completion of the seventeen-day training course, McLean changed the fastest student lap time. Students must advance from sixth grade to first grade by meeting the lap time requirements that continue to decline in every level.
When he first started the race, his mechanic was Colin Wilson, an Australian colleague, who also worked at Bob's "Royalite" petrol station on the 24th and Oak St. in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. When Colin returned to Australia, Brian Dunlop was Bob's mechanic and remained so until Bob was killed. Bob also works part-time at the tire shop, which sponsors him.
In 1962, he moved to his BMW Cooper "Junior" number called BMC A-Series. Through 1962-63 McLean managed nineteen wins from twenty-two starting, Cooper racing in places from Westwood to Monterey, California. In 1964 McLean moved to a 1.6 liter twin-cam powered Lotus 23B, with which he competed in the lower two-liter class.
In 1965, McLean set off with his Lotus to conquer the Canadian Driving Championship, a business that would keep him traveling away. Through the air and land he traveled to every national event that year, covering nearly 100,000 kilometers. After a season of dominant performances, he managed to win the Championship, a remarkable achievement given the drivers of the "builder" of eastern Canada and their bigger and faster cars. In April of the same year he met with Stirling Moss during a Moss trip to Vancouver.
Maps Bob McLean (racing driver)
Last year
In early 1966, Bob McLean earned a place with Comstock Racing Team, the Canadian racing team. Sharing a ride with fellow Canadian driver Jean Oulette, they tested one of two team-owned Ford GT40s at the 12 Hour Annual 12 hour Sebring Hours Durability for the Alitalia Cup race at Sebring International Raceway in Sebring, Florida, USA. This is a battle dispute between Ford and Ferrari. Shortly after McLean took over driving duty in the fourth hour of the race, his Ford GT40 crashed into an electric pole and exploded into a fire, killing McLean.
Bob McLean left his wife, Kathie, and their two small children. McLean's death was a major blow to the motorsport community. The funeral procession to his final resting place in Burnaby included a line of cars reportedly stretching for about two miles, a proof that he was well-admired. McLean was incorporated into the Canadian Motorsport Hall of Fame in Toronto in 1993. Regardless of reverse reference, Bob McLean was never inducted into the BC Sports Hall of Fame. In recent years, McLean is featured in the Peter Lipskis documentary entitled King of Westwood .
References
- Johnston, Tom (2006) Sport Road Car Racing in Western Canada , Granville Island Publishing, ISBN 1-894694-19-8
- Bob McLean, Canada, [1], Retrieved November 12, 2006. Bob McLean, Pioneer - Sports Car and Road Racing - Inducted 2003 , Greater Vancouver Motorsport Pioneers Society, 2006. Quotes from Canada Track & amp; Traffic January 1966 and May 1966, edited by Tom Johnston, 2004
- Bob McLean, Canadian Motorsport Hall of Fame inductee, 1993.
- Langton-Adams, John E., Canadian Track & amp; Traffic, September, 1961
- Bone, Peter, "Racing School Report", Canada Track & amp; Traffic, Volume 3, Number 7, March, 1962: 32
External links
- Canadian Motorsport Hall of Fame [2]
- Sports Car Club of BC [3]
- Vintage Racing Club of British Columbia [4]
- Jim Russell Racing Driver Schools [5]
Source of the article : Wikipedia
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