1967 Gallaher 500

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Layout of the Mount Panorama Circuit (1938-1986) Mount Panorama 1938-1986.png
Layout of the Mount Panorama Circuit (1938-1986)
A "race replica" of the winning Ford XR Falcon GT of Harry Firth and Fred Gibson Ford XR Falcon GT of Kris Argento.JPG
A "race replica" of the winning Ford XR Falcon GT of Harry Firth and Fred Gibson
A "race replica" of the second placed Ford XR Falcon GT of Ian Geoghegan and Leo Geoghegan 1966 Ford XR Falcon sedan - 1967 Gallaher 500 replica (7708103570).jpg
A "race replica" of the second placed Ford XR Falcon GT of Ian Geoghegan and Leo Geoghegan

The 1967 Gallaher 500 was a motor race for Production Saloon Cars [1] held at the Mount Panorama Circuit just outside Bathurst in New South Wales, Australia on 1 October 1967. The race, which was the eighth running of the Phillip Island 500/Bathurst 500, was organised by the Australian Racing Drivers Club Ltd and promoted by Gallaher International (Aust) Ltd.

Each competing car was required to be a production saloon competing in standard specification as laid down in the manufacturer's standard workshop manual. [2] Optional extras and open exhausts were not permitted. [2] To be eligibile to compete, a car had to be an Australian built or assembled model of which 200 examples had been registered in Australia by 30 September 1967, or a fully imported model of which 100 examples had been registered in Australia by the same date. [2]

In a seminal moment for the race, the first Australian-built V8-powered Ford Falcons competed in the form of seven Falcon GTs and a Falcon automatic. In a race long duel against three Alfa Romeo 1600 GTVs, two entered by Alec Mildren Racing and one by M.W. Motors, the Ford Motor Company-entered Falcon GTs achieved a one-two finish with Harry Firth and Fred Gibson acknowledged as race winners after confusion over lap-scoring briefly left uncertainty over the results. Brothers Leo and Ian Geoghegan finished second with the two Alec Mildren Racing Alfa Romeos of Doug Chivas / Max Stewart and Kevin Bartlett / Laurie Stewart all finishing on the same lap as the winning car. It was Firth's fourth Phillip Island 500/Bathurst 500 victory, equalling Bob Jane's record.

The confusion over the result stemmed from the Geoghegan brothers' first pit stop. Driving the opening stint, Leo Geoghegan's pole winning Falcon almost ran out of fuel coming past the pits. As he could not reverse into pit lane without being disqualified, Leo went in through the back gate to the pits located on Mountain Straight, and came back into pit lane through the paddock gate. Although he had not completed the lap, as he crossed the finish line in pit lane (located before he got to his pit bay) he was mistakenly credited with completing the lap. Firth, who knew this, was livid with the Australian Racing Drivers Club when the Geoghegan car was flagged in first, despite finishing 11 seconds behind Gibson (although he knew that he'd completed his 130th lap, Gibson completed another lap as he had not yet been shown the chequered flag). Firth, immediately protested the result and it was not until later that evening that he and Gibson were installed as race winners. Firth's protest led to long standing animosity between himself and the Geoghegan team who were teammates for the race, with Leo contending until his death in 2015 that he and his brother won the race. [3]

Class structure

Cars competed in five classes based on the purchase price of the vehicle in Australian dollars.

Class A

The lowest class was for under cars retailing for less $1,800. It comprised Datsun 1000 and 1300, Hillman GT, [1] Holden Torana and Toyota Corolla.

Class B

The $1,801 to $2,100 class featured Ford Cortina, Hillman Arrow, and Morris Cooper and 1100S, Renault R8 and Toyota Corona.

Class C

The $2,101 to $3,000 class was dominated by the Morris Cooper S, but also contained Fiat 124 and 850, an automatic gearbox Ford Falcon, Holden HD X2 and Prince Skyline GT.

Class D

The $3,001 to $4,500 class featured the debut of the 'Australian V8's which would dominate the history of the race, represented by Ford Falcon GT, but also contained single entries of Alfa Romeo Giulia, Audi Super 90, Studebaker Lark, Triumph 2000 and Volvo 122.

Class E

For the first time an unlimited class, for cars over $4,500, was included and while many exotic cars were rumoured the class ultimately contained four Alfa Romeo 1600 GTVs and a single Dodge Phoenix TD2.

Practice results

For 1967, race regulations were changed such that all grid positions were decided on practice times, regardless of class. [4] Prior to this, the cars were gridded according to practice times but within their respective classes with the highest class starting at the front of the grid and so on.

The first ten places were as follows:

Pos.No.Entrant [1] DriverCarQual.
153 Ford Motor Company Flag of Australia (converted).svg Ian Geoghegan Ford XR Falcon GT 3:03.0
252 Ford Motor Company Flag of Australia (converted).svg Fred Gibson Ford XR Falcon GT 3:03.2
361 Alec Mildren Racing Pty. Ltd. Flag of Australia (converted).svg Kevin Bartlett Alfa Romeo 1600 GTV 3:03.5
460 Alec Mildren Racing Pty. Ltd. Flag of Australia (converted).svg Doug Chivas Alfa Romeo 1600 GTV 3:05.2
554 Ford Motor Company Flag of Australia (converted).svg Bob Jane Ford XR Falcon GT 3:05.2
662M.W. Motors Pty. Ltd Flag of Australia (converted).svg Paul Hawkins Alfa Romeo 1600 GTV 3:05.7
751J. & B. Motors Flag of Australia (converted).svg Des West Ford XR Falcon GT 3:06.0
849M. Savva Flag of Australia (converted).svg Mike Savva Ford XR Falcon GT 3:06.8
950Gregory's (Motors) Pty. Ltd. Flag of Australia (converted).svg Greg Cusack Ford XR Falcon GT NA
1055Needham's Motors Pty. Ltd. Flag of Australia (converted).svg Warren Weldon Studebaker Lark NA

Race results

PosClassClass
pos
NoEntrant [1] DriversCarLapsQual
Pos
1D152 Ford Motor Company Flag of Australia (converted).svg Harry Firth
Flag of Australia (converted).svg Fred Gibson
Ford XR Falcon GT 1302
2D253 Ford Motor Company Flag of Australia (converted).svg Ian Geoghegan
Flag of Australia (converted).svg Leo Geoghegan
Ford XR Falcon GT 1301
3E160 Alec Mildren Racing Pty. Ltd. Flag of Australia (converted).svg Doug Chivas
Flag of Australia (converted).svg Max Stewart
Alfa Romeo 1600 GTV 1304
4E261 Alec Mildren Racing Pty. Ltd. Flag of Australia (converted).svg Kevin Bartlett
Flag of Australia (converted).svg Laurie Stewart
Alfa Romeo 1600 GTV 1303
5C130 British Motor Corporation Flag of the United Kingdom.svg Tony Fall
Flag of Australia (converted).svg Bob Holden
Morris Cooper S 12814
6C237C. Smith Flag of Australia (converted).svg Charlie Smith
Flag of Australia (converted).svg Barry Seton
Morris Cooper S 12715
7C329 British Motor Corporation Flag of Finland.svg Timo Mäkinen
Flag of Australia (converted).svg John French
Morris Cooper S 12712
8C428 British Motor Corporation Flag of the United Kingdom.svg Paddy Hopkirk
Flag of Australia (converted).svg Brian Foley
Morris Cooper S 12611
9E363S.T.P. Scientifically Treated Petroleum Australia Flag of Australia (converted).svg Arthur Davis
Flag of Australia (converted).svg Paul Mander
Alfa Romeo 1600 GTV 12620
10C540Marque Motors Flag of Australia (converted).svg Damon Beck
Flag of Australia (converted).svg Lakis Manticas
Morris Cooper S 12518
11D355Needham's Motors Pty. Ltd. Flag of Australia (converted).svg Warren Weldon
Flag of Australia (converted).svg John Hall
Studebaker Lark 12410
12C645Martinz Place Flag of Australia (converted).svg John Millyard
Flag of Australia (converted).svg Andy Frankel
Morris Cooper S 12416
13D449M. Savva Flag of Australia (converted).svg Mike Savva
Flag of Australia (converted).svg Bob Wilkinson
Ford XR Falcon GT 1248
14C736Baulkam Hills Service Station Flag of Australia (converted).svg Peter Brown
Flag of Australia (converted).svg Bob Cook
Morris Cooper S 12321
15D558Bill Burns Flag of Australia (converted).svg Bill Burns
Flag of Australia (converted).svg Chris Brauer
Alfa Romeo Giulia Super 12223
16D657 Scuderia Veloce Flag of Australia (converted).svg David McKay
Flag of Australia (converted).svg George Reynolds
Audi Super 90 12225
17D750Gregory's (Motors) Pty. Ltd. Flag of Australia (converted).svg Greg Cusack
Flag of Australia (converted).svg Bill Brown
Ford XR Falcon GT 1219
18D854 Ford Motor Company Flag of Australia (converted).svg Bob Jane
Flag of Australia (converted).svg Spencer Martin
Ford XR Falcon GT 1185
19E464Barnard Auto. Spares Flag of Australia (converted).svg Barry Sharp
Flag of Australia (converted).svg Lindsay Derriman
Dodge Phoenix TD2 11829
20C842 Scuderia Veloce Flag of Australia (converted).svg Bill Tuckey
Flag of Australia (converted).svg Max Stahl
Fiat 124 11831
21C927Victorian Police Motor Sports Club Flag of Australia (converted).svg Fred Sutherland
Flag of Australia (converted).svg Allan Mottram
Ford XR Falcon Automatic 11722
22D948 Australian Motor Industries Ltd. Flag of Australia (converted).svg Bob Young
Flag of Australia (converted).svg Bob Sorrenson
Triumph 2000 11733
23A12Datsun Racing Team Flag of Australia (converted).svg John Roxburgh
Flag of Australia (converted).svg Doug Whiteford
Datsun 1000 11738
24C1047John Caskey Pty. Ltd. Flag of Australia (converted).svg Bill Daly
Flag of Australia (converted).svg George Murray
Fiat 124 11737
25E562M.W. Motors Pty. Ltd. Flag of Australia (converted).svg Paul Hawkins
Flag of Australia (converted).svg Syd Fisher
Alfa Romeo 1600 GTV 1176
26A212 Australian Motor Industries Ltd. Flag of Australia (converted).svg Dick Thurston
Flag of Australia (converted).svg Bill Buckle
Toyota Corolla 11644
27B116Gordon Stewarts Sports Car Centre Flag of Australia (converted).svg Don Holland
Flag of Australia (converted).svg Peter Cray
Morris Cooper 11636
28A31Datsun Racing Team Flag of Japan (1870-1999).svg Kunimitsu Takahashi
Flag of Japan (1870-1999).svg Hideo Oishi
Datsun 1000 11640
29C1141 Scuderia Veloce Flag of Australia (converted).svg Mike Kable
Flag of Australia (converted).svg John Smailes
Fiat 124 11532
30A48Eiffel Tower Motors Pty. Ltd. Flag of Australia (converted).svg Jack Nougher
Flag of Australia (converted).svg David O'Keefe
Hillman GT [1] 11442
31A59B.P. Olympic Service Station (Cowra) Flag of Australia (converted).svg Bob Edgerton
Flag of Australia (converted).svg David Toshack
Hillman GT [1] 11451
32B224Sharton Motors (Maitland) Flag of Australia (converted).svg George Garth
Flag of Australia (converted).svg Geoff Westbury
Hillman Arrow 11447
33C1235Frank Crott Motors Pty. Ltd. Flag of Australia (converted).svg Gary Cooke
Flag of Australia (converted).svg Trevor Meehan
Fiat 124 11330
34C1331C. Kennedy Flag of Australia (converted).svg Carl Kennedy
Flag of Australia (converted).svg Jack Murray
Prince Skyline GT 11339
35B315A. Treloar Flag of Australia (converted).svg Doug Macarthur
Flag of Australia (converted).svg Arthur Treloar
Hillman Arrow 11148
36B425Everybody's Magazine Flag of Australia (converted).svg Jane Richardson
Flag of Australia (converted).svg Midge Whiteman
Morris 1100S 11058
37B518D. Frazer Flag of Australia (converted).svg David Frazer
Flag of Australia (converted).svg Bernie Breen
Renault R8 10957
38C1434Frank Crott Motors Pty. Ltd. Flag of Australia (converted).svg Lynn Brown
Flag of Australia (converted).svg David Bye
Fiat 850 10955
39B613C. Hodgins Flag of Australia (converted).svg Clyde Hodgins
Flag of Australia (converted).svg Kevin Nipperess
Morris 1100S 10856
40D1059Wright Ford Motors Flag of Australia (converted).svg Bruce McIntyre
Flag of Australia (converted).svg Ken Stacey
Ford XR Falcon GT 10613
41A65C. J. Cocran Flag of Australia (converted).svg Chris Cronan
Flag of Australia (converted).svg Steve Parkes
Holden HB Torana 10360
42A76Dependable Motors (Sales) Pty. Ltd. Flag of Australia (converted).svg Bruce Darke
Flag of Australia (converted).svg Bill Ford
Datsun 1300 10259
43B720Marque Motors Flag of Australia (converted).svg Lindsay Adcock
Flag of Australia (converted).svg Mike Schneider
Morris Cooper 10035
44A83Datsun Racing Team Flag of Australia (converted).svg Jim Smith
Flag of Australia (converted).svg John Colwell
Datsun 1300 10052
45B817Vaughan & Lane Pty. Ltd. Flag of Australia (converted).svg Bill Stanley
Flag of Australia (converted).svg Digby Cooke
Morris Cooper 9643
46B919J. Thompson Flag of Australia (converted).svg Jeff Thompson
Flag of Australia (converted).svg Bob Romano
Ford Cortina Mk.I 1500 9649
47D1156British & Continental Cars Pty. Ltd. Flag of Australia (converted).svg Gerry Lister
Flag of Australia (converted).svg David Seldon
Volvo 122S 8626
48C1544H. Taylor Flag of Australia (converted).svg Don Smith
Flag of Australia (converted).svg Herb Taylor
Holden HD X2 7527
DNFA7Dunbier Motors Pty. Ltd. Flag of Australia (converted).svg Lindsay Little
Flag of Australia (converted).svg Stan Pomroy
Hillman GT [1] 53
DNFA4Datsun Racing Team Flag of Australia (converted).svg Barry Tapsall
Flag of Australia (converted).svg Bevan Gibson
Datsun 1300 50
DNFB22Rural Motors Pty. Ltd. Flag of Australia (converted).svg Glen Mackinnon
Flag of Australia (converted).svg John T. Smith
Ford Cortina Mk.I 1500 111 [5] 54
DNFB23Varsity Auto Centre Flag of Australia (converted).svg Rick Radford
Flag of Australia (converted).svg John Prisk
Morris Cooper 6428
DNFC33Gordon Stewart's Car Centre Flag of Australia (converted).svg Mal Brewster
Flag of Australia (converted).svg Bob Skelton
Morris Cooper S 121 [5] 17
DNFC32M. Bailey Flag of Australia (converted).svg Murray Bailey
Flag of Australia (converted).svg John Hicks
Prince Skyline GT 34
DNFC46Denis Geary Motors Pty. Ltd. Flag of Australia (converted).svg Gary Hodge
Flag of Australia (converted).svg Glyn Scott
Morris Cooper S 44 [5] 24
DNFC26J. Leffler Flag of Australia (converted).svg John Leffler
Flag of Australia (converted).svg Les Carne
Morris Cooper S 11619
DSQD51J. & B. Motors Flag of Australia (converted).svg Bob Beasley
Flag of Australia (converted).svg Des West
Ford XR Falcon GT 1287
DSQA11 Australian Motor Industries Ltd. Flag of Australia (converted).svg Barry Ferguson
Flag of Australia (converted).svg Brian Sampson
Toyota Corolla 11745
DSQA10 Australian Motor Industries Ltd. Flag of Australia (converted).svg Bruce Hindhaugh
Flag of Australia (converted).svg Peter Macrow
Toyota Corolla 11646
DSQB21Peter Williamson Pty. Ltd Flag of Australia (converted).svg Peter Williamson
Flag of Australia (converted).svg Alex Macarthur
Toyota Corona 11641

Statistics

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Official Programme, The Gallaher 500, Bathurst, 1st October 1967
  2. 1 2 3 Extra Class in Gallaher '500', Australian Motor Manual, July 1967, page 27
  3. Mount Panorama Bathurst - The Great Race - 1967 highlights
  4. Bill Tuckey, Australia'a Greatest Motor Race, The Complete History, 1981, page 122
  5. 1 2 3 David Greenhaigh, Thomas B. Floyd & Bill Tuckey, Australia's Greatest Motor Race 1960-1999, page 522

Further reading