LEC Refrigeration Racing

Last updated

LEC
Full nameLEC Refrigeration Racing
Founder(s) David Purley
Noted staffMike Earle
Noted drivers Flag of the United Kingdom.svg David Purley
Formula One World Championship career
First entry 1973 Monaco Grand Prix
Races entered10 [1]
Engines Cosworth
Race victories 0
Points0
Pole positions 0
Fastest laps 0
Final entry 1977 British Grand Prix

LEC Refrigeration Racing was a UK motor racing team and Formula One constructor based at Bognor Regis, West Sussex. They participated in ten Grands Prix using a March in 1973 and their own car, the LEC CRP1, in 1977.

Contents

Formula One

1973

In 1973 David Purley hired a March 731 and with backing from his family's refrigeration company LEC Refrigeration, made a largely unsuccessful attempt at Formula One. Purley and the team made their debut in Monaco where the fuel tank broke. Purley did not make the restart at the British GP after he spun off. It was at the 1973 Dutch Grand Prix, however, where Purley carried out arguably his most memorable actions. Upon witnessing a crash which left fellow British driver Roger Williamson trapped in his overturned and burning car, Purley abandoned his own race and attempted to save Williamson, who was participating in only his second Formula One race. Purley later recalled that upon arriving at the scene, he heard Williamson crying for help as the fire began to take hold. Purley's efforts to right the car and extinguish the flames were in vain as he received no help from nearby track marshals or emergency workers, in spite of attempts to encourage them, and other passing drivers, to come to his aid; Williamson died from asphyxiation. Because the marshalls were not wearing fire resistant clothing and the passing drivers believed that Purley was attempting to extinguish his own car, having escaped a fiery crash unharmed; they had no idea that a second driver was involved. The team took their first finish at the German GP. Purley also finished in Italy.

1977

LEC CRP1 Formula One car. LEC CRP1 Donington Grand Prix Collection in 2007.jpg
LEC CRP1 Formula One car.
Cockpit of the CRP1. LEC Cosworth CRP1 at Goodwood 2014 003.jpg
Cockpit of the CRP1.

LEC racing returned to Formula One in 1977 with their own LEC chassis designed by Mike Pilbeam [2] and run by Mike Earle. It was this car in which Purley suffered serious injuries in an accident during pre-qualifying for that year's British Grand Prix. He survived an estimated 179.8 g when he decelerated from 173 km/h (108 mph) to 0 in a distance of 66 cm (26 inches) after his throttle got stuck wide open and he hit a wall. [3] For many years, this was thought to be the highest g-force ever survived by a human being. [3] He suffered multiple fractures to his legs, pelvis and ribs.

The second CRP1 has been restored and has competed in historic Formula One racing alongside a modern replica built by WKD Motorsport. [4]

Complete Formula One World Championship results

(key)

YearChassisEngineTyresDriver1234567891011121314151617PointsWCC
1973 March 731 Cosworth DFV 3.0 V8 G ARG BRA RSA ESP BEL MON SWE FRA GBR NED GER AUT ITA CAN USA
Flag of the United Kingdom.svg David Purley RetDNSRet159
1977 LEC CRP1 Cosworth DFV 3.0 V8 G ARG BRA RSA USW ESP MON BEL SWE FRA GBR GER AUT NED ITA USA CAN JPN —0
Flag of the United Kingdom.svg David Purley DNQ1314RetDNPQ
Source: [5]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mike Hawthorn</span> British racing driver (1929–1959)

John Michael Hawthorn was a British racing driver. He became the United Kingdom's first Formula One World Champion driver in 1958, whereupon he announced his retirement, having been profoundly affected by the death of his teammate and friend Peter Collins two months earlier in the 1958 German Grand Prix. He died in a road accident three months after retiring.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chris Amon</span> New Zealand racing driver (1943–2016)

Christopher Arthur Amon was a New Zealand motor racing driver. He was active in Formula One racing in the 1960s and 1970s, and is widely regarded as one of the best F1 drivers never to win a championship Grand Prix. His reputation for bad luck was such that fellow driver Mario Andretti once joked that "if he became an undertaker, people would stop dying". Former Ferrari Technical Director Mauro Forghieri stated that Amon was "by far the best test driver I have ever worked with. He had all the qualities to be a World Champion but bad luck just wouldn't let him be".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1973 Swedish Grand Prix</span> Motor car race

The 1973 Grand Prix of Sweden was a Formula One motor race held at the Scandinavian Raceway, Anderstorp on 17 June 1973. It was race 7 of 15 in both the 1973 World Championship of Drivers and the 1973 International Cup for Formula One Manufacturers. The 80-lap race was won by McLaren driver Denny Hulme after he started from sixth position. Ronnie Peterson finished second for the Lotus team and Tyrrell driver François Cevert came in third.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1973 British Grand Prix</span> Formual One motor race

The 1973 British Grand Prix was a Formula One (F1) motor race held at Silverstone on 14 July 1973. It was race 9 of 15 in both the 1973 World Championship of Drivers and the 1973 International Cup for Formula One Manufacturers. The race is known for the first lap pile-up, which ultimately caused eleven cars to retire. The accident happened when Jody Scheckter, running fourth in his McLaren, spun across the track at Woodcote Corner at the end of the first lap, causing many other cars to collide and crash. The incident eliminated nine cars, including all three works Surtees cars, while Brabham driver Andrea de Adamich suffered a broken ankle that ended his F1 career. The race was stopped at the end of the second lap, before being restarted over the original 67-lap distance with 18 of the original 29 cars. David Purley and Graham McRae had retired in separate incidents.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1973 Dutch Grand Prix</span> Motor car race

The 1973 Dutch Grand Prix was a Formula One motor race held at Zandvoort on 29 July 1973. It was race 10 of 15 in both the 1973 World Championship of Drivers and the 1973 International Cup for Formula One Manufacturers. Zandvoort returned to the Formula One calendar following a year's absence for extensive safety upgrades to the race track including new asphalt, new barriers and a new race control tower. Jackie Stewart won the race, this Grand Prix being fourth of five wins for Stewart during the 1973 Formula One season, and he became the most successful Formula One driver of all time with his 26th Grand Prix victory, surpassing Jim Clark's record of 25 victories. Stewart's friend and future world champion James Hunt scored his first podium finish.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1977 British Grand Prix</span> Motor car race

The 1977 British Grand Prix was a Formula One motor race held at Silverstone on 16 July 1977. It was the tenth race of the 1977 World Championship of F1 Drivers and the 1977 International Cup for F1 Constructors.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1973 Formula One season</span> 27th season of FIA Formula One motor racing

The 1973 Formula One season was the 27th season of FIA Formula One motor racing. It featured the 1973 World Championship of Drivers and the 1973 International Cup for F1 Manufacturers, which were contested concurrently over a fifteen-race series that commenced on 28 January and ended on 7 October. The season also included two non-championship races which were open to both Formula One and Formula 5000 cars.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dutch Grand Prix</span> Formula 1 Grand Prix

The Dutch Grand Prix is an annual Formula One World Championship auto racing event, held at Circuit Zandvoort, North Holland, the Netherlands, from 1950 through 1985, and after a 35 year hiatus, from 2021 onwards.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Arturo Merzario</span> Italian racing driver (born 1943)

Arturo Francesco "Art" Merzario is a racing driver from Italy. He participated in 85 Formula One World Championship Grands Prix, debuting at the 1972 British Grand Prix. He scored 11 championship points.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Henri Pescarolo</span> French racing driver (born 1942)

Henri Jacques William Pescarolo is a former racing driver from France. He competed in the 24 Hours of Le Mans a record 33 times, winning on four occasions, and won a number of other major sports car events including the 24 Hours of Daytona. He also participated in 64 Formula One World Championship Grands Prix, achieving one podium and 12 championship points. Pescarolo also drove in the Dakar Rally in the 1990s, before retiring from racing at the age of 57. In 2000 he set up his eponymous racing team, Pescarolo Sport, which competed in Le Mans until 2013. He wore a distinctive green helmet, and wears a full-face beard that partially covers burns suffered in a crash.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jackie Oliver</span> British racing driver (born 1942)

Keith Jack Oliver is a British former Formula One driver and team-owner from England. He became known as the founder of the Arrows team as well as a racing driver, although during his driving career he won both the 24 Hours of Le Mans race and the Can-Am championship. Oliver was also the second person to complete the informal triple Crown of endurance racing.

Charles Anthony Standish Brooks was a British racing driver. Also known as the "Racing Dentist", he participated in 39 Formula One World Championship Grands Prix, competing for the first time on 14 July 1956, and achieved six wins, 10 podium finishes and 75 career points. He was third in the World Drivers' Championship in 1958 with Vanwall and second in 1959 with Ferrari. He also scored the first win by a British driver in a British car in a Grand Prix since 1923, driving a Connaught at Syracuse in 1955 in a non-championship race. After the death of Stirling Moss in 2020 and before his own death in 2022, Brooks was the last surviving Grand Prix winner from the 1950s.

Connew Racing Team, commonly known as Connew, was a short lived British Formula One constructor. Founded in 1971 by Peter Connew, the team constructed a single car, the PC1. The first monococque had to be aborted due to a change in regulations and the second tub was known as PC2. However, record books show the car driven by Migault and others as PC1. The intent was to compete in the Formula One World Championship in 1972, but a lack of financial and technical resources meant that the car only managed to start in one championship race, the 1972 Austrian Grand Prix, with French driver François Migault at the wheel. Following the Austrian race, the car competed in a handful of non-championship races before being converted to meet Formula 5000 specifications for the 1973 season. The chassis was damaged beyond repair during the season finale at Brands Hatch and the team closed.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Roger Williamson</span> British racing driver (1948–1973)

Roger Williamson was a British racing driver and a two time British Formula 3 champion, who died during his second Formula One race, the 1973 Dutch Grand Prix at Zandvoort Circuit in the Netherlands.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">David Purley</span> British racing driver (1945–1985)

David Charles Purley, GM was a British racing driver born in Bognor Regis, West Sussex, who participated in 11 Formula One World Championship Grands Prix, debuting at Monaco in 1973.

Pilbeam Racing Designs is a British company which designs and constructs racing cars, based in the Lincolnshire town of Bourne. The company was founded in 1975 by Mike Pilbeam.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tom Wheatcroft</span> English businessman

Frederick Bernard "Tom" Wheatcroft was an English businessman and car collector. He made his fortune through building and construction, and was known for resurrecting the Donington Park motor racing circuit and founding the Donington Grand Prix Collection museum.

Michael Roy Pilbeam is a British motorsport designer and engineer known for his work with BRM, Lotus, Surtees and his own company, Pilbeam Racing Designs. An early design was the experimental four wheel drive Formula One BRM P67 of 1964. As of 2014, Pilbeam's company continued to produce hillclimb cars and sports prototype chassis for endurance racing.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Williams FW</span> Formula One motor racing car

The Williams FW was a Formula One car used by Frank Williams Racing Cars during the 1973, 1974 and 1975 seasons. It was designed by John Clarke.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Penske PC1</span> Racing car model

The Penske PC1 was a Formula One racing car developed and raced by Penske Racing during the 1974 and 1975 Formula One seasons. The car was designed by Geoff Ferris, and was raced by drivers Mark Donohue and John Watson. The PC1 entered and competed in 12 Grands Prix, and was replaced by the Penske PC3 in the 1976 season.

References

  1. ↑ "LEC Formula one results on chicanef1.com". Formula One Results. Retrieved 27 November 2012.
  2. ↑ Walton, Jeremy (June 1978). "Interview: Design on the Hills, Translated by Mike Pilbeam". Motor Sport magazine archive. p. 44. Retrieved 30 December 2019.
  3. 1 2 Anton Sukup (1977). "David PURLEY Silverstone crash" . Retrieved 31 July 2006.
  4. ↑ Brown, Allen. "Lec CRP1 car-by-car histories". oldracingcars.com. Retrieved 22 September 2017.
  5. ↑ Small, Steve (1994). The Guinness Complete Grand Prix Who's Who. Guinness. p. 305. ISBN   0851127029.


This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.