BARCBOYS at work. Here Decker speeds past the pits in the Jake’s Stable Aston Martin DB4-GT

The Aston team car driven by Bob Grossman and Duncan Black suffered the same fate as #8. The Borrani wire wheels which were fitted to take bigger tires were too tight, got super hot and the spindles broke.

The Hats of Sebring. Sherm Decker (L) and Bob Bucher.

The morning of the race, March 25, 1961 and the cars are on the grid.

The 3.7 liter, twin plug per cylinder, triple Weber Aston GT motor. The engine was strong and reliable.

Look carefully. The LF wheel is leaning over badly. The hub has failed and this is the last lap for the big Aston.

Heavy body damage to the Serenissima Berlinetta. Decker was charging hard and went into the famous Sebring hairpin and found his brakes were so cold the car wouldn’t stop. He used the Ferrari as his brakes.

An ironic photo as both Bucher and Decker were superb, winning MG drivers. Here their car flashes beneath the MG bridge.

The indomitable Spankey Smith, pit manager and sticker guru, fastens the Jake’s Stable sticker to the Aston.

Bob Poupard (dark glasses) Spankey (scratching ear) ad Dave Zych (white jacket) confer with a few of the #7 crew.

Denise McCluggage’s daily driver, bought from Luigi Chinetti and driven to 10th overall and first in GT.

The Ferrari is jacked up while having new tires mounted on its wire wheels. Who needs jack stands?

Charley Kurtz exits the BARC Lola. Kurtz co-drove with Rip Ripley a good friend and VW dealer from Ithaca. They would win the under 1.1 liter category.

Charley owned the Lola and went on to win the 1961 SCCA G Modified championship in this car.

Charley aboard the Lola, the Jake’s Stable sticker easily recognized.

Rip Ripley chases Pedro Rodriguez in his Testa Rosa. The Rodriguez brothers would lead the race but fall back to 3rd when they had to stop to fix the generator. Their lights did not work.

Practice and a lovely shot of a couple 59/60 Testa Rosa’s and a formula junior. #10 is the Hap Sharp/Ronnie Hissom car.

The winning car of Phil Hill and Olivier Gendebien. The start of the shark nosed body style.

Phil Hill streaks past the pits. The Ferrari accelerating hard with its typical squat.

The unlikely duo or Jim Hall and George Constantine drove this one off 2.5 Dino to first in 2.5 liter and 6th overall. Back in the day the race cars were driven to and from the track. Here Jim Hall arrives at the airport.

Second place #15 shared by Giancarlo Baghetti, Willy Mairesse and later taken over by Ritchie Ginther and Wolf vonTrips. It is the same car as #14 but with last years open grille.

Von Trips in the rear engined car. The car quite fast with only a 2.5 liter V6. von Trips was sadly killed at Monza later this year.

Richie Ginther in the 246SP. Ginther was not just fast but the best test driver and engineer Ferrari had. He developed this car and it was the prototype for all the rear engined cars to follow.

George Reed and Bill Sturgis drove their Ferrari 59/60 to a very nice 8th overall. They were entered by McCook Window Company. Was that Reed or Sturgis?

Ronnie Hissom and Hap Sharp drove this Testa Rosa to 4th overall beating all the Porsches.

Walt Hansgen leans on his Tipo 63 rear engined Maserati birdcage wearing its Cunningham white with blue stripe livery. Walt co drove with Bruce McLaren but the car failed early on.

John Fitch in one of Cunningham’s front engine Birdcage Maserati’s. He shared the ride with Dick Thompson.

The legend Stirling Moss in the Camoradi Maserati. Moss co drove with Graham Hill and although Moss started dead last due a dead battery he fought his way to the lead but the car failed. Not an unusual result.

Masten Gregory, the Kansas Flash steers the Camoradi rear engined birdcage to its grid position. The car fairly long into the race but as was typical of the fragile birdcages, it was a DNF.

American sportsman Briggs Cunningham shared this Tipo 60 two liter Maserati with Bill Kimberly and later Hansgen joined them. They finished 19th and 2d in the two liter class.

Bill Wuesthoff blew up the #38 Porsche before Augie Pabst could get in

The Peter Ryan / Ludwig Heimrath Canadian Porsche was 9th overall

The The Bob Donner, Don Sessler and Ernie Erickson #47 Porsche was 7th. The Hugus/Connell Ferrari did not finish.

The Chuck Cassel, David Lane #48 Porsche was a DNF. Another engine gonzo as Porsche did not repeat its 1960 success.

Dan Gurney & Jo Bonnier drove the #49 Porsche RS-61. Another engine failure and Gurney & Bonnier were a DNF.

Hans Hermann sits in his #50 Porsche. This RS-61 suffered an engine failure and Hermann did not repeat his 1960 victory.

Bob Holbert & Roger Penske drove this RS-61 to a fine 5th overall and first under 1.6 liters.

Preparing the factory cars in the grass and sand. Could this have contributed to neither of them finishing?

The #53 Lotus 19 of Bob Publicker & Charlie Kolb lost the motor and never started.

The Sunbeam Alpine #40 of Paddy Hopkirk passes the spinning #11 Serenissima Ferrari.

Factory MG's line up on practice day. In 1961 they brought just 2 cars which surprised us. In 1959 & 1960 they brought 4.

Jim Parkinson & Jack Flaherty drove 44 to first in GT 1600. Both were west coast drivers, Parkinson had an MG dealership and Flaherty drove for Kjell Qvale.

The Brit car. Peter Riley and John Whitmore MGA was just 2 laps behind 44 in 16th. The factory typically had one car driven by American’s and one by Brits and another by Canadian. No Canada in 1961.

The team goofs around in the pits. It’s still early in the morning and the cars are in place and ready to go.

The MG factory team refueling rig. They always loved coming to Sebring and made great times of it.

The #4 Delmo Johnson/Dave Morgan Corvette was first US built car and finished 11th two laps behind Denise in the Ferrari. Johnson was a Chevy dealer in Dallas and an avid pilot.

The Nethercutt Ferrari being looked after in the grass. The Nethercutt family was/is Merle Norman cosmetics. Unfortunately on this day the usually reliable Ferrari’s oil pump quit on driver Pete Lovely.

The original hairpin caught many over the years. If you were late braking and tried to make it - many ended up on the sand bank. Here it get Charlie Rainville in his Alfa.

Sunset at Sebring, when the weather is right, is always a treat. Big, red sky, lights on the cars, flame from exhausts.

Jerry Kenyon’s ‘59 Ford has arrived with Joe Tierno, Roy Bishara and SAAB Reutlinger. Nicholas watches as Bishara informs us of his IQ

Approaching the famous Sebring circle. Most of it is still there and it is a reminder of the past one has to go and see.

Phil Hill (center) chats with Denise McCluggage (holding helmet) as Allen Eager (far right) listens in for advice. On the left BARCBOY Joe Tierno is figuring out his camera.

John Fitch leans over Sir Alfred Momo as Momo warms the 3 liter Maserati engine. BARC reader Rocky Ledward identified the man in the center walking along pit row was C. Farris Bryant, the governor of Florida.

Pat & Stirling Moss. Stirling was not the only great race driver. in the family Pat won the European Women’s Championship 5 times and had 3 outright wins and many class victories. She and Stirling drove Sprites in the 4 hour.

I just had to put this photo of me next to the Dino. Future champion racer and photographer at 19 years old.

Joe Bonnier explains to Dan Gurney how he passed Moss using something he learned from Dave Nicholas

How it was done in ‘61. No radios, a pit board you had to read at 120mph. This one tells the driver his last lapwas 3:29. Nicely built fuel drum holder and tubing jack. Guy with hat is keeping the lap chart.

Jesse Coleman has checkered practice and the entire field has come in. It’s time to drive the cars back to town, do maintenance and have a cocktail.

1961 Sebring Program cover

The original Sebring course. 5+ miles of concrete with a bit of tarmac, bumpy, fast. Even today the new circuit retains the flavor.