Rex Flowers: A Story of his 1961 Gemini Mk3A-09 Cosworth-Ford FJ Part 11 of 15
[Continued from Part 10]
min 28.2, followed by Jack Brabham 1min 28.3, Tony Shelly and Chris Amon who tied for fastest among the locals at 1m 29.8s, and Angus Hyslop next in 1m 30.7s. Jim Palmer accepted the offer from Englishman Reg Parnell to drive the spare ‘Bowmaker-Yeoman’ sponsored Cooper T55 Climax 2.7 -after an hours practice, Jim got down to 1m 31s, a time better than the 1m 33s he recorded in practice in his new his Lotus 20B Ford 1.5. Bill Thomasen, David Young, Lionel Bulcraig, John Histed and Rex Flowers made up the rest of the first 14 cars on the grid. In the Pukekohe Championship race, three more drivers made the qualifying time and so were included in the 17 cars on the start grid for the GP – these were Barry Cottle (Lola T1 Climax sports), Ian Green (in Tony Shelly’s Cooper T45 Climax), and Forrest Cardon (Lycoming Special).
Starting Grid in a 3-2-3 layout for the NZIGP:
The 1963 NZIGP – The Unique Motor Books booklet ‘New Zealand Grand Prix 1957-1967’ contains reports from Autocar, Autocourse and Sporting Motorist. The 1963 Sporting Motorist story in the booklet reports on the NZIGP: “When the flag dropped, Surtees jumped into the front and led into the first bend. At the end of the first lap he was still there, 100 yards ahead of McLaren, Shelly, Maggs, Amon, Hill and Hyslop [who was in 7th ] close behind.
The blue car with white wheels and a red noseband on the left is the eventual race winner #2 John Surtees Lola T4 Climax 2.7. On the right of Surtees and almost level with him in the photo is the green car with white bands #47 Bruce McLaren Cooper T62 Climax 2.7. Behind and to the right in the photo of Surtees is the blue with red noseband #3 Tony Maggs Lola T4 Climax 2.7. To the right of Maggs in the red car with a green noseband is #29 Chris Amon Cooper T53 Climax 2.5. To the right of Amon is #4 Jack Brabham in his turquoise with gold noseband Brabham BT4 Climax 2.7. To the right of Brabham and behind McLaren in a dark blue car with a white noseband #17 Tony Shelly Lotus 18/21 Climax 2.5. To the right and behind Shelly in a dark blue car with a white noseband is #1 Graham Hill Ferguson P99 Climax 2.5 4WD. The red car with a white stripe to the left and behind Brabham’s helmet is #7 Lionel Bulcraig Aston Martin DBR4 3.0; and the dark blue car behind and to the right of Brabham’s helmet is #30 Bill Thomasen Cooper T51 Climax 2.0. The low red car over top and well behind McLaren’s helmet is #25 Rex Flowers Gemini Mk3A Ford 1.5 wearing his silver helmet. The red car with the driver’s white helmet to the right and behind Flowers is #68 Ian Green Cooper T45 Climax 2.0. The small low car behind Shelly is #18 David Young in his Cooper T65 Ford 1.5; and behind Young is a tall silver car with a red stripe #22 Forest Cardon Lycoming Special 5.3 – photo Euan Sarginson on the front cover of ‘The Shell Book of NZ Motor Racing 1963’.
#47 Bruce McLaren Cooper T62 Climax 2.7; to the left of McLaren is the turquoise with gold noseband #4 Jack Brabham in his Brabham BT4 Climax 2.7; behind McLaren is the dark blue with white noseband #17 Tony Shelly Lotus 18/21 Climax 2.5; behind Brabham and to his left is as red car with a white stripe #7 Lionel Bulcraig Aston Martin DBR4 3.0; behind Brabham’s helmet to the right is the dark blue car #30 Bill Thomasen Cooper T51 Climax 2.0; over the top of McLaren’s helmet is a low red car and driver with a silver helmet #25 Rex Flowers Gemini Mk3A Ford 1.5; just to the right and behind Flowers is a red car #68 Ian Green Cooper T45 Climax 2.0; behind Shelly is a low #65 David Young Cooper T65 Ford 1.5; behind Young is a tall silver car with a red noseband and stripe #22 Forest Cardon Lycoming Special 5.4 – photo by Euan Sarginson on front cover of The Shell Book of NZ Motor Racing 1963
#2 John Surtees Lola T4 Climax 2.7 leads with #47 Bruce McLaren – his helmet is just visible to the left and behind Surtees’ helmet. On Row 2 on the left is-#29 Chris Amon Cooper T53 Climax 2.5, next to Amon on the right is #4 Jack Brabham in his Brabham BT4 Climax 2.7, and #17 Tony Shelly Lotus 18/21 Climax 2.5 to the right of Brabham. Behind Amon is #30 Bill Thomasen Cooper T51 Climax 2.0. Behind Thomasen is #25 Rex Flowers Gemini Mk3A 1.5. photo Jack Inwood in the book ‘Golden Era of NZ Motor Racing’, page 184
#2 John Surtees Lola T4 Climax 2.7 leads #47 Bruce McLaren Cooper T62 Climax 2.7.. Behind McLaren on the left is #29 Chris Amon Cooper T53 Climax 2.5, and #17 Tony Shelly Lotus 18/21 Climax 2.5. Behind Amon is #4 Jack Brabham Brabham BT4 Climax 2.7. Behind Brabham is #30 Bill Thomasen Cooper T51 Climax 2.0. Behind Thomasen on the right is #65 David Young Cooper T65 Ford 1.5, and on the left is #3 Tony Maggs Lola T4 Climax 2.7. Behind Maggs is #25 Rex Flowers Gemini Mk3A Ford. Behind and between Flowers and Young is #1 Graham Hill Ferguson P99 Climax 4WD –
photo The Weekly News 16 Jan 63.
The 1963 Sporting Motorist story continues: “Surtees and McLaren drew away from the rest, who were headed by Shelly. Trouble was already breaking out among some of the overseas cars, for the Lola of Maggs had jumped out of gear on the starting grid and over-revved, and was soon out with a bent valve stem; and Graham Hill had been unable to find first gear at the start and for almost the whole race had to do without a clutch. Even so, Graham was up past Amon into fourth place on the second lap. Close behind these two Hyslop [6th] raced ahead of Brabham, Palmer, Thomasen, Cardon [10th], Young, Histed, Bulcraig, Green, Cottle and Flowers [who was in 17th and last place].
Rex Flowers Gemini Mk3A at ‘The Loop’, or ‘Lion Hairpin’ (now with the BP sticker on the side of the cockpit) – photo by Jack Inwood in Bruce McLaren Trust Collection sheet 265-03
McLaren’s 4th lap, which was to establish the first official lap record of 1’ 29.5”, and put him right in behind Surtees and after the two had passed the stands side by side four laps later, McLaren took the lead and began to draw away. Meanwhile the overseas drivers who had not started so well were working up through the field, all except Maggs, who was already out [on lap 3]. On the 5th lap Hill was up into third place, though well behind the leaders, and Brabham was past Hyslop and Amon. Only Shelly, lying fourth, was still up with the big boys. Hyslop in turn got past Amon but fell back again, and it was not until lap 13 that he really drew away and set out after Shelly. The leaders had already lapped Flowers, the tail ender on lap 6 and had ended a fine drive with no clutch in the Cooper T65. Now it was Brabham’s turn. As the leaders went past for the ninth time he came in with overheating trouble, and although he went out again he did only another two laps before retiring with a blown cylinder head gasket.
Rex Flowers Gemini Mk3A at ‘’Railway Corner’ entering the main straight – photo by Jack Inwood in Bruce McLaren Trust Collection Sheet 278-03
McLaren soon led Surtees by half the length of the pit straight, with Hill well back behind these two [in 3rd]. The next group was New Zealand’s big three, Shelly [4th], Hyslop [5th] and Amon [6th], with Jim Palmer [7th] in the borrowed 2.7 Cooper some distance back, driving steadily with all that unfamiliar power.
Hyslop was once again showing that he was the best of the home-based New Zealanders. Once past Shelly on lap 17 he began to draw away, as Amon came into the pits with magneto trouble. Now the rot was easily setting in, to show that almost anyone could be in the money so long as he could keep going. McLaren also had been signalling to his pits, and with 20 laps completed he came in to drop two places with a very quick check of his plugs. Next time round he was up with Hill again, sharing second place. But when he came in for a second time, a lap later, his magneto was just about cooked and a fuel tank had been split in a brush with the kerbing while trying to get past Surtees. McLaren’s race was over after 23 laps. Amon also seemed to have turned it in when his car refused to start, although eventually he was to be one of the few mobile at the end, despite two nominal retirements.
Cardon’s big Lycoming had come in to retire on lap 20 with half-shaft trouble and two laps later Ian Green joined him with a slipping clutch [in the Tony Shelly–owned Cooper T45 Climax 2.0]. So by the time the leaders had covered a little over one third of the distance, six of the 17 starters were out, and only Surtees (well in the lead), Hill and Hyslop were on the same lap. Even Palmer had now ben lapped, and as the field continued to spread out it was Shelly’s turn as well. Surtees took him on lap 37 – just under half-distance.
Among the tail enders, overheating had put Cottle [Lola T1 Climax 1.2 sports] out of the race on lap 34 and lost Flowers a couple of laps when he called at the pits to cool down and remove newspaper paper that had blown onto his radiator [it had blown into the nose of the Gemini and was blocking the radiator, in turn, causing the engine to overheat]. Then on lap 40 Bulcraig’s Aston Martin was out with a broken gearbox input shaft.
With around 45 laps gone, Surtees was more than a minute ahead of Hill, who in turn was 18 seconds ahead of Hyslop. More than 20 seconds now separated Hyslop and Shelly, and Palmer was another 20 seconds away in fifth place.….. But Shelly’s Lotus had had almost no oil pressure for the next 15 laps and on lap 62 he retired with main bearing failure.
As Surtees went round for the last time two drivers were seen pushing their cars down the slope towards the start-finish line. After a second stop with paper on the radiator, Flowers had stopped with a seized motor and Thomasen had come to a halt with gearbox trouble.” Rex’s problems were due to a water pump failure causing the engine to overheat and seize-up, so he stopped the Gemini on the outside of the track at the top of hill on Rothmans Curve, in sight of the chequered flag and waited for the final laps of the race. Rex pushed the Gemini over finish line to qualify as a finisher and he was credited with fifth place in the NZIGP, having completed only 50 laps of the scheduled 75.
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