1968 London–Sydney Marathon

The 1968 London–Sydney Marathon, officially Daily Express-Daily Telegraph London-Sydney Marathon was the first running of the London-Sydney Marathon. The rally took place between the 24th of November and the 17th of December 1968. The event covered 10,373 miles (16,694 km) through Europe, Asia and Australia. It was won by Andrew Cowan, Colin Malkin and Brian Coyle, driving a Hillman Hunter.

1968 London-Sydney Marathon
Daily Express-Daily Telegraph London-Sydney Marathon
Host country United Kingdom
Australia
Rally baseLondon
Sydney
Dates run24 November 17 December 1968
Stages31
Stage surfaceTarmac and Gravel
Overall distance16,694 km (10,373 miles)
Results
Overall winner Andrew Cowan
Colin Malkin
Brian Coyle
Rootes Motor Group
Crews98 at start, 56 at finish

Background

The original Marathon was the result of a lunch in late 1967, during a period of despondency in Britain caused by the devaluation of the pound.[1][2] Sir Max Aitken, proprietor of the Daily Express, and two of his editorial executives, Jocelyn Stevens and Tommy Sopwith, decided to create an event which their newspaper could sponsor, and which would serve to raise the country's spirits. Such an event would, it was felt, act as a showcase for British engineering and would boost export sales in the countries through which it passed.

The initial UK£10,000 winner's prize offered by the Daily Express was soon joined by a £3,000 runners-up award and two £2,000 prizes for the third-placed team and for the highest-placed Australians, all of which were underwritten by the Daily Telegraph newspaper and its proprietor Sir Frank Packer, who was eager to promote the Antipodean leg of the rally.[1]

Race Action

1968 Austin 1800 London-Sydney Marathon Car - Second Place #51 driven by Paddy Hopkirk with 1970 Austin Maxi from 1970 London to Mexico World Cup Rally
The Ford XT Falcon GT (Australian model) which placed 3rd in the 1968 Marathon
Lucien Bianchi - winner of 1968 24 Hours of Le Mans and leader of Marathon until Sydney

Roger Clark established an early lead through the first genuinely treacherous leg, from Sivas to Erzincan in Turkey, averaging almost 60 mph in his Lotus Cortina for the 170-mile stage. Despite losing time in Pakistan and India, he maintained his lead to the end of the Asian section in Bombay, with Simo Lampinen's Ford Taunus second and Lucien Bianchi's DS21 in third.[2]

However, once into Australia, Clark suffered several setbacks. A piston failure dropped him to third, and would have cost him a finish had he not been able to cannibalise fellow Ford Motor Company driver Eric Jackson's car for parts. After repairs were effected, he suffered what should have been a terminal rear differential failure. Encountering a Cortina by the roadside, he persuaded the initially reluctant owner to sell his rear axle and resumed once more, although at the cost of 80 minutes' delay while it was replaced.[2]

This left Lucien Bianchi and co-driver Jean-Claude Ogier in the Citroën DS in the lead ahead of Gilbert Staepelaere/Simo Lampinen in the German Ford Taunus, with Andrew Cowan in the Hillman Hunter 3rd. Then Staepelaere's Taunus hit a gate post, breaking a track rod.[3] This left Cowan in second position and Paddy Hopkirk's Austin 1800 in third place.[4][5]

Approaching the Nowra checkpoint at the end of the penultimate stage with only 98 mi (158 km) to Sydney, the leading Frenchmen were involved in a head-on collision with a motorist who mistakenly entered a closed course, wrecking their Citroën DS and hospitalising the pair.[6]

Hopkirk, the first driver on the scene (ahead of Cowan on the road, but behind on penalties) stopped to tend to the injured and extinguish the flames in the burning cars. Andrew Cowan, next on the scene, also slowed but was waved through with the message that everything was under control. Hopkirk rejoined the rally, and neither he nor Cowan lost penalties in this stage.[7] So Andrew Cowan, who had requested "a car to come last" from the Chrysler factory on the assumption that only half a dozen drivers would even reach Sydney,[8] took victory in his Hillman Hunter and claimed the £10,000 prize. Hopkirk finished second, while Australian Ian Vaughan was third in a factory-entered Ford XT Falcon GT. Ford Australia won the Teams' Prize with their three Falcons GTs,[9] placing 3rd, 6th and 8th.[10]

The route

An eight-man organising committee was established to create a suitably challenging but navigable route. Jack Sears, organising secretary and himself a former racing driver, plotted a 7,000-mile course covering eleven countries in as many days, and arranged that the P&O liner SS Chusan would ferry the first 72 cars and their crews on the nine-day voyage from India, before the final 2,900 miles across Australia:[11][12]

Europe and Asia
Leg Date Start Finish Allowed time Description
1 24–25 November London Paris 12h 32m 2300hrs depart Crystal Palace, London; 0400hrs depart England at Dover on the cross-channel ferry to France; 1132hrs arrive Le Bourget Airport, Paris.
2 25–26 November Paris Turin 13h 32m To Italy via the Mont Blanc Tunnel; 0052hrs arrive Turin.
3 26 November Turin Belgrade 21h 12m Autostrada towards Venice before crossing into Yugoslavia; 2204hrs arrive Belgrade.
4 26–27 November Belgrade Istanbul 15h 31m Through Bulgaria by night into Turkey; 1335hrs arrive Istanbul.
5 27–28 November Istanbul Sivas 12h 25m Crossing the Bosphorus by ferry, through Ankara and the Bolu Pass; 0300hrs arrive Sivas.
6 28 November Sivas Erzincan 2h 45m Heading east across unsurfaced roads; 0445hrs Erzincan.
7 28–29 November Erzincan Tehran 22h 01m Cross border into Iran; 0246hrs arrive Tehran.
8 29–30 November Tehran Kabul 23h 33m Follow one of two routes to Islam Qala in Afghanistan, either the northerly route across the Alburz Mountains skirting the southern shores of the Caspian Sea, or the shorter but more treacherous route along the north edge of the Great Salt Desert;[13] 0219hrs arrive Kabul, where timeous crews can enjoy a 6.5 hour rest before the Khyber pass opens.
9 30 November Kabul Sarobi 1h 00m 0842hrs depart Kabul across an obsolete, loose-surfaced road through the Lataband Pass; 0942hrs arrive Sarobi.
10 30 November – 1 December Sarobi Delhi 17h 55m Cross Pakistan in a day into India; 0337hrs arrive Delhi.
11 1–2 December Delhi Bombay 22h 51m Pass through Agra and Indore; 0228hrs arrive Bombay.

The remaining crews departed Bombay at 3 am on Thursday 5 December, arriving in Fremantle at 10 am on Friday 13 December before they restarted in Perth the following evening. Any repairs attempted on the car during the voyage would lead to the crew's exclusion.[14]

Australia
Leg Date Start Finish Allowed time Description
12 14–15 December Perth Youanmi 7h 00m Depart 1800hrs from Gloucester Park, traversing smooth but unsurfaced road; 0100hrs arrive deserted mining town of Youanmi.
13 15 December Youanmi Marvel Loch 4h 03m Through semi-desert via Diemal to asphalt road at Bullfinch; 0503hrs arrive Marvel Loch.
14 15 December Marvel Loch Lake King 1h 59m Into the Nullarbor Desert; 0702hrs arrive Lake King (crossroads).
1515 DecemberLake KingCeduna14h 52m2154hrs arrive Ceduna.
1615–16 DecemberCedunaQuorn6h 18m0412hrs arrive Quorn.
17 16 December Quorn Moralana Creek 1h 17m 0529hrs arrive Moralana Creek.
18 16 December Moralana Creek Brachina 1h 30m 0659hrs arrive Brachina.
19 16 December Brachina Mingary 4h 10m 1109hrs arrive Mingary.
2016 DecemberMingaryMenindee2h 12m1329hrs arrive Menindee.
2116 DecemberMenindeeGunbar5h 18m1839hrs arrive Gunbar.
22 16 December Gunbar Edi 4h 26m 2305hrs arrive Edi.
23 16–17 December Edi Brookside 1h 00m 0005hrs arrive Brookside.
24 17 December Brookside Omeo 1h 55m 0200hrs arrive Omeo.
25 17 December Omeo Murrindal 2h 06m 0406hrs arrive Murrindal.
26 17 December Murrindal Ingebyra 1h 31m 0537hrs arrive Ingebyra.
27 17 December Ingebyra Numeralla 1h 29m 0706hrs arrive Numeralla.
28 17 December Numeralla Hindmarsh Station 0h 42m 0748hrs arrive Hindmarsh Station.
29 17 December Hindmarsh Station Nowra 2h 01m 0949hrs arrive Nowra.
30 17 December Nowra Warwick Farm 3h 30m 1319hrs arrive Warwick Farm.
31 18 December Warwick Farm Sydney Arrive in procession, Sydney.

Results

Pos No Entrant Drivers Car Penalties (Points)
1 75 Rootes Motors Group Andrew Cowan
Colin Malkin
Brian Coyle
Hillman Hunter 50
2 51 British Leyland Cars Paddy Hopkirk
Tony Nash
Alec Poole
BMC Austin 1800 56
3 24 Ford Motor Company of Australia Ian Vaughan
Robert Forsyth
Jack Ellis
Ford Falcon XT GT 62
4 58 Sobiesław Zasada Sobiesław Zasada
Marek Wachowski
Porsche 911S 63
5 61 British Leyland Cars Rauno Aaltonen
Henry Liddon
Paul Easter
BMC Austin 1800 68
6 29 Ford Motor Company of Australia Bruce Hodgson
Doug Rutherford
Ford Falcon XT GT 70
7 92 Ford Werke Deutschland AG Herbert Kleint
Günther Klapproth
Ford Taunus 20M RS 91
8 2 Ford Motor Company of Australia Harry Firth
Graham Hoinville
Gary Chapman
Ford Falcon XT GT 114
9 74 Citroën Cars Robert Neyret
Jacques Terramorsi
Citroën DS 21 123
10 48 Ford Motor Company Limited Roger Clark
Ove Andersson
Ford Cortina Lotus Mark II 144
11 12 TVW-7, Daily News, Perth Ken Tubman
Jack Forrest
Volvo 144S 146
12 76 Sydney Telegraph-Holden Dealer Rally Team Barry Ferguson
Doug Chivas
Dave Johnson
Holden Monaro HK GTS 327 169
13 43 AMOCO Australia Limited Andre Welinski
Gerry Lister
Volvo 144S 171
14 68 Sydney Telegraph-Holden Dealer Rally Team Doug Whiteford
Eddie Perkins
Jim Hawker
Holden Monaro HK GTS 327 173
15 55 E.G. Herrmann Edgar Herrmann
Hans Schüller
Porsche 911T 195
16 57 Ford Werke Deutschland AG Gilbert Staepelaere
Simo Lampinen
Ford Taunus 20M RS 206
17 30 Dutch National Team Rob Slotemaker
Rob Janssen
DAF 55 208
18 32 Captain F. Barker Capt. Fred Barker
Capt. David Dollar
Capt. John Lewis
Mercedes-Benz 280S 264
19 64 Red Arrows-Evan Cook Limited Flight Lt. Terry Kingsley
Flight Lt. Derek Bell
Flight Lt. Peter Evans
BMC Austin 1800 266
20 19 Avtoexport Sergei Tenishev
Valentin Kislyh
Moskvitch 408 269
21 31 BMC Australia Evan Green
Jack 'Gelignite' Murray
George Shepheard
BMC Austin 1800 332
22 98 Avtoexport Uno Aava
Jurij Lesovski
Moskvitch 408 358
23 1 RTS Motorway Remoulds Bill Bengry
Arthur Brick
John Preddy
Ford Cortina GT Mark II 360
24 4 British Leyland Cars Tony Fall
Mike Wood
Brian Culcheth
BMC Austin 1800 430
25 56 A.J. Percy Alister Percy
Jeremy Delmar-Morgan
Saab 95 V4 Estate 438
26 62 Desmond Praznovsky Desmond Praznovsky
Stan Zovko
Ian Inglis
Mercedes-Benz 200D 455
27 83 Kentredder (Ireland) Limited John Cotton
Sylvia Kay
Paddy McClintock
Peugeot 404 470
28 71 Vantona Eyeware Limited Brian Field
Des Tilley
David Jones
BMC Austin 1800 570
29 72 Ernie McMillen Ernie McMillen
John L'Amie
Ian Drysdale
Ford Cortina Lotus Mark II 587
30 90 British Army Motoring Association-Ford Motor Co. Capt. David Harrison
Lt. Martin Proudlock
Ford Cortina Lotus Mark II 623
31 17 Royal Navy Capt. James Hans Hamilton
Capt. Ian Lees-Spalding
Cmdr. Philip Stearns
BMC Austin 1800 656
32 45 RAF Motorsport Association-Rootes Motors Flight Lt. David Carrington
Squadron Ldr. Anthony King
Flight Lt. John Jones
Hillman Hunter 715
33 7 Avtoexport Alexander Ipatenko
Alexander Terehin
Eduard Bazhenov
Moskvitch 408 776
34 70 Wilson's Motor Caravan Centre Anthony Wilson
Francis McDonnell
Colin Taylor
BMC Austin 1800 816
35 60 Terry-Thomas Team Peter Capelin
Antony Pargeter
Tim Baker
Ford Cortina 1600E Mark II 873
36 77 Big 'N' Cash & Carry Group Robert Eaves
John Vipond
Frank Bainbridge
BMC Austin 1800 873
37 54 British Army Motoring Association Maj. John Hemsley
WO1 Frank Webber
Rover 2000 TC 894
38 20 Avtoexport Victor Schavelev
Emmanuil 'Misha' Lifshits
Valerij Shirotchenkov
Moskvitch 408 942
39 18 M.A. Colvill Mike Greenwood
Dave Aldridge
Ford Cortina Mark I 1,075
40 46 Simca Motors Bernard Heu
Jean-Claude Syda
Simca 1100 1,658
41 33 Miss Elsie Gadd Elsie Gadd
Jenny Tudor-Owen
Sheila Kemp
Anthea Castell
Volvo 145S Estate 2,399
42 47 Nova Magazine Jean Denton
Tom Boyce
MG MGB 2,408
43 11 Blick Racing Team Frizt Reust
P. Grazter
Axel Béguin
Renault 16 TS 2,491
44 44 British Army Motoring Association Maj. Mike Bailey
Maj. Freddie Preston
Rover 2000 TC 2,848
45 78 Supersport Engines Limited Jim Gavin
John Maclay
Martin Maudling
Ford Escort GT 3,665
46 53 S.H. Dickson Sidney Dickson
John Saladin
Jerry Sims
Rambler American 3,746
47 42 P.G. Graham Peter Graham
Leslie Morrish
Michael Wooley
Ford Cortina Savage V6 5,925
48 93 Henry Ford and Son Rosemary Smith
Lucette Pointet
Ford Cortina Lotus Mark II 6,139
49 99 17th/21st Lancers Lt. Gavin Thompson
Lt. Christopher Marriott
Cpl. Charles Skelton
Tpr. Melvin Lewis
Land Rover 2WD 6,787
50 41 Sydney Telegraph Eileen Westley
Marion 'Minny' Macdonald
Jenny Gates
Morris 1100 S 8,111
51 79 P.A. Downs Pat Downs
Anthony Downs
Volkswagen 1200 9,603
52 40 Jim Russell Drivers' School David Walker
Brian Jones
Doug Morris
Vauxhall Ventora 9,775
53 82 D.G. Bray Duncan Bray
Simon Sladen
Peter Sugden
Ford Cortina Lotus Mark II 11,465
54 91 Maitland Motors Bert Madden
Jack 'Milko' Murray
John Bryson
Holden HK Belmont Automatic 11,646
55 8 AMOCO Australia Limited Max Winkless
John Keran
Volvo 144S 13,350
56 69 Dutch National Team David van Lennep
Peter Hissink
DAF 55 13,790
DNF 87 Citroën Cars Lucien Bianchi
Jean-Claude Ogier
Citroën DS 21 Retired-TC29 Nowra
DNF 89 Longlife Group Robin Clark
Martin Pearson
Peter Hall
Ford Cortina Mark II Retired-TC28 Hindmarsh
DNF 52 John Sprinzel John Sprinzel
Roy Fidler
MG Midget Retired-TC21 Gunbar
DNF 36 Sydney Telegraph-Holden Dealer Rally Team David McKay
George Reynolds
David Liddle
Holden Monaro HK GTS 327 Retired-TC20 Menindee
DNF 94 Automobile Club de France-Citroën Cars Jean-Louis Lemerle
Olivier Turcat
Patrick Vanson
Citroën DS 21 Retired-TC19 Mingary
DNF 10 Royal Green Jackets George Yannaghas
Lt. Jack Dill
Porsche 911T Retired-TC19 Mingary
DNF 3 Avon-RAF Motorsport Association First Officer Nigel Coleman
Flight Lt. Allan Dalgleish
Flight Lt. Sean Moloney
Ford Cortina GT Mark II Retired-TC19 Mingary
DNF 95 Nobuo Koga Nobuo Koga
Yojiro Terada
Kazuhiko Mitsumoto
Vauxhall Viva GT Retired-TC18 Brachina
DNF 28 A.N. Gorshenin Alec Gorshenin
Ian Bryson
Mercedes-Benz 280SL Retired-TC18 Brachina
DNF 100 Simca Motors Pierre Boucher
Georges Houel
Simca 1100 Retired-TC17 Moralana
DNF 27 Frank Goulden Frank Goulden
Barry Goulden
Geoffrey Goulden
Triumph 2000 Mark I Retired-TC17 Moralana
DNF 73 Ford Motor Company Limited Eric Jackson
Ken Chambers
Ford Cortina Lotus Mark II Retired-TC16 Quorn
DNF 26 M.J.C. Taylor Michael Taylor
Innes Ireland
Andrew Hedges
Mercedes-Benz 280SE Retired-TC16 Quorn
DNF 13 J.G. Tallis John Tallis
Paul Coltelloni
Volvo 123GT Retired-TC14 Lake King
DNF 25 Chesson Lydden Circuit-La Trobe Brafield Stadium John La Trobe
William Chesson
G. Warner
Volvo 122S Retired-TC14 Lake King
DNF 6 Combined Insurance Company of America Clyde Hodgins
Don Wait
Brian Lawler
Ford Fairmont XP Retired-TC14 Lake King
DNF 88 Simca Motors Roger Masson
Jean Py
Simca 1100 Retired-TC11 Bombay
DNF 9 A.A. Bombelli Alfredo 'Freddy' Bombelli
Tom Belsø
Ford Cortina Lotus Mark II Retired-TC11 Bombay
DNF 34 Keith Brierley Keith Brierley
Dave Skittrall
Ford Cortina Lotus Mark II Retired-TC11 Bombay
DNF 63 AMOCO Australia Limited Bob Holden
Laurie Graham
Volvo 142S Retired-TC10 Delhi
DNF 96 Ronald Rogers Ronald Rogers
Alec Sheppard
Ford Cortina 1600E Mark II Retired-TC10 Delhi
DNF 66 T.E. Buckingham T. Buckingham
J. Lloyd
D. Hackleton
Ford Cortina GT Mark II Retired-TC9 Sarobi
DNF 14 Ford Werke Deutschland AG Dieter Glemser
Martin Braungart
Ford Taunus 20M RS Retired-TC8 Kabul
DNF 39 Addison Motors Stewart McLeod
Jack Lock
Tony Theiler
Alfa Romeo 1750 Berlina Retired-TC8 Kabul
DNF 59 Porsche Cars GB Limited Terry Hunter
John Davenport
Porsche 911S Retired-TC8 Kabul
DNF 22 Giancarlo Baghetti Giancarlo Baghetti
Giorgio Bassi
Lancia Fulvia Rallye 1.3 HF Retired-TC8 Kabul
DNF 21 Hillcrest Motor Company Berwyn Williams
Martin Thomas
Barry Hughes
BMC Austin 1800 Retired-TC8 Kabul
DNF 86 Pan Australian Unit Trust-Southern Cross Management Colin Forsyth
Robbie Uniacke
James Rich
BMW 2000 Retired-TC8 Kabul
DNF 23 P.R.H. Wilson Peter Wilson
Ian Mackelden
Keith Dwyer
D. Maxwell
Ford Corsair 2000E Retired-TC8 Kabul
DNF 35 R.A. Buchanan-Michaelson Robert 'Bobby' Buchanan-Michaelson
David Seigle-Morris
Max Stahl
Mercedes-Benz 280SE Retired-TC8 Kabul
DNF 81 Dr. Bomsi Wadia Bomsi Wadia
K. Tarmaster
F. Kaka
Ford Cortina GT Mark II Retired-TC8 Kabul
DNF 50 Ford Motor Company Limited Nick Brittan
Jenny Brittan
Ford Cortina Lotus Mark II Retired-TC8 Kabul
DNF 97 Lunwin Products Pty. Ltd. Reg Lunn
Clive Tippett
Jack Hall
Ford Falcon XT GT Retired-TC7 Tehran
DNF 15 G.P. Franklin Geoffrey Franklin
Kim Brassington
Ford Cortina GT Mark I Retired-TC7 Tehran
DNF 65 Hydraulic Machinery (GB) Limited Graham White
John Jeffcoat
David Dunnell
BMC Austin 1800 Retired-TC7 Tehran
DNF 84 C.K.W. Schellenberg Keith Schellenberg
Norman Barclay
Hon. Patrick Lindsay
Bentley 1930 Sports Tourer Retired-TC6 Erzincan
DNF 5 Redge Lewis Peter Lumsden
Peter Sargent
Redge Lewis
John Fenton
Chrysler Valiant VE Safari Estate Retired-TC5 Sivas
DNF 37 W.D. Cresdee Dennis Cresdee
Bob Freeborough
Johnstone Syer
BMC Austin 1300 Countryman Retired-TC5 Sivas
DNF 38 Ford Motor Company Limited Bengt Söderström
Gunnar Palm
Ford Cortina Lotus Mark II Retired-TC5 Sivas
DNF 85 Tecalemit Limited Peter Harper
David Pollard
Ford Cortina Lotus Mark II Retired-TC5 Sivas
DNF 16 D.A. Corbett David Corbett
Geoffrey Mabbs
Tom Fisk
BMC Austin 1800 Retired-TC3 Belgrade
DNF 67 C.J. Woodley Cecil Woodley
Steven Green
Richard Cullingford
Vauxhall Ventora Retired-TC3 Belgrade
Source:[15][16]

References

  1. "How It All Began", transcript of contemporary Daily Telegraph report, marathon68.homestead.com
  2. "The great adventure of the decade" Archived 7 December 2006 at the Wayback Machine, Julian Marsh, Citroënët, 1996
  3. The 1968 London Sydney Marathon, 2016, p. 219, (Robert Connor, Jefferson McFarland Publishing)
  4. Daily Express London-Sydney Marathon report, 1969, pp. 43–45, (David Benson, Beaverbrook Press)
  5. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vXO84oYJv10&list=PLDFAEF53606032C88
  6. http://www.uniquecarsandparts.com.au/london_sydney_marathon.htm
  7. The 1968 London Sydney Marathon, 2016, p. 237, (Robert Connor, Jefferson McFarland Publishing)
  8. "Evan Green's Story", marathon68.homestead.com
  9. Ford Falcon XT GT at www.uniquecarsandparts.com.au Retrieved on 24 May 2012
  10. Ford Falcon XT at www.uniquecarsandparts.com.au Retrieved on 24 May 2012
  11. "Timetable of the Marathon", marathon68.homestead.com
  12. "The Route", Alan Sawyer, marathon68.homestead.com
  13. "10,000 Miles of Road Hazards", Jack Sears, marathon68.homestead.com
  14. "Rules that give everyone a chance to win", marathon68.homestead.com
  15. Robert Connor, The 1968 London to Sydney Marathon: A History of the 10,000 Mile Endurance Rally, 2016, pages 283-290
  16. John Smailes, Race Across The World, 2018, pages 327-339
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.