Spiel

OCTOBER 2018 54 Chandler made one of the first vintage racing appearances for a 917 in 1976 at the Monterey Historic Races. He was also known to rent Riverside Raceway and have a 'play day' for his cars and those of a few close associates. As much as Chandler loved his Gulf 917, he preferred to drive his ex-Penske Sunoco 917/30 Can-Am car given that his large frame was not an ideal fit for the 917 coupe. A special 'Otis door' was created for chassis 017/004 to help accom- modate Chandler's height. The door was missing the side window Perspex for extra head room. The paint scheme, with its slightly incorrect Gulf 'moustache', originates from the repaint commissioned by Chandler. Perhaps the most distinctive feature of the car is its tail with unique wheel arches. The origin of the tail shape vexed the 917 spotters and historians for many years. John Thomas confirmed for me that this was a modification made after Otis Chandler acquired the car. In order to accommodate 17-inch wide wheels, Thomas acquired 1975 911 Carrera fender flares that were then adapted to the 917's tail. John Thomas, an experienced racer in his own right, had a very close friendship with Otis Chandler for more than 35 years. Because his friend 'Oats' often drove the 917/30 in vintage races, time trials and track days, 'JT' rolled up hundreds of hours driving and working on chassis 017/004. Thomas feels that the challenge of driving the 917K flat out is the greatest joy: "The 'K' is easy to drive until you want to go really fast. When you want to go really fast, the car changes personalities. I would just go ahead and let her dance. Let her do what she really wanted to do – that's the key to going fast in the 'K'. If you try to control the car 100%, you'll never go real fast. To me, she was my dance partner and you let her lead…To drive it really fast, you gotta have a lot of love in your heart…" Otis Chandler sold chassis 017/004 in 1993. Since coming to Seattle, the car has twice appeared at the Amelia Island Concours, in 2010 and 2017. In 2010 it won the 917 class competition. In 2017 it participated in the Movie Cars class, given its appearance in actual race footage used in Le Mans. The car was also displayed at Rennsport Reunion IV in 2011. Brian Redman drove it for exhibition laps in 2013 at the Pacific NW Historic races. Derek Bell gave the car its last competitive outing in 2009 at the Monterey Historic Races. In the race, a wayward wiring loom literally wrapped itself around a rear axle and disconnected the left side of the engine. Derek explained to me for the book that he was unknowingly battling a case of walking pneumonia: "I wasn't very keen to drive it. I was feeling bloody awful and I've never done a race feeling bad in my life. However, it was only 10 laps so it wasn't gonna be too stressful. I thought, the people have come to see me drive it, as far as I'm aware, and so I drove it. I remember Brian Redman was all over the back of me in a 908/03 and I just felt terrible, the only time in the whole of my damn career. And event- ually it went on to six cylinders which in a way was a great relief." It was not a relief to me, as we had been told by VRM that we could display the car at the PNWR 50th Anniversary party if it was running normally. The party was two months later and it all worked out well in the end. Chassis 017/004 is one of only three Gulf 917s raced by both Jo Siffert and Pedro Rodriguez and it is also the only Gulf 917 to appear in two 24-hour races. With the connection to Le Mans, it remains a very significant car among all of the Gulf 917s. On October 27th it will be the third time that the PNWR has paired the car with one of its period caretakers for an event. Brian Redman presents at VRM for the PNWR 50 th in 2009. Chassis Race Date Drivers Result Notes 017/004 Spa 1000 KM May 17, 1970 Pedro Rodriguez DNF Pole position & Leo Kinnunen (transmission) & fastest lap 017/004 24 Hours of June 13-14, 1970 Jo Siffert & DNF Engine Le Mans Brian Redman (Engine) over-rev 017/004 24 Hours of January 30-31, Jo Siffert & DNF Broken Daytona 1971 Derek Bell (Engine) connecting rod 017/004 Monza April 25, 1971 Jo Siffert & 2 ND Place First Race 1000 KM Derek Bell with fin tail 017/004 Osterreichring June 27, 1971 Jo Siffert & DNF Final 1000 KM Derek Bell (Clutch) in-period race

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