I enjoy working on and racing my 1970 Triumph TR6 vintage racecar. I’ve been fortunate enough to road race on some world-class tracks and meet some interesting and famous people in the racer community. In 2019, I was invited to attend a three-day race event at Buttonwillow Raceway near Bakersfield, California. There were 60 cars at this event, and my car ran strong, and I placed very well. The master of ceremonies just happened to be one of my racecar heroes, Pete Brock!

Mr. Brock and I got to spend time talking, and he was kind enough to sign the hood of my racecar. In the early and mid-1960s, Pete Brock worked for Carroll Shelby of the Shelby Cobra fame. Carroll was trying to take on Ferrari in the World Championship of Sports Cars, but the aerodynamics of the Cobra held its top speed down to 140 mph while the Ferraris could go 170 mph with less horsepower. Peter Brock approached Carroll Shelby with an idea of a better body shape for the Cobra that Pete thought would increase top speed. After much badgering, Carroll gave Pete the go-ahead to take a crashed Cobra, remove the bashed-up body, rebuild the frame and try out Brock’s new body shape idea.

Pete Brock was given almost no budget and little time to complete the project. Pete worked after regular hours, often sleeping at the shop. A couple of the other Shelby mechanics would also volunteer their non-paid hours to complete the project, which was finished in less than 90 days. When test driver Ken Miles first drove the Daytona Coupe at Riverside Race Track, the new car went 40 miles faster than the original with just the new body shape. The Cobra Daytona Coupe, of which only six were made, went over to Europe on the fast and dangerous road courses, with just a handful of Shelby hot-rodders. In 1965, the Cobra Daytona Coupe won the World Manufactures SportsCar Championship away from Ferrari for the first time in many years. The Shelby Racing Team had a very sparse budget, almost no spare parts, and most of their members of this small crew were unpaid.

I was honored to meet and spend time with Mr. Pete Brock, and I treasure the signature on my racecar hood.

Walt