I watched this race from the pits and the sound and violent acceleration was unbelievable! The Lolas and Keke were insane! Best racing I have ever seen...
1979 was my first year as PR Director for the series, and I'd have to agree the Citicorp Can-Am had some of the best racing anywhere. Great to see this footage again after so many years.
Being a corner worker (the little white bodies shown in the video) during the mid and late seventies at both Laguna Seca and Searspoint in the SF Bayarea. I was witness to the halcyon days of American MotorSport with the CanAm and TransAm series combined with the great drivers of the era. There is nothing to adequately describe a CanAm car at speed passing less than a meter away. This is a truly wonderful vintage piece of video, thank you for the posting
Possibly the best piece of motor racing film every recorded. This is the last gasp of real animal racing, before ground effects and safety considerations destroyed its point-as the ultimate sporting challenge> You have 10 of the 40 best racing drivers in the world desperate to get into or stay in formula one and possibly get a share of the women waiting in the pits and back in LA. How they were allowed to run these cars on this circuit in 79 is inconcievable.
I was at this race as a kid. Of course, the year before was even more memorable, as George Follmer's throttle stuck coming down off the hill, and vaulted his car over the fence into the hillside where I'd been playing not five minutes before. Needless to say, my Mom was more than a little freaked out as the car was now laying right where I'd been, but I had to go use the porta-potty, so thus avoid being splatted by Follmer's Chevy Prophet ;)
formula one with fenders. fucking glorious
Dogman36 1 month ago
"$60,000 can am race car..." I think it's funny that's what a new Pickup Truck costs now. ...lol...
Stormer94 1 month ago
I watched this race from the pits and the sound and violent acceleration was unbelievable! The Lolas and Keke were insane! Best racing I have ever seen...
ik04 5 months ago
These were 5 liter Can-Am cars - basically F5000 cars with bodies. Not the Group 7 Can-Am cars with unlimited engines that ran a few years earlier.
BarryObummer 5 months ago
1979 was my first year as PR Director for the series, and I'd have to agree the Citicorp Can-Am had some of the best racing anywhere. Great to see this footage again after so many years.
randyuns 9 months ago
They had full helmets in 1979?
WorldChallenge 11 months ago
Being a corner worker (the little white bodies shown in the video) during the mid and late seventies at both Laguna Seca and Searspoint in the SF Bayarea. I was witness to the halcyon days of American MotorSport with the CanAm and TransAm series combined with the great drivers of the era. There is nothing to adequately describe a CanAm car at speed passing less than a meter away. This is a truly wonderful vintage piece of video, thank you for the posting
dqegroup 1 year ago
Possibly the best piece of motor racing film every recorded. This is the last gasp of real animal racing, before ground effects and safety considerations destroyed its point-as the ultimate sporting challenge> You have 10 of the 40 best racing drivers in the world desperate to get into or stay in formula one and possibly get a share of the women waiting in the pits and back in LA. How they were allowed to run these cars on this circuit in 79 is inconcievable.
RobertM408 1 year ago
I was at this race as a kid. Of course, the year before was even more memorable, as George Follmer's throttle stuck coming down off the hill, and vaulted his car over the fence into the hillside where I'd been playing not five minutes before. Needless to say, my Mom was more than a little freaked out as the car was now laying right where I'd been, but I had to go use the porta-potty, so thus avoid being splatted by Follmer's Chevy Prophet ;)
wyrwolff 1 year ago
Great Races... the old Laguna Circuit!!
Olinser06 1 year ago