This was one of the finest racing series of all time, certainly the best US series ever. Brings back great memories, I was at Elkhart Lake in 1970, fantastic.
This is awesome! Man, I loved Can-Am when I was a kid, still do ... McLaren was SO dominant, but I'll be a Chaparral guy forever. These drivers had some SERIOUS guts, and the builders were constantly pushing the envelope. THIS is REAL racing!
I went to the Monterey Historic races and got to see these beautiful CanAm cars up close in the paddock and race. What an awesome sight they were! Thanks for the video ... great to see them when racing in their heyday!
This was the beginning of the domination of the series by Bruce and his team. 5 seasons , from 1967 to 1971 it was a works Mclaren driven by Bruce, Denny, or Peter Revson that was the Can-Am champ. Beautiful cars, and this was a great video.
coming here is making me feel alive. its cold today in montreal, the blocs would give us more but the track would be covered of snow. ps. number 4 won in mt tremblant. great cars great brains... smile, love the video...
Was just at the historic races. Some these Can-Am cars are still running around it awesome to see them out. I wish I had been alive to see these races run originaly. Its also intresting to see how much the track has changed. Practically no fences anywhere, no barriers and few and traps. Of course there really wasnt much in the way fo fences in back in the 90's. I still remember there just being a snow fence and a chain link fence being all that was between me and the cars.
Wonderful footage, a family friend of ours did his apprenticeship under bruce McLaren, Bruce taught him the art of nickel bronze welding in a vacuum atmosphere, which is why McLaren's cars were so superior back then, our friend also owns a few of the can ams and also a car he constructed for the Australian sports car series called a kodeicha, fuel injected 307 chev making 650hp. Small number but big for 1970
This is so great! What a treat! I've lived in the Milwaukee area all my life and just a bit too young to have seen the original Can Am. Regularly go to RA, first started when I was in college around '75. Saw the resurrected Can Am in the 80's but no where near the greatness of the original Can Am. I guess my favorite series at RA had to be IMSA with the Porsche 935's and 962's in the prototypes and BMW M1's in GT. Thanks so much for the video, I must have missed this on ESPN2.
i agree, a majority watches NASCAR. I admit that NASCAR drivers have skills practically drifting in a circle, but its a circle. CAN-AM takes place on a road course with true turns, it is truly exciting to watch. Remember, circles.
Just a reminder that the CANAMs will be racing at the Southern Festival of Speed in New Zealand this month coming. The first race on the calendar is 2/Feb/08 at Powerbuilt Raceway, Ruapuna, Christchurch.
I remember that James Hunt in some interview said that the ground effect skirts made races a test of physical strength, but I don't know how many G:s those old cars had in corners.
i love to come and lisen to the bloc. the driving. i wasnt born but my dad was there with my mom. got pictures. love the yellow. the clear. the shape. its a race car a fast car. a pilot could win le mans with this race can am car with a touch here and there breaking sytem and cardan boltjionts and all. but the can am is very fast very very fast.
Especially having to use manual tools (no air powered equipment) to jack the car up and remove lug nuts. Ahh the days when spectators could stand a few feet from the edge of the track and dodge the debris
How many folks' first hot wheel car was the McLaren, followed by the Chapparal? I have been a Can Am fan ever since I chose those cars at the age of five.
Perhaps a wide car with eight wide wheels, active suspension, ground effect skirts, and a vacuum system to remove air underneath the car could do that?
Heh, okay. 8) I have to constanly explain the whole Can-Am concept to younger people who are more used to NASCAR and a spec-type racing rather than one with aggressive innovations.
Do you know how many G forces there are in Indy 500? I could imagine that quite many because the cars can be optimized for one type of a corner and one cornering speed.
I don't know if I'm right but weren't there problems with too high cornering speeds already in the beginning of the 80's with the ground effect F1 cars? Like you wrote it would be possible to build a car impossible for a human to drive.
Great Video! If only the commentator had spent less time talking about bees, honey & flowers and more working on pronunciation of driver's names. Denny HULME, not Hume. RIP Denny and Bruce.
Much of the series' demise had to do with the 1974 oil embargo added to the spiralling cost. Porsche dominated because Porsche had a fast car with a motor which had been outlawed in Europe. It took many things to kill Can-Am. After Can-Am's demise auto racing was never again unlimited.
It wasn't cheating to use turbocharged engines in Group 7 racing. The rules allowed practically any type of engines and multiple engines as well. Gas Turbine and multiple engines were used by experimental Can-Am cars....
OMG, that place was scary back then.. no wall outside of the kink ?? heck, no walls anywhere really... can you imagine hitting the trees in a Can-Am car at 180mph ?? ugly. Despain with hair is vintage in and of itself !!!
Interests and Hobbies: winning the fom championship raising 1 billion for cancer research designing the fastest car honnoring my fathers memories formula1 for ever Intel is the key. Sincere regards Sir Bernie Bernard Ecclestone for the fom Long life Joseph claude francois simard sun of f1 photographer FERNAND SIMARD equipeclaudefrancois f1 formula1 pilot
Yeah, it's sad how most Americans don't even realize how numb they are to true racing. All they seemingly care about is high-speed wrecks. Real racing died after muscle cars went out of fashion in the seventies.
I know this is ESPN2, but watching this makes me think back to the sweet, sweet days before FOX decided to buy/ruin SPEEDVISION. Maybe they saved it, maybe we wouldn't even have SPEED if it weren't for FOX, but at the same time I just wish they'd keep the NASCRAP to a minimum. Just show the races. Don't stop showing a MotoGP race to show someone TALKING about NASCAR! And, uh, one more thing: "The Racing Chef?" WHAT THE HELL IS THAT? Is the Food Network going to start covering FIA GT races? NO!!!
Very stupid comment the Americans never cared that Mclaren won everything and his team was from Europe. The reason the series folded was due to costs and lack of spectator interest after the Porsche domination. No spectators means no money, no money no series, point blank!
This was one of the finest racing series of all time, certainly the best US series ever. Brings back great memories, I was at Elkhart Lake in 1970, fantastic.
Makes today's racing look very anemic.
This was the best of the best!
This is awesome! Man, I loved Can-Am when I was a kid, still do ... McLaren was SO dominant, but I'll be a Chaparral guy forever.
These drivers had some SERIOUS guts, and the builders were constantly pushing the envelope. THIS is REAL racing!
About my favorite race era and category. Such great footage is rare. Just fabulous.
I went to the Monterey Historic races and got to see these beautiful CanAm cars up close in the paddock and race. What an awesome sight they were! Thanks for the video ... great to see them when racing in their heyday!
This was the beginning of the domination of the series by Bruce and his team. 5 seasons , from 1967 to 1971 it was a works Mclaren driven by Bruce, Denny, or Peter Revson that was the Can-Am champ. Beautiful cars, and this was a great video.
Golden Days and Legendary Drivers, great to see the wonderful Dan Gurney and Sir John Surtees . These were men ..and this was racing
coming here is making me feel alive. its cold today in montreal, the blocs would give us more but the track would be covered of snow.
ps. number 4 won in mt tremblant. great cars
great brains... smile, love the video...
Was just at the historic races. Some these Can-Am cars are still running around it awesome to see them out. I wish I had been alive to see these races run originaly. Its also intresting to see how much the track has changed. Practically no fences anywhere, no barriers and few and traps. Of course there really wasnt much in the way fo fences in back in the 90's. I still remember there just being a snow fence and a chain link fence being all that was between me and the cars.
Now THESE are real race cars! All the old racers like these were the best. Vintage ftw.
Wonderful footage, a family friend of ours did his apprenticeship under bruce McLaren, Bruce taught him the art of nickel bronze welding in a vacuum atmosphere, which is why McLaren's cars were so superior back then, our friend also owns a few of the can ams and also a car he constructed for the Australian sports car series called a kodeicha, fuel injected 307 chev making 650hp. Small number but big for 1970
Absolutely great footage. What a race!
My older brother who still live in Chicago were there! Before my time.
This is so great! What a treat! I've lived in the Milwaukee area all my life and just a bit too young to have seen the original Can Am. Regularly go to RA, first started when I was in college around '75. Saw the resurrected Can Am in the 80's but no where near the greatness of the original Can Am. I guess my favorite series at RA had to be IMSA with the Porsche 935's and 962's in the prototypes and BMW M1's in GT. Thanks so much for the video, I must have missed this on ESPN2.
BEST RACING SERIES . . . EVER !
(former race driver)
i agree, a majority watches NASCAR. I admit that NASCAR drivers have skills practically drifting in a circle, but its a circle. CAN-AM takes place on a road course with true turns, it is truly exciting to watch. Remember, circles.
My Father was there... what a race
What a brilliant road course :-)
Thanks alot mate. Its hard to find footage like this. Bruce and Denny are two of my all time Motorsport heroes.
Great stuff! Probably the best Can-Am footage I've come across here. Thanks!
My fav racing of all lime
Just a reminder that the CANAMs will be racing at the Southern Festival of Speed in New Zealand this month coming. The first race on the calendar is 2/Feb/08 at Powerbuilt Raceway, Ruapuna, Christchurch.
Awesome! It means that the track hasn't been destroyed like spa was
Well done for posting these Can-Am films. I didn't know so much good footage survived. Terrific!
I have this on VHS somewhere. I liked Despain's "Glory Days". He's changed a bit!
Interesting to see Jim Hall experimenting with aerodynamics via a rear-mounted wing on his Chaparral, along with Frank Matich entering his SR3.
+Graham Clayton Looks like the first DRS!
Williams F1 cars had an advanced active suspension system in the beginning of the 90's and it made the cars very successful.
wow! you can even see the wing on the chaparral flip up and down when hes in the straight! Such innovation for its time, only to be banned.
THIS (even with barriers and fences) is where the USGP F1 race should be.
Incredible video
the mclarens look beautiful as usual just like the models i hav
I remember that James Hunt in some interview said that the ground effect skirts made races a test of physical strength, but I don't know how many G:s those old cars had in corners.
At the end of the group C era some of the cars were pulling 3g lateral... Andy Wallace's Toyota broke some of his ribs in a corner at some point.
i love to come and lisen to the bloc. the driving. i wasnt born but my dad was there with my mom. got pictures. love the yellow. the clear. the shape. its a race car a fast car. a pilot could win le mans with this race can am car with a touch here and there breaking sytem and cardan boltjionts and all. but the can am is very fast very very fast.
Very well said.
Amen to that!
WOW, thank you!
Especially having to use manual tools (no air powered equipment) to jack the car up and remove lug nuts.
Ahh the days when spectators could stand a few feet from the edge of the track and dodge the debris
How many folks' first hot wheel car was the McLaren, followed by the Chapparal? I have been a Can Am fan ever since I chose those cars at the age of five.
@mark4tk amen they do the same thing in nhra pro stock drag racing
I was there age 16.
Damn hell if those cars were fast!
@ballplayer1799 I wish they would just show the smaller race series.. or hell something thats actually racing.
fuarrkk the sounds those cars make.
old school DRS at 6:55
Better than Autopia at Disneyland!
Perhaps a wide car with eight wide wheels, active suspension, ground effect skirts, and a vacuum system to remove air underneath the car could do that?
Amazing how Road America pretty much looks the exact same today. Not sure if that's awesome or sad.
I'd prefer the Glen but RA is definitely second on my list.
The toughest drivers wouldn't pass out in the corners...
What speeds was theese cars racing in? Looks bloody fast!
@lugeeman thumbs up every year :D
Heh, okay. 8) I have to constanly explain the whole Can-Am concept to younger people who are more used to NASCAR and a spec-type racing rather than one with aggressive innovations.
Do you know how many G forces there are in Indy 500? I could imagine that quite many because the cars can be optimized for one type of a corner and one cornering speed.
I don't know if I'm right but weren't there problems with too high cornering speeds already in the beginning of the 80's with the ground effect F1 cars? Like you wrote it would be possible to build a car impossible for a human to drive.
driver represent 3% of the succes of a team
men 100%
Thumbs up if you've been to Road America :D
Great Video! If only the commentator had spent less time talking about bees, honey & flowers and more working on pronunciation of driver's names. Denny HULME, not Hume. RIP Denny and Bruce.
Thunder valley.
Much of the series' demise had to do with the 1974 oil embargo added to the spiralling cost. Porsche dominated because Porsche had a fast car with a motor which had been outlawed in Europe. It took many things to kill Can-Am. After Can-Am's demise auto racing was never again unlimited.
F1 1997 European GP: Schumacher hits Villeneuve (MTV3)
after watch the next video
Flying Toca Formula1
DO YOU THINK WHAT I THINK ?
It wasn't cheating to use turbocharged engines in Group 7 racing. The rules allowed practically any type of engines and multiple engines as well. Gas Turbine and multiple engines were used by experimental Can-Am cars....
I'd like to see some to today's so called drivers try this !
yeah,like that jerk h*******
@WorldChallenge you're wrong.
OMG, that place was scary back then.. no wall outside of the kink ?? heck, no walls anywhere really... can you imagine hitting the trees in a Can-Am car at 180mph ?? ugly. Despain with hair is vintage in and of itself !!!
They buy the hype.
Interests and Hobbies: winning the fom championship raising 1 billion for cancer research designing the fastest car honnoring my fathers memories formula1 for ever Intel is the key. Sincere regards Sir Bernie Bernard Ecclestone for the fom Long life Joseph claude francois simard sun of f1 photographer FERNAND SIMARD equipeclaudefrancois f1 formula1 pilot
Yeah, it's sad how most Americans don't even realize how numb they are to true racing. All they seemingly care about is high-speed wrecks. Real racing died after muscle cars went out of fashion in the seventies.
I know this is ESPN2, but watching this makes me think back to the sweet, sweet days before FOX decided to buy/ruin SPEEDVISION. Maybe they saved it, maybe we wouldn't even have SPEED if it weren't for FOX, but at the same time I just wish they'd keep the NASCRAP to a minimum. Just show the races. Don't stop showing a MotoGP race to show someone TALKING about NASCAR! And, uh, one more thing: "The Racing Chef?" WHAT THE HELL IS THAT? Is the Food Network going to start covering FIA GT races? NO!!!
Very stupid comment the Americans never cared that Mclaren won everything and his team was from Europe. The reason the series folded was due to costs and lack of spectator interest after the Porsche domination. No spectators means no money, no money no series, point blank!