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Steve McQueen in the 1968 movie The Thomas Crown
Affair. (Image source: imdb.com)
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Contrasting two different aspects of the venerable
race now making its 68th appearance...
Yeah, I know it's just my own weird 'N wacky
penchant for paying Attenzione to the never ending Crush 'O Serendipity
occuring to Mwah upon thoust Isle 'O Nofendersville... But it's pretty funny
how I've just recently listened to the CD Audiobook version of Paul Newman; A
Life, which regales tidbits 'bout his brief interactions with Steve McQueen.
And then further solidifying the Karmic Whip
snapping' upon me, by random chance, we ran across The Great Escape at Ye local
Library when I was looking for some new reading materials, just a Fortnight
before this year's 12 Hours of Sebring, for which I've got Zero Clue if I'll be
able to listen to it upon Zed Internetz', or what Confuzer I'll be using?
As All of this Dribble eludes to the fact
that today, exactly 50 Years ago, a momentous victory was taken by SuperMario',
nee Mario Andretti aboard a Scuderia Ferrari 512 racecar.
But the Kicker is, and I know I've scribbled
'bout it before here upon No Fenders, is that what makes the win so memorable,
is that Mario relentlessly ran Qualie' laps in order to Unlap the Ferrari he
was Drafted into in order to Defeat the eventual runner-up's, which included one
of Hollywood's Biggest Movie Stars of the Day...
Yeah, 50yrs ago, legend has it that Mario was
so incensed over the possibility of Steve McQueen winning Sebring, albeit
Revvie', aka Peter Revson did the majority of the driving aboard their
privately entered Porsche 908 Spyder, due to McQueen having his foot in a Cast!
After breaking it in a motorcycle accident two weeks previously - But Andretti
simply couldn't stomach the idea of being beaten by a G-Damn Movie Star!
As Mario not only ran down Revson to Unlap
himself and take the lead, but he had to do it All over again when needing to
make a Splash 'N Go in order to get to the Chequered Flag!
Fast Forwarding a Half Century, this weekend
marks the second year of the Super Sebring weekend, when the FIA's World
Endurance Championship (WEC) and IMSA's Weathertech SportsCar Championship
contest back-to-back races on the legendous' Sebring circuit, where Corvette
once again will contest both events, a la last year.
As it'll be the Corvette C8.R's third and
fourth competitive outings in what Arse-sumedly will be different Spec C8.R
chassis, which Corvette Racing's hoping Thar last outing in Austin with MAGS', nee
Jan Magnussen and Mike Rocky' Rockenfeller garnered much useful Data, whilst
I've got Zero Clue if they'll once again be behind the wheel of presumably the
same #63 GTE Pro entry?
