John Fitch RIP

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afwrench
Posts: 412
Joined: Fri Jan 28, 2005 9:13 am
Location: upstate new york

John Fitch RIP

Post by afwrench »

For those that may not know, John Fitch passed away on Oct 31.A WWII pilot and automotive icon.A true American hero.John was the codriver of the car that crashed into the crowd at LeMans in 1955 killing 85 spectators and that spurred him into his avocation of automotive safety.He invented the yellow sand filled barrels we see at exits and toll booths.He was a big part of the Corvette racing team and an innovator of many automotive upgrades.I had the pleasure of talking with him at a shop near Limerock Race Track,which he help develop, and he could not have been nicer.Given his long racing history and first hand insight I asked him who was the greatest race driver ever and without a moments hesitation he said " Fangio". Look at "Gullwing at Twilight" a great short film that, while not the focus of the film, shows what a class act he was. Mike
72,365gtc4,14681,2007 599 GTB
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sam231
Posts: 374
Joined: Tue Feb 08, 2005 5:25 pm
Location: Providence, RI

Re: John Fitch RIP

Post by sam231 »

Very sad indeed. I bought a Fitch Sprint Corvair with all the trimmings from a friend at college in 1969 who had it built by Fitch and raced it at Lime Rock winning his class. I romanced my wife in it, although she got tired of rolling down her window to let the smoke out every time a drop of oil hit the cylinder head (notorious problem with Corvairs, bad seals.) There is a wonderful story about this car which I will tell later.

When I bought my 330 from Paradise Garage in Lime Rock in 2004 his one-off car he hoped Ford would build was in the back of the showroom. I think it was called the Phoenix. Fascinating automobile. Very light, low and sleek. I asked how much it was and I think I was quoted $7-8 K. It is now a real piece of automtive history and I hope it finds a home at the Corvair Museum in Saratoga.

Sam
'72 365 GTC/4 # 14953; ex-owner 330 GT 2+2 # 8025 :>(
afwrench
Posts: 412
Joined: Fri Jan 28, 2005 9:13 am
Location: upstate new york

Re: John Fitch RIP

Post by afwrench »

Hi Sam, glad to hear that you are on the mend. Are you sure that the smoke you mentioned re; the Corvair was from the car and not the romancing you alluded to? All the best ,Mike
72,365gtc4,14681,2007 599 GTB
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Bryan P
Posts: 319
Joined: Tue Sep 03, 2002 2:59 pm

Re: John Fitch RIP

Post by Bryan P »

I got to meet gentleman John briefly at a book-signing at Laguna about 6 years ago; my dad says the closest he ever got to meeting Fitch was when John lapped him, twice, at Lime Rock in '64.
1968 365 GT 2+2
s/n 11199
1955 s.II 500 Mondial
s/n 0556(0446)MD
1965 Alfa Romeo Giulia Sprint Speciale
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sam231
Posts: 374
Joined: Tue Feb 08, 2005 5:25 pm
Location: Providence, RI

Re: John Fitch RIP

Post by sam231 »

afwrench wrote:Hi Sam, glad to hear that you are on the mend. Are you sure that the smoke you mentioned re; the Corvair was from the car and not the romancing you alluded to? All the best ,Mike
hi Mike,

I'll take your lead :lol:
'72 365 GTC/4 # 14953; ex-owner 330 GT 2+2 # 8025 :>(
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