She vows to continue the legacy of the school. Bob Bondurant, the racer and racing school owner/instructor. After all, Bob Bondurant is the only American World Champion Driver, Le Mans winner, and inducted into ten Hall of Fames, so theres a reason theyve been around for 53 years, they know what it takes to succeed. In the same year he drove a works Ferrari Formula 1 car during the United States Grand Prix at Watkins Glen, and handled a Lotus 33 for Reg Parnell at the following Mexican race. He talked me into going to a sports car race at the Santa Barbara airport course. He was 88. When Ontario Motor Speedway opened in 1970, Bob moved his school to the $25 million complex, but the track's troubled management forced him to then move to Sears Point, north of Frisco, which he outgrew, then finally to Firebird International Raceway in Chandler, Arizona. The Bob Bondurant School of High Performance Driving opened in early 1968 at Orange County International Raceway then moved to Ontario and then to Sonoma, where he was an important figure in the track's development. This entire matter has broken Bobs heart. 2021 is a year that called on Pat and Bob Bondurant to focus their new direction; to move boldly and do the right things to fuel their continued legacy. Others followed suit, which forced the brief closure. He called me asking, 'Do you know how to drive?' Not all of the alleged remarks were in relation to the school, though. Bob says, "Look for the burning Ferraris.". No cause of death was released. He was a member of Carroll Shelby's team, racing the famed Cobra. There was a Harley motorcycle shop near where I lived and they wanted to ride my James motorcycle and do wheelies with it. [1] In 1968, it was originally located at Orange County International Raceway in California, later moving to Ontario Motor Speedway in 1970, and to Sears Point International Raceway in 1973. In less than a years time, enough financial and infrastructural damage had taken place to force the legendary racing school into Chapter 11 protection. [1][2][3]. Bob Bondurant School of High Performance Driving. Bob was told that the high-speed corner, Curve Grande, was taken flat-out. The new owners a . Bondurant also raced in Formula 1 for Ferrari before moving to Can-Am with Peter Revson in the Lola T70 Mark II. He won his class at Le Mans and has been inducted into 10 motorsports halls of fame. We're blasting down the road in a red, white, and blue Corvette with the side exhaust pipes making a huge amount of noise down a lot of dirt roads. As with the others, Pat Bondurant didnt respond directly to this allegation, but denied all of the allegations about school management. 2023 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. A roadster set up to HTTP FIA specifications and for track use only starts at $289,995. Among the celebrities Bondurant instructed in road course driving for their movie roles were Paul Newman, Tom Cruise, Clint Eastwood, James Garner, Nicolas Cage, Robert Wagner, Tim Allen and Christian Bale, according to the website. Bob's time was 1:12.9, which put him on the outside of the seventh row next to Jochen Rindt from Germany (Rindt was killed at Monza in 1970). Answering the call, on February 14, 1968, Bob founded The Bob Bondurant School of High Performance Driving. He put the motor back together and it ran strong. "I always. The pair went against Pat Bondurants wishes, informed employees and walked off the job. The allegations, which include belittlement, racism, unequal treatment and fears that they wouldnt get paid, come from a thorough report in the ClassicCars.com Journal substantiated by interviews with Jalopnik. As Bob went through the corner the rear axle broke sending him off the course backward and down a ravine. In 1965, Bob Bondurant takes the wheel of a Ferrari Formula 1 race car during the US Grand Prix. Bob Bondurant, a former champion race car driver who opened a high-performance driving school in 1968 and taught numerous A-list actors for their movie roles, has died. Twice, Bob was badly injured, not from driver error, but from mechanical failure. Tim Rose, the former general manager of the school, also told the abovestory to Jalopnik. "I talked my mom into letting me get a '32 Chevy roadster when I was in junior high; at 14 you could get a Junior Operating License. The Bob Bondurant School of High Performance Driving was the largest purpose-built driving school in the world. (You can judge by this account how quickly the safety crews got to Bob.) He bought a British two-seater Morgan Plus 4 with four cylinders that put out 68 hp and raced it for a year, graduating to a Triumph TR2 with a blazing 90 horses stock. . Bob Bondurant excelled at the highest levels of sports car racing in the 1960s, with perhaps his greatest achievement coming in 1964 when he won the GT class at Le Mans 24 Hours driving with. While recuperating, Bondurant drafted an idea for a high performance driving school borrowing from the experiences he had while training James Garner for Grand Prix. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed, First published on November 14, 2021 / 2:02 PM. In 1967, Bob led the GT Class at Le Mans with co-driver Dick Guldstrand in a stock L88 Corvette Sting Ray until retiring at the 15th hour. American racing legend Bob Bondurant has passed away aged 88. Bondurant began his racing career as many did in the United States, riding an American built motorcycle around an oval track. He is survived by his wife, Pat, president and CEO of the Bondurant Racing School, who vows to continue the legacy of Bob's school. If youd like to read more about it or cast a bid you can visit the listing here. Bob raced motorcycles on a regular basis, but he didn't want to be on a first-name basic with his orthopedic surgeon like many he raced against. The land limitations only allowed Bob to put the small version of his dream training facility in Chandler, Arizona at Firebird Raceway,[5] now known as Wild Horse Pass Motorsports Park. They met at a Russo and Steele auction. In 1966 Bondurant served as a technical consultant for John Frankenheimer's film Grand Prix and trained the film's lead actor James Garner to drive Formula cars in the race sequences. "I figured the ATS wasn't as fast as the Ferraris and after a few laps I began taking the corner flat-out at 150 mph. The next thing you know, he's driving a Cobra down a dark straightaway at 190-plus mph in France, not once, but for hours. This is a Porsche 959 tool kit containing all the items you might need for roadside repairs and tinkering though its perhaps doubtful, This is an original Ferrari Testarossa side mirror thats been mounted to a black carbon base, and signed by Gervadino Design. Doctors told him he would likely never walk again, but through courage and hard work he overcame his injuries. "We get off the plane at the Paris-Orly Airport and there was just a small diesel truck but no trailer and an Opel waiting for us. Former employees of the Bob Bondurant School of High Performance Driving, an Arizona-based racing school thats been around since 1968, said they walked out of work last month in protest of a hostile environment. You're right, that's "tea bagger" stuff but wait! Bob Bondurant, a former champion race car driver who opened a high-performance driving school in Orange County in 1968 and taught numerous A-list actors how to drive fast for their movie roles,. He kept racing, too. The school did not directly respond to this claim. Bob Bondurant America's uncrowned World Driving Champion (2007, Editions Cotty; Bob Bondurant Des Cobra la Formule1 la meme passion (2008, Editions Cotty; This page was last edited on 4 November 2022, at 15:49. Bondurants final race in this car was in 2012 at the Auto Club Raceway Pomona, unsurprisingly hes said to have won despite being 79 years old. He raced mostly in the USA but also spent one full season in the Formula One World Championship in 1966. Full Film: The Opposite of Death Curtiss Motorcycle Co. The veteran F1 guys were spinning out; Bob being a newcomer to F1, but a seasoned dirt-tracker, weathered the storm, so to speak. Bondurant passed away at the age of 88 and is survived by his wife, Pat, President and CEO of the. Bondurant won 30 of 32 races in Corvettes from 1961-63, and he won the GT class at Le Mans in 1964, co-driving with fellow American Dan Gurney. . After the fabled school was purchased in $1.7 million May 2019 out of bankruptcy from the legendary Bob Bondurant and his family by Stig Investments. Its what gives you the confidence to be bold and to push harder. [5], Bondurant died in Paradise Valley, Arizona, on November 12, 2021, at the age of 88. Its the official racing school of Dodge and its SRT performance division. According to his family and the Bondurant Racing School website, Bondurant died Friday in the Phoenix suburb of Paradise Valley. Bob Bondurant, a former champion race car driver who opened a high-performance driving school in 1968 and taught numerous A-list actors for their movie roles, has died. . But that was during a period when fatalities were commonplace it was a dangerous business. Funeral plans were not immediately available Sunday. This particular ERA GT is finished to the specification of the car driven by Bondurant in the 1965 Daytona Continental. How many sharing the road with Bob that day did double takes to make sure they saw what they thought they saw? I talked my mom into letting me get a Whizzer motor bike. (Update: A Fiat Chrysler spokesperson said that due to the ongoing litigation, the company cannot comment on the claims in the bankruptcy documents.). It's either me or the motorcycle.' I told her it didn't work. 'Do you have a license?' "I decided that when I went to Europe, I was somehow going to get a testdrive in a Formula 1 car. I actually live in Gilbert so I let her know. For the 1964 FIA season after finishing 2nd in GT at Sebring, Bondurant was in Europe racing the new 289 FIA Cobras at the Targa Florio, Spa, and Nurburgring. He was 88. "[4], (key) (Races in bold indicate pole position; races in italics indicate fastest lap). If my dad was mentally there like he was [then], we would have never gotten to this place. Mini Bio (1) Bondurant raced cars in the 1960s with some success until a crash at Watkins Glen, in New York curtailed his career. Bondurant won a world championship while racing for Carroll Shelby. Sadly, Bob died in 2021 after some years of poor health. "I went to the Cal Club (California Sports Car Club) and said I wanted to go racing. Robert Lewis Bondurant was born on April 27, 1933, to John Roper Bondurant and Ruth Williams Bondurant of Evanston, Ill. His father owned two luxury car dealerships named Bondurant Motors. When Bob turned two years old, the family moved to Westwood Village, Calif. Bob began his fascination with speed as a three-year-old on his first tricycle with playing cards clothes pinned on his spokes for the sound of the rush. SAI teammates Dave MacDonald and Bob Bondurant co-drive Shelby Cobra Roadster CSX2136 - jointly entered by Steve McQueen & Carroll Shelby - to a 1st in GT & . We had a meeting with Peyton Cramer and he wanted to go to Le Mans in 1967 and I said we gotta get one of the new L88s." By 14, he owned his first Indian motorcycle, and after the devastating death of his mother at 16 years old, he started racing flat track and even bigger Indians and Harleys. The Bondurant Racing School was founded in 1968 and . "My mom and dad had divorced, then mom died when I was 16. I was taking my buddy around the track and said, 'This is really great isn't it?' On Twitter, his family wrote that he "passed away in his sleep after a short illness." "Bob is under care in an assisted facility," Pat Bondurant said, "but. Bob's massive 60-acre complex in Arizona is designed to show students the fastest and safest way around the 1.6-mile road course. Jalopnik has reached out to Dodge for comment on these alleged inconsistent payments and on the Vipers, and will update this story when we hear back. The car you see here isnt an original GT40, its a replica built by ERA GT for Bondurant in the same specification and livery of the car he drove at Daytona in 1965. I read later the axles were the weakest part of the ATS." We may earn a commission from links on this page. I bought it for $40. By the mid-1950s he was racing on four wheels in a British Morgan before switching to a Corvette and winning theWest Coast B Production Championship, taking victory in 18 out of 20 races. Bob's first entry into Formula 1 was one that almost took his life in the ill-fated ATS Grand Prix Car he was about to drive on one of the deadliest tracks in racingMonza. COURAGE. He raced the Shelby Cobra CSX2345 through the 1964-1965 racing circuits and locked in more wins than anyone else on Shelby's team. He was 88. Bob Bondurant, a former champion race car driver who opened a high-performance driving school in 1968 and taught numerous A-list actors for their movie roles, has died. Bondurant once said, My life has been lived in two halves. For the early part of the past year, it appeared that a sorry end awaited the school that had been founded by Robert L. Bondurant, a world champion racer, in 1968 in Orange County, California, after he almost lost his life in a race when the steering arm of his McLaren MARK II CanAm snapped at 150 mph. PHOENIX The racing world is still mourning the loss of world champion Bob Bondurant. Bondurant's closing, the details and terms of which are still unclear, comes after serving the industry for 50 years, following a filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in October of 2018. Bob won 18 out of 20 races in 1959 in the '57, which smartly won Bob the "B" Production Championship and "Best Corvette Driver of the Year" in 1959. Since Bob has never stopped racing (he still enters vintage events), he still has some sneaky moves his experienced instructors have never seen before. He also worked trained actors for race-car movies such as the 1966 "Grand Prix . His steering arm broke at 150mph, and, lying in traction at the hospital, he vividly remembers his conversation with God explaining to Bob that he was needed more on Earth and to start a driving and safety school to save thousands of lives of those otherwise dying on the highways and in motorsports. If were going to leave, lets leave the right way and not be spiteful, he said. Bob is the first and only American to bring the World SportsCar Championship trophy home to America in the legendary Shelby Daytona Coupe No. I took his Jag up the mountain roadit handled really well, much better than my Ford. Many NASCAR drivers were trained at Bob's school for road course training, along with many celebrity actors for driving scenes. The original was made from a lighter gauge mild steel. Some of the best Corvette racing duels were between him and David McDonald on the West Coast during the early 1960s. Bob Bondurant stepped back from the schools daily operations because he wanted to do the fun stuff later in life, Jason Bondurant said. What a career. The walkout came just one month after the schools October bankruptcy filing and caused an abrupt but temporary closure, which the new head of the school called a disruption in service. But former employees claim it was far worse than that. The family has requested privacy at this time. Bondurant had four NASCAR starts, all at Riverside International Raceway, with his highest finish of 18th in 1981. Instead of being kept at the track garages, the Ferrari F1 cars were at a Chevy dealer in town. The pair needed money to race so Bob and Don went to work for Peyton Cramer who owned Dana Chevrolet in South Gate, known for its high-performance Corvettes, as well Camaros. "We still finished 17th, we were that far ahead," Guildstrand laughs. He won his class at Le Mans and has been inducted into ten motorsports halls of fame. "Bachtold built a special motor and said, 'Why don't you take that little motor out of your bike and put this one in'? Bob Bondurant, champion driver and founder of the Bondurant Racing School, passed away Friday in Paradise Valley, Arizona, at the age of 88. In 1967 while driving a McLaren CanAm car at Watkins Glen, Bondurant was seriously injured in a horrific crash when the steering arm failed at 150 mph. "It wouldn't idle under 70 mph. Bob is definitely the kid who owns the candy story! This car become one of Bondurants most prized possessions after it was bought for him as a Christmas gift by his wife, you can read the story of this below: Bob Bondurants wife Pat searched for months and found her husband the best GT40 replica money could buy, a right-hand drive ERA GT40, almost identical to the GT40s he raced for Carroll Shelby back in the 1960s., Bob rubbed his eyes in disbelief when the transporter dropped this car off in the Bondurants driveway on Christmas morning. By 1970, the school relocated to the nearby Ontario Motor Speedway. [6], A statement on his death reads, in part, "Bondurant is the only American to bring home the World Championship trophy back to the U.S. while racing for Carroll Shelby. Following the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake he moved the driving school to Phoenix, Arizona, where he enjoyed close ties to General Motors and Goodyear Tires. Our goal is always to be better than we were before because looking forward doesn't just happen on race day; it happens every day.". Friday, November 12, 2021, the world lost an iconic American racing hero, Bob Bondurant. April 10, 2022 | Fort Lauderdale, FL | Friend. Bob Bondurant was one of the most successful American racing drivers of his era, he also coached a slew of celebrities in the finer points of race car driving including James Garner, Paul Newman, Clint Eastwood, Tim Allen, Tom Cruise, and Nicolas Cage. He is one of the Richest Formula One Driver who was born in United States. Pat Bondurant, again, vehemently denied claims from the former employees about the management of the school. That's when other car owners took notice of Bob's driving ability. Bondurant Racing School was founded in 1968 and has graduated celebrities for car movies like James Garner, Paul Newman, Tom Cruise, Nicolas Cage, and Christian Bale, along with over 500,000 graduates from around the world. November 14, 2021 / 2:02 PM From the professional race track to the big screen, Bob Bondurant, for more than 50 years, has trained anyone with a drivers license and a set of keys to handle any vehicle at extremely high speeds by combining the oft-chased union of precision, safety and self-confidence. In 1968 Bob Bondurant founded the Bob Bondurant School of High Performance Driving and set out to establish one company, working as one team to be the best in the world. As a resulting worse-case scenario, the schools assets were sold off in 2019. He also has a position among the list of Most popular Formula One Driver. After he regained consciousness, Bob crawled out of the ravine, saw the hole in the hedge where the car went throughit was sitting with the windscreen and rollbar sheared off. Your use of this website constitutes acceptance of our Privacy Policy and Terms & Conditions. 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