MOTOR CITY ACTION.

By Peter M. De Lorenzo

Detroit. I'm going to take a break from doing a new Fumes column this week, and instead we're going to feature John Thawley's superb photography from the racing weekend on Belle Isle (you can see more of John Thawley's work in our image gallery here. -WG). John and I go way back, crossing paths at different times in our lives, and WordGirl and I are pleased to be able to feature his superb work in Autoextremist.com. I will return next week.

(John Thawley ~ Motorsports Photography @ www.johnthawley.com ~ 248.227.0110)

(John Thawley ~ Motorsports Photography @ www.johnthawley.com ~ 248.227.0110)

(John Thawley ~ Motorsports Photography @ www.johnthawley.com ~ 248.227.0110)

(John Thawley ~ Motorsports Photography @ www.johnthawley.com ~ 248.227.0110)

(John Thawley ~ Motorsports Photography @ www.johnthawley.com ~ 248.227.0110)

(John Thawley ~ Motorsports Photography @ www.johnthawley.com ~ 248.227.0110)

Editor's Note: Ford has just released "Let's Race" - the third of five chapters in “The Return,” which is a long-form documentary that follows the development of both the street car and race car versions of the Ford GT from the decision to build the cars to the return to the 24 Hours of Le Mans. Watch chapter one, "The Decision," here and chapter two, "The Cutting Edge," here. (FYI: The Autoextremist makes a cameo appearance in chapter one.) -WG

Editor's Note: Many of you have seen Peter's references over the years to the Hydrogen Electric Racing Federation (HERF), which he launched in 2007. For those of you who weren't following AE at the time, you can read two of HERF's press releases here and here. And for even more details (including a link to Peter's announcement speech), check out the HERF entry on Wikipedia here. -WG

Publisher's Note: As part of our continuing series celebrating the "Glory Days" of racing, we're proud to present another noteworthy image from the Ford Racing Archives. - PMD

(Courtesy of the Ford Racing Archives)
Le Mans, France, June 12, 1967. The No. 2 Shelby American Ford Mk IV driven by Bruce McLaren and Mark Donohue in for a pit stop in that year's 24 Hours of Le Mans. The duo qualified on the pole - remember this was a Le Mans circuit minus the contemporary chicanes - with a lap time of 3.24.400. They would finish fourth overall. Dan Gurney and A. J. Foyt delivered the historic victory for Ford in their No. 2 Ford Mk IV, four laps ahead of the second place finishing factory-entered No. 21 Ferrari 330 P4 driven by Ludovico Scarfiotti and Mike Parkes. Willy Mairesse and "Jean Beurlys" (No. 24 Equipe Nationale Belge Ferrari 330 P4) finished third.

Publisher's Note: Like these Ford racing photos? Check out www.fordimages.com. Be forewarned, however, because you won't be able to go there and not order something. - PMD