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Evening With A Legend: Harley Cluxton III
Manage episode 501197211 series 2847910
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Tonight, we have an opportunity to bring a piece of Le Mans to you, sharing in the Legend of Le Mans with guests from different eras of over 100 years of racing.
Harley Cluxton - a notable figure in motorsport history, known for a successful racing career with the Ferrari factory team and the North American Racing Team (NART) in the 1970s, becoming the youngest exclusive Authorized Ferrari Dealer in the U.S. at age 26. But did you know that he played a pivotal role in sustaining and advancing the Mirage Racing Team's legacy at the 24 Hours of Le Mans during the late 1970s?
In 1975, following Gulf Oil's withdrawal from international motorsport, Harley acquired the Mirage team from John Wyer and operating under his company, Grand Touring Cars, Inc., he relocated the team to Arizona and continued to field Mirage prototypes at Le Mans throughout the ‘70s. Under his leadership, the Mirage cars consistently performed well at Le Mans, never finishing outside the top ten, and Harley's commitment ensured that Mirage remained a competitive force in endurance racing during a transformative period for the sport; and as a result he was also recognized as Member #1 of the International Club des Pilotes in 2012, highlighting his significant contributions to motorsport. And he’s here with us tonight, to recount some of that story… on this first-ever LIVE EWAL recording from the Simeone Foundation Museum in Philadelphia, PA.
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00:00 Meet Harley Cluxton: A Racing Icon02:14 Harley's Early Racing Days
03:52 The Ferrari Connection
05:02 Racing Adventures and Challenges
15:18 Transition to Team Ownership; Acquiring the Mirage Team
22:18 Le Mans 1975: A Fuel Efficiency Challenge
23:54 The Mirage Team and John Wyer's Legacy
26:44 The Love-Hate Relationship with Le Mans
30:04 The Hippie Porsche 917: A Unique Ownership Experience
33:18 The Future of Mirage and Le Mans Classic
36:58 Reflections on Modern Motorsport
40:40 Closing Remarks and Acknowledgements
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To learn more about or to become a member of the ACO USA, look no further than www.lemans.org, Click on English in the upper right corner and then click on the ACO members tab for Club Offers. Once you become a Member you can follow all the action on the Facebook group ACOUSAMembersClub; and become part of the Legend with future Evening With A Legend meet ups.
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