6 replies to this topic

[Gabrci]

Basil van Rooyen sadly passed away last Thursday and I thought he more than deserves his own topic. 

 

I had the pleasure of exchanging a few emails with him about 15 years ago and found him to be the most charming, friendly person and still very passionate about his racing career. 

 

That leaves Paddy Driver, Brausch Niemann and Rhodesian Clive Puzey as the only survivors from the great 1960's South African F1 scene. 

Edited by Gabrci, 19 September 2023 - 08:53.

[WonderWoman61]

Rest in Peace.

[pete53]

I remember he spent a brief period over here in England in the summer of 1966 racing his Mustang.

[Perruqueporte]

Basil van Rooyen sadly passed away last Thursday and I thought he more than deserves his own topic. 
 
I had the pleasure of exchanging a few emails with him about 15 years ago and found him to be the most charming, friendly person and still very passionate about his racing career. 
 
That leaves Paddy Driver, Brausch Niemann and Rhodesian Clive Puzey as the only survivors from the great 1960's South African F1 scene.

That is sad. As a boy here in the UK, reading Autosport and Motor Sport in the ‘60s, Formula 1 racing was definitely not just about the World Championship. South African F1 racing had a real profile and its local participants likewise.

Brausch Niemann certainly is still around, as far as I know. Until relatively recently he and his wife were spending part of each year touring far flung parts of the world on two wheels, and a few years ago he made from scratch a beautiful stainless steel exhaust system for a 500 single motorcycle of mine.

Christopher W.

[barrykm]

R.I.P. Basil. 

 

A great driver and engineer, and by all accounts I've read also a good chap.

 

I clearly remember his exploits in his Lotus Cortina and then his Mustang. But the one of my great 'what-ifs' is what could have happened had he not had that accident at Kyalami in the McLaren M7A/1 in 1969 which brought his racing career to an end at that stage?

 

IIRC the accident was cause by a tyre failure/problem? Chassis M7A/1 was written off according to oldracing cars.com.

[ReWind]

Official death notice (The Sydney Morning Herald)
Obituary by Michele Lupini (Auto [= South African website])

[ellrosso]

RIP Basil Van Rooyen. Very popular member of the South African community in the St Ives area of Sydney and a good bloke to boot from all accounts.