Sue Hughes

Sue with her Radical SR3

Sue Hughes, also known as Sue Hughes-Collins, is a longstanding figure in Australian motorsport. She has experience in most disciplines, but is most known for saloon racing.

She has raced on and off since 1988, when she started driving in hillclimbs. Motorsport is part of her family background; she uses her family name of Hughes as a tribute to her father. He was a speedway rider. In hillclimbing, she won her class in the New South Wales championship, and was runner-up in the Australian championship. Her car both times was a Formula Vee.

She was part of the all-female Mazda 121 Challenge in 1996, which brought her into the limelight. Her solid on-track performances gave her a fifth place. The championship was dominated by Tania Gulson and Paula Elstrek.

The next ride for Sue was a Suzuki Swift in the Australian Production GT Championship. Her first appearances were one-off drives, then a full-season in the series followed in 1999. This was a good year; she was third in Class E and won some rookie awards. Hughes Motorsport, Sue’s family team, made its first appearance this year.

She returned to the GTP series in 2000, and switched between a Mazda MX-5, Ford Falcon and BMW 323i. She was not as competitive in these cars as she had been in the Swift; the Falcon was probably the best drive for her. Competing in Class D, she was ninth. Her combined efforts in the BMW and the Mazda in Class B gave her a fourteenth place.

In 2001, she stuck with the BMW. This was her favourite of her three 2000 cars. She was ninth in Class B. Her season ended with the two-hour GTP Showroom Showdown, in which she shared the BMW with David Lawson. They were 24th, with a class fifth.

A break from active competition followed. Sue worked as a driver trainer for BMW, including teaching celebrities to race for a BMW Mini Celebrity Challenge. She also drove the medical car at Mount Panorama.

Her return to the circuits came In 2008, when she raced a BMW M3 in some national production races, but with no spectacular results.

In 2010, she tried single-seaters, racing a 1600cc Formula Ford, but in 2011, she settled on a Radical sportscar as her car of choice. In her first year of Radical racing, she won one race and was fourth in Class Two of the Australian Sports Racer Series. She was also thirteenth in the Radical Australia Cup and earned one podium finish.

Three more seasons in the Radical Cup followed. Sue was not quite as competition as in 2011, although she was active for most of the season each time. She was 22nd in 2012, then 17th in 2013 and 2014.

She continued to race Radicals in 2015 and 2016, increasingly with her son, Jon Collins. 2015 was spent mostly in the Australian Sports Racer Series, in which she was ninth. Her best finish was a runner-up spot at Phillip Island. At different times, she made guest appearances in the NSW Supersports Cup and the Radical Cup.

In 2016, she was 20th in the Australian Sports Racer series, in spite of a bad end to her short season which included two non-finishes. Two appearances in the Radical Cup at Mt Panorama gave her a fourteenth and eleventh place.

Sue was still racing the Hughes Motorsport Radical in 2017. She drove in some rounds of the Australian Prototype Championship. Her best finish was twelfth at Sydney. This continued in 2018, although she also added some rounds of the Australian Radical Cup to her schedule.

She raced in five rounds of the 2019 Australian Prototype series, with a best finish of eighth overall at The Bend. She made two further appearances in the series in 2020, finishing thirteenth and eleventh at Sydney Motorsports Park. Her annual Sydney Motorsports Park appearances in 2021 resulted in another thirteenth and eleventh.

Sue continues to support her son Jon in his sporting endeavours, including Formula 3.

(Image copyright Hughes Motorsport)

Female Drivers at the Bathurst 1000

Christine Gibson

The Bathurst 1000 is Australia’s premier home-grown motorsport event. It began in 1960 as the Armstrong 500, and was actually held at Phillip Island for the first three years.

In 1963, it moved to its present home, as an endurance race for production touring cars, on sale in Australia. Until the mid-1960s, awards were strictly class-based, with no overall results published. Gradually, the rules were relaxed, with foreign-model cars permitted, and overseas drivers, raising its profile within international motorsport. Its length was increased to 1000 kilometres in 1973.

For a long time, the race stuck to its production-car origins. In 1985, it switched to Group A rules, and was part of the ITC global touring car championship in 1987, then in the early 1990s, it became open to cars running to Super Touring spec. This created a rift with the growing V8 Supercar championship, who, due to a TV broadcast agreement at odds with that of the original Bathurst 1000, created their own in 1997. The Australia 1000 ran alongside the original race for three years, before becoming part of the V8 Supercar championship in 2000.

Women drivers have raced in the event almost from the start, and were particularly numerous in the 1960s and 1970s. Christine Gibson (Cole) is the most prolific female starter, with nine attempts to her name. She also shares the best finish for a female driver with Marie-Claude Beaumont: sixth. The best finish for an all-female team is eleventh, achieved by the “Castrol Cougars”, Kerryn Brewer and Melinda Price, in 1998.

Following the inclusion of the 1000 into the V8 Supercar calendar, female participation has reduced drastically. In 2015, the first female entrants for six years were Simona de Silvestro and Renee Gracie.  

Phillip Island (race length: 500 miles)

1962

Anne Bennett/Diane Leighton/Pam Murison (Simca Aronde) – 3^rd, Class C

Mount Panorama (race length: 500 miles)

1963

Lorraine Hill/Warren Blomfield (Morris Elite) – 16^th, Class B

1964

Lorraine Hill/Brian Reed (Hillman Imp) – 13^th, Class A

1967

Jane Richardson/Midge Whiteman (Morris 1100S) – 36^th

1968

Christine Cole/Midge Whiteman (Morris Mini) – 41^st

1969

Diane Dickson/Max Dickson (Ford Cortina) – 31^st

Sandra Bennett/Arthur Olsen (Morris Mini) – 36^th

Carole Corness/Ann Thompson (Morris Mini) – DNF

Christine Cole/Lynne Keefe (Fiat 125) – DNF

1970

Sandra Bennett/Christine Cole (Gibson) – (Holden LC Torana) – 13^th

Lynne Keefe/Arthur Olsen (Morris Mini Cooper S) – 36^th

Carole Corness/Gloria Taylor (Ford Escort MkI) – 42^nd

1971

Jan Holland/Pat Peck (Holden LC Torana) – 29^th

1972

Christine Gibson/Jan Holland (Holden LC Torana) – DNF

Pat Peck (Holden LC Torana) – DNF

Race length: 1000 kilometres

1973

Caroline O’Shanesy/Peter Williamson (Morris Mini Cooper S) – 26^th

Christine Gibson/Sue Ransom (Alfa Romeo GTV 2000) – DNF

Pat Peck/Darrilyn Huitt (Holden LJ Torana) – DNF

1975

Marie-Claude Beaumont/John Leffler (Alfa Romeo GTV 2000) – 6^th

Sue Ransom/Bill Brown (Ford Escort RS2000) – 11^th

Caroline O’Shanesy/David Booth (Morris Mini Cooper S) – 27^th

1976

Marie-Claude Beaumont/Christine Gibson (Alfa Romeo Alfetta GTAm) – DNF

Caroline O’Shanesy/Garry Leggatt (Fiat 128 3P) – DNF

1977

Sue Ransom/Russell Skaife (Ford Capri) – DNF

Janet Guthrie/Johnny Rutherford (Holden LX Torana) – DNF

1978

Sue Ransom/Bill Brown (Ford Capri) – DNF

Robyn Hamilton/Ralph Radburn (Holden LX Torana) – DNF

1980

Sue Ransom/Neville Bridges (Holden VB Commodore) – 22^nd

Alexandra Surplice/John Gates (Toyota Corolla) – 28^th

1981

Christine Gibson/Joe Moore (Ford XD Falcon) – 6^th

Alexandra Surplice/Doug Clark (Toyota Corolla) – DNF

1983

Christine Gibson/Bob Muir (Nissan Pulsar) – DNF

1984

Alexandra Surplice/Bob Holden (Toyota Sprinter) – 26^th

Christine Gibson/Glenn Seton (Nissan Pulsar) – DNF

1987 (ITC)

Annette Meeuvissen/Mercedes Stermitz/Roland Ratzenberger (BMW M3) – DNF

1990

Heather Spurle/Bob Jones (Holden VL Commodore) – 26^th

1994

Melinda Price/Garry Jones/Andrew Reid (Toyota Corolla) – DNF

1997

Jenni Thompson/Aaron McGill/Terry Skene (Ford Mondeo) – DNF

FAI Australia 1000 (race length: 1000km)

Melinda Price/Kerryn Brewer (Holden VS Commodore) – 12^th

The Castrol Cougars: (l-r) Melinda Price, Kim Watkins (never drove), Kerryn Brewer

1998

Heidi O’Neil/Paula Elstrek/Damien Digby (Ford Mondeo) – DNF

Jenni Thompson/Mike Fitzgerald (Peugeot 405) – DNF

FAI Australia 1000

Melinda Price/Kerryn Brewer (Holden VS Commodore) – 11^th

Nicole Pretty/Nathan Pretty/Grant Johnson (Holden VS Commodore) - DNF

1999

(race length: 500 miles)

Debbie Chapman/Dennis Chapman (BMW 320i) – 10^th

Jenni Thompson/Allan Letcher (BMW 318i) – 12^th

Leanne Ferrier (Tander)/Dean Canto (Ford Mondeo) – DNF

FAI Australia 1000 (race length: 1000 miles)

Melinda Price/Dean Lindstrom (Holden VS Commodore) – 17^th

2000

Melinda Price/Dean Lindstrom (Holden VS Commodore) – 20^th

2001

Leanne Ferrier/Paul Dumbrell (Holden VX Commodore) – DNF

2009

Leanne Tander/David Wall (Ford BF Falcon) – 29^th

2015

Renee Gracie/Simona de Silvestro (Ford FG X Falcon) – 21<sup>st

2016</sup>

Renee Gracie/Simona de Silvestro (Nissan Altima) - 14th

2017
Simona de Silvestro/David Russell (Nissan Altima) - DNF

2018
Simona de Silvestro/Alex Rullo (Nissan Altima) - 14th

2019
Simona de Silvestro/Alex Rullo (Nissan Altima) - 14th

2023

Simona de Silvestro/Kai Allen (Ford Mustang S650) - 20th

(C. Gibson image copyright News Corp Australia)

Lauren Gray

Lauren came to prominence as a frontrunner in the Australian Formula Three Trophy in 2006. In 2010, she made headlines, as part of the first father-daughter team to finish the Bathurst 12 Hour.

Her first major racing car was not a single-seater, but a Toyota Corolla, which she used in Improved Production races at State and National level, in 2003. That year, she made her first appearance in the Australian Production Car Championship, taking a guest spot in a smaller Proton Satria.

In 2004, she raced in the APCC, in the Satria again, finishing fourth in Class D after twelve races. This was in addition to some more club racing in the Corolla.

The following season, she took her first steps into single-seater racing. Bravely, she bypassed Formula Ford and Formula Vee, and jumped straight into the B class of the Australian Formula 3 championship. Despite her lack of open-wheel experience, she was fifth in the class, driving for the dominant Scud Racing team.

As well as a ten-race F3 schedule, Lauren was very busy in 2005, with a full programme of Production Car racing in a Toyota Echo Sportivo. She was third in Class C, and tenth overall.

2006 was another very full season. Lauren moved into the Trophy class of Australian F3, still with Scud Racing. She was one of the leading drivers, with two wins, nine additional podiums and an overall runner-up spot. Her F3 programme also took in the two Australian Grand Prix support races.

Touring cars had certainly not been forgotten. She returned to Class C of the APCC, and the Toyota Echo, and was third in class, fifteenth overall. This year, the Toyota was running under the “Lauren Gray Motorsport” banner. The team ran two cars, one for Lauren and one for Amber Anderson. As well as the APCC, Lauren Gray Motorsport made appearances in other production saloon racing series, and picked up points everywhere.  

She moved up to the National class of Australian F3 in 2007, and was second, driving a 2001-spec car. Another season in the APCC gave her a fifth in Class C, although the Echo was not really powerful enough to compete in the overall standings. She was 24^th in the championship.

In January, Lauren had been part of an all-female team for the Bathurst 12 Hours, with Leanne Tander, Samantha Reid and Christina Orr. They drove a Holden Astra, but did not finish.

Despite her obvious skill in a single-seater, she returned to saloon competition full-time for 2008, in the Australian Manufacturers' Championship. Her car was still the Toyota Echo and she won her class overall. During the season, she scored many class wins and even a few top ten overall finishes, despite having one of the smallest and least powerful cars in the field.

In 2009, she drove again at Bathurst for 12 Hour race, and recorded her first finish. Driving a BMW 130i with John deVeth and Rob Thomson, she was second in class and 19th overall. Unfortunately, this was her only big race of the season, although she did make some appearances in the Victorian State Improved Production Car series, driving a Toyota Corolla.

She contested the 2010 Australian Production Car Championship in a Toyota Corolla Sportivo, driving for her own team, and was tenth overall, although she only contested six rounds. At Phillip Island, her sister Maddison drove with her. Her father, Michael, was another team-mate to her, and the family theme continued at the Bathurst 12 Hours. The Lauren Gray Motorsport Corolla was fourth in class D. This was the first time that a father-daughter team had started the race, after Tania Gulson failed to qualify with her own family team. Tony Head was the Grays’ third driver. They were 19^th overall.

As well as the APRC, she did a few races in V8 Utes, driving a Holden Commodore pickup.

2011 was somewhat of a disjointed season, with some Production races in the Corolla, but not really enough to make a dent in the standings. She was sixth in Class D. The rest of the season was spent in a Holden Torana, in Sports Sedan races, at State and National level.

In 2012, she was set to contest the Aussie Racing Cars series, in a Holden Commodore, with the LaFemme Racing Academy team. This did not happen, and she spent the season hopping between Aussie Racing Cars and the Australian Production Championship, in a Commodore and a Toyota Echo respectively. She was driving for her own team, alongside her sister Maddison and Samantha Bennett. Lauren was third in Class E, just above Maddison. She did less well in Aussie Racing Cars, finishing 33^rd overall after a part-season.

2013 was spent mostly on “maternity leave”, but she returned to the circuits in 2014, again hopping between championships. Jumping back into a single-seater, she scored a few points in the Victorian State Formula Vee Championship, and did a part-season in the Manufacturers' Championship. Her car was a Ford Falcon, and her best result was an eleventh place in class, at Phillip Island. She was running in Class B, for Production cars. A part-season in the APCC, running the same car in Class C, gave her a fifteenth place overall. She was driving for the Australian Auto Wreckers team.

2015 was a quiet one for Lauren, on the competition front anyway. She has been following the US Rally Championship in America, with the FY Racing team. It seems that her future plans may lie in this direction.

In 2016, she did not race competitively, but Lauren Gray Motorsport ran cars for Ellexandra Best and Liam Thompson in the APC. She continued to run cars for Ellexandra and Michael Gray in 2017. She continued as a team owner and manager in 2018 and 2019.

(Image from http://www.amchamp.com.au/)

Female Drivers in Touring Cars: the Netherlands

Ina van Kooten, Ann Vader and Mabel t'Hooft are congratulated by actress Yoka Beretti after a record attempt at Zandvoort, driving a Ford Corsair, in 1965.

Saloon and touring car racing in the Netherlands has attracted a relatively large number of female drivers since the 1960s. This post has been created from existing content, in an ongoing attempt to make Speedqueens easier to read. New drivers will be added in future. Liesette Braams and Henny Hemmes now have their own profiles.

Lilian Andela - active in Dutch motorsport between the late 1970s and early 1990s. She began her career as a rally navigator, in the 1978 Tulip Rally, in a Datsun. In 1988, she competed in the Dutch Touring Car Championship, in a Talbot Simca Rallye 3, in the Super Touring Group A section. She was not among the front-runners. In 1990 and 1991, she raced in the Citroen AX GTI Cup. In 1990, she was again not among the front-runners, but did quite well in the Ladies’ class. In 1991, the story seems to have been the same, although results from this year are proving hard to track down.

Theresia Balk - began racing almost as a joke in the 2005 Formula Woman Nations Cup, with no prior experience and no motorsport background. After that, she bought a BMW E36 and raced in a one-make series in the Netherlands. She signed up for another year but a sponsor pulled out. With the funding she had, she entered some rounds of the 2007 Suzuki Swift Cup. Her time in the series was marred by an early-season accident, caused by the wrong wheelnuts being supplied by the car preparer. A couple of years back racing BMWs followed, working on a very low budget in the Toerwagen Diesel Cup and some rounds of the Dutch Supercar Challenge, where her underpowered car was not big enough to compete. She stopped competing due to financial pressures, and because she was no longer enjoying herself. During her time on-track, Frans Verschuur once got so frustrated at not being able to pass her that he bit his tongue. 

Rianne Bergman – races in the PTC Cup for production cars in the Netherlands. She began racing in 2013, when she was 17, driving for the Lohuis team. Her first car was a Citroen C1, changing to a Toyota Aygo for some of 2014, then back to a Citroen. She won the championship’s Ladies’ Cup in 2014, after really announcing herself in her first year, with a second place in her first race. She was seventh in the combined championship, with a best finish of third. Her best 2015 finish was fourth, at Zandvoort. She was second in the Ladies' Cup, and fifth overall in the championship. She raced a C1 again in 2016, and was fourth in the championship, with two third places. In 2017, she won her first race in the PTC (also known as the City Bug Cup) and was third in the championship. She did at least some races in the C1 in 2018, but does not appear to have competed much. She returned to the tracks mid-2019, racing in the DTC 2 championship in a sportscar run by Stayfast. She won at least two races. In 2021, she raced in the Mazda MX5 Cup, finishing fourteenth and twelfth in the opening rounds of the season. She returned to the PTC series in 2022 and 2023.

Eline Braspenning - races in the Dutch Supercar Challenge. Her debut year was 2007, when she drove a in a couple of rounds of the DNTR series, finishing on the podium twice. She moved on to the Supercar Challenge in 2008. Her car for the 2008 season was a BMW Z3 Coupe, and her co-driver was Esra van Elk. They were driving for Eline’s father’s Braspenning Racing team. Their best finish was third, and they were tenth in the Sport class at the end of the year. During the winter off-season, they took part in one round of the Dutch Winter Endurance Championship, in the same car, before returning to Supercars in 2009 with a BMW E36 M3. Eline, now driving with Iman van Schelven, was fifth in the Sport class after six podium finishes and one pole position. She drove in the Supersport class in 2010, in an E46 this time, but it was less reliable, and she could only manage a best finish of fifteenth. Her usual co-driver was her father, Ron Braspenning. In 2011, she competed in Supercars again, but only managed to enter three rounds, still with Ron in the BMW. They were 18th overall. It was a similar story in 2012: driving in the Sport 1 class, she and Ron were tenth, after four races. Their car was still the BMW. In 2014, Eline and her father competed in the Dutch Supercar Challenge together, in a BMW Compact. They performed well, winning a race in the Sport 1 class at the Nürburgring, and finishing second in another, but they were dropped to eleventh place, as they only did a part-season. 

Evelin Dorssers - Dutch driver who mainly competes in the DNRT Endurance championship, driving a BMW. In 2021, she won the Touring class of the Zandvoort 8 Hours, as part of a four-driver team. They were 21st overall and it was her third class win in the race. She spent part of the season competing with an all-female team with Danielle Kleyheeg, Audrey Van Ham and Vivienne Weijs, in the same championship. The team, with new driver Sandra van der Sloot, raced in the BMW Racing Cup in 2022 as well as winning their class in the three-round endurance championship. In 2023, they were seventh in the Netherlands 24H race. Previously, Evelin competed in a Mercedes in the SLK Cup in 2018 and 2019. She is also a rally co-driver.

Eva Harkema - drove in the Dutch VW Endurance Cup in 2008, 2009 and 2010. She raced a Golf for her family team, Palmyra Racing, alongside her father, Henk, and brother, Paul. Their best finish in 2010 was eleventh, and they were fifteenth overall. Although they were only 21st in 2009, they scored their best finish to date - ninth. 2008 was very much a learning season, and they were only 36th. In between seasons, they have also raced in the Dutch Winter Endurance Championship. More recently, she has raced in the Renault Clio championship. She was 26th in 2012, after six races with Verschuur Motorsport. She drove the same car in the 2011-2012 Dutch Winter Endurance Series. In 2013, she was twelfth in the Dutch Clio Cup, with a best finish of seventh, at Zandvoort. In 2014, she took part in the Syntix Winter Championship, in the Clio, with Paul Harkema. 

Mabel ‘t Hooft - raced mainly in the Netherlands in the 1960s. She mainly seems to have driven Fiat-Abarth cars, chiefly an 850cc TC model, which she shared with her husband, Dick. Her racing mainly centred on saloon events at National level, but she also took in a few sportscar races in the Abarth. The 1965 GT race at the 1965 Circuit van Zandvoort meeting is a case in point. As well as the Abarth, Mabel drove other cars; one of her best results was a fifth place in a Class B race at the Grand Prix of the Netherlands in 1965, which she achieved in a Ford Corsair GT. 

Amée de Jong (Caron) - winner of the first Ladies’ Cup in the Citroen AX GT Cup, in 1990. She won races outright that year and featured strongly in the mixed standings. In 1992, she found her winning form again, this time in a Suzuki Swift, after a quiet season in 1991, when she some Production racing in a Peugeot 405. She drove in the 1400cc class of the 1992 Dutch Production Car Championship and was second overall. She won two races at Zandvoort, the Pinksterraces round and one of the Interantionale races. She returned for a part-season in 1993, replacing a dismissed driver in the Suzuki works team, but her only race ended in disqualification. She then disappears from the starting lists for quite some time, but she must have kept her Suzuki links, as she made a couple of appearances in the Dutch Touring Car Championship in a Baleno, in 1999.

Danielle Kleyheeg - raced in the VW Endurance Cup in a Golf in the Netherlands in 2009, driving for the Certainty Racing team. She and her team-mates were 28th overall. In 2010, she stayed with the team, and moved into the Toerwagen Diesel Cup. Her car was a BMW 120d. She was 44th overall, again, alongside her team-mates at Certainty. She gained attention due to her car being sponsored by an underwear company. In 2011, she carried on with the Diesel Cup for six races, finishing 37th overall in a BMW 123d. More recently, she has been involved in classic rallying to raise awareness for female cancers. In 2021, she joined forces with an all-female team consisting of Evelin Dorssers, Audrey Van Ham and Vivienne Weijs. They competed in the 2021 DNRT Endurance series in a BMW and won their class in the 2022 edition. They were seventh in the 2023 Netherlands 24H.

Ina van Kooten - raced a Glas 1204 TS in the Netherlands in the 1960s. She appears on the entry lists from about 1965, and then the 1204 was upgraded to a 1304. Although she competed up to ETCC level sporadically, she was not especially competitive, and scored few decent finishes. Mainly, she stuck to National level races in the Netherlands, especially at Zandvoort, up until 1968. Away from the track, she may well have owned a scooter dealership at about the same time as she raced.

Nella Kruizinga - raced in the Netherlands in the 1970s. She is most known for campaigning a VW Golf GTi in the Dutch Touring Car Championship, where she was ninth at the Zandvoort finale in 1978. She also raced the Golf in a one-make series for that car, and was photographed having a coming-together with Martin Burgondie’s car, also at Zandvoort. Further information about Nella’s career is not forthcoming, although she was apparently the girlfriend of racer Fred Krab.

Nan van Lennep – did some touring car racing in the Netherlands in the 1960s. Her car was an 850cc Mini. She did not finish the 1963 Zandvoort Trophy, but was ninth in the Benelux Cup, also held at Zandvoort. At the time, she was married to Gerard van Lennep, of the famous Dutch racing family. She is better known and a model and actress.

Nina Pothof (Gademan) - Dutch driver who  took her first steps in cars in 2020 after a karting career that included a win in the mixed-pair karting event of the 2019 FIA Motorsport Games. She started racing a Citroen C1 in the PTC Cup when the 2020 season finally got under way and was fifth in her first race at Zandvoort, having been demoted from fourth for her car being underweight. At the end of the year she was the leading female driver and one of the leading rookies in the series. She was part of an all-female team for the Zolder 24 Hours, run by Xwift. Nina, Esmee de Vilder, Ellen Leysen, Shana Mertens and Janine Rozendaal drove a BMW 325 and finished second in class. After a quiet year, she signed for the British F4 championship in 2024, driving for the Fortec team. It was a challenging season, and her best result was an eleventh place at Knockhill. However, it did lead to a wildcard entry into F1 Academy, at her home circuit of Zandvoort. She was fourth and tenth. The following season, she was signed by the Prema team for a full year of F1 Academy. At the end, she was sixth overall, having won one race at Zandvoort and finished third twice in Canada. It was a busy year for her: she began with the Formula Winter Series in Spain, for Hitech, in which she was 15th, with a sixth place at Portimao as her best finish. Still with Hitech, she did the Zandvoort and Silverstone British F4 rounds, then travelled to the Middle East, first for the Saudi F4 series. She drove for two different teams and was second and third in the first round at Bahrain. She then did the last round of the Formula Trophy at Bahrain, finishing fifth and eleventh.

Ellen Sminia - raced a Mini in Dutch Touring Cars in the late 1960s and early 1970s. In 1969, she was eleventh at the Paasraces and eighth in the Zandvoort Formula 5000 meeting. She also entered the Clubraces, but did not finish. In 1970, she drove in the Paasraces, Formula 5000 and Grand Prix meetings but did not finish any of her races. In 1971, she took part in the Formula 3 meeting at Zandvoort, but does not appear to have finished, this time in a Fiat 600D. 

Liesbet Tolman – chiefly a motorcycle racer, who has competed in the Netherlands since at least 2008, and also in the European Road Racing Championship. In 2015, she raced in the PTC Cup in the Netherlands, scoring points in six races. The best of these was an eighth place finish. She was third in the Ladies Cup. Her car seems to have been a Toyota Aygo. 

Thea de Vos – Dutch driver who raced a Renault Clio in the DNRT championship in the Netherlands. She won at least one race in 2006, at Zolder, and another in 2005. That year, she was ninth in the Sport class of the championship. She continued to race the Clio in the same series in 2007, and was still competitive, with top ten finishes. Her career seems to end there.

Elisabeth Wagenaar – raced in the Dutch touring car championship (NTK) in the 1980s. She first appears in the final round of the 1980 season, in a VW Golf. This would become her signature car. She did almost a full season in 1981, with a best finish of fourteenth, in the Trophy of the Dunes. 1982 was rather an indifferent year, still in the Golf, but with sponsorship from Samsonite in 1983, she became more consistent, and managed her first top ten at the Pinksterraces – a tenth place. Although she scored well in class in 1984, the Golf was not powerful enough to challenge to Chevrolet Camaros and Opel Monzas of the championship. She does not appear in the entry lists after 1984.

(Image from http://www.anp-archief.nl/)

(Thanks to Theresia Balk for her assistance)