Women at the Nassau Speed Weeks, Part I

Nassau Speed Week was an annual festival of motorsport, held in Nassau in the Bahamas, between 1954 and 1966. It was traditionally held during the off-season. It was organised by Red Crise and Sydney Oakes, the millionaire president of the Bahamas motorsport association, and a sometime racer. Although it was never part of any official championship, it attracted large entry lists, which included the big names of the era. Stirling Moss, Masten Gregory, Alfonso de Portago, and other stars of the international racing scene, were regular entrants. This was due to its generous prize fund and starting money, provided by a Bahamian government subsidy. The rest of the field tended to comprise of American drivers in the higher echelons of national racing, plus a few local racers.

Most of the races were for sports and production vehicles, but there were also some single-seater events. The results for these are harder to track down than the sportscar results. There was no actual Speed Week overall championship, but the Nassau Trophy was its blue-riband event.

Women drivers were initially welcome, and some years, dedicated ladies’ races were held. As with their male counterparts, the Nassau lady competitors tended to be a mix of international professionals, such as Denise McCluggage, and mainly US-based club racers, often competing alongside their husbands. After 1960, female participation reduces drastically.

Early on, one of these ladies was Greta Oakes. She was the wife of Sydney Oakes, and the two had previously competed in international sportscar events together. She drove at Speed Week even after the couple divorced in 1956.

After 1957, Speed Week itself was held on the Oakes family’s own track, the Oakes Course. Its previous home was Windsor Airfield.

Nassau Speed Week ended in 1966, in large part due to the death of Sydney Oakes in a road traffic accident earlier in the year.

Below is a preliminary list of women competitors at Nassau Speed Week, by year. Results of the Ladies’ Races will be published later.

1954

Nassau Speed Trials

Mrs J. Bird (Jaguar XK120) - 4th

Greta Oakes (Austin-Healey 100M) - 10th

Production Car race

Greta Oakes (Austin-Healey 100M) - 4th

1955

Governor’s Trophy

Isabelle Haskell (Maserati 150S) - 16th

Marion Lowe (Frazer Nash Targa Florio) - 31st

Local Residents’ Race

Ruth Ballard (Jaguar XK120) - 4th

Greta Oakes (Austin-Healey 100) - DNF

Nassau Trophy

Isabelle Haskell (Maserati 150S) - 21st

1956

Governor’s Trophy (under 2000cc)

Marion Lowe (Frazer Nash Targa Florio) - 31st

Evelyn Mull (AC Ace) - 35th

Local Residents - Race 1

Greta Oakes (Porsche 356A Speedster) - 8th

Local Residents - Race 2

Greta Oakes (Porsche 356A Speedster) - 4th

Preliminary Nassau Trophy (under 2000cc)

Evelyn Mull (AC Ace) - 18th

Marion Lowe (Frazer Nash Targa Florio) - final position not known

Nassau Trophy Consolation Race

Evelyn Mull (AC Ace) - DNF

Nassau Trophy

Marion Lowe (Frazer Nash Targa Florio) - 29th

1957

Nassau Memorial GT Race

Evelyn Mull (AC Ace) - 7th

Nassau Memorial Trophy

Denise McCluggage (Porsche 550) - 9th

Evelyn Mull (AC Ace) - 20th

Ruth Luedeke (Alfa Romeo Giulietta) - 26th

Nassau TT

Denise McCluggage (Porsche 550) - 9th

Jean Speidel (Porsche 550A RS Spyder) - 13th

Preliminary Governor’s Trophy (under 2000cc)

Denise McCluggage (Porsche 550) - 6th

Isabelle Haskell (Osca S1500) - 13th

Evelyn Mull (AC Ace) - 15th

Governor’s Trophy (under 2000cc)

Denise McCluggage (Porsche 550) - 4th

Evelyn Mull (AC Ace) - 18th

Ruth Luedeke (Alfa Romeo Giulietta) - 28th

AC Bristol & Austin-Healey Race

Evelyn Mull (AC Ace) - 2nd

Porsche Race

Denise McCluggage (Porsche 550A RS Spyder) - 4th

1958

Nassau Berkeley Race

Gladys Cam (Berkeley SE328) - 3rd

Greta Oakes (Berkeley SE328) - 6th

Marie Kelly (Berkeley SE328) - 7th

A. Goodfellow (Berkeley SE328) - 8th

Governor’s Trophy

Marion Lowe (Lotus Eleven) - result not known

Bahamas Cup

Gladys Cam (Berkeley SE328) - DNF

Nassau Locals Race

Gladys Cam (Berkeley SE328) - DNF

Greta Oakes (Austin-Healey 100) - DNF

Nassau Trophy

Marion Lowe/Denise McCluggage (Lotus Eleven) - 9th (class win)

1959

Preliminary Governor’s Trophy (over 2000cc heat)

Josie von Neumann (Ferrari 250 TR 58) - 16th

Preliminary Governor’s Trophy (under 2000cc heat)

Denise McCluggage (Osca S750) - 13th

Marion Lowe (Lotus Eleven) - 17th

Governor’s Trophy (over 2000cc)

Josie von Neumann (Ferrari 250 TR 58) - 16th

Governor’s Trophy (under 2000cc)

Denise McCluggage (Osca S750) - 17th

Marion Lowe (Lotus Eleven) - 34th

 

Locals’ Race

Heather Bethell (Austin Healey Sprite) - 10th

Austin-Healey & Locals’ Race

Heather Bethell (Austin Healey Sprite) - not classified

Ferrari Classics

Josie von Neumann (Ferrari 250 TR 58) - 5th

Nassau Trophy

Josie von Neumann (Ferrari 250 TR 58) - 18th

Denise McCluggage (Osca S750) - 27th

Marion Lowe (Lotus Eleven) - 38th

1960

Nassau Locals Race 2

Heather Bethell (Austin-Healey 100-6) - 3rd

Bahamas Cup

Heather Bethell (Austin-Healey 100-6) - 4th

1961

Preliminary Governor's Trophy (under 2000cc)

Prudence Baxter (Lotus Eleven) - 6th

Bahamas Cup

Lou Moseley (Porsche 356 Carrera) - 6th

Locals Race

Lou Moseley (Porsche 356 Carrera) - 13th

Provisonal Governor’s Trophy (+2000cc)

Prudence Baxter (Lotus Eleven) - result not known

Provisional Governor’s Trophy (2000cc)

Prudence Baxter (Lotus Eleven) - result not known (class win)

Governor’s Trophy

Susan Baron (Lotus Seven) - 23rd

1962

Bahamas Cup

Patsy Kennedy (Porsche 356B Carrera) - 6th

Heather Meyers (Austin-Healey 3000) - 18th

Nassau Porsche & Alfa Romeo Race

Joanne Gambal (Alfa Romeo Giulietta) - 8th

Patsy Kennedy (Porsche 356B Carrera) - result not known

Nassau Locals Race 1

Patsy Kennedy (Porsche 356B Carrera) - 5th

Heather Meyers (Austin-Healey 3000) - 6th

Nassau Locals Race 2

Patsy Kennedy (Porsche 356B Carrera) - 6th

Heather Meyers (Austin-Healey 3000) - 21st

Nassau TT

Joanne Gambal (Alfa Romeo Giulietta) - 36th

1963

No women drivers entered.

1964

No women drivers entered.

1965

Locals - Heat 1

Patsy Kennedy (Porsche 356B Carrera) - 3rd

Locals - Heat 2

Patsy Kennedy (Porsche 356B Carrera) - 3rd

Porsche Challenge Race

Patsy Kennedy (Porsche 356B Carrera) - 6th

Bahamas Cup

Patsy Kennedy (Porsche 356B Carrera) - 4th

1966

Governor’s Trophy & Nassau TT

Anita Taylor (Shelby Mustang 350GT) - 24th

Bahamas Cup

Patsy Kennedy (Porsche 356B) - 2nd

Nassau Trophy

Anita Taylor (Shelby Mustang 350GT) - 15th

Locals Race 1

Patsy Kennedy (Porsche 356B) - 2nd

Locals Race 2

Patsy Kennedy (Porsche 356B) - 3rd

(Image copyright Getty Images)

Carmen Jordá

Carmen Jordá is a single-seater racer from Spain. She began karting at the age of eleven, in her native Valencia. Her first taste of full-sized circuit racing was in Master Junior Formula in 2005. This is a single-seater racing series for drivers under the age of eighteen. Carmen was sixteen when she started, and was seventh in the championship in her first year.

She did her first Formula 3 races the following year, as well as carrying on in Master Junior Formula. The junior series gave her a ninth place overall. The Formula 3 Copa España guest spots she took gave her a pair of eighteenth places at Valencia.

In 2007, she was fourth in the F3 Copa España, with three podium finishes: third places at Albacete, Magny-Cours and Jerez. Her other races resulted in fourths and fifths. In the main F3 championship, she did not fare as well, with her best result being a twelfth, at Jerez, late in the season. Her other races resulted in finishes ranging from thirteenth to 21st, and she was twentieth in the final standings.

This arrangement continued throughout 2008, although Carmen was now driving for Campos Racing, rather than Meycom Sport. Again, her best results came in the Copa, with fourth places at Albacete and Jerez. As well as these, she earned eight further top-ten finishes, and was eighth overall in the championship. In the main F3 draw, she once more found it more challenging, but her results were an improvement on those of 2007. She broke into the top ten twice, at Jerez and Magny-Cours, and was 21st overall, despite scoring her first points, which she failed to do in 2007.

  

Her single-seater schedule remained the same in 2009, although Spanish F3 was now the Euro F3 Open, and she was mainly under the care of GTA Racing with Campos. On the track, a string of DNFs mid-season dropped her down the rankings. Her best Open finish was ninth at Magny-Cours, while in the Copa, it was second, also at Magny-Cours. In the main championship, she did not visit the top ten again, although she managed several further top ten finishes, with one more podium at Catalunya, in the Copa. She was 21st in the Euro F3 Open, and sixth in the Copa España.

As well as her F3 activities, Carmen also did some sportscar racing in the Le Mans Series, driving a Judd-engined Lucchini LMP2 for the Hache Q8 Oils team. One of her two team-mates was the MotoGP rider Fonsi Nieto, who was her boyfriend at the time. The other was Maximo Cortes. The trio were entered into the Algarve, Nürburgring and Silverstone rounds, but did not finish any of them.

In 2010, she moved to the USA to compete in Firestone Indy Lights. The deal she had with Andersen Racing was initially for the full season, but this was curtailed to five events. She started brightly enough at St. Petersburgh, coming eleventh on her debut, but did not finish at Barber Motorsports Park with gearbox trouble. She bounced back at Long Beach, scoring her best finish: tenth. A temporary absence from the championship followed, but she was back for round seven, in Toronto. Sadly, she did not finish there, or at Edmonton shortly afterwards. Her season ended there. She struggled particularly with ovals and did not pass her oval driving test. This concluded her attempts to crack the US scene.

After sitting out 2011, Carmen returned in 2012, back in Europe. She raced in the GP3 F1 support series for Ocean Technology, with an eye on progressing up the European single-seater ladder again. It was rather a difficult season for her, with her fair share of DNFs, and a non-start at Silverstone due to illness. Her best finish was thirteenth, at Valencia. She was unofficially 28th in the championship. After the main season, she travelled to India for the MRF Challenge, where she finished four races, with a best result of ninth. 


She moved to the Bamboo Engineering team for 2013, still in GP3. Her team-mate for much of the season was Alice Powell. Carmen showed more reliability, finishing thirteen of her sixteen races. Her best finish was 18th, achieved in the second race of the season, at Catalunya. She was not among the front-runners, but was usually able to keep going to the finish. She was unplaced in the championship.

After that, she took part in some MRF Challenge races again, this time in Bahrain. Her results were a ninth, and two thirteenth places. 

She returned to GP3 in 2014, now driving for the Koiranen GP team. She was still not really on the pace, managing to equal her best 2013 finish on two occasions, but not more. Her 17th places were at Spa and Silverstone, and she got into the top twenty twice more during the season, at the Red Bull Ring and Monza. 

In a surprise move, Carmen was signed by the Lotus Formula One team in February 2015, as a development driver. This role would be similar to Susie Wolff's first year with Williams; mostly simulator work, with a chance of some race weekend testing later in the year. Her appointment did not go down well with many in the motorsport world. As well as legitimate questions about her suitability, a lot of tired sexism was thrown around. Carmen did not comment personally.

Lotus became Renault in 2016. Carmen continued in her development role, but for Renault Sport this time, rather than the F1 team. She also did some racing, for the first time in a while, taking part in the Renault Sport Trophy in a NISMO-engined Renault Sport RS01. She scored a string of ninths and eighths in the AM Trophy, and was fifth overall. She began the season in the Pro class, but moved down. Although she was stronger in the more competitive Endurance trophy, the bigger field meant that she was only sixteenth, despite a sixth place at Spa, and two sevenths at Aragon Motorland and the Red Bull Ring.

In 2017, she remained in the Renault development team, although her role there became more vague. Mid-season, she did some competitive karting, describing it as "the purest form of motorsport" (and paraphrasing Ayrton Senna). Her future plans are unclear. 

She caused a social media backlash when she spoke on Twitter and elsewhere about how she wanted there to be a women's Formula One championship, particularly as she claimed that women were unable to compete fairly against men.

The backlash against her continued when she announced that she had been elected to the FIA's Women in Motorsport Commission. It is unclear what role she will be performing within it.

She did very little racing in 2018, apart from a run at the Goodwood Members' Meeting in an MG Metro. She did test some cars, however. In the autumn, she was one of the drivers selected for an assessment day by the Women in Motorsport Commission, testing a Formula Renault and a Porsche. In December, she took part in the Formula E in-season test at ad-Diriyah. The Saudi motorsport authority was keen to have female drivers testing and Carmen drove for Nissan with Oliver Rowland. There was some confusion as to whether she or Oliver had set the second-fastest time, but it was later stated that Carmen only did an in and out lap in the car.

Carmen did not race in 2019, but she was planning a return to the tracks in 2019, racing in the Euroformula Open Formula 3 series with Fox Racing. This did not come to fruition, and she had to wait until the second half of 2021 to get back in a car. She raced in the Ultimate Cup with Nicolas Prost, using a Formula 3 Regional car. Her first race was at Magny-Cours. 

Earlier in the year, she appeared in promotional material for De Tomaso's "Isabelle" P72 prototype, paying homage to Isabelle Haskell de Tomaso. She was described as the Scuderia De Tomaso's development driver and future racer.

Away from the track, Carmen has done quite a lot of fashion modelling, which has helped her profile in Spain. She also dated Moto GP rider, Fonsi Nieto, for quite some time.

(Image from www.carmenjorda.com)

Beate Nodes

Beate is most famous for being the first woman to finish on the podium in a DTM race in 1986. Her third place came at AVUS. She was driving a Ford Sierra XR4 Ti.

Her earliest noted motorsport experience seems to have been Formula Ford, in her native Germany, in 1982. Interestingly, she was driving alongside Ellen Lohr, and both of them would end up competing in the DTM, with varying degrees of success.

Her first steps in touring cars came in 1983, when she was nineteen. She entered the Ford Fiesta Ladies’ Cup in Germany, and was second in her first season. On her return in 1984, she won the championship. This began a long relationship with Ford and Ford-engined cars, which Beate raced almost exclusively during her professional career.

That year, Beate tried a few different styles of motorsport. She drove a Cosworth DFV-powered Gebhardt JC843 prototype in one Interserie race at the Nürburgring, finishing sixteenth, towards the end of the year, followed by a visit to Sandown Park in Australia with the Gebhardt team. Beate, Frank Jelinski and Günter Gebhardt were twelfth overall, third in class in the 1000km event. Driving a Fiesta similar to her Ladies’ Cup car, she scored a class win in the Nürburgring 24 Hours, finishing 22nd overall.

Her DTM career began in 1985, and her first car was a Ford Escort RS Turbo. She entered three races, driving for the Grab Ford team. Her only finish was a fourteenth place at Siegerland; she did not finish at either the Nürburgring or Zolder. Away from the DTM, she also entered some German Formula 3 rounds, as well as some production car races. She and her Manfred Burkhard were due to take part in the Zolder ETCC round in another Escort RS, but the clutch failed, and they did not make the start.

1986 saw her DTM programme increased to nine races. Her AVUS podium came during the fourth round. Elsewhere, she was eighteenth at Zolder, ninth at Hockenheim, eleventh at the Nürburgring, fourteenth at Mainz and eleventh at Wunstorf. The second Nürburgring round gave her a DNF, she was then eighteenth at Zolder again, and twelfth at the Nürburgring, all in a Grab Ford Sierra XR4 Ti. Her final championship position was eleventh, the best of her career.

The car and team stayed the same for 1987, with the season extended to all ten rounds. Beate was nineteenth at Hockenheim and fifteenth at Zolder, then a disappointing 27th at the Nürburgring. Back at her lucky track of AVUS, she was sixth, her best result of the season. She was then thirteenth at Mainz, eleventh at Nürnberg, 25th at the Nürburgring and 23rd at Wunstorf. The last two races of the season, Diepholz and Salzburg, ended in DNFs. This less-than-satisfactory season netted Beate a 21st place in the final standings.

Another attempt at the Nürburgring 24 Hours in a Group N Sierra seems to have ended in a DNF.

1988 was her last DTM season. The Grab team retained her services for six races, still in the Sierra. At AVUS, she was twelfth and eighteenth. As ever, her best results were achieved there. At the Nürburgring, she scored one 25th place and one DNF, and at Wunstorf, two 25ths. She finished the season 42nd overall.   

Away from the DTM, she won the 1990 Ford Fiesta Mixed Cup with Thomas Beyer, after a year-long break from motorsport. Driving with Achim Stegmüller, she was second in the 1992 Mixed Cup. In between, she campaigned a Sierra in the VLN, but did not achieve much success.

She retired after the 1992 season and concentrated on business interests, between then and her sudden death in 2008, following a heart attack. She was 44 years old.

(Image copyright Kurt Sikora)

Kathy Rude

Kathy climbing into George Drolsom's Porsche, 1983

Kathy Rude was born in 1957. She is most remembered for racing in major sportscar events, in the early 1980s. She started her career with karting in the 1970s, and progressed through Formula Ford and Formula Atlantic, racing in Atlantics for at least one season, in 1979.

1980 saw Kathy make her move into major sportscar racing. She had attracted the attention of several team owners, and was being tipped by some as a future Indycar hopeful. Driving Tom Nehl’s Chevrolet Camaro, she entered the Daytona 24 Hours, with Nehl and Peter Kirill. They were 25th, eighth in the GTO class, after limping to the end with engine trouble.

In 1981, she was signed up by Kent Racing, and expanded her competition programme. Her car was a Mazda RX-7, and her usual co-driver was Lee Mueller. Her return to Daytona at the start of the season went well: Kathy, Lee and Philippe Martin were seventh overall, and third in the GTU class. Unfortunately, Kathy’s first Sebring 12 Hours did not go as smoothly. She and Divina Galica were classified 31st in the RX-7 after not making the finish. This was after qualifying fourth in their heat, along with Lee Mueller. Driving solo, Kathy was then fourteenth in the Road Atlanta IMSA race. In the Riverside 6 Hours, she and Divina could only manage a lowly 36th. It was better for Kathy and Lee in the Pocono IMSA round: they were ninth. On her first trip to Europe, driving Quirin Bovy’s Camaro, she did not finish the Spa 24 Hours. However, her best result of the year came on another “away” race, the Suzuka 1000km. She and Yoshimi Katayama were third in the Kent Mazda.

She remained with Kent in 1982, and her season this year was focused on the IMSA championship, in the USA. Teaming up with Lee Mueller again for Daytona at the start of the season, she achieved a class win and a sixth place overall, becoming the first woman to win her class in that event. Allan Moffat was the third driver.

In the same car, but now driving for Rick Knoop, the pair entered the Sebring 12 Hours, but did not drive. They were back with Kent for the Riverside 6 Hours, but in a Toyota Celica rather than the Mazda. They were 31st. At Charlotte, they fared somewhat better, coming 13th. The next time they drove together was at Mosport, Lee Mueller or Rick Knoop having tackled the single-driver races. They were fourteenth, fifth in class. At Road America, they were 22nd, fourth in class, and at Mid-Ohio, 24th. Road Atlanta gave them a 26th place. Their last race of the season together saw them fourteenth at Pocono. 

1983 saw Kathy back in the IMSA series, beginning with the Daytona 24 Hours. By this time, she was no longer racing with the Kent team, and was driving a Porsche 924 run by Brumos Racing. For Daytona, it was an all-female team of Kathy, Deborah Gregg, and Bonnie Henn. They were thirteenth, one place below Kathy’s former team-mate Lee Mueller in a Kent Mazda. The same trio was less fortunate in the Sebring 12 Hours, only managing 35th. This event was never Kathy’s best one. Her next outing was Road Atlanta, in the same car, with Deborah Gregg. They were 20th, fourth in class. At Riverside, they were down the order again in 43rd, after failing to finish. After missing the Laguna Seca round, they were seventeenth at Charlotte, fifth in class.

A couple of rounds later, Kathy reappeared in George Drolsom’s 934, with him as co-driver. They were fourteenth at Mid-Ohio. At Brainerd in July, she had switched teams again, and was driving a Porsche 935 with Greg Pusey. Sadly, this proved to be her last major sportscar race. On the 59th lap, she was involved in an incident with another car*, and flipped the Porsche at 140mph. The car caught fire immediately. Kathy received serious burns, and multiple orthopaedic and internal injuries. She was in a coma for several weeks after the crash, and underwent a series of surgeries and blood transfusions, as well as a lengthy rehabilitation programme. Fortunately, she survived her ordeal, and even returned to the tracks for a few smaller events, most notably the 1985 Toyota Pro Celebrity Long Beach race. However, she never got the chance to take up the Indycar seat for 1984 that she had arranged. Her career is one of the great “could have been” scenarios of motor racing, as she was well-respected as a driver and earmarked for great things by some.

During her convalescence, she married Ludwig Heimrath Jr., a fellow sportscar racer. She now works as a driving safety instructor and public speaker, and has also survived breast cancer.

*Details of the crash have been redacted. This is partly due to conflicting evidence, and partly due to ambivalence over detailed reporting of accidents on Speedqueens. 

(Photo by Mark Windecker) 

Pauline Mayman

Pauline (standing) at the 1964 Tour de France, with Val Domleo

Pauline is remembered by many as navigator to Pat Moss in 1962, as well as being a driver in her own right. Most notably, she and Pat won the Baden-Baden rally together, in a Mini. Also in a Mini, they were third in the Geneva Rally. In the Austin-Healey 3000, Pat’s signature car, they were second in the Polish Rally and third in the Alpine and RAC Rallies.

Pauline began her driving career in club rallies in the 1950s, and her first international event was the 1959 RAC Rally. Her car was a Morgan 4/4, which she had been using previously on British rallies. Daphne Freeman was co-driving. Pauline’s husband, Lionel, was also a Morgan driver. It was as his navigator that she got her start in rallying.

In 1960, her biggest achievement was probably a second place in the Express & Star Rally, driving the Morgan once more, with Valerie Domleo. This was described as a difficult event, and many crews missed the first control.

She made her first Monte Carlo appearance the following year, driving a Sunbeam Rapier, with Mary Handley-Page and Daphne Freeman. Her finishing position is unknown. A return to the Express & Star Rally led to a very swift retirement - after ten minutes of navigational test, the electrics failed on her car. She also drove in the London Rally in an MG 1100.

For 1962, she was contracted to BMC as a navigator, so driving was put to one side for a time. Although she was a successful co-driver, Pauline, however, wished to return to the driving seat, which she did in 1963. She was retained by BMC, and drove the Mini Cooper with Val Domleo. They were 28th in Monte Carlo, and 21st in the Tulip Rally, with a third in the Ladies’ Cup, behind Pat Moss and Sylvia Österberg. They won the Coupe des Dames in the Trifels Rally, as well as winning their class. The Alpine gave Pauline probably the best finish of her career: sixth, with a Coupe des Alpes. She was 30th in the season-ending RAC Rally.

In 1964, she was involved in a serious accident in Monte Carlo. Her Mini was hit by a farmer’s truck, and she suffered multiple injuries, including a broken leg. After five months out of action, Pauline returned in time for the Alpine Rally, and was thirteenth, sixth in the Touring class, and first lady, driving a Mini with Valerie Domleo. She later drove in the Spa-Sofia-Liège marathon rally, as well as the RAC Rally, in an MGB.

As well as rallying, Pauline raced on the circuits occasionally. Before her rally career began in earnest, she drove a Cooper T39, and her Morgan, in handicap races. Later, she and Elizabeth Jones drove a Mini together in the 1962 Brands Hatch 6-Hour race, and she also took part in some rallycross events. She participated in the Tour de France twice, both times in a Mini: in 1963, she and Elizabeth Jones failed to make the finish, but in 1964, she and Valerie Domleo were 28th, first in the one-litre Touring class.

1965 was Pauline’s last year of competition. She was still experiencing trouble from her 1964 Monte injuries and had had enough. The highlight of this year was a thirteenth place and class win on the Alpine Rally, which was always her best event.

After her retirement from the stages, Pauline helped to run her family autoparts business, and was involved in the management of the Kieft racing car company. She also devoted a lot of time to breeding and rescuing Irish Wolfhounds.

She died of cancer in 1989, aged 61.

(Image from http://www.pinterest.com/pin/129056345547260391/)