Graham Hill at the United States Grand Prix at Watkins Glen in 1972 in with his signature racing helmet and still wearing a Nomex scarf. That summer he had finally won the 24 Hours of Le Mans in France. That win along with Formula One World Championships in 1962 and 1968, plus his win at the Indianapolis 500 in 1966 made him the only driver to win what is called the Triple Crown of Motorsport. Hill joined the London Rowing Club in 1952 and had participated in the highly prestigious Grand Challenge Cup at the Henley Royal Regatta with them eight times. He felt that the experience gained in rowing helped him in his motor-racing through the self discipline required and the 'never say die' attitude he learned in that sport. He adopted the colors and cap design of the London Rowing Club for his racing helmet – dark blue with white oar-shaped tabs. Hill was also know for wearing the Nomex fire-resistant scarf around his face long after most drivers had switched to the Nomex balaclava sometimes referred to as a head sock. Nomex came on the market in 1967 and shortly after that into motorsports. Hill was in one of the first groups of Formula One drivers to adapt to this safety feature then and one of the last to keep wearing the scarf instead of the balaclava, which most of them had changed to in the early 1970's. I have photos of him still wearing the scarf several years after this one in 1972. Hill made his last Formula One Grand Prix start in the second race of the 1975 season.
The cockpit of Emerson Fittipaldi's Copersucar Formula One car at the United States Grand Prix at Watkins Glen in 1976. In just his fourth Formula 1 race, Fittipaldi had won the 1970 United States GP at Watkins Glen at age 24, and he claimed two F1 World Championships by age 27. However, at the height of his F1 success, Fittipaldi shocked everyone by leaving McLaren to race for older brother Wilson Fittipaldi's Copersucar-sponsored Fittipaldi Automotive team. It was hardly a world-class organization and the double champion regularly struggled, failing to qualify in three races in his time there. Despite this, he remained with the team for five seasons but only managed a best finish of second. Emerson Fittipaldi decided to retire from racing at the end of 1980. But three years later he was enticed to come back and to run the 1983 Indianapolis 500. Fittipaldi then moved to the American CART series, achieving successful results winning 22 races, the 1989 CART title and two wins at the Indianapolis 500 in 1989 and 1993, the final one when he was 46 years old.
Niki Lauda's mechanics finish putting the rain tires on his car just before the start of the 1977 United States Grand Prix at Watkins Glen in what would be his last drive for Ferrari. The day of the race began cold but dry, with a crowd over 100,000. Before the warmup it began to drizzle, and by the five-minute signal, it had picked up enough that only one car was willing to gamble on starting with slicks. Lauda led the championship at this time and only needed to score one point in any of the final three races to clinch the title. The race was mostly run in the rain with James Hunt winning by just a few seconds over Mario Andretti. With a cautious fourth place finish Lauda won his second World Championship title. It was the culmination of a comeback from the life-threatening injuries he had sustained at the Nürburgring in 1976. Lauda and Ferrari team management had been at odds for much of the year and upon winning the championship he quit Ferrari with two races left on that year's schedule. He had already announced his intention to move to Brabham for 1978. This photo appeared in the book "Formula One at Watkins Glen - 20 Years Of The United States Grand Prix, 1961-1980," by Michael Argetsinger. It was the lead full page photo in the chapter on the 1977 race.
