The Last Turn – The 962 Years

The age of the 962 was an exciting time for those of us who were devoted to Porsche and its racing successes. It was not that the 934/935 time had been a bad one; there was a lot of satisfaction in seeing cars that mirrored the street 911 to some extent, and they were a massive success in racing, adapting and evolving as time went on, pushing the rules. But they didn’t scratch that itch that stayed behind after the 917 era; they weren’t the sleek prototypes designed on a clean sheet of paper. The 956/962 cars were purpose-built, aerodynamic born killers, and in their time they decimated the opposition and even afterward kept showing up for podium finishes in the hands of many capable drivers.

One of the visual favorites among the many 962s that raced on these shores was Bob Akin’s bright red example. The relatively simple paint scheme showed off the lines of the 962 well when the light was right, and the vivid paint job made it even more exciting to watch. There was even the little mystery of why it carried the word “Lady” on its nose (my favorite explanation was that it was added to aid the mechanics in romantic conquests as they traveled about the country: “See, I had that put on there for you!”)

Photographing beautiful cars at race tracks has been made a lot easier and is in many ways a more satisfying enterprise with modern digital cameras. They offer freedom from carrying large volumes of expensive film, produce superior files, and instantly report whether what you shot was what you thought you saw. But they still can’t control what is the basis of all photography: light. Old film camera or newest digital, you wind up shooting during the time that the cars are there, not when the light is what you want. But on this occasion I was lucky, and the light was exactly right. Akin, not so lucky. He and co-drivers Hans Stuck and Jim Mullen had a terrible day, and finished well down in the pack at this 1985 Sebring 12-hour. Undismayed, Akin and Stuck came back the next year and won outright, eight laps ahead of the second place 962, and 18 ahead of the 962 claiming third. But the light wasn’t as good…