An African Racing Adventure

More than 80 years ago, two fabulously wealthy young American brothers, accompanied by their butler, flew a primitive plywood-based biplane many thousands of miles to take part in an obscure six-lap motor race near the southern tip of Africa. Neither of the brothers would have very long racing careers, but both were to achieve fame later in different fields. Their participation in the race, however, ignited an interest in motor racing and firmly established the sport in South Africa.

How did this all come about?

Members only$29 / year

Keep going. This is where it gets good.

Supercars.net Membership is for people who'd rather know the spec sheet by heart than skim ten headlines. The rest of this story — and every other one like it — is a few seconds away.

  • Thousands of members-only stories

    Deep dives, driven reviews and the full archive back to 2005.

  • No ads. None.

    The whole site reads like a magazine, on every device.

  • Every car, every spec

    Twenty years of models, numbers and history in one place.

  • 30% off the shop

    Every Supercars.net shirt and piece of merch, all year.

Join Supercars.net — Keep Reading

$29 a year. Cancel anytime, no hoops.
Already a member? Sign in

BY CAR PEOPLE, NOT A NAMELESS MEDIA COMPANY. Your membership keeps a small independent team that celebrates the brands and cars that defined this industry doing this.

Join — Keep Reading $29/yr