1980 USGP Watkins Glen

[@thethirdman225]

That Alfa a Romeo is still one of the best sounding engines I’ve ever heard. I saw it race in the Australian Grand Prix a couple of weeks after this event.

[@brandspro]

And yes, there WAS an Australian GP in 1980! Not a world championship race, but nonetheless. Who knew!?

[@thethirdman225]

@@brandspro It was a bit of a faux Grand Prix really, though the Australian Grand Prix - F1 or not - is one of the oldest GPs in the world. In 1980, the vast majority of the field were mid-late 1970s Formula 5000 cars. Alan Jones was there with his Williams and Bruno Giacomelli with the Alfa. Didier Pironi was also there, competing in a locally built Elfin MR8. The circuit - Calder Park - was a bit Mickey Mouse and the F1s were so fast they lapped everyone else but the spectacle was highly addictive. Pironi in an F5000 was spectacular and ended up beating all the locals, including some _bona fide_ hotshoes, in a car he'd never driven before at a circuit he'd never seen before...

[@stephenkaneb]

I’m blessed to have seen the last 4 F1 races at the Glen during college. This is the last one. I’ll never forget what it sounded like each year as I approached the circuit on Friday after class. Great camping experiences!

[@razingkahne4]

I was fifteen years old when I attended this race. It was sad that this would be the last Formula One race to occur at this legendary track. Thank you for posting this video. It brought back many memories. I watched this race from the inside of the track at the end of the back straight, just before the chute. I echo of the engines coming thru the wooded section at the time was awesome. It would ring in my ears for days.

[@NWfan2]

I'm glad you enjoyed it.

[@jamesvillano5202]

My first trip to the Glenn was in 1966, I think. Watched Jimmy Clark in action. My friends and I became accustomed to making the trip to the Glenn; when the weather turned into fall it just seemed like we needed to be making plans to go. We were there for the last race in 1980. F1 never should have left the Glenn!

[@PeterKKraus]

So in 52 years since, you still haven't noticed it's Glen , not Glenn? A glen is a shallow valley, not someone's last name.

[@kerbal1851]

@Flame Resistant Troll Hes definitely lying

[@hmdwgf]

You are so lucky sir

[@vincentsouchaud6717]

*Glen.

[@66PHILB]

Thanks for the upload. Pity they missed or edited out every pass Alan Jones made. 14th to 2nd and only Piquet retired in front of him. Alan passed the rest of 'em. A champion's drive.

[@madmax5144]

Reutemann had to be slower than him, because of the contract he signed. 1981 was different and it was decided in the ludicrous Las Vegas GP.

[@KRW628]

I was there; the first race I ever saw. Met Jones, Reutemann, Andretti, and shook Lauda's hand.

[@KRW628]

Man! What an experience!

[@ExSheriffFattyBoySkinnyArms]

Awesome!

[@KRW628]

We slid off the road and rolled our van on the way back to Syracuse. A local farmer pulled it right side up, with his tractor and we drove on home.

[@90daysinvegas53]

@@KRW628 You rolled your van? Wow, you crazy..lol Too many shots of that east side whiskey? Or still thinking about the race and imagining a Formula 1 World Van Grand Prix Championship! Haha

[@KRW628]

we were lost and arguing on the best way to get back home. Al stomped on the brakes and we spun off the road and into a ditch.

[@tricesimo]

Eddie Cheever described as "Very quick"... probably the only time anyone in an Osella was called 'quick'...

[@captainsouth4460]

Those lovely wood post and chain link catch fences! We usually sat in the toe or heel of the boot. Great days!

[@jefffredriksz1116]

So happy to find this race posted. This was my 3rd visit to this race with family. Great memories of the Glen..complete with the mud..the "bog" and of course the scenic views of the race itself. At that time, you could move about freely to catch the race at different parts of the track with the grandstand area being the exception. Oh and how can I forget the wonderful grapes we purchased at the roadside stands on the way home! Thank you for posting!

[@NWfan2]

+Jeff Fredriksz thanks,I'm glad it brought you good memories.

[@90daysinvegas53]

Great comment! Nice to have been there and then relive it again on KZbin. Like the part about the grapes. Were those grapes in the form of wine or actual grapes?..lol

[@jefffredriksz1116]

@@90daysinvegas53 Oh those grapes were the BEST! No wine though as I was just a kid at the time. I'll never forget my first GP. As soon as we crested the hill overlooking the track, James Hunt spun into a 360 and continued to drive off up the hill as though nothing had happened..lol. And I'll tell ya, the sound of those Ferraris were so distinctive you could close your eyes and tell whether or not one of them had just passed. Hard to describe really, it was like a shrieking, screaming sound...and the smell of the exhausts stuck with me all these years as well!

[@clintscroggs65]

An F1 race on Mizlou TV Network. Shows the state of F1 in the US until the last 15 years or so. No live coverage except for races held in the states, some edited tape delay coverage of assorted other races. Mizlou (which no longer exists) is best known in the US for its coverage of minor college football bowl games and college basketball. If they got the contract to show this race, that means no one else was bidding for it. Not bad coverage, though.

[@josephconciatori9824]

Mizlou also aired NASCAR races on tape delay from 1982 to 1986.

[@rickwoerter7223]

Damn ... I wish F1 never left The Glen

[@LeoA2600]

Not me, the track would be obliterated today.

[@MidgetRacer8192]

@ because for F1 to race there, they would have to almost completely reconstruct the track, and it would be ruined. not only would the facility be less spectator-friendly, but the layout itself would be changed... ie- more chicanes, or plain re-configured.

[@MidgetRacer8192]

@Bro Momento it's really a matter of money... it would take tens of millions of dollars to redo everything to FIA levels, then they would have to hope F1 keeps coming for years to cover the costs. in the meantime, no one else could afford to use the track (it's already like $27k per day to rent now), so it would have even less people to help the rest of the year.

[@wolfgangmarkusgstrein8522]

This track belongs to real drivers, real cars and real skill to finish the race without crashing. Today's so called F1 can't offer any of that. Drivers like Verstappen would have died several times back then. F1 is a farce!

[@ThatSB]

@@kevinkelley3906 pissed about what

[@outfield1988]

Loved F1 back then

[@alebatte]

I find this commentator to be quite good, better than most American callers.

[@90daysinvegas53]

@alebatte.. Yes agreed! European commentators say it with pizzazz! Just like when James Hunt did the commentary. Wonderful to listen to.

[@skyshifter5796]

Bruno's moment of his career... what if... :)

[@ORMA1]

@Flame Resistant Troll hi🖐🖐

[@billschmitt8279]

What if indeed...after race in garage we watched as Alfa mechanic found and attached loose component on Bruno's mighty V12. Engine fired immediately!

[@EwenNicolson]

The mechanic or the engine?

[@amelierenoncule]

Six years ago, when you posted this contest, I told myself to wait and view it today. And now I have !

[@denilsonalvim.fanfilms20sat50s]

Avez-vous déjà été appelée Audrey Tautou, Amélie?

[@Abhi-ff2cr]

Pourquoi?

[@amelierenoncule]

@@denilsonalvim.fanfilms20sat50s Plusieurs fois ... je suis son double.

[@amelierenoncule]

@@Abhi-ff2cr C'est une blague, mon ami.

[@michaelsheedy9354]

The wife and I were the lucky recipients of Free Season passes (all inclusive Inc pit roof seats and pit passes) for 1980. My wife watched as a country bumpkin was attempting to remove Emmo's wife from the pit roof during practice, she dressed in a full length mink. He was not there during the rest of the weekend. Great trading in the pits post race. Pit crews trading F1 items for US items and currency.

[@billschmitt8279]

Bumpkin indeed! I think some of the local riffraff was enlisted to round out the security. I was harassed that year by one of them brandishing a six foot pole simply for wanting to walk along a path back to my camp site. Ah the good old days!

[@321drum]

I was there 14 years old that started my life of going to races

[@Alex-gn9px]

Bruno Giacomelli would have certainly had better results in his career if he had become an official McLaren driver or if the technical regulations for the following year in F1 had not changed just when Alfa Romeo became competitive.

[@burdineestep4224]

Was there. Kendall cntr. on roof Sandra Litenzer Randy Owens displayed art inside. Great lunch. Good times. Glen 1967-1980 every race.

[@wasbruno]

we made the trip up from Greenville SC in 78 and 80

[@KartKing4ever]

It's nice to see professional drivers all going off on the first corner like I do in Forza lol

[@davidpendergast30]

Thank you very much

[@Circuitsofthepast]

Great footage of the old days of the Glen :)

[@thethirdman225]

Alan Jones, a man of few words...

[@guanchankey]

and very charismatic

[@paoloronchi5587]

Alfa Romeo F.1 e very good car !!!

[@discodan2265]

That intro 80's GOLD LABEL 🏅

[@georgemallory797]

Cars look so much closer to the Indy cars of the day. The engines sound more similar, too.

[@marcelomurlo6426]

!!!!!!!.....I Watched Live That At The Time....Those Failed Marelli Ignition Coils Found Their Way On Street Ferraris.......!!!!!!!

[@山新宿]

I was surprised at a speed of Bruno and AIFA. They were likely to get a pole to win. But Bruno seemed to drive a little more than hard, it may be cruel to Bruno.

[@kurtperleberf6983]

This was the last major race at Watins Glen until 1986.

[@ysgol3]

GREAT - especially interesting to see, at 8.55, the leader Giacomelli nearly losing it at the esses at or just beside the spot where Cevert crashed fatally in 1973 - of course the barriers looked much better in 1980...

[@ysgol3]

@bakinek Sorry, my fault. At 8.55 Giacomelli nearly crashes at the point where Cevert FIRST caught the barrier - on the right, (because Cevert's line wasn't quite right from his entry into the esses and he tried disastrously to power through the mistake). He then did, as you say, bounce across into the left hand barriers, not visible here, which split open, killing him. My point about the barriers looking better comes from what actually is visible here in 1980. If the barriers had been this solid in 1973, Cevert would possibly, perhaps almost certainly, have survived.

[@eltrenfantasma433]

Alan Jones era muy veloz, no por su motor o por su manera de conducir, sino porque en su contrato decìa que su compañero de equipo debìa dejarlo pasar. Esta carrera era para el Nº 28.

[@cesarg.damico2146]

Se ve que Reutemann lo tuvo que dejar pasar

[@corner63]

@@cesarg.damico2146 Dos veces lo dejó pasar: la primera en la largada.

[@AlexSosaBolivia]

Looks like they incorporated a chicane into the esses?

[@andyharman3022]

Andrea DeCrasheris living up to his nickname.

[@frgr9]

thank you, another f1 fan:)

[@vojmix7]

7 different winners, 11 different drivers on podium in 1980 season.

[@jettrink7510]

Patrick DePallier was missed by the fellow driver.

[@ORMA1]

Great V12 Alfa ....

[@charlesanzalone5846]

One of the great F1 race tracks

[@plantfeeder6677]

Ahh! Rene Dreyfus. A household name in France before the war. Many famous races. Biggest win was Pau GP 1938. Viva le Ecurie Bleu

[@craigscott3133]

I was in the press box for this one

[@GsonarakaTheVoodoocrasher]

My father was present at this race....

[@Ducksauce33]

The guy trapped in the fence with the marshal using bolt cutters was hilarious.

[@brandspro]

Ducksauce wouldn’t have been so hilarious if the car was on fire. Whoever thought catchfencing was a good idea should’ve had their head examined.

[@ThatSB]

@@brandspro How is it a bad idea? Better to have them land in the fans?

[@justincase4254]

I remember getting the results via short wave radio.Late 60s through 70s. Very spotty and reading ROAD & TRACK and AUTOWEEK. I think Speedvision finally with Varsha and Bisignano began covering the series.Ruppert Murdoch got involved in some way, maybe buying out SPEEDVISION. He told the auto sports guys to develop it cause he knew nothing about racing. Some of these things are kind of vague.

[@NWfan2]

Speedvision,Speed Channel were my favorites.My father used buy magazines which had articles about the F1 races,.It was about 1-2 months old news,but the best we had at that time.

[@justincase4254]

At the time it was reported that Giacomelli wasn't his actual name. It was really Irish Jack O'mally, but he thought it sounded better as a race driver being Italian Glacomelli. Joke of course!!

[@GTR-93]

THE SOUNDS BETTER THAN CURRENT F1 CARS

[@RaikkoF1]

Shoulda left all the commercials in lol

[@easyenetwork2023]

What is scary is this is before the Inner Loop. With the Inner loop now, they would probably not need to add an extra chicane:

[@easyenetwork2023]

Not sure why they did since they had the Boot.

[@AlonsoRules]

they dropped this track for Caesars Palace lmfao

[@jgleason1409]

From 1973 forward I was at everyone of them

[@neillp3827]

Was that the year of ceverts ctash

[@90daysinvegas53]

@@neillp3827 No, Ceverts crash was in 1973. His teammate, Jackie Stewart already had enough points to claim the World Championship at that race and immediately retired out of respect for Cevert and also to put his influence on improving track safety. His practice session was the last time he was in a Formula 1 car to compete in a race.

[@neillp3827]

@@90daysinvegas53 hi, yeah I meant 1973, the dude above said that was his first gp, he went to from that year.

[@Yosemite-George-61]

...some of the best close-up shots of the time ruined by the friggin' commercials...

[@dougaranda6187]

It's a strange feeling to see your scaffolding on the outside of Turn 1, 41 years later.

[@todd4866]

Well Doug that's my scaffolding on the outside of turn 11 with the drawings of the the F-1 cars on white bedsheets hanging from it . We actually wound up partying down by your scaffolding Saturday night then the party moved down to our scaffolding. Sadly I needed to do the fireman carry for my best friend who passed out at your place . But I bet you didn't have the Penthouse Playmates on your scaffolding race day like we did for the whole race . Do you remember the "Ugly Brothers" from North Carolina ? They brought the WHITE LIGHTING every year !!

[@dougaranda6187]

@@todd4866 The outside of Turn 1 was all wooded then. We actually went Tuesday night to put our scaffolding up. There was enough room in the trees to get a few vehicles in there to camp, so it was a really nice spot. The rules were way more relaxed back then. I can still remember most of the weekend.

[@todd3285]

@@dougaranda6187 " LONG LIVE THE BOG !! "

[@kge420]

Is the announcer Don Earle the same Don Earle that did play by play hockey?

[@Joseph-su3fc]

Yes! He announced other races at that time, but memory's gearbox is stuck in neutral. Flyers, Riverside, penalty box.... Just so much better than today's announcers... 🤑🤢🤮

[@fritzthedog007]

Not bad, decent commentary and coverage, for the time. I wonder if the commentary was live or recorded afterwards, he seemed to know immediately who went off at the first corner.

[@mercoid]

His wording was awkward when Jones went off. He also failed to mention that other drivers went off in the same spot after Jones. Overall and throughout, I found his announcing skills to be quite poor.

[@fritzthedog007]

@@mercoid O.K. then how about that funky slap bass at 0:54

[@Joseph-su3fc]

First Beta tape I ever recorded, has the opening Toyota pro celebrity race, astronauts, penthouse playmates, actors, singers, Micheal Andretti, Paul Williams goes straight off the chicane, astronaut ( Pete Conrad) flips upsidedown out of last turn, hence all the marks & dust all around the track. Nice to view a race without screaming announcers, oh yeah, 70,000 spectators, guess the 35,000 more got in free? 🤔

[@mikeroberts5646]

Caught in the catch fence,good thing there was no fire

[@tiadaid]

That's something we'll never see again - an F1 race sponsored by a car manufacturer that's NOT involved it F1. Also what's up with American broadcasters? Every single motorsport coverage I've seen from American broadcasters is very sponsor-friendly! You'll never see any other broadcaster going into detail about the car's sponsor....

[@crazydrummer181]

4:19 very disappointing to hear as an American F1 fan. It’s been too long...

[@jjsanuth5731]

I seen all the coolest F1 cars driving and racing there till it closed Stewart hunt lauda Andretti 6 wheel first turbo cars everyone laughed at the Renault then they got it right changed f1 forever.

[@HarshadJoshi]

Life was simple back then #f1

[@ChristopherHagee]

Syndicated Mizlou TV network aired this race 🏁 🏎

[@master-kq3nw]

Last race on legendary watkins

[@Elfwald]

Keep thinking "ohh that's going to be a safety car" lol.

[@Yosemite-George-61]

...an Alfa leading... and is carrieing 50 gallons of gas...too bad it broke, could'a been huge... Daly was a disaster...

[@bogthing1]

Truly a shame that the event no longer exists.

[@cavy95]

Look how much they bounce.

[@diegoferreyra8166]

Any idea where i can watch this race full?

[@philsan69]

Giacomelli and Alfa Romeo would have deserved the victory.

[@overspray6057]

I was there, the end of Camalot.

[@jeremybenjamin2377]

10.25...A portent of Andrea's next year at McLaren!

[@neillp3827]

It was good they let jacks rotten feet compete in the active suspension Renault a year after he died

[@hanzblicks6343]

4:32 John Watson looks like beeing 84 years old.

[@krzie18]

Autobiomelli brought me here

[@jjsanuth5731]

THE BOGG

[@markwood4200]

Ahh. The Bog...

[@caribman10]

This sadly was Alfa's apogee in this era..

[@ORMA1]

Don't forget the great 1982 car, carbon fiber and turbo V6.....: only financial troubles could stop Alfa success

[@ΚωνσταντίνοςΚωνσταντίνου-θ1ψ]

@@ORMA1 If Patrick Depailler wasnt killed in that accident...Alfa Romeo would have take the championship...

[@ORMA1]

@@ΚωνσταντίνοςΚωνσταντίνου-θ1ψ may be.

[@emielb273]

Were is jan Lammers

[@spaceman103]

Glider Aviation crashed in round 16. Took a wrong turn.

[@renatomartinez5708]

Giacomelli was very bad lucky that day, when the race was just won, a mechanical failure ruined his victory. Never after he got chance to win a F1 race. What a pity.

[@leongt1954]

Alan jones considers this race as his best

[@andysee6996]

Fuck all the people who burned things in the boot! You're the reason why F1 has been back to Watkins Glen since 1980!

[@klepetar]

10:20..haha ..de crasheris again..

[@pf6797]

Slow. Slow, but deadly looking.

[@outfield1988]

Car’s sounded so mean back then. Can’t stand modern F1.

[@billbentley861]

🥴

[@cristiandariorondinelli8171]

Jones wins de race and thend the championship thnks to REUTEMANN who had to let himslf go , Jones a mediocre champion

[@mikeroberts5646]

Worst F1 driver Derek Daly

[@ORMA1]

Do you forget Keegan? Rebaque? DE Cesaris?😂

[@mikeroberts5646]

OrMa I gave you Thumbs up but no The first that came to mind in earlier times

[@ORMA1]

@Flame Resistant Troll dear friend, someone said that Senna have some fear about M.A. speed, and - he supposed - his team was not so happy to help Us rookie

[@ORMA1]

@Flame Resistant Troll sure Flame, I agree...remember that both f1 & CART were interested to develop fans in other countries. I suppose MA knew what kind of work he had to do in EU, probably he didn.t like so much f1 world....

[@ORMA1]

@Flame Resistant Troll dear Flame, the marriage's "affaires" are always important!!! Yet, a good driver as MA is, cannot underestimate - imho - f1 troubles.... obviously, max respect for your opinion🏁🌈🖐😁

[@douglasdixon524]

15:20, That would be awful if the car caught fire. Obviously they don't use that type of catch fencing anymore.