Allen Grant has led a truly fascinating life with his passion for cars, motorsport and immense skill behind the wheel leading to him being part of a World Championship-winning team while inspiring one of the main characters in an iconic Hollywood movie.
Grant is a childhood friend of the Star Wars director George Lucas, who later based John Milner, from his first smash hit American Graffiti, on his long-time pal and his fearless driving style. As a competitor, Grant is closely associated with the late Carroll Shelby and his AC Cobras. He was a key driver as the Shelby American factory racing team ripped the FIA World Manufacturer’s Championship from Ferrari in 1965.
The Shelby story is now the inspiration for a range of watches created by Baume & Mercier, including the new Capeland Shelby Cobra 1963 chronographs, of which there is a limited edition version in Grant’s honour.
Where did your passion for cars and motorsport come from, was becoming a racing driver the aim from a young age?
I was from a very middle class family and the only thing instilled in us from day one was that we were going to college, so no is the answer. It started with my first car, a Pontiac, which my father bought me when I was 16. He was a scholar but I was very mechanical so I started putting louder mufflers on it, lowering the car, putting special hubcaps on it and then we’d go into town and drag 10th street. The movie American Graffiti, written by George Lucas, was based on us growing up in Modesto, California.
Then a friend of mine at high school, his father bought him in a new MGA in 1957. One Saturday he and some of our friends, one with a Triumph, another had a Porsche, we drove out to Sierra Nevada, the Mother Lode. On the way back he let me drive and I couldn’t believe it, the way that car turned and handled, turned flat, I was hooked. I sold my car and bought an Austin-Healey.
Baume & Mercier.
How did you go from there to actually competing?
Me and a group of guys would take our cars to the Autocross and race. That was my first taste of it. I could win my class but I wanted to win overall, so I bought an AC Bristol and with that car I could set the fastest times.
In fact, George Lucas in a biography, the guy asked him if he had projected himself into any of characters, especially John Milner in American Graffiti. He said ‘oh no, that was Allen Grant. He was my hero, I wanted to be like him. He won every race he entered’.
In those days you had to be 21 to race, so as soon as I turned 21 I was there. I won 12 out of 14 races and won the West Coast Championship and Rookie of the Year in 1962.
And was it this success that led to you linking up with Carroll Shelby?
Well, as I had promised my parents, I went back to college. But I saw in a magazine that Shelby was putting a team together, so during symmester break I went down there and
offered my services. I stood in front of the front door and waited for him. I introduced myself and said I want to drive for you. He looked at me like ‘who are you, kid?’.
He asked me if I had ever raced before, which was the wrong question because I then told him about every race I ever won. He said he had Dan Gurney and Phil Hill so didn’t need drivers. But he gave me a job as a welder, soon I was over in the competition shop and then they found out I had a couple of years of college so moved me upstairs.
But you wanted to be behind the wheel?
Absolutely, so one of my dealers, Coventry Motors, called up and said they wanted to buy a race car. I said I’d sell them one as long as I could drive it. They agreed, so I called up Lucas and he came down and we designed the paint scheme and all of that. It was called ‘The Executor’.
I had raced it a couple of times and then I came up against the Shelby factory team for the first time at Riverside (International Raceway). It’s actually my favourite race.
I was telling everyone beforehand that I was going to blow away the factory team.
Early on I was spun out and was at the back of the field, but I was determined and eventually came second.
The LA Times reported that ‘Grant went through the field like a constipated bull’.
So when did you start racing in Europe and become involved in this rivalry with Ferrari?
I got drafted and had to join the National Guard, but when I came out Shelby called me and said ‘come back, we are going to Europe’.
They almost won the World Championship in 1964, and by the end of that season we were kicking Ferrari’s a**. He (Enzo Ferrari) knew he was in trouble so used his political pull to have the last round, in Monza, Italy, cancelled. That’s when Carroll Shelby said, ‘next year, Ferrari’s a** is mine’. The first race was back at Monza, I was paired up with Bob Bondurant and we won the race. I then finished second at Oulton Park in England before we had a disaster at Le Mans. But we kept going and clinched the title at Reims.
Was George Lucas still involved at this stage, were you always friends?
George was four years behind me and went to a different school. We met through a little sports car club and we became good friends. Over the years we have stayed in touch. I was one of the few guys allowed up to Skywalker Ranch. I have been up there a bunch of times and my kids all know George. We actually formed a racing team in 1989 called Lucas Film Racing, but we were both so busy the plan got put on hold – and it’s still on hold!
Do you follow motorsport as a fan, are you interested in Formula One?
Absolutely, I liked the Red Bulls and Sebastian Vettel, but he got a little too big for his britches when he had the best car. He got a little cocky but I like what he’s doing with Ferrari now, he’s showing his true colours.
I am not sure what’s happened with Lewis Hamilton, but he’ll be right there, he’s had such bad luck. Alonso is still a talented guy and then there’s that wild Finn, Raikkonen. He parties hard and makes no bones about it. But damn he’s quick when he wants to be.
What do you make of the Shelby/Baume & Mercier partnership and the special watch they have made for you.
I didn’t know much about Baume & Mercier but now I have gotten to know them, one thing I appreciate is that everything is so subtle, classic and refined. To see this thing (points to watch) and see the second hand, the Cobra and all the other references… It is just so classy and to have the special one for me, that’s just amazing.
