US racing legend Bob Bondurant races on to the heavens

Few drivers enjoyed the privilege of making their F1 debut with Ferrari. Bob Bondurant, who passed away on Friday at 88, was one of them.

The American racing legend, who put his talent and expertise to use for the benefit of others when he created the famous "Bob Bondurant School of High Performance Driving" in 1968, had cut his teeth on the West Coast sports car scene in the 50s and 60s when he was called up by Carroll Shelby in 1964 to race for Ford's Cobra team in the World Manufacturer's Championship, winning the GT class at Le Mans with Dan Gurney.

But the skills of the man that had inflicted defeat upon the mighty Ferrari squad did not go unnoticed in Maranello. When works driver John Surtees broke a leg in a Can-Am event, Bondurant was called up by Enzo Ferrari who entrusted one of his NART-entered cars to the American at the 1965 US Grand Prix at Watkins Glen.

It would prove to be a memorable debut, although not exactly for the right reasons as Bondurant vividly recalled.

"My first Grand Prix, and I was in a Ferrari! I started 13th and worked my way up to sixth, but when it began to rain, the elastic strap on my goggles started to stretch and they blew down on my face.

"I couldn't see anything! I couldn't come into the pits because I would have lost too much time, so I had to pull them back up and hold them, putting my knee against the wheel and shifting with my right hand.

"I still ended up ninth. I felt great, and the car - they gave me the V8 - was just fantastic."

But Bondurant's run with Ferrari remained a one-off. However, the American enjoyed more F1 outings in F1 the following, mainly with private BRM outfit Team Chamaco Collect with whom he scored an impressive fourth-place finish at Monaco. He then capped off the 1966 season with two races run with Dan Gurney's Eagle team.

A crash the following year at Watkins Glen spelled the end of his racing career, after which he embarked on a career as a highly praised instructor, establishing his first racing school at Orange County International Raceway in California.

For over forty years, Bondurant enthusiastically greeted and coached new students – including many Hollywood actors – until he hung up his helmet at the age of 85.