May 16, 1936 - October 26, 2011
Horst Kroll
Hometown: Scarborough, Ontario, Canada.
The Canadian auto racing legend died suddenly at home of natural causes on Thursday, October 26, 2017 in his 81st year. Born in Germany, Kroll came to Canada at the age of 20. For more than 25-years he engraved his name in Canadian motor-sport history. As a driver, team owner and car builder, Kroll competed at some of the highest levels of racing in North America.
Kroll won the Canadian Driving Championship in 1968, driving a Kelly Porsche, the same car he beat the factory Porsches in a United States Auto Club race at Watkins Glen. A visit to Kroll's trophy room at his Scarborough condo is testimony to the success this privateer racer has had at every level he has competed. Kroll had done it all, including Formula Vee, Formula A, Formula 5000, Sports Cars, Players GM series, IMSA and Can-Am. In 1994 Horst was inducted into the Canadian Motorsport Hall of Fame.
From his small auto repair shop in West Hill, Ont, Horst manufactured a fleet of 18 Altona Formula Vees, his cars winning the 1969 Canadian Formula Vee Championship, with Brian Steward behind the wheel. Many young drivers including myself got there start in one of Kroll's Altonas.
Horst with his personal Altona - Shannonville 1982
Over the years Kroll provided auto repairs, specialized vehicle restorations and personal racing services. Kroll's cars provided rides for drivers such as, Paul Tracy, Bill Adam, Joe DeMarco, Duff Hubbard, John Graham, Mike Freberg, and Jacques Villeneuve Sr, just to name a few.
I first met Horst on June 2nd, 1982 while attending my first Can-Am race as a guest of driver Duff Hubbard. Little did I know that day was the beginning of a relationship that would give me 5 of the most fun years of my life. An experience that would see me go from being a fan to driver and crew member for one of the legends of the sport.
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| My Kroll built Altona Formula Vee |
Of the many achievements, his biggest accomplishment was winning the 1986 Can-Am Championship, after being runner up the previous year and third in 1984. Horst made more starts in Can-Am than any other driver, putting his name in the SCCA record books for the most consecutive top 10 finishes at 18 and the most consecutive finishes at 23. To me these records were most deserving. In over 3 seasons as a crew member with Horst, we never knew what it was like to have a DNF. Anyone who knows Horst will tell you, the one thing that stood out is the "never say quit" attitude in which he approached every race. Often running on a shoe string budget and paying his own bills, Horst was often forced to settle for a paycheck than taking risk that the high priced and factory teams could afford. Horst once told me "The racing was easy. Getting there was the hard part". At the beginning of my career Horst explained "victory in this sport is knowing you did the best job you could with the equipment you have"
For Horst one of the biggest victories of his long career came in September, 1986, when 17-year-old Paul Tracy became the youngest winner in Can-Am history, and he finished second to clinch the series Championship.
"Paul and I finished one-two. It was one of the greatest moments of my racing career" Horst said to me awhile ago "Having your cars finish first and second, winning the Championship I had worked so hard for, and helping a young driver on his way to a Hall of Fame career, as a driver and owner it was a great day"
For myself and my Horst Kroll Racing teammates it was also a moment to cherish. So many miles and long hours we had spent chasing down this dream, and there it was, our Champion driver standing on the podium, the Mosport crowd cheering wildly, and a young rising star beside him. It was a great moment in our country's motorsport history and I still to this day feel so thankful and fortunate to be apart of it.
For more on my experiences with Horst see;
Kroll and his Frissbee KR-3 - 2007 VARAC Festival.
(Photo credit;Gary Grant at thegarageblog.com)
1 comment:
As a journalist who found Horst an endless source of inspiration (and subject of many stories), I am really happy to have stumbled on to your account. I know I am going to enjoy every section of it.
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