"Happy Birthday" Kees Nierop

March 16, 1958

Kees Nierop

(Photo; keesnierop.com)

Born in Purmerend, Netherlands.

He is most noted for winning the 1983 12 Hours of Sebring race while driving a Porsche 934. He is also credited with being the only Canadian to have his name on a Porsche factory race car, which is displayed in the Porsche Museum located in Stuttgart, Germany.

Nierop was exposed to motor sport through his father Klaas who took Kees to races in Europe before immigrating to Canada. It was after the Nierop family settled in Kelowna , BC, that Kees, at the age of 18, attempted his first motor sport event, the Knox Mountain Hillclimb. Success never comes easily, as Nierop rolled his Datsun 240z on his way up the hill.

Undaunted, Nierop repaired the 240z and proceeds to achieve greater success, finally winning the Canadian GT-1 Championship in 1978. It was also that year that a Formula Atlantic ride was obtained for his home track at Westwood, BC. The North American Formula Atlantic Series was still hotly contested. Gilles Villeneuve had just moved to Ferrari and the likes of Tom Gloy, Howdy Holmes, Danny Sullivan, Keke Rosberg and Jacques Villeneuve were looking for their big break. Nierop, never having driven a Formula car of any kind, qualified a remarkable sixth. Mechanical problems forced him out of the race.

Other highlights of Nierop’s career include, two years racing the highly competitive English Formula 3 Championship, competing at Mosport in the World Endurance Championship race, driving a Porsche 956 and achieving a 5th fastest time after the Rothmans and Skoal Porsches, drove the late Bob Akin’s famous Coca Cola 962 to a third place finish at Road America, and won the Firehawk 24 hour race at Watkins Glen with a 944. 

Nierop captured the the 1986 Canadian Rothmans Porsche Championship, competing against names like Scott Goodyear, Richard Spenard, Bill Adam and Paul Tracy. Nierop was named among the top 10 in a field of 150 competing for the Porsche North American Cup. Nierop also drove a full season for Steve Saleen in the Saleen Mustangs.

For 2007 and 2008 Nierop was the Porsche North America (team Canada) driver entered in the grueling 7200 km Transsyberia Rally driving a specially Porsche factory prepared Porsche Cayenne S. This is a two week off-road event from Moscow , Russia to Ulaan Bataar , Mongolia .

Kees is a certified Porsche Sport Driving School instructor since 2008. In 2009 Kees worked together with Jonathan Urlin on the “Tour de Porsche” program. The “Tour de Porsche” was a Porsche Canada program which visited every Porsche dealer in Canada and promoted the Porsche line up of vehicles to prospective customers.

Kees joined Bullet Racing in 2009, for selected races with their Porsche Turbo. In 2010, he teamed up with Bullet Racing and Ross Bentley, for the 2010 Rolex Daytona 24 hr, in a Porsche GT3 Cup car. Nierop drove across the finish line of the Daytona 24hr race for the final time. He also won the Westcoast Sportscar Championship in BC. Nierop then retired in 2011 from competitive racing and has since been a full time driving instructor at driving events for Porsche Sport Driving School, Porsche USA and Porsche Canada events.